First Floor #239 – Stuck in a Bubble
a.k.a. An interview with Ayesha, plus a round-up of the latest electronic music news and a fresh bundle of new track recommendations.
Over the weekend, DJ Mag unveiled the latest edition of its annual Top 100 DJs list. I’m not going to link to it here—the last thing I want to do is direct traffic toward what is essentially a giant piece of engagement bait—but I did take a look myself, and was kind of shocked by what I saw.
It wasn’t the artists that surprised me though—it was the fact that so many of them were names with which I was either largely or completely unfamiliar. Even with the folks I did recognize, many of them were artists whose music I’d never actually heard—not at home, not at a club, not anywhere.
I don’t say any of this with pride, and I’m not trying to flex my “underground” bona fides either. If anything, it was kind of unsettling that I, a professional electronic music journalist who’s spent more than 25 years actively following this music and culture, was more or less unaware of so many of these artists, all of whom were “big” enough, at least in theory, to be named one of the Top 100 DJs in the world. Granted, the list is rarely considered to be an objective accounting of dance music. (Between the brazen public politicking for votes by artists and their teams, not to mention the persistent rumors that placement on the list can be secured for the right price, it’s not exactly a bastion of credibility.) But it’s still weird to see the degree to which the industry’s most commercial corners (e.g. EDM, arena trance, Ibiza, EDC, Ultra, Tomorrowland, etc.) exist in what seems like an entirely different universe than I do.
More than anything though, the DJ Mag list was another reminder of just how siloed we’ve all become. We often talk about electronic music or dance music as if they are cohesive entities with concrete borders, but they’re not. They’re amalgamations of countless communities, scenes and industries, and as social media and other algorithm-driven platforms increasingly push them all into smaller and smaller bubbles, those different sectors of the culture often times no longer have to interact with one another. That doesn’t feel like a healthy place for any culture to be, especially when it comes to creativity and potential exposure to new ideas and perspectives. Even worse, it robs us all of perspective; when you’re only focused on your own neighborhood, it’s rather difficult to engage with, let alone understand, what’s happening on the other side of town.
I’ve been thinking about that in the aftermath of my interview with Ayesha, which was first published earlier this week. When the New York-based DJ and producer suffered a traumatic brain injury after being struck by a car earlier this year, it felt like a genuine big deal, at least in the corner of electronic music that I inhabit. This was a Nowadays resident who’d not only landed on all sorts of “Best of 2023” lists, but had seemingly secured her spot on the international touring circuit. The accident put all of that into jeopardy, and even now, more than seven months later, she’s still coping with the fallout.
Ayesha’s story is painful, and profoundly human, and yet, how many of the people clamoring to check out the Top 100 DJs list would be interested in hearing it? How many of them have even heard of Ayesha in the first place? Probably not many, and that lack of interest could probably be extended to any number of tastemaker-approved artists, not to mention the discourse that often dominates the Resident Advisor / Berghain / Unsound / Boomkat axis. That’s not because the people outside of that axis are mindless dolts with no taste. I mean … some of them definitely are that, but they’re also just people existing in their own self-reinforcing bubbles, and in a culture that’s now largely oriented around online metrics (i.e. the notion that whatever has the most streams / likes / followers / plays is the “best”), there’s little incentive for the average person to dig much deeper. Self-appointed cool kids might scoff at that, but the truth is that the myopia goes both ways, as my own lack of knowledge about the names on the Top 100 DJs list made abundantly clear.
Perspective matters, and not only is it in short supply, but it sadly seems that not many of us are all that interested in trying to find it. For now at least, our little silos are just too damn comfortable.
Anyways, the Ayesha interview is below, and is now (temporarily) available with no paywall, so make sure to check that out. But that’s just the beginning of today’s First Floor digest, which also includes a round-up of electronic music news items, new release announcements and suggested reading links. There’s also a fresh batch of new track recommendations, all of which came from releases that dropped during the past week, plus a special guest recommendation from ambient artist marine eyes.
