American @tonebnimble has been a vital part of the dance music underground since growing up in Chicago in the mid-eighties. He's one of those artists who has always stayed under the radar but is a firm favourite with those who know, from Sadar Bahar to Gilles Peterson. Part of that is because of the faultless labels he runs which shine a light on both lesser known and more modern soul, disco and gospel gems. First, there was Al-Tone Edits with Al Bum, and then came Rain&Shine which put out eight volumes of Tone's magnificent Soul is My Salvation series. All of these life-enriching sounds old and new are served up on this week's mix in a positively uplifting fashion. It's a glorious selection of soul-stirring songs, funky disco bombs and golden gospel grooves that work in just about any setting, at any time of day. Mixes as irresistible as this are as much education as they are entertainment, and they should really make us thankful for diggers like Tone B. Nimble who work so exhaustively to bring us such high-grade musical pleasures.
@orpheuthewizard is one of the many jewels in the Amsterdam scene, as well as being a regular with us here at Dekmantel. He's one of those DJs who was born for the backroom, a place where his curveballs and oddities make for subversive soundtracks that span sounds and scenes from across the decades. For that reason, he is an ever-popular guest on stations like NTS and can either cast you adrift in the cosmos or lock you in with a cold wave beat. He's in a club-ready mood on this week's mix and it's one that proves exactly why they call him Orpheu The Wizard: it's a journeying selection of intergalactic tracks that bang and bounce in many different ways. There are nostalgic retro-future workouts mixed into brain-boggling trance-techno cuts, rave bombs and bright progressive classics all upping the energy levels and leading to your eventual take-off. Strap in!
Coco Bryce (@cocobrycebeats) is a veteran of the drum & bass scene, but also one of its most cutting-edge artists. The Breda-born DJ and producer is a master of intricate drum patterns and superbly warm and emotive pads. His silky, soulful sounds some with deft vocals and proper piano riffs that are always on the more minimal end of the spectrum, but still make a lasting impact. Next to his own Myor label, he has landed on the likes of Critical Recordings, Lobster Theremin and Fresh 86, and in 2022 alone he has put out at least six different EPs. True to his prolific form, this week's mix is packed with his own exclusive and unreleased tunes as well as gems from Paradox, Denham Audio and DJ H. It adds up to an absorbing hour of stylish and stripped-back rhythms that both float in the cosmos and root you to the dance floor. Lush chords and subtle waves of euphoria permeate the whole mix and make it as emotionally touching as it is physically moving.
@monotronique hails from Kharkiv, which is one of the cities affected most by the war in Ukraine. Before the invasion, he had become one of its most definitive DJs thanks to his residency at Zhivot. That was the platform that helped him break out on the European scene with his brand mix of house, techno and bass. Drawing on those genres, his productions pair minimalism with experimentalism and have come on the likes of Livity Sound, Opal Tapes and Banoffee Pies. This week's mix is an epic one spread across two and a half hours which showcases Monotronique's ability to start slow and build a fantastic mood. Nothing is rushed here as the electronics go from deep and dubby to smooth and seductive. House, techno and raved-up breaks all build the pressure then well-placed moments of euphoria break out to release the pressure before things build once again. It's a brilliantly balanced mix from this essential Ukrainian.
