Melbourne musician Raquel Solier has taken leave from her guise as left-field RnB diva Fatti Frances in favour of a new project, Various Asses (V/A). V/A’s self-described “body horror music” is an exploration of complex rhythmic foundations with ambient undertones, informed by a love of electronic, grime and future music. Get ready to get deep with this special mix created by V/A – not for the faint-hearted!
DJ Manchild knows a thing or two about funk. Ahead of his appearance at Inner Varnika festival over the Easter long weekend, DJ Manchild has made us a mix incorpating music sourced on his travels around the world, blending "Caribbean stoner disco, a dash of afrobeat, a pinch of cumbia and six kilos of funk."
Say hello to Assemble Papers' new editor, Sara Savage. Her first print issue won't come out until later this year (founding editor Eugenia Lim will continue to take the reins for Assemble Papers' imminent fifth issue), so consider this mix programmed by Sara as a 'soft introduction' to your new editor – and a little gift from us to you, to say thanks for being a part of the Assemble Papers community.
NO ZU's self-described "art-damaged sound" fuses the flavour of no-wave, boogie, dub, disco and salsa manifest into the band's very own ‘heat beat’. To herald the change in season (and in preparation for the hot, hot El Niño summer), Andrew Noble, NO ZU's drummer and percussionist, has put together this sultry mix for your listening pleasure.
Sydneysider Alex Ward, aka Moon Holiday, brings you this mix for cooler, darker climes. A strong female electronic producer in a hyper male-dominated field, Moon Holiday has performed alongside Little Dragon, Karen O and Money Mark. Here, she shares her pre-winter “sleet mix" to add atmosphere and space for reflection to your daily, rainy commute.
Becky Sui Zhen aka DJ Susan is a creative superpower. You may have heard her as one half of Melbourne duo Fox + Sui, fronting Sui et Sui or on vocals/percussion for NO ZU and Hot Palms. She also helps design the way we view culture with Art Processors (creators of MONA's 'O'), moonlights as a music video maker and is even big in Japan (every gaijin's dream). Here's Becky's Japan-inspired transit mix.
Shown here literally living summer, DJ Dreaming (aka Hazel Brown of Schoolhouse Studios and Two Bright Lakes) has immersed herself in heat of the sexier season to bring us this (destined to be on repeat) mix. Roll call the Aaliyahs and the Mariahs and the Oscar Key Sungs of the world. Hazel suggests it will sexify any of your day-to-day activities, and is especially sultry dishes-doing listening.
Steele Bonus, Marcus King and Dusty Fingers don't miss a beat throwing down everything from afro synth to electro boogie for Heartbeat – a club night straight from the underground. Dusty Fingers aka Marty Doyle shares his November mix with us to get you in the mood. Prepare to move yourself in an unashamedly sexxi way.
Having once likened his sound to "Beck and Kraftwerk doing peyote with The Stone Roses" you better believe things don't get fruitier than Lord Fascinator. Dressed like Iris Apfel to the power of 1000 googly eyes, this thirty-something, man-in-a-kaftan is one who thinks nothing of attaching an extra set of limbs to his outfit. He's put together one sweet space cocktail for our EARS.
HMAS Harry is a nod to revered Japanese musician Haruomi (Harry) Hosono and his profound exotica obsession that spanned several consecutive albums. Sourcing a rare cache of Hosono's tropical works on a recent solo pilgrimage to Japan, Sydney's Lizard Promise DJ has composed a collage of these sounds sprinkled with field recordings he took in the hills of Kyoto.
OP(T)I(M)UM-TRANS is Jezadin Nazifovski (Jez) and Matthew Xue (Moopie) – regular fixtures at various late-night establishments around Melbourne. Taking it down a few bpm from their usual peak club activity, they’ve prepared a soothing, zen-inducing lullaby of rare tracks especially for our relaxation. Post-club, pre-bed, mid-stress – this mix guarantees swift passage to the chill zone.
“International in flavour, cosmopolitan in style” – Monte Morgan and Harvey Miller are Client Liaison, purveyors of some of the most epic, uplifting pop songs and power ballads of late (that sound like they are of late last century). It is nothing but an honour to share this candid window into their iTunes highest play count – only the second ever mix they have done together.
Much like the industrial and gritty metropolis that is its namesake, this mix – created especially for us by DJ Seoul – is serious, deep, dark and transportive. It's a collection of moody and hypnotic beats making reference to minimal wave, industrial, dance and balearic, with tracks by local hero Tornado Wallace, italo synth pop band East Wall and some Bowie thrown in for good measure.
Summer may feel like yesterday's news but there's enough sun in this mixtape to have you beach-side toting a mojito all year round – lovingly crafted for your ears by Cut Off Your Hands front-man Nicky J over one summer in our hood. Shake off the shift in seasons with a healthy dose of bounce featuring the likes of Chic, Drake, Panther Du Prince, and Melbourne's own Oscar Key Sung.
We’ve loved Evelyn Morris since forever. From her one-woman gigs in sticky-carpeted venues (where she sang and played every instrument under the sun) to closing our eyes to the full-band sound of her kaleidoscopic sophomore album Stem, she had us at a bespectacled hello. Lucky you, good listener – to send in Spring, the frontwoman of Pikelet has made this mix just for you.
To keep you both warm and cool as winter sets in, AP asked the dapper Dan Lewis, head honcho at indie label Special Award Records to put together a smooth selection for your listening pleasure. A ‘socialite-lite’, erstwhile tour promoter, internet radio host, and DJ, Dan Lewis has done (some of) it all. With musical tastes as vast and varied as the seas, you never really know what you’ll get.
Artist, musician & die-hard Carpenters fan Darren Sylvester put together this soundtrack for your summer of road trips, nostalgia for the year past and toasts to the future. A man of many hats, talents & leather jackets, Darren is a celebrated artist with a "part-time rockstar" career. Here, he takes us on a tropical journey, from Suntory pop jingles to Ryuichi Sakamoto. Kanpai team AP!
Our first Ears is brought to you by wunderkind DJs Simon Winkler and Lauren Taylor. Each week, 'Winkles' and Lauren spin damn fine local and international tunes as proponents of 'the new and the next' on Triple R FM's Breaking and Entering. Here they herald Spring with a surf-inspired mixtape featuring Fox + Sui, Holy Balm, Andrew Ashong & Theo Parrish and many more choice cuts.
