Has the techno industry failed Palestine?

Sama', the world's most famous Palestinian DJ, talks about Israel’s genocide in Gaza and how the music industry—and some of her peers in techno—have failed Palestine.

The most deeply divisive topic of the year is undoubtedly Israel's genocide in Gaza. The issue has prompted some artists to step boldly into the political ring and others to shield their professional identities from scrutiny and public discourse, with each camp drawing fierce backlash.

After a brief summer hiatus, the RA Exchange returns with a new season, launching with Palestinian DJ Sama’ Abdulhadi, who addresses all this and more in a charged interview. The Ramallah-born artist has since gone on to tour non-stop internationally, regularly appearing alongside some of her idols growing up, such as Richie Hawtin and Nicole Moudaber. She's also no stranger to RA: in 2023, she graced the cover of this magazine and, just this summer, contributed to our drop of RA.1000 anniversary mixes.

This interview, though, is the most outspoken Abdulhadi has ever been. She shares her take on what's happened since October 7th, including her assessment of how and where the music industry, and her peers, have fallen short; the pressure she feels to be a global spokesperson for Palestine; why she feels that the revolutionary spirit has drained from a subculture built from resistance; and how, despite it all, she retains a sense of optimism and forward momentum. Listen or watch the episode in full. -Chloe Lula

EX.777 Sama’ Abdulhadi

The gifted London DJ and curator goes big on bass futurism.

"To pull a thread." This old English adage means to follow a small detail that might unravel into something larger and more significant. It's also the inspiration behind London artist mi-el's NTS Radio show, and a neat way of understanding her approach as a DJ. 

Take mi-el's rich archive of mixes. From NTS to The Trilogy Tapes, they show her to be a deeply personal selector and curator, pushing past functionality into something more expressive, narrative and often political. A show about Refugee Week? Afrofuturist world-making? Interlocking systems of domination? All material is putty in her hands. 

Now based in Berlin, mi-el is simply a wicked club DJ. In just a few years she's played Panorama Bar, De School and FOLD, as well as festivals including Waking Life, Terraforma and Field Maneuvers. 

Alongside peers and predecessors like Josey Rebelle, she represents a new generation of Black British artists reinventing the wheel, and as we mark the beginning of UK Black History Month, no other candidate felt more fitting. 
 
RA.1007 shows why. The 55-minute session is a deft balancing act of depth and playfulness, humour and heaviness, rooted in club intensity and the futurism of the UK hardcore continuum. It's firm confirmation that, in mi-el's hands, the art of the DJ mix is alive and well.

@miellllllll
Find the tracklist and interview at ra.co/podcast/1026

RA.1007 mi-el

A joyride through rave-ready tech house, speed garage, jungle and more.

To the casual onlooker, Enzo Siragusa may seem easy to pigeonhole as just a UK DJ playing chunky house music. Wrong. The Maidenhead native has serious pedigree, earned from 30-plus years fully immersed in the rave, first as a dancer at jungle and hardcore parties, then as a hobby DJ and finally as the cofounder of one of London's most influential club nights: Fuse.

What began life in 2008 as a ramshackle afterparty on Brick Lane is now a global brand with multiple festivals and roving events, and Siragusa its figurehead. For years, Fuse's MO was doggedly down to earth, built on a love for intimate shows where the residents took top billing.

Its impact on modern dance culture is clear to see in the runaway success of the so-called UK tech house movement (think Michael Bibi, PAWSA and Chris Stussy). And yet Fuse always cut deeper, darker and dubbier.

"I felt you could bring the emotion of jungle and hardcore into minimal house, which is what became the Fuse sound," Siragusa told fabric last year. A child of Metalheadz as much as Perlon, his tastes—and vast vinyl collection—run wide, and today the breadth of these influences inform his creativity behind the decks more than ever.

As RA.1008 illustrates acrpss nearly two hours, dazzling tech house, minimal, speed garage, jungle and more all fit under Siragusa's roof. The blending is sublime, each new transition a window into a fleeting sonic world. There's no tracklist, with a clutch of totally unreleased tunes aired for the first time. Happy IDing.

@enzosiragusa @fuselondon

https://ra.co/podcast/1027

RA.1008 Enzo Siragusa

The TikTok tour de force talks about '90s electronica, UK garage and her 2025 mixtape, Fancy Some More?

There's a new generation of artists who've come up almost entirely online, and perhaps the breakthrough star of the TikTok music era is PinkPantheress. A few years ago, the British 24-year-old quietly strategised how to game the social media algorithm and get her songs to go viral. She succeeded—and became a headliner practically overnight. She's openly talked about how she got there, including writing songs in short formats and using confessional, diaristic lyrics to capture the hearts of her growing audience.

