Ben And Lex

Ben And Lex

Ben And Lex are a UK breaks act from the West Country. They begin releasing music in 2003, with their debut single, “Cosa Nostra”, on Functional Breaks. The record receives wide DJ and radio support internationally, and it is followed by a double A-side, “Proper Tasty / Reconsidered”, which gains radio play on Radio 1, Ministry of Sound FM, Breaks FM and other international shows. Their early releases help establish them on the breaks scene, and their music also receives support from DJs including Freq Nasty, Krafty Kuts, Skool of Thought, Tayo and Steelzawheelz.

Releases and labels

They continue to work with Functional Breaks, where “Soundgal” appears as Functional #44 and is featured on Freq Nasty’s Breakspoll 2006 compilation. They also work with several other labels, including Big Square for “Floor Burn”, Trusted for “Funky Music”, and Drum and Breaks for “Raw 2 Da Floor / Le Chunk” featuring MC Spee of Dreadzone. Other material includes “Wind It Back” on Silo, remixes for Wut Eva and Breakin Even, and releases on their own label, Ape Records, as well as on Jardim.

Radio, mixes and live work

Ben And Lex present a weekly Nuskool Breaks radio show, and they also contribute guest mixes for Pulseradio.net and Outofthevoid.co.uk. They have an exclusive half-hour mix on BBC Radio 1 for Annie Nightingale. They are residents at Beatz & Bobz, described as the UK’s longest-running monthly breakbeat night, where they support acts such as Rennie Pilgrem, Freq Nasty, Tayo, James Lavelle of Unkle and The Freestylers, alongside artists including Wu-Tang, Afrika Bambaataa, Grandmaster Flash, Adam F & Fresh and DJ Zinc.

Festival appearances

They play at a range of UK and international events, including Glastonbury, The Glade and Beautiful Days. Further appearances include the Miami Winter Music Conference, Dangerous Drums in Berlin, Mission Dance Winter Sessions in Mannheim and the Break Nation festival in Seville.