These are mixes made by the current members of Research & Development, Makeen and JS Alvarez

Mixes by R&D members

This mix is from a very special at night November 09 2024 at Smartbar with my dear friends Nikki Nair, Madeline and Pen Pals. I was tasked with closing out the evening and was an honor to do so. Thanks to everyone who came out and stayed till the lights came on.  Hope yall enjoy!

Live mix at Smartbar Nov 09 2024 - Dan B Hood

We are so lucky to release this mix for our 37th entry, recorded live at SmartBar (Chicago) by our friend and excellent DJ Shanti!

From the artist:
I am so grateful to be able to share this mix with you all through PPRZ! This is a mix that was recorded at Smartbar in Chicago when I opened for Lady Starlight as part of Justin Aulis Long's series, Flowers of Romance. It was a 3-hour long set from 10pm-1am on a Pioneer V10 Mixer with 3-4 CDJ 3000s. 

What I love about opening sets is having the ability to set the tone for the night as people are arriving and making the transition from wherever they came from to the communal embodiment of dancing. The other fascinating element about an opening set is the dramatic contrast between the beginning and end as one first experiences an empty dance floor and sees the gradual process of it growing with energy and feeling even though I can really only see beautiful silhouettes moving in the darkness. I take an opening set to be about the gradual cultivation of energy but also an opportunity for creative tension and exercising restraint for the headliner and rest of the night.

Bio:
Shanti is a Chicago-based DJ who explores philosophical themes of existential angst and ambiguity through surreal, foreboding, and atmospheric soundscapes. Her sets weave a story of the simultaneous despair and yearning that are intertwined with the human condition. 

While she is thoughtful about curating multifaceted energy and emotion within her sets, she also co-curates events such as Otherworldly Ambiguity as Evanti, a conceptual experience centered around the phenomenon of hybridity, occupying the spaces in between and outside of pre-existing concepts and rigid categories. She is also a part of Chicago-based DJ collective and label, Research & Development which is a mix series and curator of multifaceted music-centered experiences. 

Mix mastered by: Umair Chachar

Tracklist:
Part 1:
Lemna - Memories
Lemna - Hallucination 
Voices from the Lake - Mika 
Donato Dozzy - Aquatica
SHXCXCHCXSH - A Sunny Day in Ostrogothia 
Dan B. Hood - Ode to Drome
BMG & Derek Plaslaiko - Ghost Ship 
Rrose - Signs 
Alexskyspirit - The Travelers (Polygonia remix)
Etapp Kyle - Source 
Mike Parker - Heat Inducer 
Love Letters - Morse (BMG mix) 
Club Drippy - Crashed
Ryogo Yamamori- Zw
Marcel Dettman - Rush (Deep Release mix)
Pause - Crater  
SHXCXCHCXSH  - HHHHHHHGGKS 
Part 2:
Rrose - Solaris 
Lonefront - Stera
Modes - M52 
NØRBAK - Luyr 
Allana Letm - Tempos Multiplos (Centrific Remix)
Nubbles - Reflect 2 
Maedon-X - Caged Animal 
Perc - Milk Snatchers Return
Ritaffein - Laiva
Regis - Body Unknown 
Jamaica Suk - Tes Levrés
British Murder Boys - We Will Show You 
Uun - Junkspace 
Kanding Ray - Dark Barker 
Peter Van Hoesen - Vola Flash 
Surgeon - The Golden Sea 
Alexskyspirit- SNCTR2 
Decoder - Falling Flat 
Part 3:
Quelza - Plastic Waves 
Neel - A Thought without Time 
Oscar Mulero - Tormenta 
Regis - The Theme from Street Walker
DASH3D - Neuropulmonar
CRØG - Fire 
Oblivion & Uranya - Bassa Marea 
Sorcery - Dark Scan
GiGi FM - Amadamushies
Neel- Riflesso 
Quelza - We’ll Never Be Friends Again 
J. Blofeld - Uranus 
Cej- Itchy 
Char - Free 
Psyk & Orbe - Tunnel Diode
Surgeon - Convenience Trap Pt.2

Donations if you enjoyed this mix from Shanti's recommended organization: https://www.newrootsinstitute.org/ - creating a just and sustainable food system for all through education.

