From obscurities uncovered during trips down Bandcamp rabbit holes to the latest releases from legendary artists, Crate Digging is here to keep your collection up to date.

1. Biemsix – The Payback (James Ruskin Remix) [Symbolism]

U.K. veteran James Ruskin remixes “The Payback” by Biemsix, keeping the original’s psychedelic, moody atmosphere intact, while adding some energy and funk in his inimitable style. Dance floor-ready machine funk at its finest.

2. Cinthie – Mellifluous [803 Crystal Grooves]

The first release on 803 Crystal Grooves in over two years, “Mellifluous” sees label head Cinthie drop a smooth, feel-good deep house cut that encapsulates her extensive knowledge of the history and key elements of the genre. Lush chords, shuffling drums, and a bumping bassline make this feel like an obscure B-side from a forgotten New York record label.

3. Aserr​í​n – Memories of Green [Pan-Am Tracks]

Aserr​í​n explores electro’s close ties with science (real and fictional) in “Memories of Green,” a heady, leftfield journey through sparkling melodies, glitchy effects, and otherworldly atmospheres to explore the concept of signal propagation and how it mediates the world around us. A great example of how a strong concept can add extra value to a great piece of music.

4. bluhol – Light and Shade [Oomycota]

“Light and Shade” lives up to its name with a psychedelic trip through contrasting elements. The debut release from Sydney/Eora-based label Oomycota sees Loïcc reinvent themselves as bluhol to explore the interplay of organic and synthetic through immersive soundscapes and creative use of modular synthesis.

5. FTP Doctor – Discomfort Dance (Dycide Remix) [IO-Records]

Dycide‘s remix of “Discomfort Dance” by FTP Doctor blends elements of techno, drum and bass, dubstep, and electronica into a melting pot of bass-heavy rhythms. Gnarly, up-tempo percussion and glitchy sound effects urgently bounce along above low-slung, speaker-shaking beats.

6. Llyr – Pareidolia [Mesh]

Immersive, densely-detailed breakbeat which reflects Llyr‘s flair for combining cinematic sound design with dance floor-ready grooves. “Pareidolia” gives a nod to the meaning of its title by subtly changing the melodic patterns and sequences throughout its runtime, adding a lot of re-listening value.

7. HVL – Lancet Mxi [Reclaim Your City]

“Lancet Mxi” combines thunderous breakbeats, gritty sound design, and melancholy melodic sequences to create a forlorn soundscape with a surprising amount of punch. HVL explores the intersection between dance floor functionality and hypnotic introspection to excellent effect on this one.

8. Josh Wink – Progression [Ovum Recordings]

Written on a flight from San Franciso to Philadelphia, “Progression” continues the 30th birthday celebrations of Josh Wink‘s Ovum Recordings. A captivating, ten-minute odyssey, it takes the listener through a heady, soulful blend of bleeps, beats and soaring pads.

9. Debasser – Gem [WIDE Records]

“Gem” is a unique, minimalist take on future garage, combining Debasser‘s signature bass-driven sound with quirky glitches, fluttering melodies, and shuffling drums.

10. IDA – Currents [Sävy Records]

Sitting comfortably in the space between techno, electro, and breaks, “Currents” is a rolling, gritty cut with touches of dusty, swirling melody. Ida draws on her eclectic taste to present a club-focused track with heart and intelligence.

11. Dubfire & Flug – Magma [CLR]

Dubfire releasing on CLR was most definitely not on my 2024 bingo card, but this collaboration with Flug is an incredibly welcome surprise. “Magma” is a dark and driving interpretation of the classic dub techno sound that plays to each of its creators’ strengths.

12. Ross Harper – Knocked Back Hard [City Wall Records]

“Knocked Back Hard” is a psychedelic, mechanistic take on downtempo electronica, inspired by Ross Harper‘s tantric stories about a character known only as Ambient Girl. Although it’s comprised entirely of synthetic sounds, it uses them in a way that feels organic and natural.

13. Shlomi Aber & Kashpitzky – Rust [Blueprint]

Reminiscent of some of James Ruskin‘s best work, it’s no surprise that “Rust” was released on his label Blueprint. It sees Shlomi Aber and Kashpitzky deftly weave melancholy pads between tough, driving percussion and round, punchy bass.

14. Sun People – No Fear No Hope [Defrostatica]

Austrian producer Sun People continues to explore cross-genre pollination, this time finding a soulful and playful nook in between footwork, jungle and techno. “No Fear No Hope” is the uncategorizable kind of 160bpm track that showcases how fruitful the tempo is for experimentation.

