Ben Hauke has spent more than a decade building a sound rooted in groove and energy, moving between an array of genres from house and techno to broken beat. The London producer and live musician has toured across the US and Europe, as well as featuring in King Krule’s band, handling sound effects and atmospheres. On top of this, Hauke’s productions have featured on Fabric’s Broken Beat compilation and Mount Kimbie’s Fabric Presents, with support from the likes of Mary Anne Hobbs and Jamz Supernova. Now, the young artist returns with Future Bruk, out 29th October on his own label, Woop Records, consisting of ten tracks that push broken beat into darker and more experimental territory while keeping its rhythmic DNA at the core.
The album is partly a response to the broken beat scene’s reluctance to move on from an established sound, and to the name of Marc Mac’s Vintage Bruk. It pulls in electro, two-step, raw club music and experimental textures, with guests including Sheiva and Nigerian artist Meso-IX. Made largely between July and December 2025, with around 15 extra tracks cut along the way, it’s very much crafted for both the club and the headphones. We caught up with Hauke to talk about where the idea came from, going it alone on his own label, how Club Cute and King Krule fit into the picture and what comes next.
With Future Bruk, you seem to have moved away from the softer side of broken beat, pushing it into darker and more experimental territory. Was this a sudden idea you had, or something that had been building for a while before the album finally gave you the excuse to act on it?
Ben: I got bored of the softer side of dance music in general about four years ago and with that, I stepped away from broken beat however the groove of broken beat as always kept an interest with me. Its infectious. Last year, when searching for something to make, everything kept pushing me back towards broken broken: from people I met who like my broken beat music to seeing people dancing to it in clubs.
I was playing a small show in Paris and the DJ before me was playing a lot of broken beat and hearing it in the club again and seeing everyone dancing to it. I just wrote a note on my phone saying “it’s all about BRUK”, I knew I had to go back there somewhere somehow. I also knew I could push myself a bit further in my production so put together this concept, broken beat at its core but stepped as far away from it as possible whilst retaining it’s DNA. I basically want to make some music that broken beat heads would like, but also tunes that people who aren’t into broken be will like, if that makes sense?
The upcoming album is releasing via your very own label, Woop Records. Does putting this specific record out on your own imprint feel different to releasing on someone else’s, especially given how personal the album’s direction is?
Ben: Only in the sense that it’s easier to keep control over release dates and direction. I was also very conscious that this was quite a niche and somewhat unapproachable album to some people, so I couldn’t be bothered to deal with rejection. Don’t get me wrong, I sent it to a few labels but after four ‘not for us’ or ghosted emails, I committed to doing it myself…
You’ve cited Mark Mac’s VINTAGE Bruk as a fellow traveller in reimagining the genre. What did hearing that record do for you, did it validate a direction you were already moving in, or actually push you somewhere new?
Ben: My album is kind of a response to the records name more than the record itself, but more so it’s a response to the general broken beat scene and how it doesn’t seem to want to move past a sound that was established way back then with Mark Mac (and many others). Why do people want to make something that is literally vintage or not trying to push things forward at least a bit?
Here’s the sad truth, if you’re making music that literally sounds like it’s been made already you might as well just get replaced by an AI music generating software. If you’re not thriving for originality, then I don’t think there’s very much space for you in the next 10 years.
Obviously the Marc Mac album Vintage BRUK is the original sound; so I’m not talking about that record, but in general in dance music… it’s all a bit retro and samey.
However, I get it, being original and accessible is an extremely hard thing to achieve.
“FYS” is the first taste of the album, what made that the right track to lead with, out of the ten?
Ben: I think it was one of the first tracks I made for the record and originally it was going to be the opener to the album. I decided against it being the opener as it was a bit too heavy but thought it would be good introduction to the concept, as it’s the most extreme example of what I am trying to achieve.
The album pulls from the likes of electro, two-step, raw club music and experimental electronics while keeping broken beat’s rhythmic DNA at the core. When you’re building a track, does that core groove come first, or do you find it later once the other elements are already in place?
Ben: Usually I always start with the drums and that would be the obvious thing to do with this record. However, I knew if I started with the standard bruk drums, it would lead me to an obvious and cliche place. So I focused more on interesting musical ideas first, be it chords, sequences, strange loops, baselines and then try to introduce the broken beat sound. So that that was the main approach when making this. Start with an interesting musical idea and then incorporate the bruk .
It seems you have built a reputation as a “producer’s producer”, someone other producers pay close attention to. What do you think it is about your process specifically, the sampling, the sound design, that other people in the scene tend to pick up on or respond to?
Ben: To be honest I don’t have much of an idea why. I’m definitely not the best producer technically. I’m constantly blown away by the production levels of other artists, however maybe my simple approach is accessible to other producers. There’s not many tricks, it’s just ideas which are quite obvious but somehow work, also maybe because I put quite a lot out that makes people inspired. I’m not sure I can answer this question best though.
Your 2024 album Club Cute on Touching Bass, with features from Katy B, Shy One and Jadasea, showed a softer, more song-based side of you. Was Future Bruk partly a deliberate reaction to that record, a swing back toward something harder and more club-focused?
Ben: Yeah for sure. That album was made over 3 years which made the process a bit odd and a bit disconnected if I’m honest. Club Cute was definitely saying goodbye to that more song structured approach. For this record, Future Bruk, I also knew I needed to have a clear focus of what I wanted the album to be conceptually. Whilst with Club Cute it was more of a compilation, like a VA, working with a lot of people which is not a good artistic place to start from, as you become more of an artist liaison rather than an artist yourself.
This album needed to be clearly saying something or attempting something new.
You play live with King Krule, handling synths, samples and sound effects in the band. Does playing in someone else’s live setup change how you think about rhythm and space in your own productions, or do you keep those worlds fairly separate?
Ben: Actually quite the opposite; my production skills and studio work lends itself to doing that role in King Krule. I’m basically doing the sound effects and atmospheres live which is a part of all production. I would say though playing in a band which is guitar led, really makes you realise how simple strong sounds and lyrics are still the best trick in the game.
Broken beat has always been closely tied to London, its sound system culture, its specific neighbourhoods and scenes. As you push it into darker and more experimental territory, do you feel a responsibility to where the genre came from, or is this new chapter meant to exist on its own terms?
Ben: I can’t help feel a bit of a responsibility but at the same time, no, not really. I kind of want to distort it a bit and I wouldn’t mind if some people get a bit bothered by this record. It would be great if it developed into a whole new generation who weren’t connected to London at all. It’s banging how it is still connected and how the originals are still playing shows with the new gen, but if anything I kind of want some people to reject this album and to call me out saying this is not BRUK. I think that would be quite fun, and I wouldn’t blame them.
Looking back at over 20M Spotify plays and a decade of releases across labels such as Far Out, Church and your own Woop, does Future Bruk feel like a culmination of everything so far, or more like the start of a genuinely new chapter?
Ben: I think it feels like something new but not a new chapter. Sometimes I feel a bit embarrassed how much my sound changes over the years as if it’s something I’m not being honest about. I’m sure there’s a connection there that someone can hear, but all I ever hear is the last track I made. Since this album has been announced I’ve made about 20 other tracks going in a slightly different direction, I’m calling it BRUK-TECH. Watch this space.