Techno has been reclaimed and refined in the last few years. For Ghanaian-American Discwoman associate Akua (@akua_b), that means a deep dedication to bringing forth narratives about the genre's history. It's about original, authentic and rebellious old school values of the sort that Underground Resistance defined so early on. It's about breaking modern expectations with a fresh sense of attitude. Her recontextualisation of techno centres its long lineage for contemporary audiences. All this most often plays out in Akua's blazing sets, most often during the late-night and early morning hours of the clubs around her New York City hometown. They find her transmute 90s nostalgia while connecting the dots between past and present. "Playing fast feels cathartic," she says, "and helps me deal with the nostalgia I have for a time that I never got to experience but remember and connect with so fondly.”

This week's mix is a testament to that: it starts with 1994's 'Global Warning' from the late great K-Hand and goes on to cover decades of history at warp speed. There are frenetic layers of percussion and hammering kick drums, bouncing bass lines and arresting rave synths all threaded together into something hugely powerful and muscular. It is only a DJ with Akua's sense of control that can serve up a chaotic collision of sound in such a compelling way.

Tracklist
K-Hand - Global Warning [Warp, 1994]
Voltage 9 - Untitled B1 - Candema [Synewave, 1994]
Drax (Thomas P. Heckmann) -  Search [Trope Recordings, 1998]
Mike Dearborn - Warning [Majesty, 1994]
Gene Hunt - Juno 106 [Contaminated Muzik, 1998]
NYCO - Plasticity [ESP Collective, 2021]
DJ Shufflemaster - 808 Cosmetics [Self-Released, 2018] 
Mike Dunn - Damn You All [Trax Records, 1994]
DJ Powerout - Lift [Synewave, 1995]
DJ Slugo - Taris Sleeps Wild [Dance Mania, 1995]
DJ Rush - Control Yourself [Djax-Up-Beats, 1999]  
Fuzz Face (DJ Hyperactive + Woody McBride) - New Ones [Communique, 1996] 
DJ Slip - Bushwick Birds [Kanzleramt, 2001]
DJ Hyperactive - Get In [4 Track Recordings, 2008]
Joey Beltram - Caliber [Warp, 1994]
Surgeon - THX-1139 (Level) [1996]
Creeper - Spoke [Cluster Records, 1997]
DJ Jes - True Honesty [Contaminated Muzik, 1998]
Tevatron - Molekule [Re-load Records, 1998]
Jana Clemen - Momentum [Convex, 2001]
Decoder - Populations [Self-Released, 2021]
Unknown Force - Internal Drive [430 West, 1995]
Bios - Basic Black [Black Nation, 1998]
DJ Apollo - Hooligan Stomp [Head In The Clouds, 1996]
DJ Genderfluid - Dirty Funker [Wet Trax, 2021]
Woody McBride + DJ T-1000 -  Test Three [Generator Records, 1995]
Fumiya Tanaka - Micro One [Torema, 1995]
Max Watts - Ichi 3 [ESP Collective, 2021] 
DJ Rashad - Acid Bit (Feat. Addison Groove) [Hyperdub, 2013]

Tracklist

Dekmantel Podcast 350 - Akua

JASSS | Boiler Room: Vienna

Akua — live from Boiler Room at Dekmantel Festival 2022.

Akua | Dekmantel 2022 | Saturday

REC 004 w/ Schacke

The REC series compiles outstanding performances recorded in the club throughout the year, highlighting artists representing our love for electronic music.

Another boiling recorded night at Fuse lands upon us once again. A worthy representative of the Copenhagen underground scene, Schacke takes us through a sound bite of the night dedicated to Fast Forward Productions. 

Armed with tireless practice, the eye for detail of the Moral Defeat label father can be heard through his two hours of music crossed with presence and confidence. With a vast gamut of inspirations, one thing is sure here: groove is king. Latent dynamism, seamless 4/4 transitions, sometimes toying with chopped vocals and deep rhythms, Schacke’s sense for music is both sweet and brainy. Until the next one, hats off to you Schacke.

▪️ Soundcloud: @schacke
▪️ Resident Advisor: ra.co/dj/schacke
▪️ Discogs: discogs.com/artist/5901037-Schacke-2
▪️ Bandcamp: schacke.bandcamp.com/
▪️ Instagram: instagram.com/schackedelic
▪️ Facebook: facebook.com/mschacke

Schacke — Recorded live at Fuse Brussels (27/08/22)

Locked Groove Transmission #04: LYDO

BASEMENT is proud to announce Lydo as one of our first residents. They are one of the club's most regular bookings, and with good reason. Lydo's poise, focus and versatility have cemented their position as one of the most exciting talents in NY today. They evocatively describe their sound as “a minimal trip through an underwater forest. It can be sharp and it can be soft.” They're kicking off the residency with a mix of driving, determined techno.

— @lydole

BASEMENT 001 - Lydo

Recording of CEM b2b DJ Nobu at Draaimolen Festival 2022

CEM b2b DJ Nobu at Draaimolen Festival 2022

Recording of Blawan b2b JASSS at Draaimolen Festival 2022.

TASCAM SD-20M

Blawan b2b JASSS at Draaimolen Festival 2022

Three weeks ago, the evergreen sight of @JamesNewmarch and @Voicedrone playing back to back brought UNFOLD XLVI to a grandstand close. 

As their first ever ‘All Night’ set beckons ever closer we can now bring you this live recording in its entirety. 

To allow them to dive even deeper into their collection we have adjusted the event hours, with the night beginning at Midnight and extending all the way to 10AM.

This mix gives a mere taster of what we can expect on Saturday 18th March.

Final release tickets for Voicedrone B2B James Newmarch - All Night - are now beginning to run low. Get them whilst you can, via https://www.fold.london/tickets/foldallnight

UNFOLD XLVI - Voicedrone b2b James Newmarch (LIVE RECORDING)

"I am going to take you on a ride where I will challenge you to back down or go with me," Parrish Smith says in the interview below. "If you don't like to do this, and you see a glimpse of me, you will dislike me. But the second time it happens again, I will be there to change your mind again, just to be challenged."

It's a confident, confrontational idea that goes with an unusually confrontational RA Podcast, a mix that represents a truly free spirit in the European dance scene. Smith, who also moonlights in the band Volition Immanent with fellow Dutch trailblazer Mark Knekelhuis, makes and plays hard, aggressive techno. But instead of gabber BPMs and overdriven kick drums, he directly incorporates ideas, sounds and influences from rock, punk and metal, a tricky combination that he nails like few others have been able to. (Just check his album Light, Cruel & Vain.)

Case in point: this mix blends Regis, Tzusing and Playboi Carti with Sepultura, Juno Reactor and Celldweller. It's a journey to the end of aesthetics, where opposites don't attract so much as crash and melt into each other. It's a fierce hour-and-a-half but never quite overbearing or overwhelming, gracefully weaving in and out of chaos like the work of someone who knows the real impact and art of heavy music.

@parrishsmith

Read more at https://ra.co/podcast/874

RA podcast

RA.874 Parrish Smith

Xavier - Opening Set at FOLD x Mala Junta [29/04/23]

Amsterdam based DJs, events company and record label. - support@dekmantel.com for all your webshop and label enquiries.

Dekmantel Podcast 350 - Akua

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