Born and raised on the West side of Detroit, Ashton Swinton is a second generation DJ who grew up hearing ghettotech spun in his basement, and his uncle playing for hours on WJLB. He went on frequent renegade trips into the city’s abandoned buildings with his grandma, “Gigi,” who would often drop him off at late-night techno destination The Works. Though he was around DJs from a young age, it was a curiosity to understand how his peers were creating the sounds he heard in Detroit’s underground, DIY spaces as a teenager that would lead Swinton to try his hand at it.

 

Known for sets drenched with vocal-laden, booty-shaking, acid rippers, the former TV Lounge resident is heavily inspired by the immersive, wormhole dancefloors of Interdimensional Transmissions, and artists like Carlos Souffront, Erika, and BMG. Other influences on his music include the classic sounds of Detroit techno, motown, and jazz, ‘70s punk rock, Gene on Earth’s Limousine Dreams label, and LCD Soundsystem.

 

Swinton holds a residency at Earthly Delights NYC, and co-founded the Duology monthly series at Spot Lite Detroit. He has graced the decks at Club der Visionaere and Golden Gate in Berlin, and is a regular on Texture lineups. He has written and laid down vocals with Marshall Applewhite for their Too Gucci for You project on Brian Gillespie’s Yo Sucka! imprint–which they performed live at Movement Electronic Music Festival–and he provided live vocals during Sophia Saze’s 2019 Boiler Room set. He will be making his solo Movement debut in May.