Let’s get into it.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
Every Tuesday, First Floor publishes a long-form piece that’s initially made available to paid newsletter subscribers only. But if you’re not part of the paid tier, now’s your chance to see what you missed! The latest piece is now (temporarily) open to everyone, and it’s an interview with Ayesha. Publicly speaking at length for the first time since she was the victim of a harrowing hit-and-run accident earlier this year, she details her injuries, the ups and downs of her healing process and her gradual return to DJing and music making.
REAL QUICK
A round-up of the last week’s most interesting electronic music news, plus links to interviews, articles and other things I think are worth sharing.
I meant to post this last week, but writer Chris Zaldua recently published an interesting Aslice post-mortem in his Thoughts of a Certain Sound newsletter. While he’s far from the only person to tackle the topic—I myself wrote a lengthy piece about the Aslice closure here in First Floor—Zaldua did deliver a unique take on the situation, zooming out to discuss not just the overtly capitalist nature of the contemporary dance music industry, but the consequences of its ongoing dependence on alcohol sales.
Chal Ravens is such a good writer that every time she publishes a new article, I find myself growing frustrated that she only does this work on a part-time basis. Her latest piece is an essay for The Quietus about “The Academisation of Rave,” in which she examines why it now seems like more than ever people are talking about dance music culture, and the oddity of that happening during a time when the idea of actually going out and dancing seems to have lost a good chunk of its previous appeal.
Speaking of talking about dance music, it’s a shame that most of the discourse continues to happen in English, providing commentators from places like the UK and US, myself included, with an even larger megaphone than they already had to begin with. I don’t know if that will change anytime soon, but it hasn’t stopped Barcelona-based writer Frankie Pizá from launching an eye-catching and infographic-filled new Spanish-language newsletter called FRANKA, where he’s already published thought-provoking pieces on the death of Jackmaster, the “headliner crisis” currently faced by festivals, the supposed return of gatekeepers and more.
Aside from that, he also continues to co-host the Pizá i Fontanals podcast, on which he and co-host Albert Fontanals dedicated their latest episode to a discussion of their favorite UK electronic music albums of all time. Admittedly, electronic music from the UK probably doesn’t need any additional hype, but it was refreshing to hear these records being thoughtfully discussed by two non-Brits who were not only genuinely passionate about the material, but were also outsiders who had largely experienced the music from abroad.
The conversation about Jackmaster’s recent death appears to be winding down—if you missed it, I shared some of my own thoughts on the matter in last week’s digest—but it’s not surprising that some of the best commentary has come out of the late DJ’s hometown of Glasgow. Last week Huntleys + Palmers founder Andrew Thomson headed to Clyde Built Radio to record a lengthy, and often quite emotional, tribute. He shared numerous stories and memories about Jackmaster, but also publicly wrestled with how everyone—himself included—dealt with the man in the aftermath of his deeply inappropriate behavior at a festival in 2018. On a somewhat lighter note, the Numbers crew yesterday posted a beautifully written remembrance on Instagram, recounting some of the history of their fallen co-founder, who they warmly referred to as “our best friend, our brother, our DJ.”
OBLIGATORY BOOK MENTION
My first book is out now. It’s called First Floor Vol. 1: Reflections on Electronic Music Culture, and you can order it from my publisher Velocity Press. However, if you’re outside of the UK, I recommend that you either inquire at your favorite local bookshop or try one of the online sales links that have been compiled here.
JUST ANNOUNCED
A round-up of noteworthy new and upcoming releases announced during the past week.
Less than two weeks after several of his tracks appeared on the Temporary Stored II compilation, Kenyan ambient / experimental sound artist KMRU has dropped a new album of his own. forge arrives with little context—the accompanying description says only, “Through the noise of everyday. A transition to stillness.”—and it’s available now through Seil Records.
