SBTRKT is the electronic music project of Aaron Jerome, a producer based in London, United Kingdom. The project name is pronounced “subtract”. SBTRKT works in dubstep, future garage and post-dubstep.

Career

SBTRKT debuts in 2009 with remixes of artists including Radiohead, M.I.A., Basement Jaxx and Franz Ferdinand. These remixes bring attention from radio DJs and tastemaker blogs, and lead to further releases on Brainmath, Ramp and Young.

Jerome first appears publicly with tribal masks worn by him and collaborators in live performance. He later stops using the masks in the run-up to the fourth album, The Rat Road.

Albums and collaborations

The self-titled debut album, SBTRKT, appears in 2011 and features Jessie Ware and Sampha. Jerome and Sampha begin working together in 2010 in Jerome’s London apartment, honing their production skills, and that creative partnership continues across later SBTRKT albums.

Wonder Where We Land follows in 2014 and includes contributions from Caroline Polachek, A$AP Ferg, Jessie Ware, Sampha and Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig.

Save Yourself appears in 2016. The project addresses xenophobia, political corruption and the pressures of being an artist under capitalism. It includes contributions from Shelley FKA DRAM, The-Dream and Sampha, and Jerome presents it as a rejection of the traditional album format.

After an extended break, Jerome returns in 2023 with The Rat Road, which continues the SBTRKT project and engages with the idea of the “rat race”. Jerome also discusses his South Asian heritage, the effect of anonymity on his relationship with the project, and his efforts to improve his skills during the hiatus.