Scratching the Surface

London DJs and producers Ed Rush and Optical teamed up in 1998 for a series of landmark releases on their Virus Recordings label that earned the pair superstar DJ status. Each had achieved moderate success on his own within the techstep drum-and-bass scene; their collaboration proved to be one of the key genre-defining moments, and their names have been linked ever since. On Medicine, their first release, the duo took drum-and-bass in a new direction, pioneering “Neurofunk” — a sound defined by technically precise drum programming augmented by ferociously distorted, low, funky bass lines — and the two have been at the forefront of the movement ever since. Catch Ed Rush and Optical this Friday, March 18, as they stop by Vinyl with Andy C and Shimon as part of the Vi-Ram tour.