Shifty Science is Chris Ike and John Kardaras, two Chicago-born producers who met as teenagers on Chicago’s north side in 1985. Brought together through a common love of Skateboarding, they shared musical interests as well, attending all-ages hardcore punk shows at Metro and listening to DJs mixing on WNUR Street Beat radio shows.

Chris and John were already familiar with beat music, nourished by new wave, industrial, and everything they heard at Medusa’s. Underground rent parties thrown by the likes of Derrick Carter helped spark their deeper interest in house and techno. The summer after John’s first year in college he and Chris realized their ambitions went further than attending parties, so in 1990 they decided to purchase their first gear. They bought a Kawai K1 keyboard, a Boss DR-550 Dr. Rhythm drum machine, and a Tascam Portastudio four-track recorder, to begin turning their late night inspirations into tracks. Despite their lack of musical training it wasn’t long before full songs were being composed. In 1993, the pair had their first release, Prove It, a split with JT Melody recorded at his Plastic Studios space. They also collaborated with DJ Ping, who introduced John to the Akai MPC. After they experimented with the device for almost 24 straight hours, the guys decided it was essential to making music and purchased the MPC60II to unlock their creativity.

Fostered by the DIY-centric punk scene, Chris and John had always aimed to self-release their music. That opportunity finally came in 1995 when they pressed From The Archives, drawing tracks from the previous few years. Although they managed to sell all 500 copies and get a generous mention in a 1996 issue of XLR8R, the duo struggled to find the spotlight. A collaborative release as Ping & Bas for I.H.R. followed in 1997, but by 1998 the pair’s resources were dwindling and output trailed off until it reached an end. One further track, “Going On And On”, would be released on Whitebeard Records in 2002.