PLASTIC FANTASTIC is very pleased to be relaunching the series with an exclusive guest-mix from Sanky Was Here.

For the uninitiated, would you please tell us a little bit about yourself?

‘Hola, my name is Sanky, I can't seem to shake a childhood nickname at 52..! Anyway, I grew up in Newcastle amongst some nerdy soul and jazz types which was kind of my first and probably last love. I live in Mexico currently’.

Can you provide some insights to your mix, its inspiration, location of recording, or perhaps a few words about some of the records you’ve included?

‘As I don’t have an address here, I spend a while building up (my record collection) either back in the UK or in NYC, and a few times a year I’ll rip them all. So the mixes take a while, but I like that it’s another ‘edit’ to what I really like longterm. I think this mix is genre-free and focused on mood. I do think of it as a mix of two halves, really focused around what’s in the bag for the summer, and with a few places I’m playing in mind. Just trying to send out some love and emotional connection. There's a couple of new discoveries and weird rarities, alongside some all-time winners that I just feel are good for a summer kick-off. Mama Milk (the 2nd track on the mix) just reminds me of some hazy Ibiza afternoons, and who would’ve thought there’s ANOTHER William Pitt record worth a late night dance too!’

Are there any upcoming projects you have in the pipeline which you would like to share?

‘Well, good question. Covid got me fiddling with Ableton and learning (failing!) to play some keyboards. I made a few sketches which I have told myself I should finish this year. It’s about as close to naive pop as you can get. I played some to a couple of people and they were more enthusiastic than myself about them for sure!
Other than that, playing a couple of festivals, the mighty Love International in Tisno/Croatia in July, and the We Out Here Festival in August.’

A big thanks to Sanky Was Here for providing this awesome mix for The Sunrise Mixtapes, and for taking time out to speak to us

Track ID requests @soundcloud.com/sankywashere 

Artwork courtesy of sankywashere.wtf

Sanky Was Here (Love International)

And now, a little bit of JAZ

John Zahl, also known as JAZ, is a DJ and record collector based in New York, USA, well-known for his eccentric edits and oddball mixes. We managed to connect with John after he'd arrived back in NYC after a few months spent travelling.

His mix, which was actually recorded nine years ago for Sanpo Disco on NTS Radio, features many of his all-time favourite records. He tells us these are songs that he still loves, and which remain in constant rotation. We'd like to mention a few of the tracks, starting with the lovely slo-mo/Italo disco record 'Non Ricordo, Ma Piangendo', B-side of a rare 7" by Giancarlo Aspromonte. Pit Troja's 'Der Voodoo Mann' from 1985 can only be described as German hip-hop over a Moroder-esque bass-line, wonderfully eccentric, as advertised! The late great Björn Holm's 'Tid At Stå Stilla' from his 1984 LP Bortom Gränsernas Hav, takes us into Swedish synth-pop territory. The mix features a few of JAZ's own edits, including 'Cloud Worship' which has to be one of our favourite edits of all time, just superb. This is an exceptionally well put-together mix, and despite the wide range of material, it flows perfectly and naturally, as a good eclectic mix should do.

Check out his brand new 12" edit release on the Death On Wax label:

https://store.deathonwax.com/collections/catalog/products/dw-00-00-04

Another vinyl EP featuring some more top-shelf edits is forthcoming on the Pinchy & Friends label, and a compilation album entitled Forbidden Fruit is also in the works with Portuguese label Secrets Of Sound, so be sure to check that out too when it's released.

Big thanks to JAZ for his kind permission to include this awesome mix in The Sunrise Mixtapes

Track ID requests @soundcloud.com/j-a-z-1

Artwork courtesy of sankywashere.wtf

A Little Bit Of JAZ

Sebastian Grätz, based in Hamburg, Germany, and known professionally as Basso, is the man behind Growing Bin Records.
Growing Bin was set up in 2007 as a music blog before evolving into an online record store in 2012, with the offshoot micro-label Growing Bin Records launching the following year. The blog initially existed to catalogue Basso's broad musical tastes, today Growing Bin is very much in the business of selling records; From the ultra-rare and special interests to generally curious finds.

A core appeal of Growing Bin is that the material is handpicked according to, and solely for one man's esoteric tastes. There is no chasing of trends; If Basso likes it, he'll sell it. Another of the shop's unique traits is its copywriting; Growing Bin's website is a marvel with musical categories including Cocktails By The Pool, Cheap Magic and Dancing For Mental Health, breaking down into subcategories such as Embarrassing Mindblowingness, Never Leave The Bag and many more.

Anyway, over to the mix. As expected, Basso has delivered a wonderfully eclectic selection of records. 
We'd like to mention a few of his inclusions; 'La Bimini' by Spunk, a breezy P-funk monster if ever there was one, off their 1981 LP Tighten It Up, tight as f**k indeed! Remaining in Jazz-funk territory, Underground Canopy & Paloma Paloma's deep and soulful 'Même Heure Même Endroit', B-side of a 7" single from 2023, is just sublime. The HaHa Sounds Collective version of Marker Starling's 'Silk Rock', as championed by Gilles Peterson on his Worldwide FM radio show, is an absolutely stellar piece of music and arguably one of the strongest releases of 2020. Taken from her 1976 LP Più, Ornella Vanoni's moody 'Tu Chi Sei?' (underscored by a beat suspiciously reminiscent of a certain Paul Simon record) is another timeless inclusion here. 
A big thanks to Basso for taking the time to record this fantastic mix for the series.

