Vol 1 ~ Almansa

Phonica mix 124 is a truly special edition from not just one of London's finest collectors and selectors but one of our long time regulars; Nick The Record. 
Not only has Nick been a loyal friend of our shop in the years we have been open, he has also been one of the driving forces behind the London scene for nearly 30 years. Dealing records professionally to some of the biggest DJs in the world over the years as well as running several labels including his most recent outing Natural House - his knowledge in disco and house is impecible. He has displayed this in his vast deeply thought out sets over the years be it performing the closing set at some of Japan's best underground festivals or at his long running night Tangent with friend John Gomez, he is a definition of a digger. We had a chat with Nick about the mix and what he has coming up, even if we had to hold his flight to Japan for a couple of minutes!

Phonica Mix Series 124: Nick The Record

Recorded live at Giant Steps in London on Sunday 13th October, 2024.

@johngomezldn
@nicktherecord

John Gómez & Nick the Record back at Giant Steps

Good friends and Record Mission co-captains, Dan Tyler (one half of the Idjut Boys) and Nick The Record, take the reins for the third volume of the Mr Bongo Edits 12" series. With previous editions coming courtesy of Danny Krivit and Luke Una, Dan and Nick set their sights on a hand-picked selection of iconic ‘70s Cuban recordings for this three-track cosmic whirlwind. Across the A side, Dan picks out two Juan Pablo Torres tracks, with Nick taking on Grupo Los Yoyi on the B. Tweaking, extending and reworking the recordings with a dose of extra magic they remould the tracks to fit the sounds and structure of today’s dancefloors. 

Having formed the Idjut Boys in the early ‘90s, Dan and Conrad McDonnell have crafted a dubbed-out, disco-tinged style that permeates their countless productions, remixes and DJ sets. Speaking of the two tracks Dan has chosen to rework for this EP he mentions, “Having been caught under an avalanche of good music from Mr Bongo, I took it upon myself to extend and add effects to a couple of the fantastic tracks from the Juan Pablo Torres LPs they recently re-issued. Just for disco jockey and barn dance use.”

First, Dan looks to Cuban maestro Juan Pablo Torres’ 1978 album 'Algo Nuevo', taking one of the standout tracks ‘Cacao’ and giving it more space to breathe. Teasing out the scatting vocal line and percussive climax that nods to George Kranz's ’83 electronic disco anthem 'Din Daa Daa', whilst adding more cosmic tripped-out synths and space echoed dubs, Dan builds the tension to fine effect. This track sounds immense on a big club system and the swirling synths felt like they were lifting the ceiling off when we played it at the amazing La Paloma ballroom in Barcelona. 

Dan then turns his attention to Torres’ 1977 'Super Son' album, giving the psych-Latin-funk track 'Pastel En Descarga' a dub makeover. Rich in delay and drama, whilst maintaining and extending the breakers funk intro, he juices it up into a punchy, no-nonsense, cosmic-funk delight. 

On the B side, Tangent co-founder, long-standing Life Force resident and seasoned rework master, Nick The Record, revisits an edit that he originally constructed in 2009. Clocking in at over double the length of the original cut, Nick’s edit of Grupo Los Yoyi’s 1977 cut 'Paco La Calle', is made with dancers firmly in mind. This secret weapon builds and simmers, with the drums and percussion pushing and pulling before the psychedelic synth lines return in a sweltering fashion. In this new 2025 version, Dan is drafted in to work some brilliant new synth lines into the mix.


Juan Pablo Torres - Cacao (Dan Tyler NAD Bulto Versión)

Grupo Los Yoyi - Paco La Calle (Nick The Record Re-Edit)

Juan Pablo Torres Y Algo Nuevo - Pastel En Descarga (Dan Tyler NAD Pepino Versión)

London's leading independent record shop. Also home to labels Phonica Records, Phonica White, Phonica Records Special Editions and @KarakulRecords.

Full features, including interviews and tracklists, for our Phonica Podcast and Phonica Mix Series on our editorial platform Off The Record ⬇

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Dj graduated from @CasaSonido , Chile

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New tracks tagged #nick the record