there's a difference between want and need, and i need this

Oysters - Snippets

Welcoming our next international guest, Dylan Forbes. Coming fresh off a release on 393 records, as well as having previous releases on Haŵs & Coymix, the Irish-based producer has become one of the most polished producers in the contemporary prog house scene. Dylan has blessed us with this ethereal mix  which encapsulates why we love his sound 🪐

@dylanforbesirl
@dylanforbesirl
@dylanforbesirl

Neurocrank Mix: Dylan Forbes

Back in April I had the chance to play at one of the coolest parties I've been to, WARNING in Berlin. Originally was booked to play as Space Cadets but Adam was ill so I did it solo, was quite nervous at the start (which never usually happens), when the pitch of the first track starts drifting by itself you know you're in for a real ride!

Luckily with the support of my friends and a really up for it crowd, I got into a flow pretty quick and everything just started to work - I think you can really hear that moment happen haha. The party was billed as a rave and I really leaned into that vibe, so lots of acidy bits, trippy tools and fast transitions!

Was a real pleasure to just play a bunch of my all time faves to such a great crowd on a ultra crisp and deep system, big love to anyone who was there! Hope you had as much fun dancing as I did playing <3 

Enjoy! x

Lisene @ WARNING (about blank 18.04.2022)

Our next mix comes from another one of our Bristol pals, Joe aka @Remotif.

We were absolutely blown away by his set at space lab a few months ago before our residents Space Cadets and instantly knew we had to get him on the mix series. Not only a fantastic DJ in his own right, Joe is a seriously skilled producer with a string of great releases to his name.

In this mix he expertly moves between breaks, techno, trance and more - enjoy!

Rotation 033: Remotif

Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp: https://bit.ly/3CNB60n

It’s been around a year since we connected with Asphalt DJ & Gzardin through our mutual friend Jop Woesthuis. Now, 12 months later, we’re pretty amped to welcome these guys into our mix series after just having released their debut EP on Oddysee. We connected for a chat and they put together a propulsive mix of euphoria-inducing rollers to mark the occasion.

Full interview with Asphalt DJ & Gzardin here: https://oddysee.fm/podcasts/asphalt-dj-gzardin/

https://soundcloud.com/asphaltdj
https://soundcloud.com/gzardin

Interview

Oddysee 049 | 'Omega Wonder' by Asphalt DJ & Gzardin

"This mix brings together the club music aesthetics I like to listen to and play at the moment, it's a fusion of new releases and trance pépites from the 90s and 2000s. I really like the different shades of progressive trance mixed with incisive broken beats, emotional-melodic breaks and bass lines that keep the groove going. 

I recorded it in my studio for a whole afternoon and I danced a lot while doing it! I recommend listening to it to energize yourself while walking in the city or very loud at home to dance on your bed."

@hawasarita is one of the many aliases of the ever talented and ever-evolving Sarah Gamrani, a poetess and the cavernous vocals of duo @baaraakaa. 

Full interview with her here >>>

Hue & Saturation Mix #044: Hawa Sarita

For Rotations 26 we have Activator — the newly formed project from two Naarm DJs Jaevin aka Vitamin DJ / @vitamin_D_J  and Clay aka Toorak Cowboy / @claywaddell.

Two of the most warm and vibrant lovers of the Naarm music scene, both Jaevin and Clay's infectious energy translates into their sets which are pure, unadulterated fun.

Progressive, trancey and with a little euro-house flava, this mix is nearly 2 hours of non-stop energy with a few unreleased local tracks ;)

Thanking Activator for this gorg mix <3

Rotations 26: Activator

Mix number ~80~ … we’re starting the new year just as we mean to go on with an all mighty mix recorded by none other than DJ TEETH (@djteeth) and TPR (@tpr_dj) from one of our favourite Berlin collectives HYPERSOFT (@hypersoft_bln) 🧡

Throbbing with energy and unshakable radiance straight from the 90’s, there ain’t no denying this mix is the absolute beez kneez . com 🐝 see for yourself, you won’t be disappointed 🌶

HYPERSOFT

HAWSMIX080 / HYPERSOFT

Progcast: 003 ~ Glen S

For the next Progcast edition, we’ve invited the illustrious Glen S to the series.

Glen S has been a name frequenting our track collections for some time. He’s surfed the Oz Prog wave with EPs on home grown labels Eclectic & Dialectic Recordings, and also recently ventured abroad with a recent release on Wonderground Sounds in Romania. 

