“I’m gonna need a minute to cool off,” a young raver mouths to his mate, before shuffling off the dancefloor to stir up the air...
Features
As two long-running bastions of Ibiza, it’s fair to assume that Defected’s Fridays residency at San Antonio’s Eden are a match made in house music heaven. Just to be sure, though, DJ Mag’s Olivia Stock heads to the Ibiza superclub for 2023’s season closing party — a glorious celebration of their motto — "house music all-life long" — and 20 years of the legendary label on the island
Chicago’s ARC Music Festival brings international acts from throughout the various evolutions of house music to the city that gave the genre its name, booking them side by side with rising and veteran local talent. Ben Hindle heads to the Windy City to see how the music and culture survives and thrives, and samples the best DJs, venues, sound systems and sandwiches Chicago has to offer
The Orbit Grassroot Support Programme is a new venture by London’s The Halley, in partnership with DJ Mag, that provides space for music communities focused on championing underrepresented groups and tackling important issues. With an ongoing monthly schedule of workshops and talks, a new funding scheme, and having just hosted a special one-off Orbit Live event, Aneesa Ahmed learns more about its goal of creating a fairer, more accessible, dance music industry
Poland’s Pointless Geometry challenges the sonic and economic norms of both the music industry and its home country’s ruling power. Alongside a mix of tracks from its catalogue, label heads Copy Corpo and FOQL explain how they put community building, an egalitarian approach, and uplifting local artists at the forefront of everything they do
Afro house is one of dance music’s hottest offerings, and West African artists like Benin-born AMÉMÉ are helping to proliferate the global movement. Megan Venzin links up with him on Ibiza to learn more about his life and what’s coming next for his One Tribe music and events platform
A flagbearer for the Dutch house scene, Chris Stussy ascended to the next level this year with his hit, ‘All Night Long’. A tirelessly creative DJ, producer and curator, this month he speaks to Anna Wall about his history in music, his time spent as a footballer, his global fanbase, and more
The latest and greatest DJs and producers rising to the top this month. From thumping house and wobbly dubstep to shimmering techno, leftfield grime and beyond, here’s October 2023’s list of upcoming talent you should be keeping track of
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, ahead of his appearance at Semibreve festival this month, Porto’s DJ Lynce spotlights his favourite jungle records
Dutch gabber erupted from localised scenes in Rotterdam and Amsterdam, evolving into one of Holland's most significant youth movements of the ’90s. But its mass popularity was also its downfall, and by the millennium the scene had collapsed. Here, Holly Dicker looks back at 30 years of gabber, finding that artists outside of its home country have recently helped foster a wider interest in the sound, as well as speaking to those pushing a more diverse and enriched new-meets-old gabber scene in Holland
Kikelomo brings people together, whether she’s co-running the Accra-based Oroko Radio station, DJing to club crowds or working on documentaries. Alongside her genre-hopping Recognise mix, she speaks to Sarah Kearns about fostering community, her love of radio, and her eclectic musical taste
East London’s ohmydais records a mix of “cool, fast, sexy breaks and high energy bangers” for the Fresh Kicks series, and speaks to Olivia Stock about cutting her teeth in the Nottingham scene, finding her sound, uplifting friends, and her brand new collective party series
Forty years ago, in August 1983, jazz keyboard legend Herbie Hancock released 'Future Shock', a genre-defying album that introduced audiences around the world to vinyl scratching, hip-hop beats and sampling. It ushered in a new era of production techniques and studio exploration, and laid a blueprint for the following decade's hip-hop explosion. Here, Marke Bieschke explores the record's incredible legacy
Damian Lazarus celebrates 20 years of his pioneering record label, Crosstown Rebels, in 2023, the vehicle which has helped him travel to the upper echelons of the international DJ pyramid and score a high-profile Ibiza residency, taking over the Club Room of Hï Ibiza every Saturday night this summer. DJ Mag talks to Damian about wizardry, his weekly Hï Ibiza night, the history of his Crosstown label, and DJing in the great outdoors
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, DJ Perception dives into his record bag for deep cut garage gems
Tbilisi, Georgia's Gacha Bakradze has spent a decade refining his signature sound, weaving emotive electronic melodies and guitar lines through skittering techno and IDM beats. He's also co-founder of the renowned Left Bank club and community space, which celebrates its second official anniversary next month with the launch of a new label and compilation. Here, alongside his club-tuned, three-deck On Cue mix, he speaks to Eoin Murray about how family life and running a venue has changed his relationship with music, his background in bands, and his community-driven vision for Left Bank
Emerging technology has left the DAW at a crossroads. A combination of legacy code, compatibility restrictions and a user base who expect their favourite tools to remain familiar has left music-making software lacking innovation. As the pandemic, cloud-computing and generative AI shift expectations of how music-making tools should look and feel, Declan McGlynn asks: will the DAW adapt or die?
Deborah De Luca has risen out of her home city of Naples in Italy to become a in-demand international headliner. She’s been one of the main DJs at premium White Isle club Amnesia this summer, and here she talks to DJ Mag Ibiza about her love for her home city, her incredible fondness for dogs, body image issues, and how long she might remain in the DJ game
Fatima Hajji chats to DJ Mag Ibiza about the secret to a long career, her favourite spots on the island, and the making of her forthcoming record
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, Paurro spotlights all-time favourites and meaningful tracks from throughout her life, from pop and dance anthems to blissful electronica
Melding psychedelic house, trance and techno with crackly charm, Naarm's Butter Sessions imprint is raising the heat on dancefloors across Australia and beyond. Alongside a mix of tracks from its catalogue, Anisha Khemlani speaks to founders Sleep D about their community-building approach