Each week, FACT trawls through the untamed world of free mixes, radio specials and live blends so you don’t have to.
This week, we’ve got two of contemporary techno’s most interesting producers laying down club sets, hip-hop from Atlanta, ambient and even some gamelan to throw into the mix.
Powell
FADER Mix
Diagonal founder Powell’s sets are always a treat, and this mix for The Fader is no exception. It might lack the chat of his Melon Magic shows on NTS, but there’s plenty of the disembodied vocal weirdness of his own productions throughout, with warped club bangers from EVOL, Not Waving and Shit and Shine mixed with tracks from Alan Vega, Soft Cell and DNA.
Speakerfoxxx
Skin II: The Art of Letting Go
Speakerfoxxx returns with her second Skin mix. The Atlanta tastemaker lives up to its “The Art of Letting Go” subtitle, blending a woozy mix of hip-hop, R&B and electronic — especially from the artists that are busy dissolving the boundaries between each. Summer songs like Jamie xx’s ‘Good Times’ brush up against old favorites like Bat For Lashes’ ‘Daniel’, edits of Young Thug, Araabmuzik and more.
Richard McFarlane
Nahatlatch River Radio
Richard McFarlane – the man Vancouver’s 1080p label – takes the reins for this show on Kuala Lumpur-based radio show Into The Blue. Rather than playing lots of material from his own label, it’s a chance for him to showcase some of the more unusual and unexpected music influencing what he does, with Laraaji, Fennesz and Kerry Leimer sitting alongside tracks from Gonno, Woo and more.
Objekt
Crack Mix 100
Crack’s mix series has reached number 100, and they decided there was nobody better than Objekt to do the honours. After an unexpectedly bluesy introduction, it’s a full-throttle trip through electro and techno, hitting that sweet spot between futuristic beats and nods to the past, free of retro fetishisation.
Om Unit
Gate 1: Sleep/Surrender
Though he’s best known for deconstructing jungle, footwork and hip-hop and reforming them into his own unique club tracks, Om Unit has decided to kick off his new “Gates” mix series with an ambient selection. According to the producer, each “Gate” will exploring “a unique and concisely expressed theme”, with music chosen “without the constraints of genre or style” – expect Brian Eno, Fis, Roly Porter, John Foxx and more in this first episode.
Wonja
Wood Glass Metal Vol. 3
San Francisco’s Wonja continues her brilliant Wood Glass Metal series with a third volume. Like the other two, it’s full of gamelan and metallophone tracks guaranteed to sooth your ears, but this time features Room 40’s Lawrence English and Robert Turman nestled among the Javanese music.
