This last section is especially beautiful

@mongtong [ 夢東 ] Taiwan

Unreleased & Untitled tracks by Mong Tong

Mong Tong 兄弟3人組，他們聽著電子琴音樂、電玩配樂和迷幻搖滾長大。從民間傳說到外星人為題材，創作自稱的「迷信音樂」。

Mong Tong are brothers Hom Yu, Jiun Chi and 仝. They listened to what they describe as “Dianziqin music” along with video game soundtracks and psychedelic music. 

These inspirations combine with Taiwanese folklore and a love of conspiracy theories to form what they describe as “superstitious music.”

www.smkmachine.com

UN #66 Mong Tong 夢東

“A mixtape of unreleased music and a few collaborations with friends which I thought would be a perfect mix for a Monday listen.”

KMRU, also known as Joseph Kamaru, is a sound artist originally from Nairobi and currently based in Berlin. He explores sound to convey various interpretations in his work, drawing from his listening experiences in Nairobi and beyond and grounded in the discourse of field recording, noise, and sound art.

Working under the guidance of Jasmine Guffund at Berlin’s Universität der Künste (better known as UDK), KMRU looked at waveforms and embarked on a process where he would “write scores from the shapes, gradually turning the scores into raw synth sounds.”
 

Kamaru’s ambient-experimental music has taken him to the Barbican, Berlin Atonal, Présences
électronique, and seen releases on Editions Mego, Subtext, Seil Records.

His new LP ‘Dissolution Grip,’ released on his OFNOT imprint, marks a shift in his approach, blending field recordings with synthesized sounds, hinting at his evolving musical direction.

With all that in mind, we thought we’d ask Kamaru to put us together this week’s mixtape for a Monday… let’s get stuck in.

@kamarujoseph

INTERVIEW

KMRU - The Ransom Note 'Monday Is OK' Mixtape

Massive thanks to Subvert.

RP: How’s life in Australia? 
SF: Life in Australia’s been good, all things considered. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t low-key itching to get on a plane and go travelling, though. To where, I’m not exactly certain, but I have a few places in mind. I don’t really have any international tours planned out at the moment - it can be quite time-consuming and costly without a booking agent who can handle certain tasks such as obtaining the appropriate visas. 

RP: Any big plans you’re hiding?
SF: I’ve always got new material in the works at any given time, even if I’m taking a slight break from working on it. There’s a new EP I’ve just received the masters back for, which should be good to go by early next year. I might release a track from it or whip up a Bandcamp drop before the end of 2023 if time permits. I’m not in a rush though - releases that come out towards the back-end of the year usually tend to be forgotten amidst all the holiday hubbub and I wanna make sure the whole thing’s good to go before I release it. 

RP: You said the next EP might be the ‘angriest batch of tunes you’ve ever made’.
SF: ‘Angry’ might be an overstatement, but it’s definitely wrought with a tension of sorts. Claustrophobia or anxiety, you could say. The bulk of the EP was written between 2021-2022, specifically during the slow return to ‘familiarity’ within the social landscape and when masks were all but a guaranteed requirement to leave the house. There’s even one track on it that’s called ‘Casual Contact’ - I wrote it the first time I ever had to quarantine because I was a close contact of someone who had COVID at the time. If that doesn’t scream ‘period-specific,’ I don’t know what will. 

RP: When’s the ambient record dropping? 
SF: Remind me in a couple of years. 

RP: How many CDJ/mixer buttons have you broken? 
SF: I’ve had my fair share of having fader and EQ knobs fly off the mixer and valiantly trying to find them whilst blind drunk in a dimly-lit club. It’s probably happened too many times to count. Thankfully, I haven’t actually broken a CDJ function button - as far as I know anyway. 

RP: Name your first ‘holy fuck’ experiences with electronic music.
SF: I was about 10 years old when I first properly came across Aphex Twin. Back when I was six, I’d taped an episode of Rage where Hole happened to be guest-programming and the last clip that made it to that tape was ‘Come to Daddy,’ but back then, I rarely made it to the end because I probably got bored or had other obligations. I was spooked enough to look up Warp Records later that day. 
While it’s not technically ‘electronic music,’ the first time I really paid attention to Timbaland’s productions, around the same time, also re-wired my brain as a kid. That set the way for me to understand genres like Grime and Jungle more readily before I was even old enough to really hear any of it in a club context. 

