Current Value

Berlin-based producer Tim Eliot, best known as Current Value, has been pushing the limits of drum’n’bass since the late 1990s. Over the course of more than a dozen albums and upwards of a hundred singles and EPs, including work as part of the duo Machine Code and the supergroup Underhill, he’s continually refined an unmistakable brand of dark, experimental drum’n’bass marked by clinically precise beats arranged in abstract patterns. Debuting on the Panacea’s Position Chrome label with the 1998 full-length Frequency Hunt, his sound expanded after 2001′s more streamlined Beyond Digits, incorporating more melodic, widescreen elements while remaining tough and uncompromising. After releasing countless hard-edged records for labels like Tech Itch and Future Sickness, as well as ventures into dubstep and crossbreed, he reached a wider audience within the drum’n’bass scene when he began producing more neurofunk-influenced material, such as 2016′s Biocellulose.
Eliot began classical piano training when he was six years old, and started experimenting with electronic music production during the early 1990s. He began releasing steely, abstract drum’n’bass records in 1998 — three singles and the full-length Frequency Hunt appeared on Position Chrome that year, in addition to “Falling Into It” on Don Q Records. Second album Seeds of Mutation appeared in 1999, followed by 2000′s In a Far Future. Beyond Digits, issued by Klangkrieg in 2001, marked a turn towards a slightly more accessible direction. After a 2002 techno diversion as Curve #146, Current Value began embracing bigger breakbeats and more melodic elements on singles like 2003′s “Herd Instinct” and 2005′s “Into the Light.” His unstoppable outpouring of material continued with singles and EPs on Tech Itch, Trouble on Vinyl, Evol Intent, and numerous other labels. He also issued a mixed CD, Therapy Session Vol. 6, in 2007. His apocalyptic fifth album, 2012: The Day of Silence, appeared on Tech Freak Recordings (a joint venture by Tech Itch and Dylan’s Freak Recordings) in 2009. Back to the Machine was released by Subsistenz in 2010, and Revolt & Riot (a collaboration with Donny) came out on Guerilla Recordings in 2011. The scientifically themed Quantum Physics was issued by Barcode Recordings in 2012, and Stay on This Planet was put out by Subsistenz in 2013.
In addition to solo work as Current Value, Eliot had become involved with two major collaborative projects by the early 2010s. With Dean Rodell, he explored dubstep, industrial, techno, and other styles as Machine Code; their debut full-length, Environments, was released in 2011. The two artists were part of a larger assemblage called Underhill, which also included drum’n’bass producer Cooh and former Therion singer Martina Astner, and blended genres such as metal, goth rock, trip-hop, and dubstep. In 2012, Ad Noiseam released Underhill’s debut album, Silent Siren, followed by Prologue in 2014. Also that year, the same label released Machine Code’s third album, Samurai. Aside from these ventures, Current Value received greater exposure through his 2012 remixes of tracks from Björk’s Biophilia.
With releases such as 2015′s Force Black EP (Bad Taste Recordings) and 2016 full-length Biocellulose (Critical Recordings), Current Value’s sound became more accessible than ever, as the producer became closer aligned with the neurofunk subgenre than the hardstep or techstep styles he was previously connected with. His prolific run of full-lengths continued with 2017′s Deadly Toys (Invisible Recordings) and two 2019 LPs, PUER (Souped Up Records) and SENEX (MethLab Recordings). ~ Paul Simpson