Mike Ink is one of Europe's leading producers of minimalist pure house and techno, released primarily under his own name and as Love Inc., M:I:5, and Gas. After kick-starting the German acid scene 1991-92 and releasing some of the style's more popular tracks, Ink reoriented his focus on the essentials of a distinctively German brand of minimalist techno, launching the Profan and Studio 1 labels, all widely hailed in the techno underground as among the finest sources of purist Euopean dance music. His analytical, almost religious affection for the four-on-the-floor beat (and not much else!) definitely places him against the dominant trends of the hyper-hybridized post-rave dance music environment into which he's released the bulk of his material, but also gained his work acclaim alongside that of labels such as Concept and Basic Channel.