Beatrice Dillon has a new record on the way. Entitled Seven Reorganisations, it’s the UK artist’s first proper release since her acclaimed 2020 album, Workaround, and it stems from a performance with contemporary classical outfit Explore Ensemble at the No Bounds festival in 2022. (Fun fact: That performance was commissioned by Mark Fell.) Seven Reorganisations is slated to arrive on October 29, and will be issued via Dillon’s newly established HI imprint. Ahead of that, the piece “Seven Reorganisations I” has already been made available to stream.
Although Nathan Micay is perhaps now known primarily for his scoring work, it wasn’t that long ago that the Berlin-based Canadian was plying his trade as a dance music DJ and producer. Making that transition isn’t easy for anyone, but one of the key releases that made it possible for Micay was Blue Spring, a concept album he released back in 2019. To mark the record’s five-year anniversary, he’s now offered up Blue Spring: 5 Year Epilogue, a three-track EP that returns to the world he dreamed up for the original album. It’s available now via LuckyMe.
John Roberts has resurfaced with a piano-centric new full-length. The longtime Dial affiliate has largely stuck to his own Brunette Editions imprint during the past decade, and that’s where his new Swan LP appears as well.
Randomer spent much of the 2010s carving out a thrilling space at the intersection of techno and bass music, but during this decade, the UK producer has been relatively quiet on the production front. However, that will soon change, as he’s unveiled plans for an upcoming EP, Everything happens for no reason, which will be his first full release in five years. December 6 is the official release date, but before the record surfaces on the Mama Told Ya imprint, some preview clips of its five tracks have already been shared here.
Patrick Holland has released quite a bit of music during the past couple of years, but two of his best offerings were the dancefloor-focused singles “Your Life” and “Take It,” which both came out in 2023. This week, the Montreal-based artist has put those singles on vinyl for the first time, and has added a couple of remixes—one from Physical Therapy, and other from Holland himself—to the package. The complete Your Life/Take It - Remixed is out now on Verdicchio Music Publishing.
MARINE EYES HAS BETTER TASTE THAN I DO
First Floor is effectively a one-person operation, but every edition of the Thursday digest cedes a small portion of the spotlight to an artist, writer or other figure from the music world, inviting them to recommend a piece of music. Today’s recommendation comes from marine eyes, a Los Angeles-based ambient artist whose avant-pop compositions often draw comparisons to Grouper, but generally arrive with significantly less existential dread. She’s also one half of Awakened Souls, a project with her husband James Bernard, who’s an accomplished ambient producer in his own right. And while she rarely goes too long without releasing music of her own—her most recent offering, to belong (dusted versions), surfaced just last month—marine eyes has dedicated quite a lot of time to championing other people’s work as well, most prominently via her long-running monthly mix series, Women of Ambient, and her cloud collecting newsletter, which routinely features interviews with female and gender-expansive artists. As it happens, one of those artists is featured in her recommendation below.
Isabel Pine “Crescent” (Self-released)
When I first heard “Crescent” via Zoe Polanski’s rotating playlist and DJ Alex’s Pacific Notions show on KEXP, I was immediately enamored. This track is akin to the breath-like movements in Aphex Twin’s “#3” and Brian McBride’s “Overture (For Other Halfs),” both of which catapulted my journey into ambient music. I’ve been sharing Isabel Pine’s beautiful Where the Flowers Grow EP as much as possible this year because every song deserves recognition—it truly is a hidden gem. I also got to do a short interview with her in my newsletter, and loved hearing that she made this music while staying in a little cabin in nature, learning a deeper meaning of beauty and leaning into unhurriedness. This song and the whole EP are therapeutic.
NEW THIS WEEK
The following is a selection of my favorite tunes from releases that came out during the past week or so. Click the track titles to hear each song individually, or you can also just head over to this convenient Buy Music Club list if you prefer to listen to them all in one place.
