# Plutonic Lab

Leigh Ryan, better known by the stage name Plutonic Lab or sometimes as Pluto is an Australian music producer, engineer, artist & performer.
He is also one half of soul/pop duo "SoundsLike FRANCO" with vocalist Natalie Slade, one third of Canadian/Australian rap group "SHWING" with BBRC members Roshin & Bronze as well as the international tour drummer for the group Hilltop Hoods.
Pluto has collaborated with Ladi6 (NZ), Black Milk (US), G-Love (US), Guilty Simpson (US), Wiley (UK) Miles Bonny (US), Natalie Slade (AU), Notes To Self BBRC (Canada), Coma-Chi (Japan) Renee Geyer (AU), Drapht (AU), Hilltop Hoods (AU), Dialectrix (AU), Speech Debelle (UK), Task Force (UK), Fat Lip (US), Eternia (Canada), The Grouch & Eligh (US).

## Early life and career

Plutonic Lab began drumming at the age of 10 and performing shows at 14. He obtained an honours degree in Sound Design/Media Arts from RMIT University, studying under Australian film composer/artist Philip Brophy and sound artist Phillip Samartzis.
In 1995 he produced the album "Mystery Shkool" for his group Macronauts on CD and Cassette & two beat tapes, Tri Chromes and M.O.S., in 1998 under his own label, Plutonic Lovely. In 2001, he released his first solo album, Give Me Sabotage Shell, followed by Collision of Days in 2004, both released on Nuff Said Records. His third solo album, Codes Over Colours, was released in 2005 on Obese Records. Taking 10 years between solo albums his last LP "Deep Above The Noise" won best Hip-Hop Album at the VIC Music Awards 2016. Attaining feature album status on Double J & 3PBS and Won 'Best Hip-Hop Album' at the AGE Music Victoria Awards 2016. The singles "The Crib" ft. Guilty Simpson & "Sliced Bread" ft Notes To Self BBRC received rotation on Triple J and Double J nationally.
Achievements
His album "Deep Above The Noise" won best Hip-Hop Album at the VIC Music Awards 2016. Attaining feature album status on Double J & 3PBS and Won 'Best Hip-Hop Album' at the AGE Music Victoria Awards 2016. The singles "The Crib" ft. Guilty Simpson & "Sliced Bread" ft Notes To Self BBRC received rotation on Triple J and Double J nationally.
Most recently nominated for "Engineer Of The Year" at the 2019 ARIA awards.
And won 2020 APRA Music Award "Most Performed Urban Work" with the "Leave Me Lonely" Hilltop Hoods.
He is a UK Mercury Prize Winner, (producing 2 singles for Speech Debelle's winning LP)
He produced Dialectrix's 2013 album, "The Cold Light of Day" which was shortlisted for the Australian Music Prize, won the 2009 UK Mercury Prize for his work with Speech Debelle, and was nominated for 'Best Urban Release' at the 2008 ARIA Awards as half of the hip-hop duo Muph & Plutonic, who also placed 2 songs in the Triple J's "Hottest 100" and landed the 'Triple J Feature Album' placements multiple times.

