[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-062: Boe Strummer | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How's it going? I usually start with introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? Ok so hi everyone my name is Roméo, I was born in Paris but raised in the Val d’Oise (95) France.

What are some of your early musical memories? My earliest memories came from the « Discovery » Daft Punk’s album. I’m 25 today so i was only 8 years old back to the time it came out. Everything was magical about this, the anime videos mixed with powerful and happy music, i remember having the tape and listening to this in my bed at night dreaming about space and love

Your music is grounded in a reverence for gabber and rave influences, reflected in your involvement with the Casual Gabberz crew and your curation of the ??MN??SEC Rave Party Mix Series on your SoundCloud. What are the aspects of that culture or those sounds that hold a particular significance for you? I discovered the Casual Gabberz crew 4 years ago at a party called « a Parkzicht night! » with DJ Rob and Panteros666. It was my first direct contact with hardcore/gabber scene and i was bluffed. It was something radical that I needed in my musical journey, something to express new feelings, new emotions thru hard tools. I was into footwork and ghetto stuff before that, and I’m still theses days, but it came to me like something very related in the way the communities approached the music. In the footwork or the hardcore, they get they own culture, separated from state/government culture, I’m fascinated by the « Art Brut » (maybe « outsider art » in English?) an art produced by people who don’t have a classical education for production/understanding, what fascinated me the most is that between two cultures far away from each others, connections happened. With this mini rave series, I choose a video format under 10mn to catch the focus of people and do like a homage to hardcore megamix, you asked before what was my musical childhood memories, i remember that the « As Heard On Radio Soulwax » by 2manyDJs was also a big influence, it was the first time for me that i was listening to something mixing together all the sounds that i liked

Earlier this month you released Vestiges with the Parisian label Permalnk, consisting of a film, an accompanying OST, and a sculptural object created in collaboration with Olga Bjem. What are some of the conceptual ideas that you're exploring with this project? The questions presented in the promotional material seem to be centered around engaging with the viewer/listener as an active part of the project - was viewer response something you were keen to develop? Lost in a civilization simultaneously close and distant, Vestiges is a contemporary tale about the world’s decay and the tragically intertwined blurriness between life and death. It is a journey to the heart of nothingness and a doomed love story, that of Antigone, based on Jean Anouilh’s iconic work. 

The race towards one’s own relic and the temptation of love as an interlude to oblivion.

It’s always interesting to have the feeling of people with who you share a part of you. I’m not looking for it in a first way but it means something to me and things start to make sense a lot more clearly when someone else explain what he understood from it.

Vestiges is not your first visual project. Your Vimeo account is full of videos set to tracks of yours or even full length mixes and, though the imagery you use is reasonably varied, they're all presented through this pseudo-documentarian or even homevideo lens. Vestiges itself reminded me most of this Werner Herzog documentary on post-Gulf War Kuwait called Lessons of Darkness, though the poster design makes me think of 1970s occult-horror or sci-fi. What draws you to this style? How do you view your music in relation to the visuals? I admire reality. A big part of my work is focused on the relation between music and images, i love the way they talk together, I love to create a new feeling with two, sometimes opposite, emotions. With Vestiges, I tried to push further this envy to express a story with abstracted reality. For the visual, it was a collective work as always but William Losik were the master of this as his the master of all my images. I love his direct raw style, theses days everybody try to complex more and more images, abstraction is the key now but what I like with Kisol is that he gets the vibe of the all structure with only a single picture. I think my relation with images in the music came from the merch. I always loved band typo, logos, and everything you can wear to support as I’m a big football fan too. Having his own graphic style is something that I try to reach with William letting him free to express what is on his mind. I also work with Aergab for the mini rave series, with pictures he takes inside GTA V (which is all his life atm) because like I said it’s very important to me to not pretend to be someone or something using stuff you don’t used too, what you using have to be what you are.

I wanted to ask about the Unlove Misery release from March of last year - the Taylor Swift edits from yourself, nunu, Aergab, Detente, and Louis Me. It stood out from the countless deconstructed pop tracks that were hitting SoundCloud at the time due to the sincere and almost evangelizing way you're interacting with the samples. Your original comes across like a funeral dirge and Detente's like an exorcism. What were the organizing efforts behind the project? Were you paying attention to similar edits that were cropping up at the time? It’s a big debate I think in music, I mean not for everybody you know but, people they want to collide stuff, like mainstream/underground etc… when I produce or when I took a sample, of course I think about what it represent for me and for the others but its not my first attention, sampling Taylor Swift was something that could appears totally edgy if you a purist and only pledge with old school underground techno but like you said it also can be something totally ironic and ludicrous for people of the internet scene. I try to put myself between that, like I’m not a big fan of Taylor Swift myself, but I find interesting to put what most call « pop » or maybe « mainstream » things into something more « intellectual » and « not easy listening » music. I’m not paying a lot of intention of what is coming out and i tried to step aside the movement when there is one, I chose Taylor Swift maybe because she’s the total opposite of myself (so maybe are we a bit the same?).

Tell me a bit about the mix. Where did you record it? Did you set out with a particular idea in mind? I did this podcast on Ableton as I do all my podcast. It allows me to edit stuff and have a total control on the narration of the mix. For this one it tells a journey of a drug dealer into life, he describe his work and his thoughts about the world. I always try to have a red line that you follow into the mix, I see it like a movie or a book, with a opening, a middle, and an ending.

What do you have planned for the future? Try to push the mini rave series way more higher, I would love to make something monthly with it. Also I’m thinking about a project where I will be singing... I don’t know yet.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? I’m gonna quote Jean Anouilh, 

« Quelle musique, le silence ! »

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-061: Petit Singe | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How's it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? I’m Hazina, 32 years old from Italy.

What are some of your early musical memories? When I was in secondary school, I was always the only one person used to bring portable music player at the parties.

Your work as Petit Singe is distinctly personal, with your own experiences at the forefront of each track and release. Is the process of making music one of conscious self-reflection or introspection for you, or is that something that develops more organically? My tracks reflect me at 100% even I did it with a long reasoning behind or more impulsively. I haven't got a standard process on making tracks, but each one of them reflect me of course. 

The music you release, as well as the projects you're involved in, consistently feel like they are evolving and mutating, from your releases on Haunter Records to this year's In Death's Dream Kingdom compilation with Houndstooth (by way of your Tiziano Ferro bootleg and Amnesia Scanner piano cover). Has developing a multifaceted and varied output been an intentional aim of yours? Yes, absolutely. Ok, I’m aware of being part of an underground movement. My labels, parties I enjoy, artists I follow… we are all part of something similar, we got many things in common, music and experiences to share each others, but despite this I totally fell free to experiment new stuff out of “my range”. If I consider a proposal to be good, I accept it. If I feel of doing a remix or a bootleg, I do it.

Ideas of hybridization and multiplicity that are present in your productions are also apparent in your live performances, where you choose to mix with Ableton over using CDJs. Are you drawn towards a more involved approach in these performances than would necessarily be possible with a standard DJ set? I used to play with Ableton even for my djset only because I’ve never considered myself a real DJ, I mean, I started my project Petit Singe with the idea of producing music. Anyway, nowadays I use both!

You recently collaborated with 111X on a project called Authority, the themes of which deal with the expansion of modern surveillance states and the current political climate in Europe. How did the project come about? Did you discuss these topics before collaborating? I asked to him a featuring cause I’m in love with his sound. So, cinematographic, deep, dirty. It was a “ping pong” collaboration. We didn’t talk about many things before starting doing that, we’ve just discuss about the sounds in the specific.

In the press release for your Tregua EP with Haunter Records, the Petit Singe moniker is referred to as your avatar and your second release - Akash Ganga - is said to be composed of 'fragments from the history of digital experiences'. What are the relationships between the importance of technology to your work and the elements of your practice that lie outside the digital, such as when you perform or the first stages of creating music? The digital is very important for me. It's important on making tracks, cause I only work on digital. And for sharing too. When you have a new project to push we become a product of the web. I assume importance if my tracks played on the web as well as I'm gonna to play live. They are two different mechanisms. Making live is as important sharing your music online, a video clip or recording a mixtape. It's the same artist who goes across different ways of being.

Did you set out with a specific idea for this mix? Where and how did you record it? Honestly, I never think too much about a specific mood. I’m continuously looking for new stuff, new artists and situation that could inspire me. I use to into my mix some tracks I love the most, and some new discovered in a recenter period, mostly when I’m going to record a remotely mix and a not a party djset. That’s different. I’ve recorded this mix in my hometown, Forli in my bedroom of course.

What do you have planned for the year? I’m carrying on my new project MILANOROVINA with Tommaso and Giuliano. It’s really important for me, we’re trying to bring to Italy all collectives, people and music we love the most. This is our first year, we were born in September 2017, but we’re already working hard to doing something in our city, Milan. Next I’m going to visit Europe for some gigs. I’ll be in Amsterdam at Progress Bar, Zurich, Berlin and London. I’m also working on a new featuring with Swan Meat, but it will take some time for that.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be?

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-060: Julien | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How's it going? I usually start with the introductions so: for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? I'm Julien from Denver, Colorado.

What are some of your early musical memories? Playing guitar growing up in metal bands. My grandfather playing Chinese folk music around the house growing up. Hearing the prodigy for my first time when I was too young to understand what techno was.

The music you make appears to be heavily influenced by the hardcore fringes of industrial techno, electro, and acid; a sensibility that also extends to the music you DJ. What is your history with those styles? What are some specific touchstones for you? I was very blessed to have grown up in a short era recently where the gap between old hard techno/industrial heads and the new wave were finally overlapping. Cult techno and rare hard acid tracks were put on to me early in my first years of coordinating raves and making tracks by legendary heads that I'll be eternally grateful for. I have not turned back since. Shouts out Acid Jakal.

