Producer and DJ Eryk Kowalczyk (a.k.a. Xilent) was raised in Warsaw, Poland, with a soundtrack of '80s funk, pop, and soul. (His parents were professional musicians; while his father drummed and sang for various bands, Kowalczyk’s mother was a conductor, pianist, and cellist.) At age eight, Kowalczyk was already trying to create house and techno on a primitive Propellerhead Rebirth RB-338 software synthesizer. This amalgam of influences swirls into his 2012 Touch Sound EP, recorded as Xilent. The title track infuses a prominent drum ‘n’ bass/dubstep hybrid with plenty of ‘80s-flavored keyboards. And his melodies are arranged with the elegant taste of an orchestral conductor’s son. The close attention paid to the tone of his beats can be heard in “Let Us Be” and throughout Touch Sound. “Universe” is a six-minute soundtrack to a panoramic audio realm. In an era when so much dubstep has been commercially watered down for college parties—hence the “bro-step” tag—it’s refreshing to hear Xilent keeping the genre fresh and innovative.