MC CONRAD
A pioneering musical MC whose partnership with LTJ Bukem helped define the atmospheric side of drum & bass — voice, rhythm and space treated as part of the music rather than commentary over it.
Becoming one with the music
Conrad Thompson, known as MC Conrad, changed expectations of what an MC could be inside drum & bass. Rather than filling every gap, Conrad used melody, phrasing and restraint — letting records breathe while adding a vocal line that felt composed around the mix.
His long partnership with LTJ Bukem became central to the atmospheric and jazz-influenced strand of drum & bass. By 1994 Conrad was part of the Bukem and Fabio residency at Speed, while Good Looking Records and its related events carried the sound internationally.
The Progression Sessions releases made that partnership especially clear. Conrad’s voice was not simply hosting the DJ: structured verses, harmonies and improvised lines became another musical layer. His approach influenced later MCs and helped establish space, dynamics and musicality as legitimate parts of the craft.
Conrad also developed his own work through projects including Con*Natural and later Resonance. He died in April 2024. Rave Archive UK holds recordings spanning the early Dreamscape years through the mature Progression Sessions period, showing how his style grew alongside Bukem’s record box without losing its identity.
MC Conrad in frame
Play the archive
The recordings move from early hardcore/jungle through the fully developed Good Looking and Progression Sessions sound.
Conrad across the Archive
Profile sources
Space was part of the voice.
Conrad’s influence lives in the idea that an MC can make the music feel larger by knowing when to sing, when to speak and when to leave the record alone.
