The next episode in our podcast series comes from a globe-trotting Belgian deejay on the rise. Antwerp-born, Berliner for a few years and recently settled down in our favourite city: Brussels. Lola Haro doesn’t need much of an introduction. She has been playing dance floors all over the world from Mexico to London, Milan to Paris, Tbilisi to Bucharest. Over a year ago her own record label and party concept called Small Steps blossomed, a home to delicate, floaty club music of all kinds. 

But Rome wasn’t built in a day: from a very early age, Lola was brought up in a musical nest, surrounded by Antwerp’s “creme de la creme” of the house music scene and calling the legendary record shop Wally’s Groove World her second home during her childhood. Suffice it to say Lola is influenced by the old-school generation of club music fanatics, party gurus and diamond city fashionistas. Standing next to the dj booth as a teenager checking those spinning records, sliding faders and eq knobs and coming of age as a club music observer that smoothly but surely became a world-known dj. 

While Lola has been flying high the last couple of years, playing big stages and festivals, she’s always kept her feet firmly set in the underground. We’ve been friends for some time and we share conversations about common personal questions like the search for identity in music, mental dj health, and the balance between the dance music business and the underground electronic world.

This mix has been in the making for some time and the result is a magnificent deep trip into her musical universe. I’m very glad to share this with you all. Thanks a lot for your effort and time spent recording this mix Lola, I wish you a bright future ahead. One foot in, one foot out, always taking lots of small but important steps.

https://soundcloud.com/lola-haro

The Basic Moves Of ... LOLA HARO

Available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/zTZQ8WiNosw

Label: Small Steps
Artist: Boaksi
Format: Digital & VInyle 12"
Cat. Number: STEPS-002
EP Title: Under The Pavilion EP
Release Date: January, 31st 2024
Support it: https://smallstepsmusic.bandcamp.com/album/under-the-pavilion-ep

Boaksi’s first EP “Under the Pavilion” builds upon the productions of his debut album by featuring a combination of more club oriented elements together, often characterised by layered synth patterns, breaks and textured percussion. As the second release on Small Steps, Boaksi looks to create an ethereal and refined sound to follow the labels dreamy ambience. Sometimes melancholic, sometimes upbeat. The EP reminds us with its mellow vocals of warm bright summer days.

Small Steps
https://soundcloud.com/small-steps-722755701
https://www.instagram.com/_small_steps__/

Boaksi
https://soundcloud.com/boaksi
https://www.instagram.com/boaksi_/

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Houseum
https://houseum.fr
https://www.instagram.com/houseum_
https://soundcloud.com/houseum
https://www.facebook.com/houseum.yt

Under The Pavilion

Listen On YouTube

PREMIERE: Boaksi - Under The Pavilion [Small Steps]

Latest single from 'Goldenrod,' the debut album from Chattanooga folk singer Teni Rane.

"The most “anthemic” of the songs on the album, “Small Steps” weaves the questioning mind together with a commitment to keep moving forward with as much love and joy as is possible. Each day is made up of tiny decisions that move our lives forward towards our goals, dreams, hopes. Oftentimes we discount the energy that it takes to inspire ourselves into action." - Teni Rane

Lyrics: 
My feet are stuck to the ground 
My body’s stiff from my legs up through my crown 
My heart is beating 
My ears are ringing 
My will is crumbling down 

Voices in my head
Filling my mind and eyes with dread 
Now I’m shaking
Is this breaking?
Why am I seeing red?

With all these small steps 
They take big courage 
I’m learning to love myself in life 
With every small step 
Well it takes big courage 
I’m learning not to apologize

Will it be enough?
Or will I give up far too much?
Well I am learning 
That my heart is yearning for feats 
That you say are too grand

But all these small steps 
Well they take big courage 
I’m learning to love myself in life 
With every small step
Well it takes big courage 
I’m learning not to apologize

Ooooohhhhh yeah 
Oooooohhhhh oooh oh oh

Am I ready to fly?
I take a deep breath in 
and close my eyes
Because I am trying 
So there’s no use shying away now
I’m facing up to the day 

With all these small steps 
Well, they take big courage 
I’m learning to love myself in life 
With every small step 
Well it takes big courage
I’m learning not to apologize

