Running Back Records music is very amazing

Sunday Week 01 2018

ivan smagghe at floresta

foto: fofo.altinell

Ivan Smagghe at Floresta - Waking Life '24

DOMENIC CAPPELLO WARM UP FOR JANE FITZ SUB CLUB  APRIL 2025

The Tartan Records boss and equally boss DJ Wallace signs off on his recent stint down under with a mix packed with deep sea dubs and bumping 00s techy rollers. Based in England, and having previously run a string of club nights in Edinburgh, Wallace is a proud tartan enthusiast with a full tank of punchy dubwise grooves in his sporran, with plenty of nods to his UK roots here over a glorious hour and a bit full of chunky d-floor burners. Let's have it!

@wallacejimmygs

Q. What sounds or feelings did you draw upon when gathering inspiration for this mix, and what listening environments could you imagine it being best enjoyed in?

A. It’s been a pretty bruising winter back here in the UK but we’d just had our first smattering of sunshine when I came to putting this mix together. I think that shift—the changing seasons and the first signs of trees beginning to bloom in my hometown (as pictured)—definitely influenced the first part of the mix. The middle section leans more into the kind of stuff I’d play out, but I wanted to bring things to a softer landing toward the end. There’s certainly an outdoor feel to the selections so maybe a listening environment to match but equally I love music’s ability to transport us from our current states so bang it on indoors and see what happens.

Q. Are there any songs in the mix that you were especially excited to share, and what is it about these tracks that resonate with you so much?

A. There’s a Steve O'Sullivan Dub early on which I recently found & it’s just a gloriously mixed and executed piece of dub techno. Towards the end another recent find by Argentinian producer Federico Molinari which to my ears sounds like a lost 80’s gem but was produced just last year. It's rare to hear a modern producer capture that classic vibe so authentically, without tipping into pastiche.

Q. You were just out here in Australia over the past weekend and from all reports the shows were on point! What kind of directions did you take people in during those sets, and how might the energy of your club sets differ from your mixes? 

A. Yes, so glad to have finally made it out here. Was a real joy to meet some lovely people in your scene and to get the chance to do my thing. Always revel in the challenge of playing in a new country as you’ve got to be on your toes to adapt but stay true to what you’re all about. I truly felt the warm Aussie welcome, so let’s call this mix a little parting gift to tide things over until next time x

MDC.310 Wallace

A memorable all night set at London's Night Tales Loft 
Big thank you to all the dancers!

Move D @ NT-Loft London 2025-02-21

The first half of RA.996 is Ron Trent's take on luxurious house.

As part of our countdown to RA.1000, a milestone in the 24-year history of RA's weekly mix series, we're switching up the usual format. The next few editions will pair two acts who complement each other's strengths, offering a fresh take on a particular community, scene or style. 

This week, we're zeroing in on Ron Trent and Ash Lauryn, two names who fly the flag high for old-school US house—a foundational pillar of the electronic underground. 

Trent takes the A-side. Hailing from Chicago, the birthplace of house, the pioneer is a master of finding the sweet spot where machine music meets organic instrumentation.  Listen to any DJ set or record in his extensive back catalogue and you'll find a wealth of exquisitely expressive melodies and deep, spiritual frequencies, making him the ideal narrator for any survey on house. (If you've only got a moment, sink into "Morning Factory," nine minutes of perfection.) 

Trent's return to the RA Podcast, 19 years after his debut in 2006, represents his many decades of expertise in fusing funk with gorgeous musicianship under the umbrella of heart-stirring house. Some may call it a masterclass but to us, it's just Trent doing what he does best.

Listened to as a whole, RA.996 is a powerful snapshot of house's elegance, class and most importantly, understated yet innately euphoric joy.

Find the interview and tracklist at ra.co/podcast/997

RA.996 Ron Trent

Part two of RA.996 comes from a modern-day house luminary. 

As part of our countdown to RA.1000, a milestone in the 24-year history of RA's weekly mix series, we're switching up the usual format. The next few editions will pair two acts who compliment each other's strengths, offering a fresh take on a particular community, scene or style.