The description for your Tobago Tracks single - ‘No Renaissance’ - talks a bit about the affinity you have for “demonic and grotesque imagery”, a prominent feature of the release’s artwork itself. Where did your interest in that start? What do those motifs mean to you and how do they inform the music you make? I've always had a fascination for the demonic and macabre these past few years especially. My lineage dates back to being subject to war, genocide, and holocaust from both sides of my parents both different bloodline/ethnicity both affected by two different wars and the diaspora from them so there has always been a dark undertone in my upbringing that lead to my fascination of these things. I love to play with the disillusionment of people's lenses of dark fucked up motif's the world is so ready to hide/dismiss it even though now more than ever in history is it boiling over ready to burst for the world to see what was already underneath. This gives me energy.

Mercury, the EP you released last month with Apothecary Compositions, is presented as an exploration of the fringe and the abandoned, a “first exam in chaos and its sonic palettes”. How do you set out molding and transcending chaos into something tangible? It's all about practice. My practice is my own something that took me years to form and I still form it to this day. The process is the most important part of the piece and for me requires my whole being each time.

Mercury is listed as having been recorded at Rhinoceropolis, a DIY venue in Denver that has since closed down. How much does a DIY ethos permeate into your music and lifestyle? Is that kind of environment the ideal space for your music to be heard within? I grew up going to punk and metal shows that were heavily DIY organized at a very young age. The core mentality of that culture will always be with me and is what drives me to keep grinding how I do now. I moved into Rhinoceropolis in my late teens before it was eventually raided and shut down late 2016. If you know what that spot is you know how legendary its impact was on the world for the cutting edge of art and music. Never has there been a better space in the world that could create, facilitate, and advance some of the most subversive and grand art of our time than Rhinoceropolis. I was very blessed to have experienced it, lived in it, and have my earliest lessons on properly throwing a good rave there. The magick of that space was enough to drive anyone mad which it always did with every show. It's been a very bittersweet year for many people since it's closing. Shouts out John Gross and all my old room mates there.

Tell me a bit about the mix. Where did you record it? Did you have a particular frame of mind when you were selecting the tracks? This mix is a special one. Recorded in Los Angeles while I was couch surfing early Fall. Felt very in my element and righteous in my delivery despite my circumstances and situations I was in at the time.

What do you have planned for the rest of the year? For 2018? Going to enjoy these next few months of the year and reflect on it heavy. Might release some tracks early next year might leave the country and travel for awhile.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? Piero Piccioni - "LSD (Red Hot)". A spell.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

Artwork: ZEFGIRLCLUB - LINGER

Thinking about it is useless.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-059: Jade Statues | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How's it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? It's going well :). My name is Jacob, aka Jade Statues. I live in Vancouver, Canada. 

What are some of your early musical memories? You know, it’s kinda funny. When I was a kid if I was with my Dad we would listen to Ministry and Slayer and stuff like that. We used to drive around listening to "Thieves" when I was like 4 years old. Its still one of my favourite songs. If I was with my Mom we would listen to Boards of Canada and Bjork, and when I think about it now that's pretty much exactly the space I want to be operating in musically. Somewhere between Ministry and Bjork lol. I owe a lot to my parents for exposing me to a wide array of music from a young age, and allowing me to engage the interests I had in learning music.

You've referred to the My Blade EP, out now on TAR, as "the most honest" work you've done up until this point. How do you see that honesty establishing itself across the record? I suppose it feels that way to me because the past 2 years that I've worked on it have been very turbulent - in good and bad ways. I made every track on it in a different setting, each of those settings are very tied to memories now that were born out of that turbulence, if that makes sense. Settings like a 24 Hour Vet Clinic my friends lived in that I stayed at a lot, my parents basement, the house of someone who is very close to me, and the house I live in now that is somewhat isolated from the rest of the city. When I listen to the EP it's sort of like looking at a photo album of the past 2 years, or something like that. Plus, when I started it I didn't know exactly how I wanted it to sound and by the end of it there was this similarity about the tracks that just sort of happened naturally. It's sort of surreal to me.

My Blade by Jade Statues

Alongside the track Machine Birth on your Facebook is a description stating, "A being with great power, borne of Plant and machine, has taken it's first breath. And it will envelop us all." Both this proclamation and the artwork for the record are suggestive of a larger overarching narrative. Could you tell me a bit more about what it is that the EP is drawing on conceptually? Yeah while it is a very honest, personal record to me it's also a concept album, haha. A sentient being is born out of the combined energy of human technology and the earth's natural power, so basically an "Organic machine" - Humans try to obtain, harness, and extract the being's power but the being essentially turns the earth into an extension of itself before they can. The earth is now a sentient organic machine. I've always been inspired by the worlds that metal albums created, sometimes just with album art. Mastodon's "Crack The Skye" changed everything for me when I heard it. I just love writing concept albums lol. 

You worked with Flufflord for the EP art and have a video project in the works with Chrome Destroyer and the resulting pieces show clear relationships to the textures and sounds found on the EP itself. Is there a specific visual or even physical context you see your music existing in? I've always been really interested in visuals and filmmaking from an early age. Tea and Chrome are definitely two of my favourite visual artists right now. I described to them what I was going for musically and they just nailed it visually. I love the format of 3D and I often like to heavily tie it into the whole Jade Statues "universe" if you will, because 3D allows you to create and bend HD imagery in such a way that I like to think I'm doing with music and to me it just sits right. 3D just feels right to me. I would love to have the budget to do elaborate stage designs with visual mapping and such, and I definitely want to make a full length live action film one day. 

Your track 'Invocation' was recently featured as the soundtrack to a video on Memory Hole (Everything is Terrible), a space in which scattered debris of inane internet clips are forced through generative cycles of trash, redigestion and regurgitation. Are these modes of internet discourse reflective of your listening and production habits in any way? I guess you could say they are, I often spend more time messing with samples and making weird sounds than I do actually making songs. I've been a huge fan of those guys for years. I thought it was really funny that they used "Invocation". It's supposed to be like the immaculate orchestra tuning before this grand opera or whatever and they put it with a bunch of people getting stuck in miscellaneous shit. If EIT is reading this, I'd love to play a set at the week long festival of celebration/sacrifice to the Jerry Pyramid when it is built. 

Tell me a bit about s.M.i.L.e. (or Shadows Making Imperfect Love Endlessly) - the party and radio show you run alongside Baby Blue, x/o, Sebastian Ruslan, and J.S. Aurelius. What are the origins of that project? In reference to the name, do you see yourselves as working *in* or *as* shadows? What role does imperfection play in the collective? Me and Baby Blue used to do a party together called "Cyber Spa" with Wobangs and d j b. That had been over for a while and I was itching to start something new, so I hit up Baby Blue and asked them if they wanted to be a part of it, and they said yes. We then asked x/o and Sebastian Ruslan - who both are a part of an art collective / mix series called Immunity - if they wanted to be residents too and they said yes, we decided on the name s.M.i.L.e. , J.S. joined us on our 3rd event and the rest is history..... We are all the shadows! "shadows making imperfect love endlessly" is simply a description of people dancing. I would say imperfection is perhaps a part of all of our creative processes and s.M.i.L.e. is a place we can bring all our styles + our guests styles that might not be similar to ours together and create something special. We like to use our laptops and CDJs in imperfect ways as well ;) 

Did you set out with a particular idea for this mix? Where and how did you record it? I don’t have any mixes online really, so I wanted to make an accurate representation of the of sets I usually play, at s.M.i.L.e. and just in general. I tried to include a lot of my music and a lot of my friends' music. Some of the songs in it are just ones I'm really feeling lately. I recorded it sitting in my bed, and also in my studio on VirtualDJ, then added more effects in Logic after. 

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? It's almost over! Damn. I really need to save up some money so I can move out of Vancouver. I'm pretty tired of living here. Other than that trying to tour / do as many shows as I can and continue to help curate s.M.i.L.e. :) 

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? This, on loop, forever.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-058: Thoom | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How's it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? I’m Thoom. I’m from Beirut but I live in Chicago now.

What are some of your early musical memories? When my father would blast Fairuz, Sabah or Soap Kills in the morning to wake us up. I also played violin for six years.

How has Chicago influenced you musically? Obviously the city carries with it a lot of significance in the history of dance music. There is something beautiful about being in a city that feels so empty, vast, and industrial and going into spaces (shows/clubs) that both reflect the city and exist in contrast to it. I am not historically tied to anything here and Chicago is so segregated that I really feel in the two years I have lived here my experience has been very limited, musically and otherwise. But part of why performing and seeing others perform in Chicago is special is because these are some of the only spaces where people from all over the city, who would not have encountered otherwise (because Chicago is so spread out) are together. There is a lot of potential in that. It feels visionary when it’s good. I think about these implications a lot when I perform here and it has also made me interested in curation. Chicago can be rough but I have met some of the most inspiring people here.

Last month you released your debut Blood and Sand EP through Oakland-based Club Chai. I'm interested in the relationship between the ideas behind your EP's conception and Club Chai's own intentions as a collective, particularly in terms of working within and with (diasporic) cultural narratives and the ways in which they weave through communities and communal experiences and spaces. Did those shared philosophies have much of an impact when the EP was coming together? Definitely. One of the main reasons I started making music was because I found people like FOOZOOL and 8ullentina (Club Chai founders) who were working with the intersections of middle eastern sound and club. Finding a community online when I couldn’t find it irl helped with feelings of cultural alienation and motivated me to be in conversation. I am very happy I released my first EP with Club Chai and got to work with them. They understood and trusted my instincts from the beginning and it’s because we have similar intentions and diasporic narratives.

On Blood and Sand there's a constant slippage between danceable and non-danceable rhythms and passages both from track to track and within the songs themselves. Was that always your intention? What draws you towards playing with the form and tension of a track in that way? I don’t know. At this point, it’s instinctual and I just feel like I’m banging on a virtual drum and screaming. I will say that emotionally, I am able to transition from one sentiment to another very quickly and drastically ;). I was thinking of Blood and Sand as a long track that I split and processed into four.

