Drum & bass DJs such as Randall and Andy C and many others have been paying tribute to stalwart DJ/producer Spirit, who has died following a cardiac arrest.



Feeding quality dancefloor tracks into the scene for over 20 years, Spirit - real name Duncan Busto — began his music career working in the Redeye Records shop in Ipswich in the East of England. This somewhat unlikely hub also spawned Photek, Klute and Paul Arnold’s Certificate 18 Records, and it was with Klute that Spirit made his first track.



Teaching himself his craft as a producer, Spirit went on to record on labels like Timeless and CIA before starting his own label, Inneractive.



His sometime partnership with Digital, following the ‘Phantom Force’ project, and increasing acceptance of his music by scene bigwigs allowed him to go full time just before the Millennium.

He was a prolific producer who went on to release on top labels like Metalheadz, Commercial Suicide, Shogun Audio, V Recordings and Dispatch.



The sad loss of Spirit comes just over a year after other producer mainstays Marcus Intalex and Tango passed away.

In an interview with UKF last year, Spirit referred to himself as a ‘Drum & Bass Lifer’. He was in it for the duration. He will be sorely missed.



DJ Mag sends best wishes to all of Duncan’s family and friends.