Chill Drive

Nutrition Facts

"Normally we spend an obscene amount of time preparing mixes but not much thought went into this one. It was really just plug and play, and the first couple of tracks cleared the way for the rest. We’ve been fortunate enough to play lots of shows in 2023, so we got to learn through trial and error, what makes us tick behind the decks. This mix is basically an organic A-Z amalgamation of that. Tried and tested while cleaning house!"

@abdulraeva, aka powerhouse duo Steffan Todorović and Joonas Arro, have been making waves with their consistent, no nonsense club tool releases. We’re stoked to catch up with them ahead of their first South-East Asia / Australia tour.   

Read our full interview with them here https://www.hueandsaturation.net/blog/2023/abdul-raeva

Hue & Saturation Mix #062: Abdul Raeva

We return to NYC where the wonderful @lycheefrut has us fully submerged in a wobbly world of ambient techno moods and grooves. Restorative mind state hypnosis for the early morning acid dreamers with moments of total serenity! 

Q. What inspiration did you draw upon when putting this mix together? Is there a sound, feeling, or time/place in dance music history that connects all the different elements in one way or another?

A. There are a few recent moments that I drew from: I had pulled a lot of dreamy tracks to close out the intimate Sunday evening queer party I throw with my friends called Antidote, and for a b2b with my friend threehz at their party dream/self. I usually spend a lot of time planning a tracklist for studio mixes, but this time, I was struggling to sequence or choose between the tracks I had pulled.

On New Year's Eve, a few friends came over to my studio to pass some time before going to a rave where I was working the door at 8am, and they all ended up dozing off while I was DJing. I was trying to play music that was both energetic enough to keep me awake, but not too intense for people who were sleeping. A few days later, I ended up recording this mix in one take with no strict playlist, drawing from that moment; it was a fun experiment in trusting myself to find a more organic flow.

Q. As someone who’s actively involved in a number of interconnected projects and events within NYC’s underground dance scene, tell us about the idea behind your Spontaneous Affinity outlet for zines, mixes and long form interviews that regularly feature important insights from DJs, producers and organisers alike. 

A. The series has been on a bit of a pause / slow paced moment lately as I focus on getting some other aspects of my life together :) but the idea was to use the interviews to draw connections between different nodes of people working to build scenes in different places. Everyone gets the same set of questions to choose from; it's always fun compiling it all into a zine and seeing what kinds of commonalities emerge. I hope to find time to work on another zine before the end of this year!

Q. And finally, I really enjoyed your set opening up The Grove at last year’s Sustain-Release! Tell us about how you found that whole experience, and how did you approach a set like that where you could seemingly take things anywhere over the three and half hours..

A. This set was a heavy one for me – I've been to every Sustain, and it was a formative part of my journey deeper into DJing and music. This summer also came with a lot of big losses and transitions. I spent as much time journaling and meditating as I did organizing music, and wanted to make space for others to process difficult things before diving into party mode in a psychedelic environment.

As far as the musical approach, I thought of the set in 7 or 8 "chapters" that could expand or contract depending on the energy and vibe. I've played a lot of opening sets over the years and lately have wanted to push myself within that; here, instead of the standard ambient → techno type opening set, I wanted to play with a structure where the set built into a mild frenzy and then settled back down before the live acts that played after me.

MDC.293 Lychee

My set in full from New Year's Nonstop 2024. Image credit to Amar Patel. Mastering detail by @milesmercer.

Dedicated to the people of Palestine
& all Nowadays staff.

🇵🇸💙

Live @ Nowadays // New Year's Nonstop - Jan 1 2024

Mix for Collective Memory on Shared Frequencies Radio | 2.22.24

Complete opening set before the legend that is Radioactive Man. Big love to Keith, Nowadays staff & all the dancers <3

Mix for Collective Memory on Shared Frequencies Radio | 2.22.24

Amira