Carsten Jost is a German producer, DJ, and co-founder of the revered techno label Dial. Active since the late '90s, his music has always been atmospheric and stripped-down, but his sound has evolved from the brittle, haunting techno of 2001's You Don't Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Wind Blows to the more melodic, shimmering house of 2022's La Collectionneuse.

Carsten Jost (David Lieske) co-founded Dial with Peter M. Kersten (Sten, Lawrence) and Paul Kominek (Turner, Pawel) in Hamburg, Germany in 1999. Dial has released widely acclaimed albums by artists such as Pantha du Prince, Efdemin, and Roman Flügel, and is one of the most highly regarded sources of atmospheric minimal techno. Jost began releasing music on the label in 2000, and his early work was sparse and glitchy, offering a colder, darker take on the microhouse trend that was popular in underground dance music at the time. Following the EPs Elmenreich and Make Pigs Pay, Jost's full-length debut, You Don't Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Wind Blows, was co-released by Dial and Ladomat 2000 in late 2001. Additional EPs followed for labels such as Klang Elektronik and Sender Records, and Jost remixed tracks by Swayzak, Tocotronic, Phantom Ghost, and others.

By the middle of the 2000s, Jost's music had evolved into a warmer, more melodic deep house sound, but with a melancholy undercurrent still present. In 2007, he released the single Atlantis 1 and 2 as well as a split 12" with Efdemin. He seemed to disappear as a recording artist for a while before resurfacing in 2011, sharing a split single with Lawrence. Jost and Efdemin also remixed "Stick to My Side," Pantha du Prince's collaboration with Panda Bear. Following an even longer absence, Jost collaborated with Robert Kulisek as Misanthrope CA, releasing a dark drone album titled Deathbridge in 2016.

Jost released his long-awaited second solo album, Perishable Tactics, in 2017. Days Gone By (2002-2012), a digital collection of non-album material and remixes, appeared in 2020. Jost's third album, La Collectionneuse, was released in 2022, containing some of his most laid-back deep house tracks. Three EPs of remixes followed, each including an original track by Jost continuing in the direction of La Collectionneuse. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi