SMILING CAST #001 - Geneva @dj_geneva

Introducing our new mix series, a collection of sets by the best artists we’ve met on the road and been inspired by. For the opening of Smiling Cast, we’re thrilled to welcome Geneva, who is setting a high standard by delivering an hour of absolute bangers dug with love.

Drawing inspiration from the late 80s, 90s, and early 2000s, Geneva curates catchy and eclectic sets that range from psychedelic downtempo to progressive house, always with her special signature: a blend of irony and sexy vibes.

Smiling Cast #001 · Geneva

@rinobxl at floresta

foto: fofo.altinell

Dj Rino at Floresta - Waking Life '24

5 hours in the wonderful surroundings of Public Records in NYC. Back to back from start to finish. Peace to all the ravers and staff in the place.

5 HOURS IN NEW YORK CITY AT PUBLIC RECORDS - LUCA LOZANO + MR. HO

Our tenth installment of the podcast was an unforeseen and unplanned one. Often, the unforeseen, unexpected, and unplanned are unsettling, but in this case, they brought an unbelievable musical journey. We want to welcome Manfredas from our 10th installment. A bespoke selector with a musical knowledge that would fill several musical libraries, he kindly extended his Saigonese soiree and filled our Sunday session with great joy. Expect a mix that meanders, accelerates, and wanes, all over the course of 90 minutes. An unimaginable journey between genres, tempos, musical styles, and directions, showcasing the versatility of Manfredas.

Manfredas - NLDMIX 010

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

Manfredas, a DJ/producer based in Vilnius, Lithuania, is also known as one half of Dresden party with Ivan Smagge. His kaleidoscopic play, shaped by the genre-spanning musical knowledge cultivated as a radio DJ, radiates an eclectic and irresistible attraction while evoking influences from electro, disco, post-punk, and beyond. This two-hour set, live-recorded at BAR Inc Osaka in July 2025, is no exception to his spellbinding style.

@manfredas

DREAMING 049 :  MANFREDAS @BAR INC JULY 2025

moving through shadow, trance and flickers of the unknown with @erensuerensu

SpeLL: ERENSU

For our latest episode, we welcome Chez de Milo, a key figure in Bristol’s underground and beyond.

Founder of Club Blanco, a party, label and platform that’s brought some of the most adventurous selectors to the UK – Chez has spent years carving out his own distinct voice as a DJ and producer. Between his Magic Carpet Ride show on Noods Radio, releases on Emotional Espacio and Futureboogie, and standout sets at Fabric, Fold and Barbarella’s, he’s become known for weaving eclectic, psychedelic-tinged journeys through hypnotic grooves, cosmic rhythms and leftfield textures.


Chez de Milo - Cartulis Podcast 068

Buy on Bandcamp

Mike Send - Can't Tell It All

Midnight Moon (Long Play)

Buy on bandcamp

Ben Arsenal feat Tsehaitu- Midnight Moon (Long Play)

Maye - Extended

Passion, creativity, electronic music and smiles.

Any enquiries: smilingphasesrecords@gmail.com

Smiling Cast #001 · Geneva

Smiling Phases