PPRZ Podcast 37 - Shanti live at SmartBar Chicago

ZONA CINCO - MICTLAN - VOL 4

Relentless rhythms and Latin dance history, courtesy of the TraTraTrax innovator.

Percussion is, at the root, a conversation. It's about different instruments meeting each other, and interacting to form something bigger than the sum of its parts. 

Few engage in this dialogue as boldly as Pablo De Vargas, AKA Uruguayan experimentalist Lechuga Zafiro, who draws from tradition, to make sounds like candombe and clave feel, well, completely new.

De Vargas' music reaches outward, building bridges between Montevideo and Bogotá, Tijuana, Berlin and beyond. He's a key figure in the hybridisation of Latin American club music, with releases on labels like NAAFI and an album on TraTraTrax.

His RA Podcast plays like a manifesto in motion. RA.985 opens with a recording of Jorginho Gularte, a Uruguayan composer, playing a jazz rhythm, from there, it expands: cuban guaguancó, Venezuelan drums, batida, tribal, techno—it's all here, stitched together with precision and intention.

De Vargas is also, crucially, reckoning with these roots. His 2018 EP Testigo confronted the colonial violence embedded in the history of the Río de la Plata. His sets are similarly alive with memory—asking, without nostalgia: what does it mean to inherit rhythm? Who gets to carry it forward?

He's also just a killer DJ, one of those rare artists who uses CDJs like an instrument. His sets are full of hot cues, delay FX and left turns. It's technical, but never cold. It’s, in a word, funky.

@lechugazafiro
Find the interview and tracklist at ra.co/podcast/985

RA.985 Lechuga Zafiro

LAUREN FLAX AT ZERO CHILL - April 13, 2025

We are thrilled to present this mix by Chicago based JS Alvarez for our 39th entry in the series. Both Adam and I admire what Jeremy contributes to the music scene with their podcast and event series Research & Development.

JS Alvarez is a shape shifting lizard that has learned human behavior from living in cities such as Chicago and Miami. He succumbs to no one genre and can be found exploring the depths of mutant techno and unruly bass music alike.

He is the founding member of Research & Development which ignited in the iconic Chicago mainstay of Smartbar. The event series has moved on to host community focused events centered on a wide variety of often cutting edge electronic sounds at venues like Podlasie Club, The Whistler and various DIY spaces. R&D also hosts a biweekly podcast 100+ episodes deep ranging from rising talents, hometown heroes and well established DJs and producers from North America and around the world.

He's shared the booth with artists such as DVS1, Veronika Vasicka, D.Dan, Hodge and others. His mixes have been featured on NTS Radio, Mutant Radio and SutroFM among others. Catch him at The Great Beyond this July! 

I was trying to find a very textured sound within the first quarter of the mix. My attempt at some sort of atmospheric sci-fi horror score followed by something a bit more hypnotic. By the end of the mix I wanted those vibes to explode into something highly rhythmic. Something to shatter what came before and get the sweat dripping off the walls. 

If you enjoyed this mix, please consider donating to JS Alvarez' organization of choice:
https://www.organizedcommunities.org/ 
https://www.organizedcommunities.org/donate

PPRZ Podcast 39 - JS Alvarez

CENTER OF THE RING

Kamilė Krasauskaitė, also known as Matilda, invites you to dive into inner landscapes and soundscapes, guiding you through her monthly selection of ambient, atmospheric, and experimental sounds. Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to find a giant smoking by your bed, sharing fairy tales with you. These stories come to life through sound. Kamilė is currently a resident DJ at Radio Vilnius.