Etch “Clockwork Romance” (Ilian Tape)
As much as the Ilian Tape label has noticeably widened its musical palette in recent years, a moody jungle cut like “Clockwork Romance” still feels like a surprise, albeit a pleasant one. The closing number on UK producer Etch’s new The Drowned City EP, the track is more of a thinker than a banger, with its percussive rumblings swaddled in muted textures and Burial-style vinyl crackle. The jazzy bassline does conjure memories of the mid ’90s, but Etch never comes close to full-blown LTJ Bukem territory, as his penchant for techy outbursts ensures that even a pensive tune like this one still has a bit of a serrated edge.
Fixate “Conundrum” (Exit)
Sometimes it feels like every single permutation of bass music has not only been done already, but done to death, which makes a song like “Conundrum” sound particularly fresh. The title track of the latest EP from UK artist Fixate, it’s steeped in old-school grime, with wonkily bent synth lines that could have been lifted from a vintage Ruff Sqwad production. (Terror Danjah fans will also appreciate the intermittent presence of what sounds like a cackling goblin.) What makes “Conundrum” truly original, however, is its use of an ’80s-style breakbeat, which harkens back to a litany of classic b-boy and electro records. It’s an unorthodox choice, but it works, and also begs the question, “Can you breakdance to grime?” Fixate seems pretty certain that the answer is “yes.”
Low End Activist “Just a Number (Institutionalised)” (Sneaker Social Club)
Barely six months removed from his excellent Airdrop album, Low End Activist has dropped another full-length of gravity-defying hardcore deconstructions. Municipal Dreams is inspired by the council estate the UK producer grew up in, and while it’s not a morose record, or even an overtly angry one, the song titles alone make it clear that he’s reflecting back on the hardships and rampant inequality he witnessed during his formative years. “Just a Number (Institutionalised)” takes aim at the juvenile justice system, pulling together alien drones, crunchy wobbles and breakbeat fragments—and then eerily suspending them all in zero gravity. It’s not a dancefloor cut, but it’s brimming with tension, and weighty enough to get anyone thinking about things that are far more consequential than a night at the club.
Oliver Coates “Ultra valid” (RVNG Intl.)
Oliver Coates had a lot to say about his new Throb, shiver, arrow of time album when he was interviewed here in the newsletter last month, and he offered even more details in an in-depth new profile by Laura Snapes that went live in The Guardian this week. There’s no question that the LP’s various crevices are well worth exploring, but for those wanting a more basic, almost visceral thrill, opening track “Ultra valid” is an immediate stunner. (It’s also a prime example of why the acclaimed cellist and composer has been recruited to score a string of brilliant films during the past few years.) The primary song’s cello melody, tinged with sadness and yet still elegantly soaring, is by itself enough to stop listeners in their tracks—and maybe even prompt a tear or two. Many artists would have stopped there, but Coates wisely elected to ramp up the emotion even further, filling out the composition with additional (albeit subtle) layers of strings and sound, the resulting sturm und drang sneakily adding to the song’s already imposing emotional heft.
Tarta Relena '“La font” (Latency)
És pregunta is the second full-length from Tarta Relena, and as often happens on sophomore albums, the vocal-oriented avant-folk duo seems to have made a concerted effort to expand their sound. The shift isn’t overly dramatic, but between the Auto-Tune-like effects on “Tamarindo” and the boomy bass tones on “Si veriash a la rana,” it’s fair to say that the LP is the Catalan pair’s most intentionally electronic effort to date. The perceived effectiveness of that choice will likely vary from one listener to the next, but what’s clear, particularly on the more stripped-down back half of the record, is that the resonant, multilingual Mediterranean voices of Helena Ros Redon and Marta Torrella i Martínez continue to be the star attraction. On the standout “La font,” the women are backed by little more than the sound of running water—the song’s title is Catalan for “the fountain”—and that allows their borderline operatic pipes to take flight unencumbered. Tarta Relena may be pulling from traditions that date back centuries, but their voices are potent enough to hypnotize even the most modern of listeners.