The video for حركت السكوت (No Speech), shot and directed by Yumna Marwan and edited by yourself, has this semi unnerving and partially comedic sense of timing to it with pseudo setpieces and your performative slapstick or chaotic interactions with the environment. How much of your background as a visual artist influenced your translation of the track into a video format? This was a collaboration between my sister, Yumna and I. As my older sister, she has always directed me, so the power dynamics were obvious and she picked most of the places we shot at. It took some time for me to figure out how the audio and visuals communicated. I knew I wanted to shoot in front of the civil war monument. I didn’t know there was a Lebanese army checkpoint right in front of it (even though its supposed to be public) and we could only shoot from one angle and only for fifteen minutes. In the video, I am dancing in front of the monument and in front of me is Yumna shooting on her knees and like ten army personnel behind her staring at me dancing in my fishnets and the angle of Yumna’s camera. Towards the end, their boss (Mr. Hulk) started walking over and almost had us delete all the footage but we packed up quickly and fled. To me– dancing in front this monument (which symbolizes the end of the civil war) and the Lebanese army, which held it hostage, encapsulates both the comedic paradox and absurdity that I always end up talking about in my work–visual or otherwise.

You mentioned in your recent WNUR interview that you're intending to move back to Beirut next year and have plans to start a group / space for continuing your music there. You also noted that experiments with sound in Beirut tend to operate more in the realm of 'high art' than something like dance music. When it comes to your production process is the overlap between the spheres of art and club music something you consider? Do you think that your position with regards to that would necessarily change? I don’t know if I am going back next year, actually, still have not decided. I don’t think they are mutually exclusive but being able to be in an art context has helped me critique my work in through similar processes. When I said that experiments with sound in Beirut tend to operate in the realm of high art, I meant that there are not many spaces that allow experimentation in sound unless it is under an art space context. When I performed in a warehouse last summer and played experimental dance music, I cleared the floor… No one wanted any of it. A man came up to me after and told me he liked my style, I was hot, but he was here to listen to “berlin-techno”. 

I think there is a push against this, and Frequent Defect has been putting on shows that obscure those boundaries. But what is especially interesting is that a lot of the music made by diasporic community is not well received by the country that it is reflecting or inspired by. I love thinking about the implications of that. The larger public wants exported entertainment. 

My dear friend and colleague, Jessika Khazrik, and I, started talking about these ideas and started a collective called Yakhtiii. We curate collaborations across different generations and media in dance music with a focus on electronic sounds emerging from Arabic taqsim, drone, noise–depending on what were responding to and the context. We both come from an interdisciplinary practice, so we approach curation through many different frames of reference and we’re planning for more events in the future.

Did you set out with a particular idea for this mix? Where and how did you record it? Not really, I recorded it on my bed when I was sad and lonely.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? Always planning for a catastrophe, buying canned food in case it happens. Working on an album. Saving up for plastic surgery? Calling my mum more often and being with my girls

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? Anything on Country Music, the label. They release 8-minute tracks that I’ve loved listening to.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-057: ZEFGIRLCLUB | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How’s it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? My name is ZEFGIRLCLUB and I’m from the suburbs of Sydney, Australia.

What are some of your early musical memories? When I was a lot younger I dabbled in music and dance a bit - I played piano. I was in the national choir. I did jazz, tap and ballet for several years. But I outgrew it very quickly and never expected to revisit music again, especially in the sense and genre I have now.

How do you approach ZEFGIRLCLUB as a creative outlet? What do you draw inspiration from? ZEFGIRLCLUB started as an instagram name I had four years ago when I was obsessed with Die Antwoord (shoutout Yolandi who will forever be a source of inspiration). It then grew into the name I DJ’d with and then eventually produced under. This project has grown dramatically in terms of vision and direction. I started refining my sound in October 2016 and now a year later it feels clearer than ever what I want to be doing. But as a creative outlet, ZEFGIRLCLUB is a way to pull things out of my head that I can’t otherwise shake. My biggest inspiration for my music would definitely be my own turmoil.

I wanted to ask a question about your involvement with Sidechains since it's actually how I first got introduced to your music. Even from an outsider's perspective they seem to be a big force in the scene in Sydney and also, at least from my point of view, something of an anchor point and home for a lot of genre shifting outsiders and misfits. What drew you towards Sidechains as a collective? Sidechains was the very second club I went to when I first turned 18 and I was still in school at the time. I would travel two hours on transport from the middle of nowhere to go every month. For one, it was the first party I had ever encountered where I heard music like that - it was definitely the eye opener into such an eclectic taste of electronic that gave me back my passion for music. Sidechains was also the first group in Sydney that I found a community in, through sound and fashion, but also through the most accepting and inviting people who I hold so close to my heart today. Shoutout to Denzel Sterling for teaching me to DJ, and to Grasps for showing me the ropes around Ableton. I owe Sidechains a lot. That will always be home.

Around 2016 you started and were a part of PLTFRM ("an open-minded safe space and a non-genre specific party"). Were there any specific experiences that led you to push for that space within the club environment in Sydney at the time? Has anything else cropped up since then? PLTFRM was conjured from myself and a few girls I was in FBi Dance Class with (Venus, ELLA MAXIMILLION, Katia and Ebony Boadu). We meshed so well and when our show came to an end we wanted to keep working together but there was no outlet in Sydney where we could all play together as we are all so diverse in music taste. So making our own night was a way to push that boundary, and it was a lot of fun to be with the girls again, but to be a surviving party in Sydney it unfortunately doesn’t have the grab. All the girls are doing so well regardless with their individual projects and we are still in touch.

A lot of your tracks hinge around dramatic arrangements and a thick, emotional atmosphere to the point of feeling like life or death situations for me. Is that something you’re consciously trying to feed into your music making process? When I make music I am definitely feeding into my mind. I try to consciously be aware of my music making process but a lot of the times I jump on Ableton I am usually disorientated or dissociating and need to push something out that I don’t want to keep on my back anymore. It is usually a few hours of intense macbook usage that I don’t remember too well, and then I will go back over and over and over and fix things until it sounds like what I am trying to say. I do like my music to tell scenarios and stories. I’m a very conceptual worker and I’m a visual worker. If I have an idea, an image, a feeling in my head that is too intense for me to hold to myself I will try convey that in song. If my music can make someone else as emotional as I feel then I think I’ve done okay.

That energy and melodrama is something that carries over into the track selections for this and your other mixes. Is it important for you to replicate that during your club sets? How much does your own presence play a role when your DJ live? My live mixes and club sets are the most important part of my project to me because it’s the one chance I get to show those listeners a darker side of club music. I try put a lot of effort into my ZEFGIRLCLUB sets and theme/order mean a lot in that sense to me because I want to pull my audience in for that period of time I have their attention and I want to conjure up something in them that moves them by the time I am done. My own presence is definitely important. If I’m not into what I’m doing or not throwing every bit of energy I have into a set, I feel lacking. Stage presence has always been the most significant and powerful tool for me in the club.

You've just been on a tour in Japan with darkjinja who, along with Genome 6.66mbp in Shanghai, represent the bleeding edge of an internet-transposed, global scene thatís been bubbling under the surface for the past few years and has more recently come to fruition. Who are some of your favourite DJs/producers working in that space? When I toured Japan I got to play with some of the most incredible artists, DJs and producers I’ve ever witnessed - Souj, Yoshitaka Hikawa, §†§, Munayama, Le Makeup, Yuki Pacific, TAMA2000, Violent Magic Orchestra are some of the acts that moved me the most. Every single person who contributed to my darkjinja shows gave me a purpose and a place of belonging in Tokyo and Osaka so I am forever grateful. Yoshitaka Hikawa especially has been a great influence to me long before we met so getting to play with him was mind-blowing for me.

Did you set out with a particular idea for this mix? Where / how did you record it? I recorded the mix in my lounge room on my CDJs where I record all my mixes. I wanted this mix to start of a little fun with lots of energy, and then brood on into darker territory.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? I’m working on more projects than I can keep up with so at this point I'm not sure if they’ll all be out in 2017. But you can definitely keep an eye out for BLOOD DRIP, my collaboration with Yoshitaka Hikawa. I also have a track with rapper dednewb that will be out soon, and a remix for Recluse’s upcoming ep I am working on. On top of that my ep DYSTOPIA is in its final stages, so that will creep around soon.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? Embaci - Angel Calling Embaci (ANGEL-HO EDIT)

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-056: Réelle | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How's it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? Real name: Yannick Pozo Vento. I'm from a relatively small town near Cologne and son of an Afro-Cuban father and a German mother. We lived in the Netherlands for some time but then moved back to Germany.

What are some of your early musical memories? As my father and German grand father were musicians I've always been surrounded my music all day. My mother had this immense Vinyl, CD and VHS collection so I picked my favs which were Stan Getz, MJ, Elvis and some electronic works and listened to them non stop. I think at age three I started visiting some kind of music conservatory shortly before we moved back to Germany, where I took private piano lessons for some years.

Consistently, the art and imagery that you pair with your music always includes photos of yourself, most often body portraits. Is a sense of embodiment an important aspect of making music for you? I think that's related to many factors. I like honesty in art and music, I like showing people who I am. Electronic music and especially the kind that's focusing on sound design and complex techniques can be considered a fetish - to me at least. So I like to pair my fetish for sounds with my own sexuality which then becomes this semi-pornographic energy. I also think that it's time to blurr the lines between pornography and complex music, which has been considered a no-go for a long time. It's this combination of unrelated things that expands our horizon and redefines limits. That aside I just think we should all start to show how much we love ourselves.

You've referred to the title of your recent album 'Satura' - released back in April on #FEELINGS - as referring to a "short form of saturation, as some sort of state of constant over saturation in every way imaginable, physically and mentally." Both the sound design and your own personal experiences that feed into the album are readily reflective of this. Did you find the process of creating 'Satura' to be freeing or healing in any way? The process of compiling Satura wasn't really healing for me. It's the daily process of creating music which makes me discover my limbic abilities and which truly fulfills me. As I usually write 5 to 7 tracks per week this process has become some sort of ritual or meditation to me.

A fair amount of your output on Soundcloud is made of up of edits, your 'splices' of Quay Dash and Rihanna in particular stand out as favourites of mine. How do you approach handling other people's tracks, considering the fact that your music is so deeply rooted in your own experiences? Honestly it's a pretty irrational or primitive way of approaching music. I just listen to the acapellas and imagine what I would like to hear and then I do it.

