Gearwhore

Gearwhore is the project of DJ Brian Natonski, who took the name from his obsession with top-quality recording equipment. Starting out as an engineer at the Chicago Trax Studio, he got to see the likes of Ministry and KMFDM work and play. Natonski began his career as an engineer at Chicago Trax Studio, later moving to Orange County, California and founding his own label, Fatal Data, with his partner Shaheen.

Starting out as an engineer at the Chicago Trax Studio, he got to see the likes of Ministry and KMFDM work and play. Natonski began his career as an engineer at Chicago Trax Studio, later moving to Orange County, California and founding his own label, Fatal Data, with his partner Shaheen. Natonski issued singles under the Gearwhore alias, among others, and produced Skylab 2000's "Auburn." In 1997, Gearwhore signed with the Astralwerks label, issuing The Passion EP that year as a precursor to his full-length debut, 1998's Drive.

Drive is cold and extremely danceable electronica. All breakbeats and the occasional power chord. But if that's just what you're looking for, go no further than the onion-peel rhythm layers of "Accelerator" or the creatively percussive sampling on "11:11."

Gearwhore veered off track, though. His fantastic jazz-funk shows ? one at the Galaxy Concert Theater in 1999 ? were a hit with critics, but they left rave kids scratching their heads. Later that year, he moved to a seedy section of Hollywood, where he hosted madcap after-hours parties and composed video game soundtracks.

Gearwhore tracks can be found on many video games including Gran Turismo 2, Apocolypse and FIFA 99.