The Manualcast

Following her appearance at our first Manual Smiles party at The Cause in October, we're extremely excited to welcome the talented @aquamarine_mp3 to mint our new mix series, the Manualcast. 

The US-born, London-based Wet Dreamz founder offers us an hour of progressive melodies, rich synth work and fast-paced rhythm with a gorgeous 90s touch.

"In conceiving this mix, I was inspired by Enno’s vision for the series: psychedelia in all its forms! I wanted to unite classic psytrance motifs and 90s-influenced prog with groovy spiralling percussion. Enno’s own productions inspired me to take a dive into the more acid-drenched reaches of my collection, uncovering 303s that are at times dark and menacing, at others bright and euphoric. Above all, I wanted it to be a very danceable hour for all my home-ravers out there" - Aquamarine

For this new podcast platform, we invite friends and family from the label to dig deep into their record collection to tell a story in psychedelic tracks. We encourage artists to take us on a trip through the unique shades that mark their sound, a brief Alex has smashed.

If you're in London, make sure to catch her at her own Wet Dreamz party next week, 7th December, at the Glove That Fits in Hackney.

Manual Smiles (:

MANUALCAST001 - Aquamarine

A recording from our 2023 Halloween takeover at The Cause, in collaboration with the Foloi party crew. 

Rhythm Section Future Proof & Selextorhood artist @ldazedj delivered a fantastic journey through trance that led us deep into the night, a set that's become one of our favourite times on the dancefloor last year, alongside equally wicked sets from Aquamarine, Hannd, Heavy Skin, Kitsta and n_o.

Hope you enjoy this one-and-a-half-hour trip as much as we did (:

MANUALCAST002 - L Daze [Live @ Manual Smiles x Foloi, The Cause 28.10.23]

Manual Smiles mainstay @kitsta_dj delivers a gorgeous trip for number three of the Manualcast series.

It follows shortly after her 'Liefmans' EP on our label at the tail end of last year, as well as an appearance at our first party at The Cause - hopefully, there will be many more occasions she graces us with her fantastic selections and work. 

"Taking ‘trippy’ provided as the brief by n_o, I recorded this mix travelling through the darker shades of my acid and trance collection. My favourite moment is when I mix Roller Breaker by Vitaline into The New World by Out of Orbit & Sandman - the contrast of her broken trance track to the 4x4 kick satisfies the hell out of me! I hope you enjoy the mix 👽" - Kitsta

MANUALCAST003 - Kitsta

Two incredible Foloi x Manual Smiles parties down, Heavy Skin is the main man behind our unannounced artists collab event series. 

It seemed only fitting to get him down for some all-vinyl sorcery for the next Manualcast, ahead of Friday 24th May, where we once again take to the dancefloor - this time with an all-night-long takeover from one of our favourite artists to be doing it!  

More details can be found on our social media pages - in the meantime, here's a taster of the journey to come...

MANUALCAST004 - Heavy Skin

Resident for Bochum's Schlegel Kultur Club @henrystangier is stepping up for the next instalment of the Manualcast. 

We've been in touch via the label for a long time, and we're so excited to finally be sharing this mix for the series. Expect deep, dubby, and minimal grooves across various genres as we dive deep into Stangier's hour-long trip - the perfect way to ease us into the end of the week.

Instagram

MANUALCAST005 - Henry Stangier

@kajsavillius drops the sixth Manualcast fresh off the back of her 'Baltic Blue' EP out on the label now. 

One hour of tripped-out club heat, weaving threads through wiggy techno, free-flow prog & trance, and hypnotic bass, very much in line with the sounds that make up her stellar EP. We're super proud to welcome her to the label and mix series - enjoy!

MANUALCAST006 - Kajsa Villius

We're very happy to share the next Manualcast comes from @scottartex - the Manchester-based DJ and producer has been a great friend to the label, treating us to a Techno power-hour marked by deep cuts, dub elements and expert hypnotic trippage - just the way we like it!

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out his releases on Alien Izz' Space Bunny Records and keep an eye on his profile for more fantastic music coming soon...

MANUALCAST007 - Scott Artex

Fresh off the back of his release with us, @rowant-sc delivers an hour of tweaky House, Techno, and progressive cuts for our Manualcast series

‘my intention with mixes is to create a flow of momentum through the set, some fun, some deep and some trippier elements to carry a journey. The aim of this set was to build grooves and head into some more left-field, trippier elements in the back end’ - Rowant

MANUALCAST008 - Rowant

French-Brazilian DJ @joia_dj channels her Paris-to-Rio identity into a richly textured blend of trance, bass, and techno. Deeply influenced by her Carioca roots, she weaves trippy, percussive sets that draw on acid, dub, and organic rhythms to craft hypnotic, emotionally resonant journeys.

 “I had full freedom shaping it, and it’s probably one of the sets that reflects me the most today.” - JOIA