Though his roots are from within the U.S. house firmament, New Jersey producer Todd Edwards is considered the godfather of U.K. garage. In the early-‘90s, Edwards began a fruitful association with the New York-based Nervous label, remixing house vocalists like Veda Simpson and Kim English. He soon distinguished himself with his gritty, but soulful, sampladelic style: collaging hundreds of snippets from various R&B, disco, and gospel vocals against a bumping house groove. Though little-known in America, breakthrough U.K. singles like “Saved My Life,” with its sinewy bass line and cut-up diva vocals, served as the template for the nascent British garage sound. While his music continues to be largely out-of-step with the house mainstream, Edwards’ work has proven to be influential amongst the dance music cognoscenti; Edwards worked with Daft Punk in 2001 on their sophomore release DISCOVERY, while cutting-edge electronica upstarts like Justice and Akufen have cited him as an influence.