Today, PinkPantheress is promoting her 2025 mixtape, Fancy Some More?, which heavily references the UK club sounds of the '90s and early '00s, blended seamlessly with contemporary electronica and pop. In this interview with RA's Joelle Robinson, she dives into the making of this release, and candidly reflects on navigating her newfound fame and overcoming the challenges, both personal and professional, that have accompanied a high-intensity touring life. She also reveals her aspirations for the future—which include big plans to reach yet another level of success—and her dreams for the broader electronic music landscape, too. Listen to the episode in full. -Chloe Lula

EX.779 PinkPantheress

There are few names as widely loved in clubland as Bristol-based producer Omar McCutcheon, AKA Batu.

His label Timedance, currently celebrating its ten-year anniversary, has been instrumental in shaping a certain corner of contemporary electronic music. It champions a mutant, rhythmic, UK-flavoured sound that escapes any obvious genre touchstones, as well as spotlighting the careers of artists like Verraco, Ploy and Hodge who push musical and cultural boundaries.

In this Exchange, McCutcheon sat down with Resident Advisor's editor, Gabriel Szatan, in London to reflect on the label's Afrofuturist philosophy, its journey over the past decade and the sense of purpose and direction that have developed over time. He spoke about the impact that scenes beyond the UK—such as China, South Africa, Brazil and Mexico—have had on his productions and label curation, and how they offer fresh perspectives that contrast with Europe's sometimes overly nostalgic take on dance music. He also discussed finding positivity in a dark time, and music's enduring potential to inspire and connect.

EX.778 Batu

The first-ever live recording from an elusive icon of dubby electronic music.

Lore is an underrated quality. Neuroscientists have mapped that music elicits similar feelings in the brain to when we satiate cravings, but what about the psychological impulse that drives listeners of a certain disposition toward everything they don't know?

It's tricky to put your finger on, but artists able to conjure intrigue without overhawking the backstory can really cut through—just ask SAULT, [ar:pi:ar] or Gerald Donald. Then there are those who don't try whatsoever. These are the ones who stay in mind the most.

In 2001, a striking 12" called Ship-Scope emerged through Chain Reaction, credited to Shinichi Atobe, with no other info available. Okay, mulled fans, this is probably a cat-and-mouse game dreamed up by someone on a label with a fine line in foggy obfuscation. Vainqueur on a wind-up? Another Moritz 'n Mark alias?

But no: Atobe was real, and really had posted a demo to Hard Wax. It was that simple. Then he went back to his day job—until, after 13 years of silence, an even better follow-up emerged.

From the near-perfect Butterfly Effect onwards, Atobe has built up one of the most revered catalogues in underground circles. A steady clip of elegant, transportive dub techno and deep electronics has arrived on Demdike Stare's DDS, complimented by the launch of his own label, plastic & sounds, earlier in summer 2025.

Atobe has also made strides into the public domain, DJing intermittently, as well as performing live for the first time in 2023, gracing WWW at the tender age of 52. It's that debut 2023 show heard on RA.1009: a hypnotic yet comparatively pumping set full of Atobe staples, as well as material you won't find anywhere else.

Contact with the big man, as you might anticipate, is glacial: since we first reached out, the RA Mix has changed name, look and rolled over into its second millennium. Still, patience pays off. This is a one-off we're stoked to run. – Gabriel Szatan

@shinichiatobe

Find the interview at https://ra.co/podcast/1028

RA.1009 Shinichi Atobe

The New York-based journalist talks about her breakout book, Mood Machine, live from Soft Centre Festival in Sydney.

As we approach the end of 2025, it's clear that one of the year's most zeitgeist-defining books has been Liz Pelly's Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist. The New York-based writer has been on a promotional tour, speaking at festivals around the world, and one of her recent stops was at Soft Centre in Sydney, where this Exchange was recorded live with writer, editor and DJ Audrey Pfister.

Pelly's background is in the DIY scene, college radio and independent alt weeklies, all of which ignited her interest in writing about music. Over the last few years, she has become an outspoken advocate for underground music, and an incisive critic of how the streaming economy has debilitated independent artistry. In this conversation, she unpacks some of her book's main conceits. Spotify, for example, was originally designed around advertising models rather than music-first models, which is why it rewards music that performs well at scale. She explains how that's created so much growing inequity in what performs well on the platform, and she also draws fascinating parallels between the streaming economy and digital media.

