n 2001, Lorin Ashton spent somewhere between 110 and 125 nights playing music for large groups of dancing people. Between 25 and 50 of his evenings in 2001 were spent in the pursuits of health and relaxation, while the rest saw him buried deep within his music studio. "Up around noon, lunch at midnight, to sleep at sunrise," Lorin muses of his music–making habits which involve an array of projects ranging from producing original music and remixes; to digitally editing and rearranging tracks for his eclectic DJ sets; to editing video; to promoting and performing at a long list of clubs, festivals, and dance parties. Since 1995, he has been pushing waves of genre–bending hybrid acoustics as a DJ, producer, remixer and recording artist. Bent on the pursuit of phonetic novelty, his sound has evolved through a myriad of styles and sub–genres, resulting in his own unique blend of deep, driving, hypnotic dance music which he refers to as "Freakbeat" – defined as a high–energy, eclectic blend of Nu Breaks, Garage, 2step, House, Hip Hop, Drum´n´Bass and Bass´n´Drum. It´s Heavy on the Funk, and even Heavier on the Bass. Under the moniker "Bassnectar," Lorin received an overwhelmingly positive response for the remix work he did with Spearhead for their album, "Stay Human," released on Six Degrees Records, one of the industry´s pioneering labels for the burgeoning ethnic/world electronic remix scene. His remix of the track "Listener Supported" enjoyed massive international release on "Groundwork2001," a CD compilation which also featured tracks from Madonna, Moby, Talvin Singh, Tom Waits, and others. Other remixing credits include Perry Farrell (Virgin Records), Landslide (OM Records), and Children ov Paradise (Japan). As a DJ, Lorin combines the sounds of his original mixes, blended in with that of remixes and exclusive edits, spinning diverse sets that span the map of electronic dance music in all of its hybrids and sub–genres. Over the years, Lorin has achieved a rare level of eclecticness as he rides on the fore–front cusp of electronic dance music. One of the few cross–over DJs to break through in America, his sets melt from one style into the next, changing tempos and speeds, and taking dancers on a high energy journey through the unexpected. At Burningman 2000, Lorin caught the eye of Lotus Magazine during his still talked about 4 hour blazing set on the night of the Burn. He was voted "Best Musical Experience at Burningman" and was featured in the Winter 2000 issue of Lotus. This past year he played to thousands of people just a few hundred feet from the Burn. In addition to completing an overwhelming amount of remix work, he is in the process of shopping the funky, cutting edge Bassnectar sound around to various American and European Record labels. Most recently, Om Records (San Francisco) signed the Bassnectar & Sayr track "Float" and are now in the process of negotiating a DJ Mix–CD series entitled "The Tempo of Dreams" which will be mixed by Lorin and features the music of Bassnectar. Recently, Lorin has also been turning to the video industry. Bassnectar´s 1999 stormer "Needzasubwoofer" was chosen as the soundtrack to the 2001 MVPA Award Ceremony, the music video industry´s exclusive awards ceremony. In addition, his songs are being sought after by MTV for use in commercials and advertisements. Maintaining his residency at many Bay Area events – such as THUMP RADIO, Atomic, 13 Moontribe, Yoga Tai Chi, Heaven, and LA´s Club Sugar – Lorin has been making a name for himself throughout the West Coast and up into British Columbia. With tour dates popping up all across the United States, he is heading to Costa Rica, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan for the Winter and Spring of 2002.