From obscurities uncovered during trips down Bandcamp rabbit holes to the latest releases from legendary artists, Crate Digging is here to keep your collection up to date.

1. Quantum Collapse – Kumaras 4 [Apnea Records]

Eduardo De La Calle explores the more introspective, experimental side of his repertoire on “Kumaras 4.” It’s a warm, melodic IDM journey that rewards multiple listens.

2. Dubfire – Deadbug (Nadia Struiwigh Remix) [Sci+Tec]

Dutch hardware enthusiast Nadia Struiwigh turns “Deadbug” by Dubfire into a gritty, cinematic soundscape that treads a three-way tightrope between drum and bass, electronica, and techno.

3. BrandNewTrumpets – To You [Diffrent Music]

“To You” is a welcome return to Diffrent Music for BrandNewTrumpets. The rapidly rising star takes her sound into more cosmic, atmospheric territory while retaining the precise drum programming and heavy low end that characterize her music.

4. Qant – Blackest Night [KAVAL13]

Qant evokes the early days of dubstep, when it was basically a deeper and darker take on UK garage. Shuffling beats, dusty chords, and rugged bass stabs make “Blackest Night” mandatory listening for dubstep purists.

5. Regal86 – Kollekt [Self-Released]

Just one tune from an absolutely mammoth, 100-track release of previously unreleased music, “Kollekt” is subtle, lush breakbeat from Mexico’s Regal86.

6. Nebuchadnezzar – I dont think so [Self-Released]

Chaotic, up-tempo, and expansive bass music that manages to make minimalism sound brutal. Nebuchadnezzar completely throws convention out the window with “I dont think so” to brilliant effect.

7. Esc & Mineral – The Red Death [Straight Up Breakbeat]

Esc & Mineral balance heavy bass and breaks with heady, spacious pads to create an intricate, meditative jungle track with just the right amount of grit.

8. M​ø​ntero – Metal Flex [Illegal Alien Records]

Absolutely gnarly sounds drive “Metal Flex” by Møntero forward, with desiccated sine waves and glitchy bleeps weaving in and out of a grimy bass line and punchy drums.

9. Joakuim – Profondeur [Planet Rhythm]

Usually active in the drum and bass and jungle scene, Joakuim takes his flair for intricate arrangement, warm atmospheres, and rolling bass, and applies it to low-slung dub techno.

10. Lamin Fofana – Toco SOS [Self-Released]

“Toco SOS” is a slowly unfurling, percussive journey from Lamin Fofana that reaches a jubilant climax with forlorn vocal chants, bubbling synth sequences, and interesting field recordings.

11. JK Flesh – PI11.1 [Pi Electronics]

Justin K. Broadrick continues his adventures into electronic music with “PI11.1,” a distorted, scratchy rhythm that pays tribute to his roots in industrial and metal music while spiraling even further down the rabbit hole of abstract sound design and synthesis.

12. G​ö​cke & Anniverse – ACGTU (Luigi Tozzi Remix) [Aedi Records]

The already hypnotic “ACGTU” gets a remix from Luigi Tozzi. The Italian maestro turns it into a psychedelic, ambient techno trip that’s equally effective late at night on a big sound system as it is playing through headphones at the afters.

13. Mark Williams – Subliminal Fragment [N&N Records]

Legendary hardgroove producer Mark Williams is on a roll lately, returning from an eight-year hiatus to drop rolling, percussive grooves like he never even left. “Subliminal Fragment” is quintessential Williams: funky, tough and full of clever sample manipulation.

14. Jeff Mills – Methane Bubbles [Axis]

“Methane Bubbles” is the kind of jazzy, cosmic, soulful house music with a touch of techno flair that only Jeff Mills knows how to make.

15. Minimalphunk Featuring Juliane – unless sweet [Area Code 221]

A beautiful leftfield electronica piece, “unless sweet” was originally commissioned for a performance of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which unfortunately never went ahead. The track ended up on an obscure chillout compilation released at the turn of the millennium. Minimalphunk has recently uncovered the track, uploading it to his Bandcamp for a new generation to experience.

MDL Beast Soundstorm, as this year’s edition is billed, takes place from December 16th-19th and has swelled to include over 50 artists in its first headliner announcement. Returning are EDM superstars like Martin Garrix, David Guetta and Tiësto in addition to local talent such as Cosmicat, Dish Dash and Vinyl Mode.

