Features

In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Ruf Dug goes from peak time to downtime with house, dub, outsider pop, avant-jazz and more

Free samples of a truly classic bit of kit

Released in 1997, Drexciya's double-vinyl compilation 'The Quest' marked the duo's breakthrough onto a larger public stage, as well as their first, temporary, retirement. With liner notes that sharpened their Afrofuturist mythology into focus , it is also the record that cemented many fans' sonic liaison with the Detroit duo, following a series of 12" releases that perfected their musical ideas. Here, Ben Cardew reflects on a record that most perfectly encapsulates the style, grace, and range of James Stinson and Gerald Donald's project

Kyoto’s Stones Taro sprints from acid-scorched techno and electro into sizzling breaks and garage for the Fresh Kicks series, and chats to Ben Murphy about his love of ‘90s UK dance music, his NC4K label with Lomax, and his local scene

Tampa duo They Hate Change made an international impact in 2022 with their album, ‘Finally, New’, showcasing an exhilarating mix of Floridian rap and breaks with flourishes of jungle, drum & bass and UK rave. They talk to Eoin Murray about the birth of the Gulf Coast sound, learning from the DIY scene, and joining a global community of artists pushing innovative genre fusions
 

Get acquainted with Miss Grit, the producer and multi-instrumentalist whose debut LP explores themes of self-actualisation and identity with cyborgs

In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Zoë Mc Pherson spotlights sumptuous R&B and experimental hip-hop, footwork, deep house, d&b and more

UK garage pioneer Scott Garcia released ‘A London Thing’ in 1997 as a kind of signature track for the burgeoning scene. For this month's Game Changer, Rob McCallum speaks to the DJ/producer to learn the story of an enduring UKG anthem
 

South Africa's love for house music flourished in the early ’90s as the Apartheid era ended, pushed primarily by DJs in and around Johannesburg and Pretoria. Now, it's a focal point, filled with local styles and stars. Martin Guttridge-Hewitt heads to Gauteng to learn the story of the scene’s origins, and the risks its pioneers took to pave the way for its thriving industry today

Launched in 2016, Amsterdam-based imprint The North Quarter has become a key platform for soulful drum & bass and beyond. Alongside a mix from its catalogue, founder Lenzman speaks to Ben Murphy about surprising listeners, originality, and the guiding principle of sharing the music he loves

Introducing the MCs, DJs and producers set to make an impact on the global rap scene in 2023. From voices that can move between dancehall and drill, and those challenging industry shortcomings, to a DJ mixing hip-hop and R&B with amapiano, and producers pushing localised hip-hop sounds into the future, these are the artists daring to be different and set to make the global rap scene theirs this year

Get acquainted with Toumba, the Jordanian producer merging cutting-edge machine drums and heavy bass with the melodies and percussive rhythms of the Levant

In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Identified Patient dives into murky percussion, eerie acid breaks, dark psychedelic trance, and more

Orbital’s 10th album, ‘Optical Delusion’, explores division, discontent and dislocation, but equally celebrates collective rave euphoria. Joe Roberts speaks to the Hartnoll brothers about writing the record in lockdown, the enduring live evolution of 'Chime', co-opting pop, and more

Ever since a sudden and unexpected change in career trajectory, Caroline Cecil’s full focus has been on music. That has paid off: While working as WHIPPED CREAM, she’s managed to climb to electronic music’s top rungs in just a few short years. With the release of the new ‘Someone You Can Count On’, along with a journey toward self-discovery, she’s entered what feels like a new phase in her life

Part of Jersey club’s second wave, R3LL has taken the sound to the world’s biggest stages without losing touch with his roots. Alongside a blazing mix, he speaks to James Gui about Brick Bandits, bringing legends to play in LA, and pushing future stars of Jersey club at home and abroad

Get acquainted with AAA, the East London selector and No Signal resident with a penchant for polished transitions and stunningly varied selections

In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Sicaria spotlights system-shaking sub-bass and percussion from the wide 140 sphere

After years spent as an established pop artist, Goa's Kiss Nuka devoted her life to underground electronic music, and has never looked back. She tells Tara Joshi about making music on her own terms, her commitment to activism, and celebrating feminine energy

Flitting between the sweat of the dancefloor and the fog of the chillout room, Kelela’s latest album for Warp channels Drexciyan mythology and modern rave sonics into an aural manifesto of aquatic Afrofuturism