@flore is adept in many different fields. She was Ableton's first certified female trainer in her native France. She pioneers a leftfield take on bass with her own music and heads up the crucial POLAAR label. Her explosive sense of energy and ever-curious mind draws on the fundamentals of Jamaican sound system culture and embellishes it with the new music she is constantly searching for. Across two full-lengths she was ahead of the curve, first with a unique take on bass, and then a futuristic techno offering on 2020's Rituals. Guessing what might come next is part of her appeal. In a little over an hour on this week's mix, Flore whips through 30 thrilling tracks. Almost every single one has a different rhythm, some pound, some skip, some float. There are jungle throwbacks, future club tracks and manic acid cuts that make for a full-throttle ride, but always with a sense of control that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Like many of his generation, @lefto Early Bird has gained a global following because of his radio shows. Broadcasting on the likes of Studio Brussel, Kiosk Radio and Worldwide FM from his base in Brussels, he's become a beacon of good taste whether dropping jazz, new beat, house or hip hop. He manages to make seemingly unrelated sounds make sense in the same context and is just as versatile in the DJ booths of Europe's best clubs and festivals. He plays for us at Dekmantel Selectors later this year and is sure to serve up one of his magic musical melting pots. This week's mix is just that, with a brilliantly broad selection of tracks from Sun Ra & His Arkestra, Kerri Chandler, Synkro and Kendrick Lamar just some of those he weaves in. It makes for something that manages to transport you to a sun-kissed beach, a prohibition-era speakeasy and then a boogie-fuelled dance floor in the blink of an eye. You are sure to be left wondering how on earth he does it all.
For the last decade, the tireless work of Tel-Aviv quartet Maor Anava, Zach Bar, Yoav Magriso and Ariel Tagar has been shining a light on magnificently obscure and previously forgotten Middle Eastern sounds. As a DJ crew and label heads of Fortuna Records, their carefully curated reissues focus on the psychedelic end of the spectrum and give their Israeli homeland the exposure it deserves. Their NTS show is another bastion of good taste and takes in everything from Arabic pop to acid, free jazz to traditional Arabic sounds. This week's mix is a similarly freewheeling selection that is steep in hypnotic Arabic music, transcendental instrumentals and curious grooves. It makes for an intoxicating listen with snaking melodies that lead you down a rabbit hole before loose-limbed Middle Eastern rhythms carry you to the edge of the dance floor and back again. Add in leftfield dub and ritualistic vocals and you have an authentic snapshot of a unique musical world.
For @eliasmazian, music is a time capsule - a form of transport to somewhere safe and secluded away from every day worries. It is a way for the Dutchman with Moroccan roots to express his deepest emotions and connect the music of his childhood with contemporary sounds from around the world. He showcased this with us at Dekmantel Connects back in 2021 and always in the music he makes. He crafts a moody and atmospheric start to this week's podcast with melancholic melody over languid beats. There's then a slow shift to the dance floor before party-starting house jacks your body with plenty of hands-in-the-air pianos and ever more pumping basslines. It's a high-energy selection that wears its heart proudly on its sleeve.
Composer, DJ and sound artist @yu_su is Vancouver-based but China-born and she makes music that travels just as far. It is rooted on the dance floor but with influences that span a wide array of emotions, styles and scenes. From jazz to ambient to organic synthesis, wistful texture to her own multi-instrumental skills, she brings a new style of composition to her work. That was best exemplified on her adventurous and accomplished 2021 album Yellow River Blue which picked up plenty of critical acclaim. Her mix for us this week brings Su's signature blend of dub, downtempo, house and trippy leftfield electronics. She says, "Once again, the story has a start and an end, but you could be anywhere you want inside the journey." She's not wrong - it is a living and breathing selection packed with cultural references, interesting rhythms and carnival atmospheres that is perfect for out door dancing under the sun with music from Pearson Sound, Jimmy Edgar, Midland, Carl Craig and many more.
@kiernan-laveaux is a boundless ball of chaos energy - an adventurous spirit, conducting the binary dissolving forces of our world that are reflected & transmuted through the unbridled passion contained within her DJing. The Cleveland artist's mission is "to channel love and understanding to dancers of open mind and spirit everywhere." Since 2014, her ethos of community building, personal autonomy, & transportative psychedelia has grown to encompass the multiversal creators of possible worlds everywhere, the In Training, Heaven is in You, & Disco Paradiso parties that traversed the wormhole of limitless expression & jouissance together in Cleveland from 2014-2018, & the Motherbeat raves that continue to manifest sporadically throughout our known universe. The music she plays is impossible to pin down in genre terms, but is unified by it's restless sense of ecstatic momentum, dissonant euphoria, & kinetic exuberance. Her 80-minute mix for us this week is jam-packed with a little bit ...