Matthew Mercer portrait

Since 2002, electronic musician Matthew Mercer has released nine albums, numerous EPs, and two film soundtracks. Embracing genres as vastly different as techno and ambient, electro-house and drone music, Mercer is always sharply focused on the details; his work spans from glitchy piano recordings to dancefloor bangers.

His twin retrospective releases, 02:20 MIND and 20:02 BODY, each showcase a different side Mercer's varied repertoire, serving up two chronologies of original music. The first, 20:02 BODY, runs in reverse chronology, starting with unreleased minimal techno and then moving back in time toward punchier, faster tracks and ending in early 00s microhouse samplefests, including the title cut from his first 12" single, Secrets, from 2003 on Forte Records.

The second, 02:20 MIND, runs in chronological order, starting with early downtempo and ambient tracks and moving forward in time, featuring a track or two from each of Mercer's less dancefloor-leaning releases. As with 20:02 BODY, there are also some previously unreleased tracks, old and new, that help tell the story of his musical adventures so far.

Mercer’s previous album Entropy (2019) was a deep dive into nuanced sound design, layering environmental and object recordings with manipulated synths, drones, and effects, altogether different from two deep techno albums that preceded it (2017's Nebulae and Starward) . Aside from his solo releases and remixing work for various artists (including Sarah Nixey, Matthias Schaffhäuser, and more), Mercer is one half of both electronic pop duo Microfilm and covers project Jumberlack & the Cobra.

Photo by Geof Teague