Jonny L is a British electronic producer whose recording history reaches from early rave music into drum and bass. Hurt You So belongs to the hardcore part of that story, while the 1997 album Sawtooth on XL Recordings became a central reference point for his drum and bass work. The later Magnetic album followed in 1998, extending a catalogue that could be both forceful and carefully atmospheric.
Sawtooth is particularly useful for hearing those different approaches together. In its retrospective review of the record, Resident Advisor described Wish U Had Something through techstep, while identifying an atmospheric character in Tychonic Cycle. Its account also placed I Let U among early examples of the melodic direction that would come to be called liquid. These descriptions concern particular tracks, rather than reducing the entire album to one style.
That range gives the record much of its interest. The harder material and the more spacious arrangements belong to the same producer, with rhythm, repetition, and changes in texture doing different jobs across the tracklist. Exploring the album alongside Magnetic offers more context than starting with a single remix or treating Jonny L solely as a name from a particular period.
Later recordings include Politix on Soul in Motion Records. That continuation places the earlier albums within a wider recording history, with new releases finding different settings for his production. The early hardcore records and the drum and bass of Sawtooth and Magnetic offer distinct starting points, linked by a producer whose music could move between pressure, space, and melody.
