Machinedrum

Machinedrum is American producer Travis Stewart, whose music moves between jungle, footwork, hip-hop, and experimental club sounds. Rather than staying with one tempo or scene, he has built a catalogue in which detailed percussion and melody connect records made for very different settings.

Born in North Carolina, Stewart released his debut album Now You Know in 2001. Room(s) followed on Planet Mu in 2011, before Vapor City began a long association with Ninja Tune in 2013. Later albums include Human Energy and A View of U.

For 3FOR82, released in May 2024, he revisited music from his past while working towards something new. A writing trip to Joshua Tree around his birthday helped start the process, and the finished album brought together collaborators including Tinashe, KUČKA, and Mick Jenkins. His own earlier recordings became material to reconsider rather than simply a catalogue to look back on.

Collaboration has also taken him into separate projects: Sepalcure with Praveen Sharma, and J-E-T-S with Jimmy Edgar. Those partnerships sit alongside his solo records and production for other artists. Jungle is a recurring part of that musical life, but describing him solely as a drum and bass producer would miss much of it.