He’s delivered a housey prog mix for ‘blissing on a warm summers day by the beach’ - enjoy!

Progcast 003: Glen S

˚○◦˚Mix 007 - Asphalt DJ ˚◦○˚

˙˚˙’Zephyr’˙˚˙

For the 7th instalment of the Perigee mix series, Asphalt DJ presents a high-energy, bouncy and effervescent mix brimming with zestful prog and trance sounds. 


Mix cover by the amazing @zoe-pressly 🤍

@asphaltdj @asphaltdj @asphaltdj

Mix 007 - Asphalt DJ

Preorder Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp:
https://bit.ly/40FPNeL

One Eye Witness:
https://bit.ly/40J09KS

Six years, fifty releases, countless artists and multiple subsidiaries; the Oyster Cult’s reach extends far beyond what sceptics once thought possible. It’s only fitting, then, that we gather some of our finest under the Kalahari banner in celebration.

The anniversary release is upon us. Six whole years since Jacy helped inaugurate the label with a spin on Midwestern house, OYSTER40 signals a landmark occasion. 18 tracks, quadruple vinyl boxset action, and in true Oyster Cult tradition, it comes bearing pearls.

Dancefloor squarely in focus, the Cult assembles on a compilation spanning alumni and new inductees alike. It’s an assemblage of the fractal, explorative and ritual-ready; at once a focused distillation of the Kalahari sound and celebration of its many acolytes. Big on atmosphere, heavy on groove, we delve deeply into the musical DNA shared by all who grace the label.

Tough, direct cuts (Sansibar, Roza Terenzi, Big Zen, Maara & Priori) to the pristine and widescreen (S.O.N.S., Volodymyr Gnatenko, Adam Pits), this is all quintessentially Kalahari. Elsewhere though, the likes of D. Tiffany and SW. journey further into realms of abstraction: the former opting for hi-tech, dreamstate IDM, while the SUED co-founder dissolves a house template into dubby introspection.

Calling upon contemporary talents, for the most part, there are also exceptions. Raymond Castoldi - the one-time house producer best known as Madison Square Garden’s music director - returns with an unreleased nugget from ’91, while an ‘Aliens’-sampling track from Detroit-indebted techno outfit Syzygy gets the reissue treatment.

Various - The Chants Of The Holy Oyster | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER40)

@reptant_the_lizard special tech house alias, Ulo S. returns for a live set at melbourne/ naarm's best after-hours party, the tech world season II finale @ miscellania, 19th march 2023 8-9pm

<3

ani/live Twelve: Ulo S. @ Techworld Season II Finale

Preorder Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp:
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One Eye Witness:
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Maara’s out to make mischief with the wryly titled ‘Hear Me Neigh’.  

Whether that title’s in reference to a certain equine dissociative or purely a love letter to our majestic, four-legged friends, well, we’ll leave that for you to decide. Either way, the prolific prog house luminary lends her Midas touch to four equally deadly traxxx.  
Following last year’s ‘Fancy Feast’ EP comes another proper dose of heads-down hedonism. It’s an eagerly-awaited return to the Kalakari fold, and true to form, opener ‘The Horse Track’ comes hurtling into the first furlong at full pelt. Big equestrian NRG packing some seriously rugged heft and neighing samples aplenty. Then, bringing more of that insistent throb, ‘Juicy Tracksuit’ is no less alluring or propulsive, albeit while channelling some Y2K aesthetic.   

There’s more of that turn-of-the-century flex on the next one too. Evoking Love Parade circa 1999, ‘God Save The Bender’ deploys scything hard trance flourishes while opening a portal to the fractal realm. And finally, ‘Sheela Na Gig’ lands dripping with more of the seductive appeal that has become Maara’s hallmark.

Maara - Hear Me Neigh | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER53)

Preorder Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp:
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One Eye Witness:
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The Naarm chapter of the Oyster Cult has been coming through with in a big way lately, and this one is no exception. Introducing Reflex Blue, the latest Antipodean export to put his stamp on a lysergic dancefloor sound indebted to the early ‘90s.

If Australia’s South East has proven itself a fertile breeding ground for tripped-out dance music, Reflex Blue is a case in point. Rather than sliding into pastiche, tracks like ‘Outdoor Dance’ and ‘Tension Rise’ offer forward-facing slants on trance-inducing prog house styles. They plumb the depths of nostalgia, all in the pursuit of dancefloor unity and fractal elation.