From what I can work out, you have a couple of releases forthcoming on Aisha Devi's Danse Noire label right? How do you see these next releases in relation to 'Satura' and the other work you've put out up til now? I don't want to spoil the experience too much but I can say that my tracks on Danse Noire are very unique. There will be some things people have never heard before as I wanted to tell my personal story related to Schizophrenia.

I wanted to ask you about your membership within the Berlin arm of New World Dysorder - an Oakland-based collective established by yhayha and Jasmine Infiniti - since their aim to embrace "what is perceived as disorderly in socio-cultural contexts" seems to correlate heavily with the concerns behind your own music. What drew you to get involved with the project? As I am gender-fluid I resonate with the NWD concept very much. I also think that Transgender people are underrepresented in electronic music so I want to help them.

Did you set out with a particular idea for this mix? Where and how did you record it? Most of my tracks or mixes aren't really conceptual as I don't rely on rationality while making or listening music. So the mix is basically just what I felt like at that particular moment. It's been recorded in Ableton.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? I will probably make more music, find out new DSP techniques and try to express myself through them and go out, have fun and spend time with the people I love.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? More of my stuff.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-055: Wulffluw XCIV | The Levels Are Very High

Hey! How’s it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn’t know, who are you / where are you from? Hey, My name is Nikita, I'm from Russia.

What are some of your early musical memories? Honestly, I've never been interested in making music, used to listen everything, which sounded good, I didn't make an accent any genres. But once in yearly 2012 I stumbled upon a video where AraabMuzik gave a live set in Warsaw. It was something new for me, cause some interesting innovation are going slow in to Russia. I've never interested in mixing any genres and types of sound. So I was inspired by this and decided to buy a drum machine lol. But used it not so long. Since that period of life I started give more attention to all music as a phenomena.

My first introduction to your music was through the LA 13 EP for AGVA Records, based out of Argentina. How did you first connect with them? Is there much of a Latinx community and music culture in Moscow? Great u checked that EP! It was my first experience with foreign community. I just surfed Soundcloud and found them. Decided to share with them some materials and I was very surprised when they gave an answer and accepted my stuff. Speaking about Russian scene with such music I can only say that it's nothing. People here are very closed to new things.

Your EP Matanza has just been released on Perth Records and, from the artwork to its title (“slaughter” in Spanish), it feels like a fully realised project. What are the major ideas and influences behind the release? Matanzaaa, I'm very inspired by latin rhythms in soundtracks, especially when it's got an experimental sounding. I was starting to make BMWW in when everything in my life were not so good. That's why u can feel any aggressive notes in that tracks. And u know, I was making it and there were collected material. I wanted to make club vibes, I believe people could feel it in the clubs, but in the same time I wanted to make it pretty experimental. Industrial sounds, distorted kicks etc. I think it makes a general picture of my mental state.

The video for Comedor - directed by Sonya Korotaeva - is simultaneously visceral and sensual, jagged and supple. How much of an input did you have in the concept behind the video? Do you see those visual juxtapositions as reflective of aspects of your music as a whole? Sonya is a nice photographer. One day we were having a rest, walking a lot and having fun and she tell me that she wants to records some video with interesting idea and concept, then I offered her to make a video teaser for my EP, using a part of the intro track. She's already known that Matanza would be released on Perth Records and was familiar with the weird fish concept of the label. So we both instantly imagined the whole video and we came up with what we will shoot in a few seconds, she brought a lot for this. I think the whole video action presents my sounding and the idea of the EP. That's what I imagine when making another soundtrack.

Did you set out with a particular idea for this mix? Where and how did you record it? This mix include of my works and my good friends whom music I advice to listen to. Nothing extraordinary, I recorded it at home, cause I got no places for creativity somewhere.

If you ask me about the Precious Metals guest mix, I was shocked when Henry asked me to do it for his show on NTS. I just wanted to show my vision on music now. 

Haha it was recorded in my "living place". As I'm a student I'm living in university hostel. It's very scared building, very old. With no internet connection and common bathroom on the floor. There were lots of cockroaches and only what helped me is a piece of hash.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? Don't even know, waiting for a vinyl edition of my EP. Also, I hope there will be any bookings but I don't wait for them, cause there are very few people who listen to such music in Russia. Really hope Perth will be able to come to Moscow to give a label showcase, can't wait to get acquainted with all of them in real life.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? New Perth Daijing's release on Perth, Merca Bae guest mix for Hiedrah Club de Baile, last Santa Muerte release on Symbols.

Tracklist: EL PLVYBXY - Tiraera (WULFFLUW XCIV Remix) WULFFLUW XCIV - Grindin' WULFFLUW XCIV - Matanza Merca Rulez - Only U CELES7E - ARTILLERY SAW SKIN (WULFFLUW XCIV Remix) Lil Crack - Steel Intermission (FKOFF1963 Remix) SHYQA - Bleeding (Rafa Maya Remix) Rafa Maya x Santa Muerte - Untitled AN System - Torture (WULFFLUW XCIV Remix) Resla Bae - Abusadora TenTwentySeven - Glass Blade AN System - Strange World Nahshi - Flatline DJ GEH - Ao Som Do Tambor Macumba (EL PLVYBXY Edit)

[lvlsrvryhigh]

Jerome - Isolation: Issue One | The Levels Are Very High

Visual for JEROME and the first collected part of their Isolation single series.

Feat. Profundo Vazio's 'Doom Generation', Avbvrn's 'A Small Mistake', and GANX's 'Principle of Passion' - mixed by JEROME's JG Jour. Buy the full release: https://jeromeworldwide.bandcamp.com/album/isolation-issue-one For the video I stole: Mary J Blige - 'Everything' / Honey bee macro footage / various scenes from Belly (1998) / Scarface - 'Mary Jane' / Taral Hicks - 'Silly' / 'Human teeth under the microscope!' / nightclub scene from Babel (2006) / Kanye West -  Yeezus tour trailer / club scene from Victoria (2015) / Double X - 'Money Talks' / Nas - 'If I Ruled The World ft. Lauren Hill' / Trailer for MGS V: The Phantom Pain / Future - 'Mask Off' / Beyonce - 'Sorry' / title sequence for The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo (2011) / title sequence from Terminator 2 (1991) / gameplay from Xaxi (2014) / ARS Electronica animation festival teaser / chainlink fence stock images from my work's getty image account

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-054: Hunni'd Jaws

Introductions first: for anyone who doesn't know, who are you / where are you from? Yo yo, thanks for having me - I’m Hunni’d Jaws. I'm a solar eclipse personified. I moisturize. Facts: Coconut oil is not what it’s cracked up to be, if you want the hook-up on emollients DM me...on some off the record ish. My latest conspiracy is that I'm immortal.

From New York, exiled in Berlin, I mean “based”. How does "On exile" sound? Like I’m on chic sabbatical for being a leftist multi-national expatriate. Although, ya gotta strive for "arbitrarily-detained" these days, for the social media credentials.

What music did you grow up listening to? I grew up whittling didgeridoos. On the real, there’s a rogue didgeridoo in the house I grew up in. I have no clue how it got there. No one knows how to really “play” it, we’ve all tried. If my folks got it at a flea market, I’ll be a livid that my parents are just hoarders, and that Carlo Santana’s 3rd cousin didn’t loan it to us.

I’m so thankful for access to radio like Hot 97 and NYC. Nineties pop music was an animal. Dance-pop, grunge, dancehall, alt-rock, RnB, hip hop, trip-hop, the OG list goes on. I’m nostalgic for the pop hits, from Ace of Bass to No Doubt.

Mix cds were essential living. My street punk older sister got me into punk music and concert-going, starting at places like the Chance in Poughkeepsie. Thusly train-ing to NYC was compulsory. SO former self getting signatures on my cons. I grew up technically too far to be a bridge-and-tunnel though. “Bridge-and-tunnel" is slang for someone who takes one of the bridges and/or tunnels to get to NYC by car. Bridge-and-tunnels get on the Metro-north around White Plains with vodka Coolatas and clog up the Midtown club scene.

My folks played jazz, on special holidays merengue, 60s funk, reggae some 80s pop - cuz they’re into that - oh and a lot radio monotonous news coverage, tonally so nauseating that they smell like plastic factory fumes. Afro-caribbean & latin music were solace, since I’m half dominican. My uncle was more current, and played lots of new wave, punk, or like fat boy slim and beastie boys for us. We ransacked his computer once when we finally got cd burner software.

I also was heavily into indie rock, post-punk and random hip hop or the genre one-offs, like Hold You Down by the Alchemist, I found. Finding music was everything. I wrote about UK experimental & indie music for my HS newspaper - no one cared. My younger sister got me into A Tribe, Madvillian and J Dilla. Shout out to Nora for keeping me updated on hip hop mixtapes throughout the 2000s. And in college I veered towards indie music and electronic.

I'm cutting myself off, we should pick up the conversation here for the next interview. We can highlight more cringe-worthy pleasures that did not age well and my descent into grime and club, and how I’m still an angsty tropical riotgrrl haha.

One of my earliest musical memories was going to this wedding in 1997 and dancing to radio garage house tracks - what we called techno. Recently, I had a dance floor epiphany at Monarch Club in Berlin. Soda Plains played a garage track I hadn’t heard since that era, maybe that occasion. I made a note of the lyrics, found it later, and binged on it for like a week. This is my mentality.

My first introduction to you as a DJ came via Call Dibs, the show you run with Dis Fig on Berlin Community Radio, so I wanted to get an idea as to how the show first came about and what the motivations were behind starting it together. How did the two of you start to put things together? Yeah before Call Dibs, before deejaying, I was a head in NYC. Fel - Dis Fig - and I met then, kicking it many dawns.

Fast forward, in Berlin we saw a vacancy for our musical focus on BCR - whose programming we admired and were acquainted with. It fell into place. We decided to do this plan b, instead of becoming tech-house legends.

Going through the show's archive is like reading a who's who of upcoming djs over the past few years and it's pretty impressive how on top of it the two of you have been. How do you decide on which guests to reach out to? Do you have any dream picks? Thanks! We follow music, convene on that, take turns hosting monthly, and plan logistical. There's been several artists, I heard one track of theirs and decided to ask them. I was lucky they were down. It's insanely cut-throat. There's usually a rose award ceremony and sacrifice.

