He was born in Sacramento, California, but grew up outside of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and later moved to Detroit, where he collaborated with Richie Hawtin as Cybersonik for three years on Plus 8.
[1] Bell was influenced primarily by Chicago house as well as the works of the minimalist composers Steve Reich and Philip Glass.
Smaller U.S.-based techno and house labels required distribution overseas and domestically and 7th City moved in to fill this void.
However, by 1998, the number of active, independent techno labels in the U.S. dropped significantly and Bell closed the distribution company.
[1] In 2000, he relocated to Berlin, Germany, and released his first mix CD, The Button-Down Mind of Daniel Bell, on Tresor Records.