## Production

Plutonic Lab has produced albums and EPs for many Australian hip hop artists on labels including Nuffsaid Records (collaborating over a number of years with Australian MC/producer Prowla) and Obese Records (including the label CEO Pegz).
He has also produced beats on releases from Shawn Lov (USA), MC Tumi (South Africa), Karma and Esoteric (USA), Eternia (Canada) and Taskforce (UK).
He has performed shows in Australia, North America, Europe and Asia. Opening for The Pharcyde, People Under The Stairs, Ozomatli, Mad Professor, Lee Scratch Perry, MC Supernatural, DJ Shadow, Money Mark, Hilltop Hoods, The Next Men, Mr Lif, Cage, Swollen Members, Braintax & Mystro, Lupe Fiasco, El-P, Tricky, The Streets and events including Cockatoo Island Festival, Obese Block Party, Pyramid Rock Festival, Falls Festival, Big Day Out, Groovin' the Moo, Golden Plains Festival, Splendour in the Grass and Good Vibrations Festival.
Plutonic Lab was voted 'Best Producer' three years running (2004, 2005, 2006) on Australian Hip- Hop community site ozhiphop.com.
All three Muph & Plutonic Albums & Pegz "Axis" LP obtained 'Feature Album' status on Australian national broadcaster Triple J.
His third LP "Codes Over Colours" was a featured album on Melbourne's 3RRR radio, and on other independent radio programs nationally.
In 2008 The Album "And Then Tomorrow Came" was nominated for an ARIA. The album also landed two songs in Triple J Hottest 100, 2009.
Speech Debelle's "Speech Therapy" LP won UK's Mercury Prize in 2009, for which Plutonic Lab produced two singles.
His music has also been featured in film and television including HBO's series Girls, TNT's series Franklin & Bash, and the feature films X, Noel Clarke's 4.3.2.1 and Chronicle.
He also produced Neon Heartache, the debut album of Jess Harlen, who was named best female artist in The Age's EG Awards in 2010.

## Discography
### Solo albums

| Album title | Release date | Label | Format |
| Tri Chromes (beat tape) | 1998 | Plutonic Lovely | Cassette |
| M.O.S. (beat tape) | 1998 | Plutonic Lovely | Cassette |
| Give Me Sabotage Shell | 2001 | Nuffsaid | CD/vinyl |
| Collision of Days | 2004 | Nuffsaid | CD/vinyl |
| Codes Over Colours | 2005 | Obese | CD/vinyl |
| Midnight on Pluto (remix EP) | 2006 | Obese | Vinyl |
| Give Me Sabotage Shell (Extended/Remastered) | 2007 | Shark Repellent | CD |
| Collision of Days (Extended/Remastered) | 2007 | Shark Repellent | CD |
| Submariner (7-inch EP) | 2013 | LWP | Vinyl |
| Deep Above The Noise (2x12" LP) | 2016 | Wax Museum Records | Vinyl |

### Production
#### Albums

| Artist | Album title | Release date | Label |
| Macronauts | Mystery Shkool (CD/Cassette) | 1995 | Plutonic Lovely |
| Prowla | Lonewolf (CD/LP) | 2001 | Nuffsaid |
| Plutonic Lab | Give Me Sabotage Shell (CD/LP) | 2001 | Nuffsaid |
| Muphin | More Than Music (CD/LP) | 2003 | Obese |
| Pegz | Capricorn Cat (CD/LP) | 2003 | Obese |
| Shawn Lov | The Blackout of 1977 (CD/LP) | 2004 | Nuffsaid |
| Plutonic Lab | Collision of Days (CD/LP) | 2004 | Nuffsaid |
| Muph & Plutonic | Hunger Pains (CD/LP) | 2004 | Obese |
| Pegz | Axis (CD/2×LP) | 2005 | Obese |
| Plutonic Lab | Codes Over Colours (CD/2×LP) | 2005 | Obese |
| Omni | Batterie (CD/LP) | 2006 | BLX |
| Muph & Plutonic | Silence the Sirens (CD/2×LP) | 2006 | Obese |
| Ivens | Sounds to Expire to (CD) | 2007 | EcoTone |
| Lotek | Go (CD) | 2007 | 2–99 Records |
| Pegz | Burn City (CD/LP) | 2007 | Obese |
| Muph & Plutonic | ...And Then Tomorrow Came (CD/2×LP) | 2008 | Obese |
| Speech Debelle | Speech Therapy (CD/LP) | 2009 | Big Dada |
| Gully Platoon | The Great Divide (CD) | 2009 | Obese |
| Jess Harlen | Neon Heartache | 2010 | Plethora |
| Dialectrix | Audio Projectile | 2010 | Obese |
| Plutonic & G Love | Moonshine Lemonade | 2011 | Inertia |
| Jess Harlen | Park Yard Slang | 2012 | Plethora |
| Dialectrix | The Cold Light of Day | 2013 | Obese |
| Plutonic Lab | Submariner (7-inch EP) | 2013 | LWP |
| Plutonic Lab | Fieldnotes - Hong Kong (Book & Vinyl) | 2016 | Fieldnotes Project |
| Plutonic Lab | Deep Above The Noise (2×LP) | 2016 | Wax Museum Records |
| Plutonic Lab | Fieldnotes - Japan (Book & Vinyl) | 2017 | Fieldnotes Project |
| Sounds Like FRANCO | FRANCO (12-inch) | 2019 | Low Key Source |

#### Singles and EPs

| Artist | Title | Release date | Label |
| Pegz (as Pegasus) | Pegasus (12-inch) | 2001 | Obese |
| Prowla | The Great Rescue (EP) | 2002 | Nuffsaid |
| Tumi | A Dream Led To This (EP) | 2002 | Nuffsaid |
| Taskforce & Pegz | 12 Apostles (12-inch) | 2002 | Obese |
| Karma | Top Shelf (12-inch) | 2002 | Nuffsaid |
| Eternia & A-Love | Movin (12-inch) | 2003 | Warner |
| Shawn Lov | Dewitt (12-inch) | 2004 | Nuffsaid |
| Black Samurai | Kill Em All (EP) | 2004 | C Side (UK) |
| Muph & Plutonic | Heaps Good (12-inch) | 2004 | Obese |
| Pegz | Chechen Gorilla (12-inch) | 2005 | Obese |
| Pegz | Back Then (12-inch) | 2005 | Obese |
| Plutonic Lab | The Waiting (12-inch) | 2005 | Obese |
| Hilltop Hoods | The Hard Road (12-inch) | 2006 | Obese |
| Ivens | The 9th Letter (12-inch) | 2007 | EcoTone |
| Muph & Plutonic | The Day Off (7-inch) | 2007 | Obese |
| Muph & Plutonic | "Size of the Soul" (Promo CD single) | 2008 | Obese |
| Muph & Plutonic | "Beautiful/Ugly" (Promo CD single) | 2008 | Obese |
| Speech Debelle | The Key (CD single) | 2009 | Big Dada |
| Speech Debelle | Better Days (CD single) | 2009 | Big Dada |
| Jess Harlen | Watch the Water (CD single) | 2010 | Plethora |
| Jess Harlen | I Go (CD single) | 2010 | Plethora |
| Dialectrix | New Generation (CD single) | 2012 | Obese |
| Dialectrix | Go (Digital single) | 2013 | Obese |
| Plutonic Lab | Look Alive ft. Dialectrix (7-inch) | 2013 | Shark Repellent |
| Plutonic Lab | The Crib ft. Guilty Simpson (7-inch) | 2016 | Wax Museum Records |
| Plutonic Lab | Sliced Bread ft. Notes To Self BBRC (Digital Single) | 2016 | Wax Museum Records |
| Plutonic Lab | Blind Eyes / Give It Up (7-inch) | 2018 | Low Key Source |
| Sounds Like FRANCO | It's All On You (Digital Single) | 2018 | Low Key Source |
| Sounds Like FRANCO | Money Over Matter (Digital Single) | 2019 | Low Key Source |
| Hilltop Hoods | Leave Me Lonely (7-inch, Single, Ltd) | 2019 | HTHV005 |
| SHWING | SHWING (Lock It Down) (Digital single) | 2019 | Golden Era Records |
| SHWING | ANYBODY (Digital single) | 2019 | Golden Era Records |
| Plutonic Lab | Enemy featuring Black Milk | 2020 | Low Key Source |