Not long after, I came across Wiley’s earliest productions (like ‘Eskimo’ and ‘Ice Rink’) and Dizzee Rascal's “Boy in Da Corner” - both of those blew me away. Age notwithstanding, I was living very far from where a lot of that music was spreading at the time, so it was more of a solitary pursuit, which meant I could get lost in its details quite easily. There’s probably a few other moments I’ve missed, but those three are the foundational memories I have where my interest in electronic music was piqued enough to jump right in. 

RP: Anyone more underground or underrated that you’d like to namedrop?
SF: I’m a bit hesitant to say certain artists are more ‘underrated’ or ‘underground’ than others, but I do have to single out Big Ever, Davis Galvin, Jonny From Space, Noire, Sister Zo, Tammo Hesselink, Leonce and the All Centre label as constant mainstays on my USBs. The Hessle Audio guys will always have my heart, but I’ve also really enjoyed listening to any sets from OK Williams, Hipsters Don’t Dance, Jon K, Nick Boyd, Cormac and DJ Voices that pop up.

Strict Face @ Subvert

Underworld dreams with Newworldaquarium 

It was seven or eight years since Newworldaquarium last appeared in Berlin, playing Berghain or Panorama or something like that. In the grace of the artist's movements over the last years however, NWAQ has swayed from house music to something more 'life listening' - with his Wake 'n' Bake show on Mutant Radio a testament to his tastes and styles these days.

Bugged out at the fact that it had been so long since he last visited town, and with such a sound at his finger tips these days, a place in Absurd Lustre was an invite we had been trying to post for a long time. A man who loves his German beers as much as his lush, serene and calming ambient, the legendary Newworldaqaurium set can be described as some kind of technicolour  dream.

Event: https://ra.co/events/1752086
Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/es/artist/8209-Newworldaquarium
Bandcamp: https://newworldaquarium.bandcamp.com/

ALxFW: Newworldaquarium (05.11.23)

I was blessed to play midday Saturday again. Daytime allows so much freedom, but 90 minutes is too short. This is a rerecording of my set. I changed the order of a few tracks, added four more that I wanted to play but didn't have time for, and let the key ending track breathe for its full 15 minutes.

No tracklist this time at least for now, but happy to ID anything.

Thank you Skiplogic, Gabe Benzur, Tdel and Shawn O'Sullivan for your influences on this mix.

Fun fact: There are nine different languages in this mix, a personal best =)

matt holland - Chillits 2023

Jaywalking with Yumi @ The Lot Radio 02-19-2024

A season finale closing set from @keinblume at large

Having physically installed her Format Wars Records shop upstairs at arkaoda Berlin for four months straight as part of A NEW WAVE - all roads for this finale edition of Absurd Lustre x Format Wars in essence led to this set.  

Befitting the moment to fulfil the space after Woody92 and Timnah Sommerfeldft - this recording is an impassioned take that runs its course through not only a year that was, but an epic poster campaign and an electrifying journey of sonic exploration and emotional release.

Event: https://ra.co/events/1752087
Format Wars: https://www.formatwarsrecords.com
Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/user/formatwarsrecords

ALxFW: Blume (17.12.23)

b-sides and rarities EP

The Mergansers taking from Amour Sisterhood 2025 compilation

original photo by Lal Tuna

The Mergansers

tape soon: 
lastlogin:2008 (??/??/????)

tape_001.signal__lost//_...beginning
tape_002.unseen
tape_003.forgotten//buried
tape_004.[voice]_detected
tape_005.was_it_you?
tape_006.vivid_dreams
tape_007.everything._plastic
tape_008.data_corrupted//_....finale

tape_001.signal__lost//_...beginning

About winning the lotto in my dream last night and I bought 2 lotto tickets the morning.  

Lotto Dream Terrorzine C3 Mind Melt

I visited Pikes in Ibiza and played a set of the music that inspired my Bed Wetter album, as well as the sounds that are informing my ongoing work for Sage Gateshead as their artist in residence for 2020/2021.
I also performed live for the first time, playing some of the early sketches from the performance I'm writing which will debut next year.

You can find the following process diary on instagram which I'm using to currently document the process of making a live experimental performance, and where I'm detailing things like learning about working with symphony's as well as listing information on the influences that are informing my work.

instagram.com/bedwettermusic

 - Geoffrey JL Kirkwood



You can learn more about Sage by visiting https://sagegateshead.com/

and you can learn more about Pikes at https://pikesibiza.com/


I'd especially like to thank Mark Broadbent for all of his support and his hospitality in making this appearance happen.

"Bed Wetter" at Pikes Ibiza. Influences DJ Set & Live Performance 19.09.20

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.

KMRU - The Ransom Note 'Monday Is OK' Mixtape

Ransom Note

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