Features

The latest and greatest DJs and producers rising to the top this month. From masterful footwork and radiant house, to striking Latin beats, eclectic electro, breaks and beyond, here’s March 2024’s list of upcoming talent you should be keeping track of

Milan-based producer and DJ Piezo has spent the past decade refining his meticulously mutated strain of club music, with releases appearing on lauded labels such as Wisdom Teeth and Nervous Horizon. Alongside a head-spinning Recognise mix, he tells Christian Eede about his early days in the Italian freetekno rave scene, formative years in Bristol, and the global sound palette of his Ansia label’s latest compilation

First released in 2012, Donato Dozzy and Neel’s groundbreaking self-titled album as Voices From The Lake changed the landscape of ambient techno, and set a new course for minimalist electronic music. Rob McCallum learns how the ripple effects of its legacy are still being felt like a pulsating torrent today

Girls Don’t Sync are booting down barriers in dance music with their unrivalled energy and community-building ethos. Right off the back of their massive sold-out show at KOKO in London, and ahead of their sold-out headline show at The Warehouse Project in Manchester, they chat to Sophie Walker about creating a welcoming dancefloor, keeping things fresh, and inspiring others to follow their dreams.

With his Shaytoon Records label, Sepehr has built a platform for underground techno and electronic music from the Iranian diaspora. But the versatile New York-based producer and DJ fights oversimplified categorisations and pigeonholing at every turn, extracting influence from obscure ‘90s rave records as much as Persian mythology. Alongside a 90-minute On Cue mix demonstrating this sound, he tells Marke Bieschke about his Flower Storm project with Kasra V, the influence of Silent Servant, and his grunge-influenced new band

Rotterdam's IMANU crafts tracks and DJ sets that do away with genre, choosing instead to surf through styles, tempos and textures with a focus on emotional impact. Alongside a hair-raising Recognise mix, he speaks to Ben Hindle about changing up his production process, taking creative risks, and visualising his sound

Get acquainted with Jackie Hollander, the San Francisco-based melodic house and techno producer whose thumping tracks have landed on labels like Nervous Records, REALM and There Is A Light

In this series, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Dirty K charts a history of ‘90s and early ‘00s East Asian rave music in ten tracks

Over the past two decades, West London DJ and producer T.Williams has worn many hats, from his roots in grime and jungle through to spells in garage and soulful melodic house. His recently released debut album, ‘Raves Of Future Past’, finds him freed from all limitations, and pays tribute to this wide-ranging career. Here, Ben Murphy speaks to him about writing songs versus bangers, the freedom of expression of the early 2000s era, and how he made his classic track ‘Heartbeat’ with Terri Walker

After nearly five decades in music, nobody could blame François Kevorkian for taking it easy. But that’s not in the France-born, NYC-based polymath’s DNA. Shortly after celebrating his 70th birthday, Bruce Tantum hears his story, and learns about the curiosity and drive that keeps him going

In this series, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Nkisi spotlights ritualistic acid rhythms, “electronic voodoo music”, Belgian new beat, EBM and more

Over the past few years, against the backdrop of the cost of living crisis and austerity, an energised crop of community-focused collectives, promoters, and venues have emerged in the UK capital. Against some tough odds, they are fighting to keep the city’s electronic music scene not only alive, but thriving. Here, Georgia Mulraine looks at how promoters and partygoers are adapting to this new landscape, adjusting their expectations of what going out looks like and, ultimately, asks: what is the future of London clubbing?

With its grimy cyberpunk aesthetic, Berlin label Mechatronica's innovative electro releases have found fans in the likes of DJ Stingray 313 and Helena Hauff. Alongside a mix from its catalogue, co-founder Casper Mejlholm tells Ben Murphy how experimentation and rule-breaking are at the heart of its success

Soaring ascents, the kind that can take an artist from obscurity to stardom in what seems to be the blink of an eye, don’t occur often, in dance music or elsewhere – those who are lucky enough to have that experience often disappear just as quickly. But there’s little chance of a quick fade for South Africa’s Palesa Desiree Shilabje, the DJ and producer known to the world as DESIREE, who in just a few short years has proved to be one of the international festival circuit’s most exciting new stars. Here, Bruce Tantum hears her story, and about how her evolution through music has been as organic as they come

In early 2009, Eamon Harkin and Justin Carter launched Mister Saturday Night. The party formed the roots of what would eventually become the beloved nightspot Nowadays, a “by us, for us” club that’s become a community hub for NYC’s nightlifers. Following the release of a sprawling box-set to mark the party’s 15th anniversary, and alongside a mix recorded live from the club, Harkin, Carter and a few of the compilation’s featured artists fill us in on what makes Mister Saturday Night so special

In this series, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, NEXCYIA spotlights adventurous ambient music filled with “exceptional sound design and captivating textures”

Acid duo Paranoid London new album boasts a beefier sound than ever, and a host of new collaborators. Here, Joe Roberts meets them and learns how a chance meeting, faster tempos and the politics of the moment have shaped their new approach

Dominican-American DJ, producer and multi-instrumentalist Toribio records a freewheeling mix of jazzy house, soulful edits and percussive heaters from New York’s Public Records for the Fresh Kicks series, and speaks to Nisa Khan about illuminating Latin music’s legacy, and channelling his church upbringing's communal energy in his sets

Utrecht's CARISTA is on a quest to bring club crowds together with her irresistible, energising DJ sets. Ria Hylton meets her to find out how her United Identities label is elevating new talent in the Netherlands, and how she’s branching into new areas of music.

The latest and greatest DJs and producers rising to the top this month. From quaking dubstep and tripped-out rap, to healing house, R&B and beyond, here’s February 2024’s list of upcoming talent you should be keeping track of