Toronto Hustle and Sean Roman on ‘Unconscious Therapy’, Toronto House and Keeping the Culture Moving
For Toronto Hustle and Sean Roman, house music has always represented something larger than records.
Between them sits several decades of experience within Toronto’s underground. Mark Kufner, better known as Toronto Hustle, has been part of the city’s dance music culture for more than 30 years, while Roman first found international recognition producing drum & bass as Mutt before increasingly moving through house, garage, disco and 2-step.
Their paths into the music may be different, but the common ground has proved substantial.
Having previously joined forces for the Detoronto EP, the pair now return to Freerange Records with ‘Unconscious Therapy (The Dancer)’, closing the fifth and final instalment of the label’s 30th anniversary vinyl series alongside Jimpster, Last Nubian, Tommy Rawson, Crackazat, Reagan Grey and Simbad.
For both, being asked back carries weight.
“Freerange has always been one of my favourite labels so being part of this anniversary is a huge honour for me,” Roman says. “30 years is an amazing run!”
Kufner shares the sentiment. “It’s an absolute honour to be invited back to the label for such an iconic moment, and to be included amongst so many amazing artists. It’s definitely a pinch me moment.”
The track itself reaches towards Detroit, building around heavy Rhodes, a rolling deep-house pulse and soulful spoken word. Despite its hypnotic feel, there was little labouring over the arrangement. Roman remembers most of it coming together during a single session.
That ease reflects a partnership that has become increasingly established since Detoronto. Together, they have subsequently released through WOLF Music, Ascension on Wax and Kufner’s Selections, while Roman has continued exploring the UK-influenced side of his sound through his solo Sweetboi album on Lately Bass.
Their individual histories create useful differences in the studio.
“I think Mark’s unique knowledge of house and my technical skills as well as the influences of different electronic genres I bring give us a unique sound that is rooted in old school house but is influenced by a lot of different genres,” Roman explains.
Kufner hears Roman’s drum & bass background particularly clearly in his basslines and percussion choices. More importantly, neither is overly protective of their own ideas.
“We both are open to trying new things and always give each other’s ideas a chance during each session,” Kufner says. “We also make an effort to listen and understand how our different pasts come together to create something unique.”
Those pasts stretch across different generations of the same city.
Kufner remembers a Toronto in the ’90s where going out seven nights a week was realistic, clubs were packed and proper sound systems were not confined to the largest venues. Even smaller lounges and bars could become important spaces for the music.
After more than 33 years within that culture, the difference today is difficult to ignore.
“Today, you can still go out a few nights a week and you will hear amazing music and top notch DJs, but you will see that venues are not as committed to supporting the sounds on off nights.”
Roman sees the disappearance of smaller venues as part of a much wider problem.
“I think this is a problem happening everywhere, the loss of club culture through real estate/ modern economic realities and Venture Capitalist investments…but there are still amazing artists pushing through and making noise.”
Neither presents Toronto’s underground as something that has disappeared. Kufner remains enthusiastic about playing in the city and going out to hear visiting DJs. The infrastructure has changed, but the people sustaining the culture are still there.
“If you know where to go there are still really great things happening in Toronto.”
That context gives the title ‘Unconscious Therapy’ an added resonance.
For Kufner, dance music has provided precisely that throughout his life.
“A dancefloor and the culture gives people a safe haven. It’s also a form of therapy for sure. I mean for me, this music has helped me through some of my darkest times and it’s always been there to lift me up.”
Roman reduces the idea to one word: “Community!”
“I think that’s something we often forget about this music and culture, its about vibing to good music with like minded people who want to have a good time…”
That belief in the dancefloor also informs how both approach DJing.
Roman has played everywhere from Toronto’s CODA to Berlin, Tokyo, London, Paris and Ibiza. Moving between different club cultures has reinforced his belief that audiences respond to authenticity rather than DJs attempting to second-guess what they want.
“A lot of times this authenticity comes from sticking to your guns and challenging the audience (sometimes).”
It is an attitude shared by Kufner, whose selections have always moved between new, old and obscure records. Their productions similarly draw heavily from house history without wanting to become trapped inside it.
“I think that we try to honour all eras in the music we make, and definitely pull back when we feel something starts to sound too much like a nostalgia trip,” Kufner explains.
Sometimes that requires Roman to intervene.
“Sean will say to me ‘we can’t always use Rhodes Mark, there are other sounds’ because I am a child of early house and soulful house which is heavily Rhodes laden, and it’s my go to!”
The irony is particularly enjoyable given that ‘Unconscious Therapy’ itself arrives loaded with Rhodes, but the exchange illustrates what makes the partnership work. Kufner brings decades spent deeply immersed in house music, while Roman’s experience across drum & bass, garage and other electronic forms provides another set of instincts capable of pulling their productions somewhere else.
Roman applies the same principle to DJing.
“I would rather watch a dj play tracks that move them personally, then to just play whatever is safe on the Beatport Top 100.”
Both have also built platforms to put that philosophy into practice.
Kufner launched vinyl-focused Selections in 2019, developing a catalogue that has connected established figures with emerging producers. Roman runs Lately Bass Records, giving him another outlet for his increasingly broad production work.
For Kufner, label ownership has reinforced the value of patience while also teaching him when to stop obsessing.
“Some people spend weeks tuning a kick. I’m all for your sounds being the best they can be but not at the expense of never getting finished. Get the music made and get it out to the masses.”
Roman’s lesson is more succinct.
“Running a label has taught me there are a lot more moving parts to this game than I ever thought. Lol.”
Closing Freerange’s anniversary series feels fitting in that context. The label is celebrating three decades of underground house at the same time Kufner and Roman are demonstrating how that history can remain present without becoming restrictive.
For Roman, even the transition from drum & bass into house and garage did not require abandoning the instincts that came before it.
“At the end of the day I am just trying to make something deep and vibey despite whatever genre I am working on…”
After decades spent buying records, playing parties, producing music and running labels, neither appears particularly interested in finding an exit.
“I can’t quit making music, it’s basically my therapy,” Roman says.
For Kufner, the connection reaches even further back.
“I love this culture. I love this music. That is really it. I could never see myself not being involved. It’s really been the soundtrack of my life so far.”
Importantly, that affection is not reserved for some imagined golden age. He remains as excited by new records as he was when he first entered the scene, and both producers are already considering where their partnership can move next.
More sounds, more international dates and potentially a full Toronto Hustle and Sean Roman album are all possibilities.
“The passion runs deep,” Kufner says.
Three decades into Freerange and more than three decades into Kufner’s own relationship with Toronto house culture, ‘Unconscious Therapy’ feels like an appropriate reminder of why longevity matters. Scenes change, venues disappear and musical languages evolve, but the fundamental attraction survives: records that mean something, rooms where people find one another and a dancefloor capable, for a few hours at least, of making everything outside it feel slightly less important.
You can pre-order 30 Years Of Freerange Volume Five here.