The festival has noticeably expanded its techno and house offerings as well. The first phase announcement alone features Adam Beyer, Carl Cox, Charlotte de Witte, Eric Prydz, Amelie Lens, Dubfire, Sven Väth and Paul Kalkbrenner among numerous others.

Incidentally, it is the house and techno fandom that has levied the most criticism of out-of-town artists performing at this year’s event.

Berlin-based CTM Festival curator Michail Stangl started the conversation on Twitter. “Sure there is no objective morality and all, but if you like money so much that you take it from a government that kills journalists and has the death penalty for being gay, you really should ask yourself some serious questions,” he wrote.

Expected this from many of the people on this list, but its actually really crazy to see some other names here from whom I strangely enough expected better. Much better.

— Michail / opiumhum.eth ?️‍??Ⓥ (@opiumhum) November 16, 2021

A number of social media commentators expressed shock that Detroit techno figurehead Jeff Mills would involve himself with an event such as MDL Beast (pronounced “middle beast”). The DJ, producer and Underground Resistance cofounder played no trivial role in the social justice side of electronic music, after all.

“With most of the business techno dummies out there, it doesn’t surprise me. But Sven and Jeff?” wrote Berlin artist Oliver Deutschmann on Facebook. “What is wrong with you guys? Next time at a Taliban private party if the price is right, then? Or maybe a Vatican City after hours?”

“Well all of those DJs suck, but Jeff Mills?” wrote another commentator. “A father of techno music and culture? What happened to him? Does he really need Saudi blood money? Is it really necessary for him?”

Influencer-Washing

MDL Beast is funded by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority. Those criticizing the aforementioned artists argue that they participate in something more harmful than simple business with an authoritarian government, though. They find them complicit in a campaign to shift the world’s focus away from atrocities committed by Saudi lawmakers.

On top of the Saudi government’s long track record of human rights violations such as arbitrary arrests, beheadings, and the outlawing of feminism was the 2018 assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. According to The Guardian, outcry over the incident prompted the country’s rulers to invest billions into efforts to rehabilitate its image.

Among them were influencer marketing campaigns designed to frame the country as a tourist destination in exchange for six-figure sums per The Verge. The General Entertainment Authority also financed large-scale live music events that paid artists up to six times their regular booking rates. One such artist was rapper Nicki Minaj, who pulled out of a July 2019 gig following an open letter by the Human Rights Foundation.

The MDL Beast Soundstorm 2021 headliners are not alone in facing recent backlash for accepting what many have deemed “blood money.” Billboard reports that earlier in November, the Human Rights Foundation called upon Justin Bieber to cancel his December 5th performance at the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The Saudi government shows no indication of slowing down in its events industry foray, however. Shortly after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in 2020, the Saudi government bought $500 million in Live Nation stock that had appreciated to over $1 billion (a 5.7% stake in the company) by February 2021.

Let the People Dance

On the opposite end of the spectrum is an argument that the Saudi people shouldn’t be denied music simply because of their authoritarian government.

“Change happens through shared experience. [The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia] will not enter the 21st century if they are blocked out of western culture,” one social media commentator wrote. “Yes, bad shit happens there and will continue to, with or without this event. There is more chance for change through engagement than boycott.”

Jeff Mills defended his decision by making an analogy in a social media comment of his own.

“In 1979, a German band called Kraftwerk were invited to Detroit to perform at a venue on the east side of the city,” he wrote. “There was a huge uproar and protest before and upon their arrival. Many people recognized the military-like uniformity; red shirts with black neckties were connected to Neo Nazis and the extreme right.”

He continued: “Luckily they performed because if the protestors had won their way, there would not have been a young, impressionable Juan Atkins in that audience! I’m aware of the human rights issues in SA as I am there, currently in the U.S.  But, we never know who might be there in the audience, listening and trying to connect with something greater than ourselves!”

Mills’ remarks did little to sway those speaking out against the event, one of whom called his comparison a false equivalence. “Kraftwerk has not been a Nazi band and they have not murdered countless humans for being gay, atheist or opposing the government…” wrote another. “…If Kraftwerk had been a Nazi band and influenced Juan Atkins so profoundly, guess what: I could do without Kraftwerk or Juan Atkins.”