DANIAILYAS “Breathe and Start Again” (Geographic North)
Enough for Me to Remain is a gorgeous record, and I don’t just say that because much of it was composed within the confines of my home. DANIAILYAS is a new collaboration between Dania—the Barcelona-based founder of Paralaxe Editions, who also happens to be my wife—and guitarist Ilyas Ahmed, who many will recognize from his previous work with acts like Grouper Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Golden Retriever. The two have never actually met in person, but decided to work together after connecting online, with Ahmed firing over haunting guitar recordings to which Dania added synths, clarinet and her arresting, often wordless vocals. What results occupies a similar space as ’80s dream pop icons like Cocteau Twins and the Cranes, and “Breathe and Start Again” is particularly captivating, its warbling atmospherics intermingling with free-floating tendrils of Dania’s ethereal voice.
Jabu “Sea Mills (feat. Birthmark & Lorenzo Prati)” (do you have peace?)
Is Maria Somerville-core a thing? Considering how many half-awake commuters swear by the fuzzy, dream-like sounds she offers up whenever she hosts The Early Bird Show on NTS, perhaps it should be. And if this completely imagined genre was to someday coalesce into something more concrete, Bristol outfit Jabu could be the nascent sound’s first official poster children. The band’s shimmering new LP, A Soft and Gatherable Star, is a beautiful record—and a charmingly haunted one, its reverb-kissed songcraft echoing the spirit of classic 4AD. Back in August, I described album opener “Oceanside Spider House”—which had originally surfaced as part of a two-song release—as one of 2024’s most enchanting tunes, and that assessment hasn’t changed. The rest of the record, however, swims in similarly smudgy waters, and the standout “Sea Mills” demonstrates the group’s knack for sweetly voiced dream pop, at times sounding like a slightly gothier take on what Broadcast were doing with their first few releases.
Fergus Jones “Heap” (Numbers)
Fergus Jones with Huerco S. “It Should Be (Free)” (Numbers)
The funny thing about publishing these weekly recommendations on Thursdays is that they go out usually go out a day or two after Philip Sherburne shares his own weekly recommendations in his excellent Futurism Restated newsletter. Although our picks are never identical, there does tend to be some overlap, and that’s fine of course, but sometimes I read his descriptions and think to myself, “That’s exactly what I was thinking!” Reading yesterday’s edition, I had that exact reaction when he joined the parade of critics heaping praise on Ephemera, the debut album from Fergus Jones, the Scottish artist and FELT label founder formerly known as Perko.
With guest appearances from folks like James K, Laila Sakini and ELDON, it’s easy to gravitate towards Jones’ brief flirtations with trip-hop and hip-hop, but he’s actually at his best on the songs which have no vocals at all. As Sherburne said about the LP’s second half, “all four tracks feel like updates to the Chain Reaction canon, each successive track dissolving further into grainy ambient tone.” He’s right, and that spellbinding ambient run begins with “Heap,” a floaty downtempo number with twinkling melodies that’s seemingly tailor-made for post-club / pre-sunrise listening. It’s immediately followed by “It Should Be (Free)”—one of two Huerco S. collabs on the album—which takes a slightly more epic approach, its noodling synths and electric glow recalling ’80s-era Tangerine Dream and the synth-driven scoring work of Nathan Micay.
That brings us to the end of today’s First Floor digest. Thank you so much for reading the newsletter, and, as always, I do hope that you enjoyed the tunes. (Don’t forget, you can find them all on this handy Buy Music Club list, and if you like them, please buy them.)
Until next time,
Shawn
Shawn Reynaldo is a freelance writer, editor, presenter and project manager. Find him on LinkedIn and Twitter, or you can just drop him an email to get in touch about projects, collaborations or potential work opportunities.