Mood Machine ends on a somewhat hopeful note, and Pelly proposes some solutions: as custodians of the independent music scene, we have a responsibility to go to live shows, subscribe to emerging DIY media projects and give money directly to artists by buying their music and merch. Listen to the episode in full. -Chloe Lula

EX.780 Liz Pelly

"Combining sounds that wouldn't normally be thought of together." So reads the final line of Mexican DJ and producer 1OO1O's short-but-sweet artist bio. It's a claim many make but few pull off. Are truly new fusions still even possible in 2025? Hasn't electronic music reached saturation point? Not in the hands of 1OO1O, AKA uno cero cero uno cero, or one O O one O. 

For the best part of a decade, the Xalapa-born artist has been mashing up footwork, jungle, techno, electro, UK garage and breaks with Latin America's myriad folkloric styles, from salsa and merengue to mambo and dembow. The results, like 2023's SALSA & BREAX, or last year's SALÓN CANDELA, feel electrifyingly fresh, connecting threads across eras and traditions with a subtle dexterity. The secret is a deep respect for the source material.

Indeed, foregrounding the best of Latin America—and specifically Mexico—is the dominant theme on RA.1010 (do you like what we did there?). By his own admission, 1OO1O switched up his DJing a couple years ago to prioritise music made locally or regionally by himself and his friends. At a time when Latin American culture is both at its peak and yet still constantly "reshaping itself to accommodate tourists and 'expats,'" his sets in clubs, festivals and radio stations around the world are his way of spreading the gospel.

This 70-minute mix, then, is heavy on both Mexican talent—Regal86, DNZA, AAAA, Loris, FRAN G—and unreleased 1OO1O tracks. It's tough, rhythmic and strikingly modern, with just the right balance of light and intensity. Given the glut of local music, a late cameo from London grime MC Trim glistens like an emerald in the sun. If you want to know what the cool kids are raving to in Monterrey, Guadalajara and Mexico City right now, here's your answer. - Carlos Hawthorn

RA.1010 1OO1O

The German legend talks about the state of modern trance, what it takes to create a legacy and writing his most recent album.

Poll the average dance music fan and they'll have almost certainly heard of Paul van Dyk. The German DJ and producer is so synonymous with trance that it's impossible to talk about the genre's history without mentioning his name. He's also been one of the most successful electronic artists full-stop since the '90s, when he first started touring around Berlin. His 1994 hit "For an Angel" launched him into the limelight, and he's been selling out clubs and arenas ever since.

In this RA Exchange recorded at the Berlin Synth Museum, he reflected on the current state of trance and how its modern DJs are missing the mark; his lifelong engagement with politics and his efforts to enlist Americans to vote alongside Bono; his experience growing up in East Berlin; and a life-threatening accident he suffered at a festival in Utrecht, which left him with multiple spine and brain injuries. He said the experience taught him to cherish every part of life, and that love is the greatest and most healing power that exists.

Van Dyk's most recent album is called This World is Ours, and in this conversation he unpacks the accompanying tour and some of the key themes that run through the tracks—namely, the rise of AI and our need to unite in the face of a non-human ruling elite. You can watch it on our YouTube channel, or listen to the episode in full. -Chloe Lula

EX.781 Paul van Dyk

Dubwise atmospherics flood Guy Brewer's third RA Mix.

Hear the word "Dionysus" and you picture the Greek god of ecstasy: overflowing tables, delirious revelry, chaos. Not the austere soundworld of Guy Brewer, AKA Carrier. On the surface, the UK artist's latest alias feels almost Spartan. But look closer and the Dionysian link starts to show:  it's about shedding fixed forms and identities, to allow something more true, more alive, to form. 

RA.1011 marks Brewer's third entry in the RA Mix series, following editions as drum & bass outfit Commix (RA.269) and, later, the techno alias Shifted (RA.310). "I guess it's an effort to step away from purism," Brewer told <i>Resident Advisor</i> back in 2023. "Right now the thresholds between genres are where you find the most exciting music." 

Carrier's phenomenal debut album, <i>Rhythm Immortal</i>, delivers on that promise. Low-end pressure cloaks like foreboding shadows, punctured only by eerie, otherworldly percussion comparable only to Photek or T++. Listen to the LP in full and it feels like walking through a scene in a true-crime drama: a fog-drenched city street in the deep of night, ambushed by gusts of wind, whispers and strange noises—and it sounds totally, utterly original.

Tracing a line through dub pressure, fractured percussion and narcotic ambience, Brewer explores that same world on RA.1011. As with the album, there's a primal pulse that threads through the recording. Walls of negative space seem to hover before dissolving inexplicably, their tension intact; drums move more like the weather than rhythm. - Bella Aquilina

Pyramid Level

Gramps The Vamp