None of the other MDL Beast Soundstorm 2021 headliners have made public statements at the time of writing. Spokespeople on behalf of billed artists including Mills, Väth, Cox, Dubfire and Lens as well as the event organizers themselves did not respond to Selector‘s request for comment.

Each edition of TNT’s The Sofa Sessions would see mostly globetrotting techno/house DJs match a mix delivered by their tour manager. Carl Cox, Nicole Moudaber, Dubfire, Seth Troxler, Hito, Paco Osuna, Joseph Capriati, The Martinez Brothers, Carnage, and Alan Fitzpatrick participated in the series. The first installment came out on April 27th and comprised 27 podcasts totaling over 31 hours of music. Fans who donated €5 or more were granted access to all the recordings.

In a since-deleted video shared from the Stadium Artists Facebook page on Sunday, Askew criticized the aforementioned artists for requesting donations from the general public despite being among the richest DJs alive. “Why aren’t they covering their tour managers’ costs and giving these mixes away for free, or charging money and giving that money to the medical services, the NHS and every other country’s equivalent?” he pressed. “These are guys with multiple millions of pounds, euros, dollars in the bank, and they’re asking the general public to keep their tour managers afloat?”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

WTF IS GOING ON ???? ? SPEECHLESS … please God help them see the light!!! ??

A post shared by CASSY (@cassyofficial) on May 4, 2020 at 10:36am PDT

Askew’s video garnered nearly 40,000 views and 600 shares before it was taken down. A cursory search reveals that TNT’s Instagram account is no longer online, nor is the Bandcamp page on which the mixes had been hosted. None of the participating DJs have issued public statements on the matter, although Troxler wrote that his tour manager is “being taken care of” in an Instagram comment.

Turning Tide

The response to TNT highlights a bigger conversation around dance music during the COVID-19 pandemic – one in which tastemakers like Dave Clarke and DVS1 have been vocal.

In a post to his Facebook page, Clarke wrote that the economic fallout could bring with it a return to the electronic music community’s core values. “I am quite hopeful for this reset regarding the music scene,” reads a passage. Prior to that, he had remarked that Resident Advisor‘s “Save Our Scene” initiative should have been called “Save Our Hierarchy” during an interview for Serato’s “Keeping Busy” series.

DVS1 (real name Zak Khutoretski) echoed similar sentiments in an interview with fellow Minneapolis DJ and producer Steven Centrific for the latter’s live stream event, Distant Future. “I’m really hoping that this starts to grow local scenes again,” he said. “When clubs reopen, does anyone really need to book a headliner and spend a bunch of money? The reality is we have a lot of amazing locals in a lot of territories around the world who have never had a chance to shine, and those people will now be able to pack a club.”

Spokespeople on behalf of the aforementioned Tour Managers Not Touring participants have not responded to Selector‘s requests for comment at the time of writing.

In what is suspected to have been a terrorist act, a van plowed into bystanders at Las Ramblas yesterday claiming the lives of 13 and wounding about 100 before a similar attack killed five in Cambrils. Soon after Shirazinia tweeted that he had been riding his bicycle down the tree-lined pedestrian mall at the time of the former rampage.

I was just riding my bike to the right of the Ramblas when a large white van came racing down the promenade plowing into everyone…in shock

— Dubfire (@dubfire) August 17, 2017

Today, Shirazinia took to Instagram to share his reflections regarding the tragedy.

Yesterday I was an eyewitness to the senseless terrorist attack on innocent victims along Las Ramblas in the beautiful city of Barcelona which I love very much. I am still in shock and trying to process what I saw. Sadly such attacks have become a “new normal” in our society. That being said, we cannot allow these cowardly acts of violence to disrupt our daily lives, stripping away our freedoms, because that is precisely what their goal is. Therefore, after careful consideration and discussion with my friends, colleagues and internal team, I have decided NOT to cancel my gig tonight at @thelightoffbarcelona in Barcelona. We WILL NOT give into fear but will unite through music and the celebration of friendship. I will also be donating my entire fee to a charity that will care for the victims and relatives of this tragedy. I hope that it helps in some way.

A post shared by Dubfire (@dubfire) on Aug 18, 2017 at 5:13am PDT

Perhaps most notably, Shirazinia wrote that he would move forward with his performance at TheLightOff in Barcelona, and plans to donate his fee to charity. “We WILL NOT give into fear but will unite through music and the celebration of friendship … I hope that it helps in some way,” he finished.

Following his set in Barcelona, Dubfire will continue his tour with a stop in Mamaia, Romania on August 20th.