For all these small steps 
They take big courage 
I’m learning to love myself in life 
With every small step 
Well it takes big courage 
I’m learning not to apologize
______________
Song Credits: 
Teni Rane: Lead vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Dave Eggar: Cello, Piano
Phil Faconti: Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Jonathan Shumaker: Bass

Recorded at Classic Recording Studios in Bristol, TN
Additional recording at Asteraceae Productions (Chattanooga, TN) 
Sound Engineer: Mike Stephenson 
Mixing & Mastering Engineering: Mike Stephenson
Produced By: Teni Rane, Mike Stephenson
Album Photography: Jess Astacio
Album Art: Teni Rane

Written by Teni Rane Butler © 2024
Asteraceae Publishing (BMI)

https://tenirane.com

Goldenrod

Teni Rane Small Steps

The third release on Lola Haro’s Small Steps label from Belgium sees German producer DJ Balduin step up with a contribution that embodies the label's sound. Known for his intricate, warm house basslines, clever loops, and breaks, DJ Balduin delivers a three-track EP, Everything, capturing the fleeting magic when light meets dark. Out on Valentine’s Day, 14th February, the release includes the track Somar and will be available in digital and vinyl formats via Bandcamp.

The EP is all about mood and movement. In Somar, DJ Balduin plays with a mixture of rising and melancholic pads, including distant bird chatter and playful loops. A punchy beginning, the tracks mellow into moments of bliss, offering warmth throughout. The interplay of light and dark is palpable and emotive, evoking euphoria reminiscent of sunrise sets at festivals—those moments that shift the tempo and prepare us for another day of dancing.

Small Steps and DJ Balduin captures these intangible moments with its sound: the eye contact on the dancefloor, subtle smiles, and the pull of the kick drum as we sway.

@dj-balduin
@small-steps-722755701

www.instagram.com/djbalduin/
www.instagram.com/_small_steps__/

Write up by @danpeplow

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Contact us:
info@delayed.nyc

Everything

PREMIERE: DJ Balduin - Somar [Small Steps]

She was all that he'd ever dreamed of, a perfect picture in his mind, a vision in red dancing amongst the skies. You never quite knew when one day you might stumble upon her, for she might be lurking just around the next corner or in the glimpse of a window passing quickly by. 

Things come and go so quickly in this life. You could be anyone, perhaps.

Yet still, the same face continued to dance up there, smiling down, enticing him onwards through the weight of the morning fog.

Dj Balduin is set to release a new EP on Lola Haro's record label Small Steps. The record is a dreamy, ethereal affair which sits within the realms of melodic House and Breaks. Perfect for those cold January mornings.

PREMIERE: Dj Balduin - You [Small Steps]

Artist Development/Marketing/PR Agency & Event Production

Delayed is a source of deep, minimal, and micro house, techno, ambient and beyond. Follow us for new mixes, fresh releases, and exclusive interviews with distinguished and rising artists.

Founded in Brooklyn and run by a team of music producers, DJs, and perpetual music addicts.

Label showcase inquiries: gregoire@houseum.fr

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For any contact, Premiere or host on the channel: houseum.yt@gmail.com

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Ransom Note is an online music, arts and culture magazine. We provide a home for readers and writers with boundless enthusiasm, esoteric knowledge, fierce opinions and impeccable taste.

With our core team immersed in all aspects of dance music, we publish news, articles, and interviews covering the greatest in innovative, underground culture from across the globe. We offer regular, exclusive music and mixtapes from our favourite artists, and publish features shining a light on everything from the freshest new artists to the untold tales from rave history.

Alongside this we offer musings on film, books, life, and art, generating some context and controversy as an antidote to the reheated PR that clogs up the internet. Our office is fuelled by Tunnock’s Bars, cat memes, hangovers and a ridiculous, never ending love for our culture.

We're always interested in getting new writers on board – feel free to get in touch if you’ve got a story to tell.

With love until the grave.

a place for outsider club music based in Brussels/Belgium

walrus dj bookings : 
stijn@headsup.brussels

Basic Moves distribution : 
distribution@clone.nl
For Playful Manners distribution : 
nick@smallblackdots.net 
Gems Under The Horizon distribution: 
markus@wordandsound.net
Back catalog : 
https://basicmovesbrussels.bandcamp.com/

New tracks tagged #small steps