Track ID requests @soundcloud.com/growingbinrecords

Artwork by A.r.t. Wilson, from A.r.t. 
Wilson's Overworld LP (Growing Bin Records)

growingbinrecords.com

Basso (Growing Bin Records)

Plastic Fantastic - Jazz Meets Flamenco mix

Nicolas Motte, aka Nico Motte, is first and foremost a graphic designer, working at the Check Morris studio in Paris which he founded along with partner Mathias Pol in 2004. For ten years Nico was involved in the art direction of French label Antinote, a label on which he has also produced and released several albums; Three under his own name, Life Goes On If You Are Lucky, Rheologia, and most recently (at time of writing), 2023's The Missing Person. He has also released a record with Raphael Top Secret and Zaltan, a collaboration under the name 18 Rays. In addition to music production and his extensive graphic design work, Nico has also hosted a radio program called Depeche Motte on LYL Radio, and the mix that he has kindly submitted to The Sunrise Mixtapes is from that radio show.

Nico has selected some lovely obscure ambient percussion records by the likes of Giuliano Sorgini and William Loughborough, gradually progressing into wonky left-field digital reggae, including Romie Singh's classic 'Dancing To Forget', Desmond Coke's 'I Need Somebody', from his 1989 LP Let's Chase The Sun, and of course Sexy T.K.O.'s 'Touch Me, Take Me', just to mention a few.
A Big thanks to Nico Motte for his superb contribution to The Sunrise Mixtapes

Track list:

Implodes - 'White Window'
WM Loughborough - 'For The Big Horn'
Giuliano Sorgini - 'Masai'
Jean-Claude Deblais - 'Le Golem' 
Implodes - 'Down Time' 
D*Note - 'Solomon's Dub'
Romie Singh - 'Dancing To Forget'
4Hero - 'Escaping Categories'
Sexy T.K.O. - 'Touch Me, Take Me' (Magic version)
Desmond Coke - 'I Need Somebody'
Family Fodder - 'The Big Dig'
I.A.O. - 'Feel The Forgotten Sense' 
He Said - 'Pump'
The Solid Doctor - 'Lights On The Vibe'
Gary Wilson - 'Chromium Bitch' 

Artwork by Nicholas Motte, from Nico Motte's Life Goes On If You Are Lucky LP (Antinote)

Nico Motte (Antinote)

Helene Rickhard is arguably Norway’s First Lady of all things eclectic, ambient and cosmic. 
A record collector, DJ and producer from the coastal town of Arendal in southern Norway, where she lives with her synths, her record collection and her cat. Well known for her broad musical tastes, Helene is often to be found behind the decks at clubs and festivals across the Nordics, most notably Jaeger Oslo, BLÅ, Camp Cosmic, Zone Disco Autonome and Skogsfestivalen in Sweden. She has recorded limited edition cassette mixes for HMD Records and Origin Peoples, including Magic Maze and Nature Love, and she has also released a couple of 12" records, the most recent (at time of writing) being 2023's Fiero EP, produced in collaboration with Rune Lindbæk and released on the Cosmic Oslo imprint.

Helene's mix was actually one of the very first guest-mixes of the series back in 2022, but we recently discovered that it had inexplicably (or inadvertently) disappeared, so we're very happy to be re-uploading it now for for the pleasure of both seasoned and new listeners. Her mix features some absolutely gorgeous synth and ambient music, such as opener 'Spring 1980' by Kit Watkins, taken from his 1981 LP Labyrinth. There's the warm and timeless sounds of Tangerine Dream courtesy of 'Scuba Scuba' off their 1986 LP Underwater Sunlight. Taken from the soundtrack LP of the TV series Travelling Man, Duncan Browne & Sebastian Graham-Jones' 'Max's Theme' is an almost Kitaro-esque slice of new-age. Speaking of new-age, there's an Enya record on here too; 'I Want Tomorrow' from Enya's self-titled debut album from 1986, a record, by the way, that is superbly blended with Yoko Ono's 'Mindweaver'.
A big thanks to Helene Rickhard for taking the time to record this fantastic mix for the series 

Track ID requests @soundcloud.com/helene-r

Helene Rickhard (Cosmic Oslo)

That's all folks! 

A big thank you to our dear listeners for your love and support in sharing the music, and of course an extra special thanks to our fabulous guest this season: 
Sanky Was Here (Love International), Basso (Growing Bin Records), Jaz (Death On Wax/Pinchy & Friends) and Nico Motte (Antinote). 
Stay tuned when we return next year with more mixes from a stellar line-up including: 
Coyote (Is It Balearic?), Rune Lindbæk (Drum Island), Trujillo (Apersonal Music) and Helene Rickhard (Cosmic Oslo).

Ending the run for 2025 with a mix by yours truly. 
Peace and love, Plastic Fantastic

Plastic Fantastic - Inspiration mix

Plastic Fantastic (NO)
Phil Mison (UK) - Café Del Mar
Andy Pye (UK) - Balearic Social/Music For Dreams
Helene Rickhard (NO) - Cosmic Oslo
Coyote (UK) - Is It Balearic? 
Faint Waves (US) - Dream Chimney
Paul Hillery (UK) - BBE Music
Studebaker Hawk (US) - Peace & Rhythm
Sanky Was Here (US) - Love International
JAZ (US) - Death On Wax/Pinchy & Friends
Basso (DE) - Growing Bin Records
Nico Motte (FR) - Antinote

Forthcoming guests:

Coyote (UK) - Is It Balearic?
DJ Trujillo (VE/DE) - Apersonal Music
Frinda Di Lanco (DE) - Avec Plaisir
Rune Lindbæk (NO) - Drum Island/Cosmic Oslo
Andy Pye (UK) - Balearic Social/Music For Dreams

New tracks tagged #THE SUNRISE MIXTAPES