Mehmet Aslan returns to his own Fleeting Wax imprint, in order to deliver the first in a series of releases as part of a new project, ghost station, including a collaboration with fellow Turkish singer, songwriter and vocal producer, Idil Mese.

Efsun, translating to enchantment in Farsi, is the sound of Idil Mese transforming an understated, somewhat folksy instrumental of Aslan’s into a bewitching and subtle musical spell. Initially tense, 
Idil Mese’s vocal spell wraps beautifully around a brittle guitar motif, inches above a sea of atmospheric ambience. In it’s second half, synthesis and sitar unite, taking efsun into more revelatory territory, employing a playful melody and warm, cosmic textures.

Meanwhile, on ‘ghost station’, from which the project takes its name, layers of meaning and recording slowly unravel, revealing a compelling soundscape. Recorded in one take, and completed across one night, ‘ghost station’ began with Aslan and his sampler surfing the busy radio waves of Berlin, eventually settling on a beautiful score broadcast on one of the city’s classical stations. Just as soon as Aslan had the frequency on lockdown, the signal disappeared unable to be retrieved quickly enough, if ever. Loosely inspired by the work of Swiss visual artist and musician Pipilotti Rist, the track instead unfolds woozily like a dream, undulating through offbeat bleeps, ghostly voices and improvised swells of noise, while still maintaining it’s own quietly propulsive groove.

Sounding more like himself than ever on his own Fleeting Wax outlet and incorporating an impressive range of musical techniques over just two tracks, ‘ghost station’ further establishes Mehmet Aslan as a restlessly inventive musical talent. -Text by John Thorp

FW007 | Mehmet Aslan - ghost station

FW007 ghost station ep

ghost station

Mehmet Aslan - ghost station

Mehmet Aslan feat. Idil Mese - efsun

Fleeting Wax is a new label by Basel DJs Mehmet Aslan and Miajica from Alma Negra, whose fame has spread far and beyond Switzerland. The EP contains three striking edits from the reaches of what could be considered world disco in the widest sense of the word. It’s fair to say that this is the embodiment of a now-familiar Basel sound – all sultry playfulness, Turkish delights and sun-drenched pop-not-pop. The first is Tai’s "Schlager Edit", built on a combo of hypnotic Marimba-dreaming and that irresistibly sugary voice. Istanbul digger DJ Fattish immerses himself into the singer-songwriter wealth of his country. And label co-owner Miajica weds Italian cantautore passion to the dancefloor. With it’s first release, Fleeting Wax clearly lives up to it’s romantic promise: Unearthing forgotten relics and infusing sleeping beautys with new life.

FW007 | Mehmet Aslan - ghost station

FLEETING WAX