This week, we're zeroing in on two names who fly the flag high for old-school, US  house—a foundational pillar of the electronic underground. The first half comes from Ron Trent, which you can read more about here. 

On the B-side is Ash Lauryn. Hailing from Detroit, she's a modern-day house savant. Her comprehensive understanding of the genre's history—knowledge gained from the Detroit greats who that inspired her—and her own inimitable blend of old-world soul meets new-school grooves make her a force to be reckoned with. 

A former RA contributor, Lauryn keeps it <i>real</i>, whether in the booth or beyond. A role model to a new generation of DJs, she can just as easily be found teaching workshops at Underground Music Academy in Detroit or sharing tricks of the trade in the green room at some of the best clubs in the world.

An unwavering champion of Black dance music, the Atlanta resident makes it a point to play as much Black American music as possible, as she told us in her 2019 podcast. Not much has changed since then. Her contribution to RA.996 spans favourites like Larry Heard, Mood II Swing, Byron The Aquarius, Moodymann, Ron Trent and plenty of Detroit heavy-hitters.

Listened to together, both mixes are a powerful snapshot of house's timeless elegance and, most importantly, understated yet innately euphoric joy.

Find the tracklist and interview at ra.co/podcast/998

RA.996 Ash Lauryn

Part two of RA.999: two NYC Downlow favourites go back-to-back for the first time with a jubilant homage to classic house.

The RA Podcast launched 19 years ago in 2006, making it one of the world's longest-running online mix series. As we gear up to celebrate the 1,000th episode, RA.999 lands with five mixes across five days with a cohort of artists who've left a singular mark on electronic music over the past few decades. The chemistry and legacy of these duos make for something very special—and worthy of such a huge milestone.

First up was 1morning and Regal86 with a live recording from New York's Bossa Nova. Next up? We move to NYC Downlow, and who better to capture Glastonbury's beloved queer utopia than Prosumer and Peach, going back-to-back for the first time.

If house is your thing, then Prosumer and Peach going one-for-one on the decks is nothing short of a treat. With Glastonbury still just about in the rearview mirror, this mix captures the spirit of NYC Downlow. If you're familiar, you'll know this means steamy euphoria all-night long, sweat dripping from the ceiling and an intoxicating feeling in the humid air.

And Prosumer is a true Downlow darling—a treasured custodian and storyteller of dance music who delivered his first RA Podcast way back in 2007. "If a record doesn't move me emotionally or physically, I won't play it out," he said at the time, befitting of the impeccable curation and irresistible body groove that became his trademarks. He is, in the words of the Johnny Dangerous track in the mix, the "King of Clubs."

For Peach, RA.999 marks a full-circle moment: Prosumer's 2019 closing set in the Downlow is one of her all-time Glastonbury memories. Since her first RA Podcast in 2021, the London-based artist has only grown more in-demand, with sets that typically traverse the house and techno lexicon—and occasionally R&B—with a distinctly peppy energy. "Neither of us are afraid to go deep," she said about playing with Prosumer. "We just had fun with it."

@ohpeach
@prosumer
Read the full interview at ra.co/podcast/1006

RA.999 Prosumer & Peach

This week's mix is by @bian_ca, a DJ based in Rio De Janeiro, a dedicated vinyl collector and resident at Nervosa, one of Rio’s key underground parties! His sets weave the sweat spot between techno and house, and he keeps it timeless and unexpected. 

The 100-minute mix is a journey where the tension stays exactly where it's supposed to be, shifting in genres and moods, and guides you to a grand finale, leaving you mesmerized. 

Track highlight:
‘’This selection is very special to me, as many of these tracks have been with me for a long time. It includes music from close friends I greatly admire, like Muta’s Poem by Capetini and Black Jesus by Vaskular (feat. Valesuchi). However, the track I’d like to highlight is In Sara, Mencken, Christ and Beethoven There Were Men and Women by Robert Ashley. I still remember hearing it for the first time, and it’s hard to believe it was produced in the ’70s. This was the first time I’ve had the chance to play it in a set, and I fall in love with it all over again every time.’’

