Midweek Mixes (07/04/21)
A run-down of some of the mixes and radio shows that have been soundtracking my existence – from the box-fresh to the tried-and-tested, all guaranteed to brighten up your week.
Lakuti & Tama Sumo - Radio 1’s Wind Down
This is an inspiring, cosmopolitan and masterfully put together hour of music, traversing between atmospheric downtempo and angular mid-80s synth-driven art pop, italo and funk, including a remix of Jean Michael Basquiat’s band Gray.
In fact the whole mix has an underlying theme of art and art-adjacent music from around the world, leading to all sorts of enlightening internet rabbit holes should you follow up the tracklist. There are artists from Finland, Nigeria, Austria, Italy, the US, the UK and (the then) Czechoslovakia, plus a French musician’s field recordings from an indigenous village in Colombia.
The political intention behind this selection is given voice by the clarion call of ‘The Beginning & The End’ by SAULT:
“We will not let our minds be used.
We will not let our minds be used in this wicked world.
We will band together.
We will make the human family one, once more.”
Besides this moment of direct speech, the force of feeling behind the mix is ever present in the music itself, both in the choice of individual tracks and their deft combination. For just one example, the transition between ‘Danger Zone’ by Danger Boys and ‘The Beginning & The End’ is a triumph.
The overall effect is entertaining on first listen and more profound after several, leaving an emotional trace that persists in the mind long after the mix has finished.
Tomás Freitas - Musicódromo #2
Member of staff at flur, one of Lisbon’s foremost record shops, Tomás has a broad and discerning taste that is reflected in his new radio show, Musicódromo.
Just like the first episode, this month’s show revels in outer space sonics in the first half – space jazz from Sun Ra, abstract electronics on Acting Press – before ramping up through industrial and electro into Memphis rap and modern-day jungle.
It’s all introduced (in portuguese) in an informative manner that captures both the mood and context of the music being presented. Great radio, in other words.
Rizmi - Spectrumix 010
As well as being a fellow Brummie, Rizmi has a distinctive DJ style that means I’m excited every time she puts a new mix out.
I’ve noticed she has a trick she pulls: you think you’re all settled in with spacey ambient and percussive meditations from different parts of the world, and then before you know it you’ve imperceptibly transitioned into chugging, then growling, then banging electro and other broken textures. This mix is a classic illustration, capping that all off with a couple of disco and boogie anthems for good measure
I suggest you also check out her sufi mix, based on live gig she played at an ambient night in 2019 – it’s my go-to for Sunday afternoon sitting-in-the-sun.
William Burnett - WTBS @ The Lot Radio
William Burnett aka Willie Burns aka DJ Speculator’s weekly Monday show on Brooklyn’s The Lot Radio has become one of my weekly rituals. Managing as he does the infamous record store (hole?) The Thing in Green Point, it’s hardly surprising that his radio shows are a lesson in expecting the unexpected. Though that doesn’t mean wilful obscurity - quite the opposite.
His penchant for 80s synth pop and chart-topping 90s house (to give just two examples) is hardly a secret, and on this recent show he really let those particular penchants (?) run wild. Adamski, Company B, Hashim, Womack & Womack and Level 42 all make appearances.