No "dream picks", I’d like to work with so many people, especially unique gem artists. I'm interested in new, small, unique voices and showcasing challenging fun sounds.. The cult of celebrity dominates booking, the scene and the industry. At the same time, we don't obscurity hunt. The process is organic, why dilute it?

From what I can gather (correct me if I've got this backwards), you moved from New York to Berlin not too long before the BCR show first started. Do the two cities mean different things for you musically? Did anything change for you in that vein after making the move? Yeah definitely! I lived in NYC for a couple summers during school, then moved to Brooklyn after college for 3ish years. New York is it’s mix of cultures and hustle. There are so many micro-communities doing amazing things. It is a pace, hip-hop, outspoken, loud - the majority of new dembow in my mix, I heard blaring out of cars, at restaurants, and in cabs while visiting over in early June. Even just 2 years ago, Bushwick was not what it is now, or Crown Heights even. I grew up in the music communities in NY through Jelly NYC, Tribes, bass warehouse parties like Reconstrvct and DIY venues like 285 Kent, and lived with the Teklife extension. Ballroom, dancehall, jersey club, and footwork were foundational w/ parties like Ghettogothik, Lit City, S!ck Magic, Mixpak, among others. With all this stacked against a city, there's so much synchronicity, like Dubbel Dutch playing an arcade entirely word of mouth, or mythic rooftop parties w/ lineups of whoever is in town not playing officially in the city. Or heads from around the country, turn out to see acts on a Monday night in Meatpacking district. It’s a constant struggle and everything is bought out. I have a deep bond there, the music community has a different appreciation and gratefulness for each other. People dance. I’m idealizing hxc. It all took bites, I got bored, and was looking to contribute.

I shifted gears, and moved to Berlin, to party less. Hahah. Techno goth, crust punk aura, the gay club scene, and deejaying/producer culture are indisputably mainstream. The leftfield club scene is compact w/ Janus, PAN, Trade, Creamcake, Boo Hoo, among others. There’s a core DJ and music producer community here that inspires me, albeit, a catch-22, is insular. There’s more funding, clubs are seen as institutions. It’s still Germany. It’s much more modest, introverted, and chill. The sound is usually spot on. Flights are cheap. It’s more white, whiter than the Midwest.

If you can sort housing, it’s a refuge for creativity because of work/life balance.

You're also involved with a few programs based around teaching dj skills to women and those within the lgbtq+ spectrum in No Shade and Intersessions. What interested you about these programs? What was it like for you personally when you first learnt to DJ? Was there anything similar out there at the time? Who wants a world w/ the same people, the same cliques, in control throwing the same parties, of similar perspectives, w/ the same mega brands curating, playing the same music?  Sign me up if I'm a mega-brand.

I didn’t choose to be half black, a woman, or femme, so I def take advantage of the opportunities given to me. And I'm aware I'm somewhat priveleged. I have a lot of friends who also want to organize and pass the torch. My core ethics are merging human rights, creativity, and access empowerment. I was also involved in the Co-Op compilation w/ Ziur, galvanized to counter the tension and rise of global alt-right movements.

When I first learned to DJ, it was a necessity to socializing. And when I got more serious about it, I had to teach myself. Getting comfortable at the club and tech-literacy was another blind-fold. I’ve had to dj with equipment I've never used before - wish these moments were filmed cuz I went too hard on myself. There were some people to help me but not really. I also had several feminist social groups to help with the visibility of women in NYC, our goals were more about solidarity and the safety of women at parties.

I co-founded No Shade alongside Linnea and Caramel Mafia in association with Acud Macht. The DJ tutoring program aspect gives the participants more security and time with industry standard equipment. They can ask questions, and they are learning from women and non-binary folk. Blasphemy!

Links between music and therapy come up a lot on your social feeds and, though it's not really something I've put a lot of thought into understanding, I often find myself relying on music to clear my mood or help me move past something that's frustrating or aggravating me. Do those ideas ever inform the sets you put together or the music you listen to? That’s sick that you found a personal correlation. Music as therapy vs. music therapy vs. sound therapy vs. vibration therapy vs. however we define music and therapy has an abundance of operational levels. On your experiential level, it’s great for emotional awareness, resonance, letting out stress, etc. 

It can be deeply triggering yet cathartic too. It’s tied very close to memory. People with degenerative neurological diseases can get pieces of their identity and abilities back when listening to their old records, or happiness. In other mysteries, if you suffer a major head injury you can miraculously become a musically-creative, perfect-pitch savant. Still so much is unknown in the regard to cognitive neuroscience, music and healthcare. This is Your Brain on Music by Daniel J. Levitin and Musciophilia by Oliver Sacks expand on this.

The club is an undeniable conduit, escape. A good sound bath from a sound system will reset you. Cymatically, it manifests your physical matter. Certain chord progressions and frequencies will awaken certain feelings. Certain rhythms make you rotate your hip joints, certain vibrations catapult you to an astral plane, ASMR and whiteness soothes and entrances. I’m rambling. It’s personal, it’s human, it’s spooky, it's cyborg. There’s loads of sound phenomena to explore.

The tradition of it in the psych world is very “koombayah”, which led me away from the narrow conventional sense of it. However, there are however strides towards incorporating rap into the psychotherapy application. The history of oration down to modern rap is rooted in the "music game over the streets" to narrate the struggle. Poets from West Africa brought oration traditions over to communicate their highest spiritual being. The command of it is called Nommos. As a practice it's so very suitable for the clinical experience. Therapeutic Uses of Rap & Hip Hop by Susan Hadley discusses this, maybe overintellectualizes it, but it’s an important platitude to introduce formally to the white-coat community. I may go back to school for it, so I can dispute and defend the way. I wish I had proper exposure to composition as a kid. I was more interested in learning tabs so I could steeze on covers.

There’s truth deeper and universal, beyond niche music that privileged perspectives get to admire, be bewildered by and entertain with. It's orthodox. It seems the people involved don't consider how esoteric and self-centered this chokehold of participation is, like subjective tunnel-vision ; music culture is full of circumstance, value judgements, media infrastructure, markets, and industry. Who has access? What is contingent? and Why? What does this all mean in 5-10 years?

You seem to take a playful, lighthearted, but also semi-theatrical approach towards your moniker and press shots (covering yourself in honey, planning to do the same but with bees), which is refreshing and in stark contrast to the ultra serious DJ look (black tee, dark background, lots of shadow, plsdon'tsmile). Was that something you consciously set out to achieve? Wow, thanks for noticing! Deejaying is full of bad baaaad tropes. Shout out Kurupt FM for being as played out as possible. Satire, critiques, and creating new information are important to me but it's more unconscious and involuntary. Music gets all bent out on being serious, then plays into trends and lacks originality.

I treat creating under hunnid jaws as a full multi-medium, creative universe. My press shots were fun. They feel so old, they're from a past life at this point. The series are under themes of objectification, erotica, and sex culture paradigms mirroring a literal interpretation of my pseudonym. The general idea was around for 2 years before it came together with my homegirl Syd who's in Rotterdam now. The actual process felt like I was suffocating and stung my eyes, basically honey-board torture. I'm sitting on a lot of weird ideas and bizarre influences. Just takes one or two sentences for an idea to be a good one. I'm excited to use them when I have more content and collaborators. I'd love to art direct for others. And to do more video.  Or something extrasensory.

Did you set out with a particular idea for this mix? Where / how did you record it? I recorded it in my room on my pioneer ddj-sb controller. No set intention but this mix is a missing cut from a film reel, like a glimpse into my flashback. Disorienting like a horror flick being played in reverse.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? Conjuring up some gigs and beats. Ya tu sabes.

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? If you can hold out, listen to Call Dibs this Thursday 6-8pm CET.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-053: Dirty K

Introductions first: for anyone who doesn't know, who are you / where are you from? Hi, I'm James (Dirty K) from Nanjing city in China. I'm a producer & DJ.

How did you get started making music and getting into DJing? Is there a defining memory which cemented your interest? Well，I began to make music when I was a freshman in college and my major was music recording. The DJing seemed easier to me so I got into it earlier. I solidified the idea when I played in Shelter with Genome last year. Tbh I learned a lot in that club.

The first time I came across your music was when you had a track featured on the Guangzhou Underground "East West Bass Test" compilation towards the end of last year, so I wanted to ask about your relationship to that label's ideals when it comes to the give and take between Chinese and international dance music. Where do you draw the most influence from? I think communication is the most important thing. First, due to the lack of resources in my hometown, I had to go to multi-cultural cities to get more knowledge about Grime music. I also wanted to make sure my tracks got heard worldwide too, cuz people should know there is someone trying to make these kind of tunes in China.

How did you first get involved with Genome 6.66mbp? Has being part of a close-knit group of likeminded producers had an impact on you? It's not quite that serious - for real. We just know each other at parties. But having a mutual preference for this kind of music is also necessary.

The press release for Exsciccation gives its definition as "the complete removal of moisture, to a state of absolute dryness" something representative of "an attempt to thematise the contradiction between [your] fecund online life and the atrophied reality of [your] surroundings". Was making the EP a cathartic process for you? Does the music represent a metaphorical rejection / destruction of that dry IRL environment or do you think your life offline came to have more of a constructive influence? Yeah, I think you can call it a kind of cathartic process. The word 'dry' is sometimes used to describe 'boring' in some slang. Currently I don't have to worry about the economic problem in reality tbh cuz i'm still studying, due to this most ppl think that i should have nothing to complain about, however very few people around me can understand my music and my taste and that makes me feel isolated and anxious lol. In contrast, I can interact with a lot of like-minded people on the internet and that helps to make me feel substantial.

In terms of both music and aesthetic, GENOME operates along this Organic / Technological axis, which the narrative behind your EP obviously refers to, but I wanted to ask where exactly you think your music lies on that axis: are you thinking organically or technologically when you're making a track? Does that position shift at all when you're in a club environment and you're DJing or dancing? Actually I don't quite have much of a sense of technological things. But i'm really conscious about some ecological aesthetics in my music, but I think your word organic is more accurate. Exsciccation is a term in biology yeah. Tavi's visuals inspire me too, cuz she often takes pictures with different kinds of plants which have withered.

