Midweek Mixes (08/12/21)
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.
DJ, radio host and journalist Zakia has recently moved from her Saturday morning Questing slot on NTS to hosting some of the Breakfast show schedule vacated by Charlie Bones. For someone like me who was pretty good at tuning in on a Saturday over a cup of tea, but rarely reaches for NTS during the week, it’s a big loss. But I think I’m in the minority, and this way Zakia’s particular soundworld and vision will definitely reach a bigger audience.
Luckily for me and those like me she also does the occasional one-off mix or show (like the one for 6 Music I wrote about previously), and here we have a curious half-hour selection put together for a menswear brand’s new collection. While the fashion dimension of this doesn’t resonate with me, it is responsible for the cool narrative behind the mix: “the intersection of Black culture and martial arts as expressed through the soundtracks that defined the era”.
That means music from across the world - Cuba, Haiti and various islands in the Caribbean, Japan, the US and the UK - put together into an atmospheric, kinetic soundtrack worthy of any kung fu thriller. And indeed there are martial arts sound effects and quotes interspersed throughout, including some wisdom from Bruce Lee himself. A highlight for me is the Kenix-produced ‘Movement’ from Gwen McCrae’s 1981 self-titled LP, a reminder that it can be worth wading through the usual morass of mid-tempo ballads on these albums just to find those deep cuts that still hold up today (I’m looking at you, Mark Seven).
Full tracklist here.
Jade Seatle - EOS Radio Nov 2021
This mix feels like a companion piece to the NorthSouth podcast from Jade earlier this year, following a similarly breaksy-housey path for much of its runtime and doing it just as effortlessly. But in contrast to that set, towards the end of this one things sort of lift off into more techno-y, trance-y and (dare I say) it big-room-y territory, not in the pejorative meaning of the word but just in terms of the scale of the tracks and the amount of energy injected in those final 15 minutes.
It’s exhilarating and makes me think of the 5am dancefloor moment three summers ago when Jade dropped Midi Rain aka John Rocca’s ‘Always’ at Pumping Velvet (*single tear*). She closes things out here with bittersweet electro - a perfect comedown after the rush.
Dana Kuehr - The Morning Show @ Kiosk Radio
Islas & Alex’s Morning Show on Kiosk Radio is a Midweek Mixes staple, and now they’ve invited a selection of close friends to join them on a Friday morning rotation. Last week Dana Kuehr took over and ably matched the main hosts’ classy but cheeky mix of ambient dreaminess, curveballs and BANGERS, chief among the latter being Destiny’s Child and Mariah. (This is also the DJ who on a previous Morning Show dropped an insanely good remix of the Dire Dire Docks theme from Super Mario 64, so she’s got previous.)
No tracklist yet for this but I’ll be looking out for it on the show’s beautifully designed IG page when it appears.