DJ Trace was an early member of the tight-knit crew of producers constituting popular techstep drum'n'bass label No U-Turn. His first crack at broad exposure came through the compilation "Techsteppin'" released on Emotif in 1995.

It contained a number of tracks licensed from the No U-Turn studios, and helped seed a new direction in drum'n'bass, one characterized by heavy use of electronics, cavernous beats and basslines, and the dystopian histrionics that have since become trademarks of the No U-Turn/Nu Black sound.

"The Mutant" (a remix of T.Power's "Mutant Jazz"), was released on Emotif in 1995. It also spawned a remix of its own, "Mutant Revisited". The remix became one of the most influential trial runs for the so-called "reece" bassline that would later become hugely popular within the genre.

Today, Trace runs DSCI4, a label that has pushed through producers like Black Sun Empire, SKC and Chris.SU as well as having legendary names like Bad Company, Kemal & Rob Data, Stakka & Skynet and Optical in its back catalogue.