On Exsciccation there's a track called Pyroclasm, a title which I remember as an attack from FF XII but it turns out there's also a MAGIC card with the same name. Were those fantasy elements a deliberate reflection of what you put into the production? Or just your way of easily referencing an atmosphere of destruction and unrest/chaos? The cover on the magic card was the main reason I decided to use 'Pyroclasm' as a title, what's more, Noctilucent's suggested it, cuz i wanted to used a word to express a sense of conflict.

Did you set out with a particular idea for the mix? Alright, It's fairly simple. I just wanted to share the music I've listened to recently, especially the fresh materials i got from talents like Xin, Gil, Cash From Hash, Rui Ho, Murlo, WULFFLUW XCIV etc.

What do you have planned for the rest of the year? Currently I need to get a reasonable grade in IELTS. It's the most crucial thing for me right now. Although it will mean a loss of time to make music :(

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? There are too many good tunes in my mind. But, if I have to, I would give a shout to my friends: Yongfu Rd from Zean (released by Push & Pull).

And the two amazing remix tracks from Hyph11E and Yikii that are on my EP are a favourite too.

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-052: Miracles

Introductions first: for anyone who doesn't know, who are you / where are you from? I’m Stewart. I produce and DJ under the name Miracles. I’m from Los Angeles and currently live in Brooklyn.

How did you get started making music and getting into DJing? Is there a defining memory which cemented your interest? I started making music at an early age when I was taking piano lessons, around 8 years old. A few years later when one of my sisters started college she introduced me to a lot of interesting, mostly electronic music. I remember listening to Bjork when I was in junior high and thinking that electronic music was definitely something I wanted to be a part of. I felt that she was really pushing and experimenting with sounds in a way that I had never heard before. I’ve always been into dance music, but it’s only over the past couple of years that I have been seriously producing and djing. I think something clicked in me once I realized that club music was becoming a lot more globally influenced and multi-genre.

The bio on your website talks about your interest in mixing both experimental and more familiar musical traits; how would you say that interest is represented in your approach as a DJ / producer? It’s important for me to explore new sonic territory, but also keep things relatable. I like to balance the new and unfamiliar with songs or elements of songs that I grew up listening to. For me, this type of mixing makes the forward thinking tracks a bit easier to understand and get into. In terms of producing my own music, it’s easy for me to get lost in my own world. So there comes a point where I have to step back and think about how I can simplify or incorporate some more recognizable elements to make a track more accessible.

The first time I came across your music was when I found a pack of edits and blends you'd put out. You seem to have this insatiable appetite for those - since then there's been two more with a third on the way. What's your process like for creating an edit? Do you see it as a way of putting your own mark on existing tracks? I started making them as a way to make my DJ sets and mixes feel more personal and engaging. I like re-contextualizing pop acapellas by pairing them with underground tracks and beats. The idea isn’t new, but I think these edits or blends or whatever you want to call them give my mixes a certain character.

Having made the move from LA to Brooklyn in New York, does each place hold its own musical context or set of sonic influences for you? Honestly I don’t really pay much attention to where a track comes from most of the time. I think it’s because of file sharing, Soundcloud, etc. It’s all just a melting pot, especially underground club music today. I mean obviously there are genres that were born and are rooted in specific parts of the world, but for me it’s about stripping the context away and creating something that exists in a sort-of fabricated space.

You seem to have made a lot of ties to the underground club scene since moving to NY, playing on the #KUNQ Lot show and the BETA show with Copout, as well as playing shows alongside the Loveless records crew. There are so many facets at play within the city, has the diversity of the community there had an impact on you at all? I’ve been in NYC for a while, over 8 years now. But since I’ve only recently returned to producing and djing, I still feel like I’m new to the ‘scene’ especially because I didn’t really go out or party that much when I was younger. I’ve definitely met some cool people that share similar tastes and have connected me to other important artists. I am also glad to see how diverse the underground club scene has become, generally speaking, and how inclusive and supportive the community has been.

You've referred to your Exile EP as being inspired by the Myst / Riven series of adventure games, "but if myst was like reimagined as some type of underground club". I don't have the most experience with them (generally just got lost and confused half the time), but my image of Myst is one of intricate landscapes and obstacles set in the midst of a seemingly endless wide expanse of fog which makes the game-world feel impossibly huge. What do those games mean to you and how do you see them being reflected in the music on the EP? Did you have a certain sense of place in mind when you were producing the tracks? Yeah I learned to love those games as a kid, my whole family was really into them. I remember gathering around the computer and trying to solve all the puzzles while exploring these massive mysterious worlds. I was too scared to play alone! The unsettling soundtrack, and the potential of a creepy animal or person popping out of nowhere was too much for me to handle by myself, haha. But yeah I think those games stuck with me, I feel like the music I like to listen to and create are inspired by this type of artificial environment. Although a human element is definitely necessary when I’m writing or mixing - something to bring the tracks back to reality u know.

Did you set out with a particular idea for the mix? Where and how did you record it? I’ve been really into these tracks around 100bpm that are sparse and very drum heavy. The DJ JM, Girl Unit, and MM tracks in the mix were definitely starting points, even though they almost act like interludes between the tracks with vocals. I like the simplicity of them - each sound has a clear, audible purpose. They have an essential nature about them that I really like, and they translate very well in a live setting. The mobilegirl track was a great starting point - one of the most impactful takes on a pop vocal I’ve come across lately. I also can’t get away from pitch matching when I’m not mixing live on cdjs. So this mix was recorded in Traktor with a lot of subtle pitch shifting involved.  I usually do a lot of prep work so I can record mixes in one take. I then used Ableton to add some vocal samples from a ‘Porsha For Real’ podcast that I sprinkled throughout the mix.

What do you have planned for the rest of the year? My boyfriend and I planned a trip to Iceland in the Fall. It will be my second time there and his fifth. I’m not sure I can say anything that people haven’t said or heard before about Iceland other than it’s just really inspiring. Music-wise I have a couple of EPs I’m wrapping up. Looking to release at least one of them before the end of the year if all goes well. Also looking to release the fifth volume of edits/blends soon.  

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? I wanted to include this song in the mix, but it didn’t make the cut. It’s been on repeat for a while now, very smooth with just the right amount of cheese factor.

Also if I’m being selfish I would say my mix for Martha on her Radar Radio.  I feel like this LVLS mix is the follow up for that one. Both mixes were conceived around the same time.

TRACKLIST: Shamana - Obeying Traffic Laws in GTA Mobilegirl - Heartbreak Slew Yung L - Red Rose Aasco X Joka - Volkan Modulaw - Work Miracles - Susurro Orlando - Cyaa Done DJ JM - Girl Calls a Cab Aaliyah X Brackles - Try Again Riddim (Miracles Blend) P-Lo - Noticed Akron X v1984 - You Already Know Too Much (Miracles Blend) Lava Dome - Rhyolite King Doudou - Pastillas Pa La Samuelspaniel - Namba (Bob 3fix) Ycee - Juice Girl Unit - ??? Lordholani - Need Your Body (Recluse Remix) Hitmakerchinx - I am a God Problem X Trey Songz - Still A G (Miracles Edit) Kelly Rowland X DJC - Dumb Riddim (Miracles Edit) Iamsu! X MM - Shake Riddim (Miracles Edit) Bad Gyal & Dubbel Dutch - Jacaranda Arca - Else (Galtier Reconstruct) Hitmakerchinx - Fear Dem Destiny's Child X Kingdom - Buggaboo Tears (Miracles Blend) Ynfynyt Scroll + NAR - Devil's Breath Leonce X DJ Nervoso - Ah Ah Flute (Miracles Blend) Future - March Madness (Blastah Remix) Ramriddlz - Sweeterman (Dick-a-ting Remix) Branko - Lost Arps Dawn - Break Me

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-051: La Vie C'est Facile | The Levels Are Very High

Hey guys how's it going? I usually start with the introductions so, for anyone who doesn't know, who are you / where are you from? Hi, we are 2 cousins Nico & Joka aka La Vie c’est facile, we’re both from Switzerland and started djing and doing music together around 6 years ago.

I (Nico) Live now in London and Joka is still in Switzerland but we actively continue our music projects together.

What music did you grow up listening to? We both grew up with hiphop and rap / Fr rap music. When we started being involved and doing music we constantly have been inspired by different electronic music current and trends but especially the UK scene.

Producer duos and groups in general aren't that common in contemporary club and online dance music culture. What led you to two to start working together? Have then been any challenges along the way? We have always done a lot together beside music, trying different things since our childhood.

In 2010 we were living together and starting to djing, practicing in our small flat an organizing a few partys in our basement. The sound production came naturally a few years later. We didn’t had hard challenges, even now, we’re not living in the same country, we had to change our way to produce together but a the end the distance is not a problem. It’s true that’s not really common and especially for us it’s nice to be always 2, like to share the pleasure when we play, to learn things from each other, to get motivation or to don’t get bored when we travel to play in another city.

For me, your name - translated to English as "Life is Easy" - and the happy grinning face that you use as a logo come across as almost tongue-in-cheek or even completely ironic choices when married to the palpable dread of your music. Where did the La Vie C'est Facile name come from? Is the contradiction intentional? In fact the contradiction was not intentional. It’s just reflect the mood we were into when we started djing.

Yes we think that a happy face is a nice/funny message, rather than an irony.

Tell me a bit about your production process. Do you each bring different elements to the table when putting together a track - like, are there parts in a track that you can pick out and say "that's a Nico snare" or "that patch was Jo's idea"? Not really, usually we more speak about the mood or the concept on what a track or an EP will look like, speaking about the arrangement, the melody the use of the drums for example. For the sonic part we agree with each other on a same kind of aesthetic even if our good friends sometimes can say that’s sound a bit more Nico or Joka. Usually one of us start a project and send it to the other. We’re doing this Ping-Pong mode till the track is finished. So that’s why it’s not really a problem to not live in the same city.