Thanks Caio<3

bian.ca...IsBurning #174

The German minimal DJ returns to the spotlight with two hours of artfully subtle house and techno.

There's an old German proverb that goes "Der stete Tropfen höhlt den Stein." Literally, it means a constant dripping wears away the stone, but the point isn't about force but patience: slow, steady repetition can leave the deepest mark. It's an apt metaphor for the career of Kosta Athanassiadis, better known as XDB.

Active since the early '90s, first as a DJ and then producer by the decade's end, Athanassiadis has built a career less on hype than persistence. His catalogue spans labels like Dial, Metrolux and Echocord, alongside a steady trickle of EPs and remixes that have quietly cemented his reputation as one of minimal house and techno's undersung heroes.

That patience carries into his sound and production ethos. Where many of his peers embraced software upgrades and new workflows, Athanassiadis has long stuck to Cubase, a handful of trusty instruments and 30-year-old speakers he claims to have run "hundreds of thousands of tunes" through. He also still prefers to use inexpensive, straightforward gear—what matters, he insists, is not the tools but the feel. The result is a sound that’s stripped back, direct and enduring.

Lately, Athanassiadis has found himself back in focus. With minimal enjoying fresh attention, his calendar has filled, and with it a run of back-to-back sets—most often alongside PLO Man, a regular sparring partner this year. True to form, though, you won't find that his style has changed much. Over 30 years after his first gig, you can rest assured you'll still find him playing with patience, carving out long arcs rather than sharp peaks.

His RA Mix captures him in a reflective mood. Running just over two hours, RA.1003 is a hushed yet absorbing affair, moving seamlessly from the delicate atmospherics of Valentino Mora and Caldera to the machine funk of Robert Hood, Solid Gold Playaz and Marcellus Pittman. There are left turns folded into XDB's patient narrative arc, too: John Carpenter's brooding scores here, DJ Sprinkles' melancholic work with Will Long on "Acid Trax N (Acid Dog)" there.

It's the sound of a DJ who has been quietly chiseling away for three decades, and who understands the value of persistence as much as restraint.

@xdb

Find the tracklist and interview at ra.co/podcast/1021

RA.1003 XDB

One of Detroit's most consistent producers takes the reins.

RA.298 Patrice Scott

(RB067) Retro7 EP

2. Younger Rebinds- Bitro  Sample

Fresh from a debut on 100% Silk, Berlin artist Westcoast Goddess (@westcoast-goddess) continues to set forth a vision of a psycho~ spiritual house music with this debut release on Omena (@omena-records). Springtime Forever EP consists of 4 tracks dating from 1998 to the present, each representing a joyful season of the artist's heart. As always, Ivo Kiusalaas has provided the label art. Out early November!

Pre Order

*PREMIERE* Westcoast Goddess - Summer Song '98

Smallville53 A1 Snippet

HEIST028 | Nebraska - Metaphor to the floor EP feat. Laurence Guy remix will be out November 13.
ORDER NOW AT:
https://store.detroitswindle.com/vinyl/heist028
https://store.detroitswindle.com/download/heist028d

One of our highlights of last year was Nebraska's 'Soften the wireless' EP, with disco stomper Khan's Bargain, and an amazing Tom Noble remix. Since then, we've seen him take on quite a few live shows again, playing at Claire during ADE, and Concrete for our label showcases. He's also managed to find a bit of time to focus on his fresh (new and cool) edit label 'Friends and Relations'. Luckily, since we've been nagging him to do a new EP for Heist just enough for him to still like us, and more than enough for him to want to get it over with, we've gotten our hands on another set of amazing tunes. So we're happy to present his amazing music, nicely packaged in one handy record for your listening pleasure: the 'Metaphor to the floor' EP.

2. Younger Rebinds- Bitro Sample

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