Once upon a time, V.I.V.E.K Sharda was unhappy with the sound at UK nightclubs and parties—sound that he felt couldn't capture the deepest, truest vibrations of the music he wanted to play and hear—so he just made his own sound system. (Naturally, he called it System.) That should give you an idea of how seriously Sharda takes his wubs and his sub-bass, and if you have even a passing interest in UK sound system culture or dub's crossover with dance music—including, yes, dubstep—then you've probably heard of V.I.V.E.K, or at least heard one of his chest-rattling records.

Along with producers like Om Unit and Kryptic Minds—both of whom feature in the mix below—Sharda has never been one for following trends or concerned about scenes. Instead, he's fully devoted to the pulse of dub and the luxury of bassweight. He's put out slow but steady stream of ultra-heavy releases on his own labels System Music and VIVEK, and now he's on a mission to change perceptions of what 140 BPM music can sound like. That's what you'll hear on his RA Podcast, a meditative and occasionally tectonically-shifting mix that highlights dubstep, dub and its many offshoots—not just staggered drums and subterranean low-end but smooth swing and soulful melodies, too.

Read more at https://ra.co/podcast/879

RA podcast

RA.879 V.I.V.E.K

All original and unreleased material. Fresh!

Pugcast Vol 1

3024 TAPES are back! This time with a live recording of Martyn performing at Germany's best sounding club, Wuppertal's own Open Ground on Nov 16th 2024 - Enjoy.

3024: Please describe the mix in a single sentence ?

Martyn: This was my first gig on Open Ground's system and I loved every second of it. The set kind of meanders to connect between a few tracks I decided I really wanted to hear on that sound, like Archangel, an old Aux88 jam and Hieroglyphic Being's "21 Ways". 


3024: What DJ inspires you at the moment / has inspired you throughout the years and why?

Martyn: This particular night was with two of my fave DJ's, Jossy Mitsu ; who, without a doubt along with Ehua, Mia Koden and Re:ni are in my opinion leading the charge at the moment when it comes to bass music in the UK.  And an old favorite Joker - who I hadn't heard for years but was just incredible, playing a crazy set of grime instrumentals, dubstep classics, oddball electronica and even mixing a Joy Division record into an old DMZ (!!) 


3024: What are you working on / what have you got forthcoming?

Martyn: There's some incredible music coming on 3024 which I am very excited about. Also more 3024 Tapes and a few little jams by myself under my Gabe & Jude alias.


Artwork by Jeroen Erosie
Photo by Sorted / Jason Myers

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3024 TAPES 011 : Martyn (Live at Open Ground)

Hodge - 28 April 2025

Almost 2 years on from her NTS debut, Introspekt delivers a brand new production mix consisting entirely of her own forthcoming productions, unreleased dubs and edits. 
Find the full tracklist and related episodes on NTS: https://www.nts.live/shows/introspekt/episodes/introspekt-25th-april-2025

RA.879 V.I.V.E.K

Resident Advisor