[2] Fitton loaned equipment to Autechre in their early days[3] and his first noteworthy involvement with electronic music was as assistant on their debut album Incunabula.
The debut album as Bola, Soup, came in 1998 and was described by Vladimir Bogdanov in the All Music Guide to Electronica as "an impressive synthesis of the machine-beat ambiance (sic) of post-techno with warm, wistful analog soul".
[5] A set of three EPs called Shapes was released in 2000, limited to 300 copies; in September 2006, it was remastered and reissued in greater numbers by Skam, adding three bonus tracks.
"[10] "Bola travels in decidedly cinematic realms, crafting music that begs for emotional, tactile responses, ranging from sadness to fear to suspense," opined Tim DiGravina in a review of Fyuti for AllMusic.
"[11] While frequently described as "cinematic",[12][13] Fitton's music has been noted as employing harsher, less accessible elements such as "austere synth textures and almost industrial-grade distortion".