Fearful

Fearful is the solo project of UK producer Chris Murray, whose drum and bass background has led into a broader exploration of electronic music. His partnership with Belgian duo Mtwn grew from a shared interest in experimental sounds while all three musicians were releasing through Diffrent Music.

After meeting around Fearful’s 2018 album launch in London, they began exchanging ideas remotely. Modular synthesis became an important part of that relationship, with Mtwn’s Dimitri and Max Mathieu sending sounds that Murray could reshape into new contexts. Their first collaborative album, Exordium, appeared on YUKU in 2021, with much of the material written during lockdown.

The follow-up, Beyond the Veil, arrived in 2023 and featured Riko Dan. Speaking to Rendah Mag, the artists described a move from the more abstract listening experience of Exordium towards a harder, more danceable record. Murray’s own account describes tracks being repeatedly dismantled and rebuilt as the group developed that direction.

Those experiments also renewed his interest in drum and bass. In the same interview, Murray said completing Beyond The Veil had renewed his desire to write drum and bass after years without that urge.