The flip-side comes bearing nocturnal house incursions. But where ‘Creepin’ Around The Bend’ opts for rude, jacking propulsion, low-slung number ‘Low End Freqz (Dial Up Mix)’ dials up the seductive appeal while sticking to the same sonic palette. Seriously indulgent gear primed for the witching hour.

Reflex Blue - Fuzion EP | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER47)

Preorder Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp:
https://bit.ly/3SLqqWO

One Eye Witness:
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Huge, triumphant return for the man they know as Olsvangèr. This might be the most radiant, life-affirming manifestation of his devotion to trippy dancefloor propulsion.

If last year’s EP with fellow Tofistock co-founder MYKI was the pre-induction, ‘OYSTER51’ signals his full initiation. Solo manoeuvres from the Berlin-based producer and starts as he means to go on with the buoyant flex and ‘90s nostalgia of opening cut ‘Grand Slammin’. Blissed-out vocals vocoded beyond recognition, this is pure dancefloor jubilation but not at the expense of directness or heft.

Clearly, he’s no stranger to a late-nite tech house incursion either. Where ‘Paranoweed’ comes thru with the tuff, full-bodied groove, ‘Bubble Toy’ recalls the oddball, mescaline-strength tribalism of his DJ Headshot alias. Then, just as uplifting as its predecessors, ‘Quadi B’ shuts things down with a heady, levitational dose of fractal fuel.

All proceeds (label + artist) will be donated to Save The Children - Gaza and West Bank Emergency.

Free Palestine. Cease Fire Now.

Olsvangèr - Icy Hookups | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER51)

Preorder Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp:
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One Eye Witness:
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Striking a rich vein of atmospheric dance music on the latest record with Convergence founder Kosh. Chameleon biz from a producer operating right at the intersection of Midwestern and New York styles, OYSTER55 traverses lacerating electro, rugged house trax and freestyle pressure with ease.

Possibly the meanest we’ve heard from the Moroccan scene flag-bearer, opener ‘Human Condition’ sets a menacing pace. But if that one batters down doors with some hurtling electro-breaks, ‘The Chopper’ opts for sleek aerodynamics and dappled, luminous hues. It’s another example of Kosh’s restless, breaks-fuelled ballistics, but this time deeper, more immersive.

Back with more urgency, where ‘Come On’ recalls the baddest freestyle Latin electro, ‘The Zinger’ closes proceedings on an anthemic tip. In fact, neither would have been out of place on NYC labels like Nu Grove or Nervous Records, highlighting Kosh’s capacity for skewing classic styles to his distinct design. It’s exactly the kind of material you’d expect for a producer that first coming to prominence on Casa Voyager, where exquisitely crafted dance music has become their trademark.

Kosh - The Chopper EP | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER55)

Preorder Vinyl & Digital via Bandcamp:
https://bit.ly/3vEyIrM

One Eye Witness:
https://bit.ly/3Jaen0w

The Oyster Cult’s Naarm continent grows larger with the addition of Ebbs N Flow. The unholy alliance of Dashiell and Will Holden of Hybrid Man touching down with some precision-tooled tech house variants, and considering their only previous collab came on an Animalia compilation back in 2022, this has been long in the making. 

OYSTER56 marks the first full release from this lesser spotted project. The handiwork of two producers, both accomplished in their own right but transcending their respective styles for a 4-track dose of late nite propulsion. Seductively stripped-back and engineered for optimum impact. 

Flexing a deftness of touch, and a far cry from the smudged, dubby FX Holden tends to deploy under the Hybrid Man banner, these tracks set the duo’s stall out as purveyors of the nocturnal and club-ready. Sultry, sleek, and sumptuous like only the dankest cuts can sound. 

It’s fitting that a track with the title 'Deeper Dream' might feature on a release feeling like a transmission from the other side; a parallel dimension where the after-hours never end.

Ebbs N Flow - Bunch Of Amateurs | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER56)

Run by @reycolino
Brussels - Amsterdam
info@kalaharioystercult.com
Distributed by @oneyewitness
Bookings & label showcases: peter@FMLY.agency // +44 (0) 7742 600894

Various - The Chants Of The Holy Oyster | Kalahari Oyster Cult (OYSTER40)

Kalahari Oyster Cult

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