Afronaught

Afronaught is the main alias of Orin Walters, a producer and DJ associated with West London’s broken beat scene. He works in broken beat, a style built around heavily rhythmic breakbeat fusion and chopped-up drum programming, and his music also draws on soul, downtempo, nu jazz and jazz fusion.

Career

Walters begins his route into dance music in the late 1980s, when he listens to pirate radio and attends warehouse parties. He then starts playing house on London pirate stations and takes residencies at several clubs. In the mid-1990s he spends time in Chicago, where he helps operate clubs including Kaboom and the Shelter.

After returning to the UK, he becomes a regular at Ronnie Scott’s. He also begins working with Phil Asher under the name Blak ‘n’ Spanish.

Bugz in the Attic and labels

Walters helps form the Bugz in the Attic collective, which develops into a constantly changing group involved in production and remix work. He also releases music through labels he sets up and helps run, including Mousetrap, Suckers Need Bass and Bitasweet.

As Afronaught

His Afronaught productions have a more overt soul influence than some of his contemporaries. The track “Transcend Me” is noted for its connection to early 1980s Roy Ayers-associated projects such as Sylvia Striplin and the Eighties Ladies, while replacing their smooth feel with dense, stuttering drum patterns. His debut full-length as Afronaught, Shapin’ Fluid, is released on Apollo, the R&S subsidiary, in 2001.

Related projects

Walters is also linked with several other names and projects, including Works of Art, Spank da Monkey, Obsession, USC, Soul Tuition, Neon Phusion, Everyday People, Urban Soul Collective, Orange Water, Afro Force and LO:K8.