Kamilė Krasauskaitė @ Kiosk Radio 19.06.2025

FIST returns for its 9th anniversary with a full-force takeover featuring Isabella Koen alongside residents DJ Clone and Word of Command

https://www.instagram.com/funisstilltransgressive
https://www.soundcloud.com/funisstilltransgressive



FIST: 9 Years with Isabella Koen / DJ Clone / Word of Command @ The Lot Radio 06-20-2025

Special guest mix from Chicago based dj SHANTI  - cohost of Otherworldly Ambiguity with Scum.ee, member of techno collective Research & Development, and host of “Liminal Radio” on WIIT 88.9 FM. Shanti kindly shared a 3 hour opening set she did for Aurora Halal in Chicago on May 9th 2025 at Smoke & Mirrors - toon in! 🚀🚀🚀
https://soundcloud.com/shantievanti
https://soundcloud.com/researchndevelopment

See video of Shanti’s set at https://youtu.be/QqfMYAyS8bM?si=FPZJDhNdZqlf63YS

BL Radio EP 130: SHANTI [Research & Development]

Mina Mills  - The Ever Afters Campout 2025 - Heart Lodge

FIST MIX 95 – Contractor

@Wigbert / @AchievementLabel

Bandcamp - https://achievementlabel.bandcamp.com/album/momentum-remixes
YouTube - https://youtu.be/Rj2c8SnrunY

Following up from the launch album release on his Achievement Label, Wigbert has curated a discerning remix package that includes artists such as Linear System, Cirkle, Red Rooms, NWHR, E2NMN, Anna Hjalmarsson, and Toru Ikemoto.

Linear System is a Costa Rica-based techno artist closely affiliated with Edit Select Records, which has released four of his five studio albums along with several EPs. His discography also includes respected labels like Symbolism, MATERIA, Dynamic Reflection, Illegal Alien, Molecular, BCCO, Blank Code, and his own imprint Modern Minimal, launched in 2022.

For this DT:Premiere we selected his remix of "Supercell" with an uptempo groove. Raw and hypnotic, the energetic rhythm has stylish and frantic percussion mixed with spacey and atmospheric textures for a mesmerising ride.

LABEL: Achievement

CAT#: ARCHV001R
ARTIST: Wigbert
TITLE: Momentum Remixes

FORMAT: Digital

RELEASED: 26 September 2025

01. Synapse Impulse (Cirkle Remix)
02. New Momentum (Red Rooms Remix)
03. Supercell (Linear System Remix)
04. Pattern Cycle (NWHR Remix)
05. Echocord (E2NMN Remix)
06. Return Of Art (Anna Hjalmarsson Remix)
07. Supercell (Linear System Deep Version)
08. Aurora (Toru Ikemoto Remix)

DT:Premiere | Wigbert - Supercell (Linear System Remix) [Achievement]

Phosphate Records is proud to welcome “A Little Cherpy” a single release  from CUB

This release is available as a free download but can also be bought at this link : https://phosphaterecords.bandcamp.com/track/a-little-cherpy

Cub is an upcoming hardgroove dj and producer rising from the Melbourne scene in Australia. He craft his identity with layered drum loops and energizing stabs and percs, his main source of inspiration are from artists such as Lars Huisman, Vilchezz, and Klint.
Since stepping away from DJing, he has devoted himself fully to the studio, spending countless hours exploring, experimenting, and refining new sonic ideas. This deep commitment to his craft has allowed him to push his creativity further than ever before, resulting in fresh sounds that have found their way onto numerous labels

Artist: @user-27323451 - CUB
Track : A Little Cherpy
Record Label: Phosphate Records
Mastering: PHEEK
Artwork : Phosphate records

Free Download

Phosphate Premiere I CUB - A Little Cherpy [FREE DL]

Artist: dj bahia 
Label: Spektro Records
Catalog Number: SPK009
Release Date: 20 oct 2025
Format: digital
Mastering: Bika Velvet
Mixing: Bautek
Artwork: Juan Barro
Artist links: https://linktr.ee/djbahia
Label links: https://spektrorecords.bandcamp.com 

PREMIERE: Dj Bahia - Salida De Emergencia [SPK009]

CHICAGOS UNDERGROUND TECHNO RESOURCE 
BANGING FERAL MUSIC

Based in Chicago, R&D is a music event/mix series focused on nurturing new sounds, experiences and atmospheres while exploring the music and culture it was born or mutated from. Techno, electro, EBM, bass, breaks, club and beyond.
Current personnel
Jeremy Alvarez - JS Alvarez
Eric Fernandez - Makeen
Shanti Chu - Shanti
Dan Hood - Dan B Hood
Kona Mazariegos - Zona Cinco

ZONA CINCO - MICTLAN - VOL 4

MICTLĀN

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