DJ Mag

For our third annual Best Of British Awards, we bring forth the baddest Brit beats known to humanity, with ‘The Empire Strikes Back’— a sick selection of tunes from some of the UK’s leading producers.

Jamie Jones

'Summertime (Extended Vocal)'

Take one creeping, Chicago bassline, add a spine-tingling, stark synth riff, sprinkle with Prince-esque, perv-funk vocal tones and bake for an instant classic.

Cooly G

'Love Dub'

The first lady of UK funky blew our minds with this euphonious sliver of quicksilver sighs, lovelorn lyrics and wistful, smoked out pads.

Glimpse & Jay Shepheard

'Colours'

On this link up with fellow Brit producer Jay Shepheard, Christopher Spero cuts loose and flies the flag for melodic, sun-dappled house music: the result is one of the most potent, primary rhythms in his deadly cache of cuts.

Skream

'Burning Up'

Pure unadulterated fire - speed-on-your-cornflakes, zinging old school power from Skream who delves in the drum & bass crates to fashion a neo junglist banger light years from the dubstep material he's known for.

5. Silicone Soul

'David Vincent's Blues'

Opiated disco of the highest order, the slide guitar strangeness and hall-of-mirrors otherness of 'David Vincent's Blues' was an instant standout of Silicone Soul's damn fine eponymous 2009 album.

6. Instra:mental

'Tramma'

Anyone still doubting whether electronic music can have a soul should be prescribed the works of Instra:mental forthwith.

7. Sei A

'Meth'

The icy, haunted melodies and disquieting lyrics of Andy Graham, or Sei A's 'Meth' bear the signature of techno's most exciting new producer. Adding melancholic vocals to a bewitching brew of bittersweet synths and urgent, club-ready beats, Sei A demonstrates why everyone from Tiga to DJ Hell are all clamouring to sign his tracks.

8. The Nextmen feat Ms. Dynamite & Andy Cato

'The Lion's Den'

In which the hip-hop tag team embrace the dance sounds they'd been gravitating towards for some time.

9. Radio Slave

'Koma Koma (Steve Lawler Remix)'

Who else could improve on the immense tribal energy of Radio Slave's original (part six in his 'No Sleep' series), than the master of dark drums himself? Lawler's mix has an even more cavernous, room-filling energy, matching rainforest resonating chants with upfront bass hits and layers of percussion - a riot of lights-out potency.

10. Tony Lionni

'Celebration'

Arriving as if from nowhere with the fully-formed, old school piano-laden house rush of 'Found A Place', Liverpudlian Lionni decided to go one better for his follow up, smacking us on the chops with the electric, rising energy of 'Celebration'.

11. Toddla T

'Manabadman'

Sheffield's dancehall scamp serves up a piping-hot portion of jump-up drum & bass mania from his debut album 'Skanky Skanky'.

12. Will Saul & Tam Cooper

'In And Out'

The wistful, wavering aquamarine textures and robust electronic bass rumbles of 'In And Out' from long-standing production team Saul & Cooper are anything but ordinary.

13. King Roc

'The Growing Phrase'

King Roc's bittersweet electronic house cut, from his supreme album 'Chapters' is a suitably elegiac way to sign off. Sounding like Underworld circa 'Dubnobasswithmyheadman', but with a touch of 2009 studio wizardry, it goes to show when it comes to dance music, us Brits really do know our stuff.