#### Tracks on other albums

| Album title | Artist | Track | Release date | Label |
| Evolutionary Vibes 2 | Macronauts | "Atstrue" (remix) | 1997 | Creative Vibes |
| 4 Element Effect | Plutonic Lab | "Evidence" | 1998 | 183 |
| Rock Da City | Plutonic Lab | "Slipping into Darkness" | 1999 | Nuffsaid |
| Rock Da City | Madlock | "Madlock" | 1999 | Nuffsaid |
| Sounds Like Left | Plutonic Lab | "Mental Big Gun" (remix) | 2001 | Sony (Asia) |
| Sounds Like Left | Plutonic Lab | "Sunshine" | 2001 | Sony (Asia) |
| 12 Apostles | Pegz & Task Force | "True to tha Art" (vocal) "True to tha Art" (instrumental) | 2001 | Obese |
| Stealth Issue 2 Vol 3 | Plutonic Lab | "Glory Days" | 2001 | Stealth |
| Top Fashion Dolphin (EP) | Plutonic Lab | "Mental Big Gun" | 2002 | C Side (UK) |
| Top Fashion Dolphin (EP) | Tumi | "The Inner View" | 2002 | C Side (UK) |
| Culture of Kings Vol 2 | A-Love | "Petty" | 2002 | Obese |
| Obese City | Plutonic Lab | "Knowing Disintegration" | 2002 | Obese |
| Obese City | Muphin | "Tape in a Green Case" | 2002 | Obese |
| Other Worldly Fusions | Plutonic Lab & RuCL | "Runnin Hot" | 2002 | Hardware |
| Top Shelf | Karma featuring Esoteric | "Top Shelf" (vocal) "Top Shelf" (instrumental) | 2002 | Nuffsaid |
| Top Shelf | Karma | "Art of War" (vocal) "Art of War" (instrumental) | 2002 | Nuffsaid |
| Strait From The Art Vol 1 | Eternia & A-Love | "Movin" | 2003 | Warner |
| Diggin Deep | Muphin | "Smart Risk, Big Benefit" | 2003 |
| Culture of Kings Vol 3 | Pegz | "Tins of Beans" | 2004 | Obese |
| Building With Bricks Volume 2 | Karma | "Art of War" | 2004 | Brick |
| Descore | Breakfast News (Main Title) 100 Forms of Happiness | Breakfast News (Main Title) 100 Forms of Happiness | 2004 | Sound Punch |
| 15.OZ Vinyl | Muphin | "Smoke Stained" | 2004 | Crookneck |
| JJJ Hip Hop Show | Muph & Plutonic | "Heaps Good" | 2005 |
| JJJ Hip Hop Show | MC Que | "Waters Breakin" | 2005 |
| Home And Hosed – Ripe and Ready | Muph & Plutonic | "Heaps Good" | 2005 |
| Trampled: Remix (EP) (Elefant Traks) | Hermitude | "Nightfalls Messenger" (remix) | 2006 | Obese |
| Been There Done That | Bias B featuring Billy Bunks | "Bundle of Bees" | 2007 | Obese |
| The Signal | Urthboy | "We Get Around" (Plutonic remix) | 2007 | Elefant Tracks |
| More or Less | Resin Dogs featuring Mika 9, Aceyalone and Abstract Rude | "Coming With the Sound" (Plutonic Lab mix) | 2009 | Hydrofunk Records/MGM |
| Cover Up Motel | TZU | "Get Up" (Plutonic Lab remix) | 2009 | Liberation |
| Beatz International | Tor | "Pushin It" | 2009 | File Records (Japan)/UK Streetsounds (UK) |

#### Battle vinyl

| Artist | Title | Date | Details |
| DJ Perplex | DMC Battle Wax | 2008 | Various production beats and elements |
| DJ Perplex | DMC Battle Wax | 2009 | Various production beats and elements |

#### Soundtracks

| Title | Director | Notes |
| Hot Wet Dot: 16mm Skate Film | Jo Harrison | www.joskefilms.com |
| Molotow Masters: Graffiti Series | Jo Harrison | www.molotow.com |
| Words in My Mouth Voices in My Head, No 1 Anna | Phillip Brophy | Screened at ACMI Melbourne, 2004 philipbrophy.com |
| Burn | David Selvarajah Vadiveloo | Nominated for AFI Best Short Fiction Film award, 2009 burn-movie.com.au |

## Awards and nominations
### Music Victoria Awards

The Music Victoria Awards are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2006.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2016 | Deep Above the Noise | Best Hip Hop Album | Won | |