Raw Shepherd, the EP you recently self-released on your Bandcamp, is almost entirely made up of collabs (with Detente, Nunu, and Modulaw all contributing) - save for the closing ambient track. What was the intention behind that approach? What was it like to work with the other artists and how did they fit into your dynamic? For us, this was a special and very personal project 100% self-released. They are all artists and friends within musical universes we like a lot. Each collaboration is the fruit of several exchange/ping pong between LVCF and the producers. We try to have a strength concept at the beginning but it didn’t worked very good, so we just go more spontaneous with the music and trying to always show the aspect of the collaborations in every tracks but the whole process was quite long. At the end we think that this project is working really good as an EP.

From the acidic Grimey cuts on the Fun Zone EP for Creaked to the doom-laden marches for Tessier-Ashpool and the more nimble tracks of Raw Shepherd, what's impressive when taking into account the three major releases you've put together is the breadth of styles featured - something that's also present in fellow Swiss producers Lemonick's and Krizzli's output. How much does experimentation feature in your production process? What defines, for you, an LVCF track? Experimentations are always being a big source of motivation when doing music, we still love french rap and grime for example but we constantly walk a different way and come back with new inspirations or crushes in music, that’s very important, and the style or the touch you can notice in our music is our still in development even if you can maybe notice a certain grain or some similar elements here and there in our different sounds.

Did you set out with a particular idea or theme when picking out the tracks for the mix? How did you go about recording it? We first did a selection separately and then we put them on DropBox and it was funny because we really didn’t know a lot of the music in each other selection but at the same time we had the same style of music in our both selection so it directly gave a mood like how the mix will sounds like.

You can find some of our friend’s music, some very sonic and textural or more melodic sounds inside. It's a kind of reassuring chaos story.

What's next for you in the rest of 2017? Making new music for some labels, collaborations with a friends for a perfume, starting with organising party in London (like the release for Raw shepherd) and continuing organising the ones in Switzerland…

If you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after this mix what would it be? Sawmal - Hier

Tracklist:

ICY FLAME - UNSTOPPABLE OkLou - Defeat KEISKA - BOBBY V REMIX W3C - Ascension (Intro) Happa - Hallucinations ??? - ??? (Eskro141 edit) 111X - Aggressions v1984 - 02052014 zendaya skizzetch Swan Meat & Yoshitaka Hikawa - Wilt Staingate - Defensa Jikuroux - Doubt WULFFLUW94 - NGHT THGGN Clu - Trance Lament LVCF x DETENTE - II ALEXALFONS - TRANSPARENCY AWRWSW - HOLD ON 2 ME (FT. GXXOST) ALEXALFONS - KABI Wumpa Fruit - Gutterball Eaves - Seas 2 (||FLORA Remix) Shapednoise x Visionist (Nunu Edit) Dutch E Germ - Black Sea Egyptrixx - We Can Be Concrete RYKT - ZOiD Freeze Corleone 667 - Ekip (prod by CashMoneyAp & JoeyTheProducer)

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-050: The Dance Pit | The Levels Are Very High

Hi Anuradha, how's it going? I usually start these things with a bit of an intro, so for anyone who doesn't know: who are you? Where are you from? Hi! It’s 3am and I think I’m finally done answering all these questions!

My grandfather named me Anuradha, though I’m still not 100% sure on how to “correctly” pronounce my name. I was born in Bangladesh, a year before Maluma. My star sign is a Capricorn and I’ve been living in the South Bronx for the past 21 years.

What are some of your early musical memories? I remember hearing Usher's Confessions album everywhere in 2004; Burn, Confessions Part II, and Yeah on rotation. That and Gasolina. That’s when I remember paying attention to music more (I think I’ve blocked most memories of MTV’s TRL out of my head), and then came the emo phase of ’07.

I also remember, though this isn't particularly musical, enjoying the Spice Girls lollipops that came with the stickers which is earlier in memory.

Whilst you run parties and a mix series as The Dance Pit, my first introduction to you was through (I think) the second issue of your zine Club Etiquette and then I kind of worked backwards from there. What first pushed you towards organising a zine? How did the specific idea for Club Etiquette come about? Mungo asked me if there were any parties he could play when he came over in 2015. I told him if I couldn’t find any, I’d put one on, which I decided to anyway.

At the same time, I was going to the club pretty regularly and would see the same people and we would always talk about what annoyed us, both on large and small scales, so thought a guideline would be handy, to be more conscientious of one’s surroundings and others. My school radio station (shouts to WBAR!) used to create zines, so thought that would be the most direct (least-bureaucratic) method. Since it was a guideline on “club etiquette,” that’s just what I decided to call it, although I still think the name sounds a bit bougie and will probably change it at some point.

My background is in activist theatre, so I was taught that anything I take on has to have a greater social purpose, cause what’s the point otherwise? (Don’t @ me with “art for art’s sake” – it may be for some people, but I have no time for it when so many other narratives don’t get heard).

Whitney Wei's illustrations that adorn the covers and grow throughout the pages of Club Etiquette provide the zine with this homemade warmth that carries over even into its digital copies, something that usually gets lost in the move to screens and online spaces of discussion. Did you find that it was important for you to produce the zine with that physicality in tact? Yes, shouts to Whitney! And Carmela Tzigana (who drew the Vol.6 cover). All cover aesthetic skills and most illustrations are credited to Whitney, who, regardless of the landscapes or deadlines I throw at her, manages to create something grounded and finely-detailed.

It makes me happy that you say that the physicality carries over (cause there is def some blood, sweat, and tears in some of those physical copies). I also really don’t like reading on computer screens, so if other people don’t mind and get past that, that’s great!

Tangibility, in a larger sense, is super important to me. Being able to cross over what’s written in the zine and enacting it in physical club spaces (or everyday life) is the reason why it was made in the first place. Theory is cool and all and part of the process, but actually putting ideas in practice is how I grow, and know what works.

A lot of Club Etiquette's material is necessarily born out of very personal and difficult experiences, but you also focus on some of the more lighthearted or even mundane aspects of club-going - 4am foodspots, hangovers, health tips, tv picks etc. I tend to find that these are the parts of the zine that fill me with the most nostalgia (for faceless nights I've mostly forgotten). What was the idea behind including them? How do you find the balance between them and the more serious aspects of each issue? I love the mundane. I also think there’s often a glamorization of going out needing to be the “best, most peak, night” of one’s life, like having a couple of nights where things get hella turnt is chill, but for me to constantly be at that level, I couldn’t do that. My club schedule is pretty routine and focusing on how to make up for lost sleep, or what to eat after I’ve danced for five hours straight, or what I watch when I don’t go out is really necessary for my survival.

Finding a balance between having both serious topics and lighthearted ones can be a bit tricky; I definitely don’t want to trivialize bigger issues by talking about/placing something silly right after. However, I do think that joy is also an integral part of our lives, and humor can be a place of learning as well. It’s the whole “I am not bound to one narrative” idea (that Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talks about in her TED Talk), that I am not defined by only my traumatic experiences, but my day-to-day comforts too.

I also just watch a whole bunch of children’s television, so I’m trying to learn from that how writers can discuss heavy topics but not bombard people with negativity. Also, a very much large shout-out is needed for everyone who contributes; their perspectives make up so much of the humor and joy in the zine, and I really am grateful for the club community here that practices what they preach <3.

New York sits at this juncture between North, South, and Central American dance cultures which, at least this is in the impression I got when I was there, in turn, maintain musical interactions with and influences from the UK. You yourself have relationships that spread throughout this geographical club axis (from the stuff you've done with Hiedrah Club de Baile to your Dance Pit NY parties and UK tour dates). How much has the influence of this environment bled into the zine, your sets and/or the parties you put on? Is there anywhere else you could see yourself living? I want to preface my answer by acknowledging the “first-world” privilege of made-up “border” (by this I mean borders are arbitrary in conception but have very-tangible effects) mobility that I have. I have been immensely lucky to have been able to experience Club Viral, HiedraH Club de Baile, and the Salviatek nights in Monterrey, Buenos Aires, and Montevideo respectively as well nights in the UK before that (with HDD and the Hub-before-it-was-the-Hub <3) and each journey has definitely bled into every aspect of my life, as seen through my sets (which are all over the place), with the different translations of the zine, and through the djs I book.

I grew up and still live in a predominantly Afro-Latinx and Afro-Caribbean community so bachata, reggaeton, and dancehall are what I’m surrounded by most and I think that influence is clear in what I play. I will say though that it is irresponsible to just play the sounds and not give anything back to the communities who create this music both locally and internationally, so I’m still figuring out ways in which to support producers, djs, and club nights that have taught me so much that goes beyond just promotions or social capital. I think it can be easy to fall into the trap of appropriating sounds, so it becomes really important to *listen* when people say it makes them uncomfortable when you’re playing certain music. I want to believe there can be collaborative exchanges in music, but ultimately, under capitalism, someone will always reap the benefits off of the exploitation of other cultures, so I have to just be hyper-vigilant about what I play, who I play it for, how it affects them, and how I can give back.

For me, people rather than place define what home is, so with the hope that in the future all visa requirements and borders will be abolished, I would very much like to go back to South America (back to Argentina & Uruguay, and to the western coast this time around, but also with a much overdue visit to Brazil) and the UK (further north this time!) for an extended period of time to hang with people I very much consider family and give back what I can.

There's a growing tendency at the moment towards abstraction and experimentalism in tracks and sets, attempts to push (or destroy) the boundaries of what a dance track can be or how two (or three or four) tracks should be mixed together. Feeling and hearing an artist's intent in a way that I've barely even considered before is exhilarating but there's also been times when I've missed a certain concreteness. Come New Years - when I caught up with you in London - I was really just itching to dance. Is it important for you to get that sort of physical reaction to a set or a blend? What does dancing mean to you? I started djing, or rather selecting music, for friends who loved to dance when no one else would. So every time I dj or make a mix, I always have someone I know in mind who I want to dedicate the set to, they all just happen to be people who dance a lot. Getting a physical reaction to a set isn’t necessary, people react to music in their own way, but dancing may just be inevitable :)

Dancing is how I show my gratitude to djs and other musicians (in addition to showering them with compliments :3). It’s only a small token of appreciation for the continuous experience of listening to their music.

