What is this song that comes in now? I can never remember!

Synth Heroes create mixes of their formative electronic music influences on www.SynthHero.com

Image: © Benedikt Rugar http://www.benediktrugar.de/

SYNTH HERO MIX ARCHIVE

The third episode in our new series (and our 40th podcast!) comes from Lyon based Comic Sans Records label-head and lyl radio resident, sleek fata. 

@sleek-fata

We've been a fan of sleek fata for a while now, often tuning into his exquisitely put together "Cremation of Care" shows - which explore a wide spectrum of experimental music focused on tracks with an high sound design profile going from psychedelic electronics to jazz with a touch of punk and trip hop between.

This mix beautifully showcases the variety of his tastes and skills of mixing it all together, from dub to dubstep, techno to half time & masterfully jumping tempo’s - sleek fata’s got it covered.

𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 / 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘀 / 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲?
Sleek fata / he him / Lyon

𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝘅
I wanted to build a thematic journey that could bring together different types of music and tempos, while still feeling coherent as a whole. I found a strong inspiration in the icy textures of dub techno, it sparked the whole idea. So this is essentially a cold journey through the dub techno continuum (dub techno in the broad sense): half-time, dubstep, dub techno, footwork, downtempo… each track shares a similar colour palette, sonically speaking. Think light blue, white, and grey tones. I imagined a dancer trapped in a cold room with a perfect sound system, moving and reacting to these glacial sounds. But "glacial" doesn’t mean emotionless—on the contrary. Despite the chill, there's a lot of soul embedded in each track.

𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰?
I grew up listening to rap while living in the suburbs of Lyon as a kid. Later, when I moved into the city centre for university, I discovered electronic music. So yes, my environment has always shaped my musical taste—just like it does for everyone, I believe. Our preferences are influenced by sociological data: age, ethnicity, the country we grow up in, our parents' professions, and so on.

But beyond that, my uncle, who I lived with when I was younger, had a big impact. During the peak of the Emule era, he downloaded every US rap album he could find and burned them onto blank CDs. When I came home from school, I would pick one at random and discover a new album every day. That routine really shaped my digging habit. These days, the Bandcamp community is a big influence for me.

𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 / 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝘀𝗮𝗻𝘀? 𝗔𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗴𝗶𝗴𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽?
I’m working on Vision Pro Dubs, a various artists project that started as a special episode of my Cremation of Care radio show. It brings together contemporary and cutting-edge smooth dub sounds. Besides that, Malesa is working on their second album, and we’re putting together a remix EP of Seta Loto’s last release. I’m also collaborating with Cortex of Light on something exciting!

𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝘅 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀
Hypothermic sound system

full interview here:

kinetic mix 040: sleek fata "the cold room dancer and other frozen tales"

My newest release and newsletter are live! Support my new project as (G) on bandcamp and consider subscribing to deepexposure.substack.com

https://www.instagram.com/russellelbutler 
https://www.soundcloud.com/russellelbutler



Deep Exposure with Russell E. L. Butler @ The Lot Radio 06-30-2025

Longtime collaborators DJ Speedway (Atlanta) and Fairy Diamond (NYC) bring a blend of hypnotic and experimental music techno for the Lot Radio

crashing-out.com
https://www.instagram.com/wtpsbyzjk1pojbfyxvhh
https://www.soundcloud.com/fairy-diamond
 

Sluice with Fairy Diamond and DJ Speedway @ The Lot Radio 07-25-2025

London-based Oblig's (@djoblig) sound is closely intertwined with the rich DNA of UK club culture. Bass, garage, grime and techno all influence his robust rhythms, whether he's going dark at 140 bpm or hypnotising with sleek techno. His label Obligated Records and regular shows on Rinse FM are extensions of that, as are his razor-sharp DJ sets across the world.

Hot on the heels of Volume 2 of his label's latest compilation, he's put together an hour mix that smudges the lines between his go-to genres. The selections are punchy and uptempo while twisting through mysterious late-night grime, kinetic club cuts and pneumatic bass workouts, all with a constant low-end pressure that keeps lips curled and heads nodding. 

Dekmantel Mix 494 - Oblig

"It is not easy to find Saphira, and it is even harder to leave. Saphira is caught between a low-lying sun to the west and a glowing moon to the east, Saphira’s longing grows dense and time thickens within its walls. Perhaps this is why Saphira’s radios and televisions stutter with phrases and images so ghostly yet so intimately familiar, why its dusty buildings seem always to crumble so gloriously yet never collapse. It is a city inside of want and outside of time." 
Find the full tracklist and related episodes on NTS: https://www.nts.live/shows/ccl/episodes/ccl-30th-july-2025

Invisible Cities w/ CCL - Saphira 300725

Teklife's Ashes57 invites Brooklyn based footwork DJ Kid Bata.

🌐 "Outsiders" is our daily show hosted by labels, collectives, agencies, venues, clubs, ... worldwide
📡 Connect with the Outsiders, every day, at 9 am or 9 pm CET
🔗 kioskradio.com

Outsiders: Ashes57 | Teklife Records w/ Kid Bata @ Kiosk Radio 01.08.2025

Swimming with Kfeelz! 🏊‍♀️Diving into lush tones ~~~ pacific grooves, spacey jazz, and bubbly rhythms ~ anything and everything from ambient to post-punk and 80's electronica 🎶🤭🎶~ Looking forward to swimming with you .

All tracklists are archived @ swimmingarchive.com.   

https://www.instagram.com/kfeelzzz



Swimming with Kfeelz @ The Lot Radio 08-03-2025

London-based DJ Imogen takes on the NTS airwaves, bouncing between fuzzy electro and punishing techno. 

 
Find the full tracklist and related episodes on NTS: https://www.nts.live/shows/imogen/episodes/imogen-6th-august-2025

WIGS W/ IMOGEN & FAFF 060825

🌐 Refuge Worldwide is a radio station and community space based in Berlin-Neukölln.
➡️ More info, more music: www.refugeworldwide.com

Help us stay on air by donating to our fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-refuge-worldwide-community-radio

5 Years of Daisy Records - Obelix & Frankifettucini - 15 Aug 2025

Seashell Resonance - Katia Fis & Jiun - 15 Aug 2025

For more: 
http://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/26060/1/empress-of-exclusive-mix?pvw=MjUvMDgvMjAxNSAxMzo1MDoyNiArMDA6MDA=

Empress Of Synth Hero Mix

Tim Noakes invites legendary Synth Heroes to create mixes of their formative electronic music influences.

Youth and pop culture provocateurs since 1991. Fearless fashion, music, art, film, politics and ideas from today's bleeding edge. Declare Independence.

Empress Of Synth Hero Mix

Dazed Digital

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