2 years after his critically acclaimed “Ultrachroma” album, Kangding Ray returns to ARA with a decisively dance-floor LP named “ZERO”.
As the artwork suggests, his different explorations and influences converge into one point on this record, where sound becomes a raw vibration, precisely engineered to bring bodies into movement.
This record marks both a return to the source of his sound in its purest shape, with hints of his debuts on the experimental label raster-noton, as well as the hypnotic journeys he is now known for with his DJsets.
As an artist who is constantly reshaping his own sound in search of new forms, Kangding Ray offers here a singular take on modern dance music, driven by a visceral and futuristic approach.

“When an audio signal crosses the X-axis, there is an infinitesimal moment of silence. ZERO is inspired by this quiet instant, a point of inversion where vibrations die and are reborn at the same time” . KR

ZERO

TECHNO 0.0

kangding Ray

Copy of ZERO

Zanurzenie

Sirat

The universe is made up of its elements in constant motion, and its trajectory, based on rotation, gives way to what could be interpreted as a movement within an infinite circle.

Into the Circle represents this movement, rotation and endless repetition.

Into The Circle

03 SOLA

02 IPSO

01 IOTA

05 ETOS

04 TARO

08 KOTE

Limited available high quality (140gm black 12") vinyl copy of EMERALD 026. Comes with additional stickers!

The Dutchman drifts through the curtain of time with sonic depth and hits with clarity and force. A profile of both unidentified sounds copied from the internet and reworked happy accidents, results in his ‘Tonal Raid EP’. Despite the EP title, raid is not the standard here.

emerald.bandcamp.com/album/tonal-raid-ep

Mastering: Paul Mac / Hardgroove Mastering
Artwork by CA SIMMØNS / www.casimmonsart.com
Cat. EMERALD026 - All Rights Reserved
© EMERALD 2025

Buy EMERALD026

Calling From The Deep

RA.1000 launches with Theo Parrish, live at fabric: a vanishingly rare club mix from the king of deep crates and impossible transitions.

There are DJ sets and then there are Theo sets. No matter how many times you've caught him in action, every time still feels like the first. Running hot, levels smoking, isolator working over time. You think you know dance music? Think again.

Parrish's debut on the RA Podcast is a milestone for the series, one we've sought for over 15 years. So it was only right that Theo led off our 1000th celebrations. Recorded live at fabric last December as part of RA's party with the London club for their 25th anniversary, this three-hour segment documents the crescendo of his eight-hour marathon. 

The Detroit legend doesn't release mixes often, and when he does, they're usually studio recordings: think NTS shows, his 100% Detroit edition of DJ-Kicks or classic tapes Body (1997) and Methods of Movement (2000). A capture of the Sound Signature boss on the dancefloor is hard to come by.

Sure, there's galvanising build-ups and crowd-pleasers, but laced throughout a Parrish beatdown are rarities designed to shock the system. In a business dominated by marketing, the vinyl master towers above thanks to a relentless hunger for lustrous melodies, moods and textures of all stripes, which he and he alone can fold into an inspiring and exhilarating joyride.

On RA.1000, blissful reggae precedes new wave disco; '80s R&B morphs into synthy techno; bleepy Chicago jack makes way for a poignant vocal ballad. It's Theo through and through. Once again, he proves that anything and everything is possible with the right records.

@theoparrish @fabric @soundsignaturedetroit @crownruler

Listen to all RA.1000 mixes, as well as the complete history of the RA Podcast, at https://1000.ra.co

RA.1000 Theo Parrish

The arena-conquering duo glide from gritty rave to skyscraping arpeggios on RA.1000, a mix many years in the making.

A new name undeniably entered the pantheon of major electronic live acts over the past decade: next to Faithless, The Prodigy and The Chemical Brothers, now sit @feelmybicep.

The Belfast duo's music doesn't half reach for the stars: a melodic blend of ambient, breakbeat, trance and tech house, able to turn the biggest arenas into intimate affairs.

If anything, mainstream success, BRIT Award nominations and mammoth dance crossovers like "Glue" have only hardened Andy Ferguson and Matt McBriar's resolve to keep innovating.

Their prized blog, running for nearly as long as the RA Podcast, regularly platforms upcoming artists. And you won't find many festival headliners releasing climate change-themed records with Indigenous artists, as they did recently on Takkuuk.

RA.1000 exists in that spirit. After many polite declines, and before a year off to usher in the next era, Bicep come through at the last: from dub techno and screwface breaks to São Paulo garage, before a tide of signature synths floods the zone. Stadium-sized intimacy at its finest.

@feelmybicep 

Find the tracklist and interview at ra.co/podcast/1015. Listen to all RA.1000 mixes, as well as the complete history of the RA Podcast, at https://1000.ra.co

RA.1000 Bicep

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

A rich and emotive techno session.

Read more: https://www.residentadvisor.net/podcast-episode.aspx?id=519

RA.519 Kangding Ray

HYPER OPAL MANTIS . Forthcoming on Stroboscopic Artefacts
Release early 2017 

Triptych : 3x 12”
-------------------
# 12 “ HYPER 

A1 : RUBI
B1 : LONE PYRAMIDS
B2 : EPSILON

-------------------
#12” OPAL

C1 : PURPLE PHASE
C2 : DUNE
D1 : SOUL SURFING
D2 : OUTREMER

-------------------
12” MANTIS

E1 : ONDE MANTIS
E2 : SAUDADE
F1 : LANIAKEA

HYPER OPAL MANTIS (MASTER)

SOUL SURFING

PURPLE PHASE

EPSILON

LONE PYRAMIDS

RUBI

It's an edit/reconstruction/private version of a track by a very famous band so don't destroy the balls with things like "you stole the sample, you can't do it, it's unprofessional..." etc etc...

Machine Gun (Heavy Metal Dance Reconstruction)

The Horde In The Outskirts

Dark Illusion 

Empty Space

From his early releases on the legendary german imprint raster-noton, to his more recent output aimed at the club, Kangding Ray managed to trace a singular trajectory, navigating the unexplored territories between experimental music and dance music.

Through his consistency as both Live performer and DJ, and a number of critically acclaimed releases, Kangding Ray showed his ability to keep a genuine artistic approach, while slowly crafting a unique universe, equally focused on emotional response and visceral impact.

Kangding Ray’s music tests boundaries, evolving constantly in its exploration of texture and rhythms, while talking equally to the body and the mind.
From his past as architect, Kangding Ray kept a multidisciplinary approach to art, applying his craft in diverse artistic fields such as visual arts, film scores, audiovisual installations and dance performances.