Talk me through the mixes - how were they recorded? What led to the two parts? It’s been three months since you have asked me to do this(these) mix(es). About a month ago, maybe, I chose to split them because my temperament was changing so often (I blame the weather, the 2+ retrogrades, etc.) and also my attention span was/is decreasing daily.

The first mix is definitely for when I’m in one of my angsty moods, and am placing expectations on others, when I should just let them be. I also wanted to try constraining some parts in the mix to just highlighting certain instruments.

The second mix I made so I that when I play it on my monitors, my neighbors can listen to even more Bad Bunny than they have already been blasting onto the block on a Sunday. 

Both mixes are heavily influenced by my travels at the end of last year.

I live-recorded these (way too many times) and added any extra effects on audacity.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? I’d really like to continue the translations series of the zines, and there are def a couple more zine release parties in store for this year. My annual tarot card reading said I’ll find a new skill which will be my life’s work in October, so hopefully that’ll happen. As I mentioned above, I’d like to visit all my friends if possible, maybe finally make that mixtape hehe.

But most importantly, curating netflix for my mom and volunteering locally to facilitate and preserve music, arts, and community spaces in my neighborhood when displacement is already happening.

Finally, if you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after these mixes what would it be? Trick Answer: Go watch Steven Universe, give your eyes, ears, mind, and heart a treat. (That and Silver Spoon too please! - oh but also listen to Common Sense).

"Night" Tracklist

Sand Pact - Fervor w/ Nato - Cerita interlude Bad Bunny - Soy Peor (Axel Caram remix) DJ Nervoso - Djj Kala - Boriken Brazilian Percussion - Samba-Reggae 2 Cardi B interlude MC Lustosa_Shaded Pistola (MM edit) Gigi - Cah PayTay (Reply) Lechuga Zafiro - Suave Pero Rugoso (Diosa Tayhana remix) w/ TT The Artist - Worst Bday interlude Badgyal (Prod. Plata) - SMTHIN LIKE THIS x Dholi Taro Dhol Baaje Karaoke Version Aggromance - 1noche x Leokarlo - Intro ‘New Era’ x Dj Fofuxo - Raizes “Nu Guetto Qui Ta Bater” BAD$ISTA - Last night* Raman Saran - Dhak (Drum) Lechuga Zafiro - Orquídea T-Ney Kid Cala - Blue Magic (Loris Remix) Soda Plains - Espalho Meu Passo w/ Toshiro Masuda - Orochimaru’s** Theme interlude MC Linn da Quebrada - Mulher Totó La Momposina y sus tambores - Rosa FUNERAL - Cumbia futura Shivam Gupta - Durga Theme DJ Nervoso - Areia x Rebecca Sugar - Here Come’s a Thought Steven Universe - Rose’s Room dialogue***

*my phone# is on my last mix, call me up (thru facetime/whatsapp, bless) **i dont support/sympathize with orochimaru, they are a creep ***I hope Steven will be ok

"Day" Tracklist

Dj Valet - O começo Dj Nk - Caipirinha Vany-Fox - Me vs World Bk(blackinhO) - Funana [Batucada] Badgyal - Dinero (Prod. FAKEGUIDO) Bad Bunny ft. De La Ghetto, Zion, Bryant Myers - Caile (Dj Arturex & Dj Kris Club Version) MC Katia - Arrocha Das Fiéis (DJ Xaropinho) Conejx - Parvada w/ Bryant Myers ft. Bad Bunny - Un Ratito Mas interlude* Yxng Bane ft. Kojo Funds & Wizkid - Fine Wine Gage - Throat (Street Mongrel Riddim Version X Talkdunsk Remake) DJ Spinall ft. Wizkid - Opoju Yandel - Encantadora (El Kechu DJ Cumbia base Remix) Anuel AA - Ayer (Elián Acapella Remix) Epic B - Wicked Riddim Javed Akthar - Azeem O Shaan Shahenshah Instrumental Vybz Kartel - Fever (Dj YaMtZa Remix) Florentino - Bloodline x Florin Salam ft. Denisa - Cineva Ma Suna Cu Numar Privat deejay jeff love c pikachu 2pekes (Pininga Edit) Sikuri - Aamado Murlo - Hunter Tina Savage ft. Don Jazzy - Eminado (DJ Yoko Champeta Remix) Superficie - Febre Do Vale Joha - Me Llama Glolaluz - Me Controlas FUNERAL - Reverberacion Antenas ———————————————— J Hus - Did You See x Sikuri - 0

*use condoms! + Special thanks to Callosum, Mungo, Becky, and Michelle <3

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-049: Emily Glass | The Levels Are Very High

Hi Emily, how are you? What are you up to at the moment? Hello! : n ) I've been doing well. I've been mostly locked away in my room working on things, I'm very fixated on it haha.

Introduce Emily Glass. How did you get started and what are some of your main inspirations? Musically, I started out producing crude harsh noise & dark ambient in 2013/2014. It was my way of dealing with intense gender dysphoria & depressive episodes, it was very therapeutic to me. I can't say I'm really proud of those releases now, but it helped me survive, I'm glad I'm in a much better place now.

My main inspirations are my friends & lovers.

Aside from music you're also a lowkey visual artist - with a meditatively blank tumblr page, a slew of nighttime photography on your twitter and an instagram littered with type experiments. When did you start producing and making your own art? Is there any artistic crossover between your visual work and your music? Visual art was my primary output for most of my life until recently. There's definitely a crossover I think, visuals tend to inform how and what I produce musically. I guess I try to make things that sound as visual as I can make them, although that could change up at any moment, it's very fluid.

Talk me through the mix - how was it recorded? Did you set out with a particular concept or set of tracks in mind? I recorded this while in a mood i couldn't easily pin down. I had my focus on textures and very specific, mixed emotions, hopefully it came through somewhat.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? I've been working away at a couple of releases, hopefully at least one of them will be ready this year. although, my production speed varies so much i really have no real clue when something could be finished haha.

I guess it'll be a surprise for both of us!

Finally, if you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after these mixes what would it be?

Lokey - Ong Bak

[lvlsrvryhigh]

LVLSRVRYHI-048: Nights | The Levels Are Very High

Hey man, how's it going? Introductions come first, so for anyone who doesn't know: who are you? Where are you from? Lukasz / Nights, producer / DJ from London, Merseyside raised.

The last official thing we heard from you was your track with Scalade on the Hear Other Sounds white label that released back in March. What've you been working on in the meantime? How have you been keeping busy? I hope this mix showcases what I’ve been doing. Just been writing bare tunes and dealing with a crisis in musical confidence. I'm trying to write music for the next NSX release and the one after that.

Recently you've been developing your own label, NSX, releasing two records so far (one, a solo refix ep and the other with Seattle-based Charlux). What made you decide to start self-releasing your music in a physical format? Do you have a gameplan or a set of goals you're looking to achieve? Indifference from other labels i was approaching, plus I was feeling my own stuff. Who doesn't like vinyl anyway. I'm thankful for this because it means i get to create something new from scratch rather than working for other labels / DJs. Like a vision/label/collective/sound/whatever. Was planning on doing white labels as far back as 2014 but I didn't feel I had the tunes for it. I just wanna release like one sick / iconic record a year and sell out each one. Pretty modest I think.

With Hear Other Sounds, you're a part of a fairly tight-knit family of artists there - alongside Scalade, Fresh Paul, Charlux, J-One - producers who you've collaborated with beyond strictly label work. Who are some of your favourite DJs / producers outside of that circle? Gundam obvs, Nan Kole, Kanye West, Arca, Nina Kraviz, Grandmixxer, Sinjin Hawke / Zora Jones - I could go on and on...

You once said to me that there's a million things you've got to think about when putting out tracks and that pushing your music forward is always a focus. Why is maintaining that sense of progression important for you? So many reasons for this, mainly I wanna look back at my discography in 5 years time and think rah I released some mad shit and I can be proud of it. I’d be happy releasing two tunes a year rather than throwing out 20 that don’t bang.

Related to that, whilst Grime is still fairly nebulous and prone to mutations there remains certain sounds and aspects that are readily identifiable and endlessly reiterated. How do you keep yourself from relying on the fundamentals? Where do you draw your other influences from (music or otherwise)? I don’t like doing refixes (lol) especially of rinsed tunes. also i don’t listen to grime only, thankfully at work I’m jumping between various shows on Rinse, Radar and NTS continuously. Also my tastes aren’t exclusive to dance music, I listen to loads of trap and vocal stuff, like FKA Twigs. Too much of any niche genre ain’t healthy. you get tunnel vision. I did anyway, maybe I’m just shit and I’ve got a short attention span.

Talk me through the mix - how was it recorded? Did you set out with a particular concept or set of tracks in mind? Ha well like 14 of the tunes were written in the 10 days preceding it. I got really focused and thankfully managed to write some neat stuff just for this cause I’m not feeling most of what I make. This mix, it’s a solid body of work for me akin to an album.

What do you have planned for the rest of 2017? Well I want to put out NSX003 at the end of the year but I’m not sure it’s gonna happen, cant pick tunes for it! Grr. 

Also I have a vague vision for a music project, hence me asking you about CS5. Whether it happens is another thing.

Finally, if you had to pick something for people to listen to immediately after these mixes what would it be?

A self help tape.

Or... the sounds of rain in a rainforest (humid weather smh) or the sound of rain on a window or Nina Kraviz's fabric mix. Or whatever Nan Kole is doing.

Tracklist:

nights - danger (intro) nights - sirenz (unreleased) mothercreep edit (unreleased) nights - yakuza (unreleased) nights - nights theme (unreleased) nights - nines (NSX002) nights - shake my ass (unreleased) seawolf refix (NSX001) nights - holograph (unreleased) f - commas remix (unreleased) nights - untouchable (unreleased) nights - 300 bitches (unreleased) nights - angels fell (NSX001) nights vs gundam - shadow warriors (FDN04) nights - ??? nights - rep that (unreleased) (w killa p vocal) nights - the winter soldier (unreleased) nights - too much (unreleased) nights - exodia necross (unreleased) mikey dollaz - front line (prod. Nights) (free dl) nights - hi tek (unreleased) nights - the workz (unreleased) goosebumps edit (unreleased)