During 2021, to help get through the ongoing lockdown I made a series of 90 minute cassette tapes, one a month for ten months. I thought there would be a small demand but was blown away by the response. People really embraced them and copies went to every corner of the planet. They became a huge part of my year and really helped me through a tough time.

A little later I made them available digitally for a short period and all the proceeds raised went to Glasgow NW Foodbank. I was again blown away as thousands of pounds were raised.

I have decided to put the series on Soundcloud. I'll upload them sporadically over the coming months. I'm skipping the 2nd one as it has the same title as a compilation I put out recently and I don't want the two getting confused, but I may come back to it later. This is the 3rd one titled “SMI²LE - Space Migration, Intelligence Increase, Life Extension".

Smi²le was Timothy Leary’s mid 70s vision of the future of humanity. It's Utopian & in hindsight wildly optimistic. He believed we would have colonised space & have cloned ourselves by around the year 2000. He envisaged millions of us would be living in “High orbital mini Earths” in our own small Utopian communities. I have a long time fascination with (unrealisable) Utopian communities and Smi²le has always been one I particularly liked as it was so fully thought out & even by Utopian standards wildly hopeful & unrealistic. It's also relevant to our times as contentious/ awful figures like Peter Thiel & Elon Musk have adopted the worst parts of these ideas without any public scrutiny. Free market space migration may not be a positive thing, particularly if we are exporting this planet’s problems into outer space.

Anyway, that’s an aside and it’s basically a 90 minute space themed mix of music. Understanding / knowing about the Smi²le concept is not essential to its enjoyment. :)

Tape released May 7, 2021

Artwork – Musheto Fernandez.

JD Twitch - SMI²LE (Optimo Music Tape 003 - originally released May 2021)

Andrew Weatherall 230715

On May 25th 2024, to accompany the launch of his Arthur Russell book "Travels Over Feeling" Richard King put together an event at London's Barbican celebrating Arthur's life with an all star musical cast recreating and reimagining his music.

I was thrilled to be invited to play a DJ set in the foyer afterwards. I have been an Arthur Russell devotee for 30 years and decided to play an all Arthur Russell DJ set*. The atmosphere was very special with lots of love transmitting back and forth from the DJ booth to the dancefloor. I really felt a freedom to slowly build it up playing so many of my favourite AR tracks and it was one of my very favourite DJ gis of 2024 so far.


*Full disclosure - there was an additional 30 minutes finale of this set that didn't record where I played non Arthur Russell, disco / disco adjacent records.

JD Twitch - All Arthur Russell DJ set, live at The Barbican, London 25/05/24

Techno-punk legend Andrew Weatherall plays his favourites past and present; ranging from contemporary indie bands to the pounding 909s of early acid house.   
Find the full tracklist and related episodes on NTS: https://www.nts.live/shows/andrewweatherall/episodes/andrew-weatherall-30th-january-2020

Andrew Weatherall Presents: Music's Not For Everyone 300120

Four odd hours of magic from The Gun's longest running resident, chief musical tastemaker Nathan Gregory Wilkins. His second Saturday of the month sessions are beloved to so many of us that it is absolutely incredible that we haven't got one of his live sessions up here before.
If we're being entirely truthful, perhaps its because if you know about Nathan's session, then fair play to you, they are available live to his flock - here in the pub.
If you are a fan of Nathan and Ivan Smagghe's seminal Channelling show on NTS then you will have an idea of the flavour, but this and his monthly sets are something a little different, yet equally amazing.
Get stuck in, this one is fantastic.

Nathan Gregory Wilkins live at The Gun Nov 9th '24

Recording of Flo Dill's set at Dekmantel Selectors 2024.

Dekmantel Selectors 2024

Flo Dill at Dekmantel Selectors 2024

Ascension Beyond Stars

Performed on February 10, 2024 in Clarke Recital Hall, University of Miami. 
Drew Hosler, tenor sax, and Kristina Finch, harp.

ira furor brevis est

Optimo [Espacio] Miami Debut | SAFE @ The Electric Pickle Co. | 07.20.2013

I'm going to upload a series of 'mixes' over the coming weeks of music that I find particularly calming. I will try to make these one hour sessions filled with beautiful music that is helpful and calming to listen to while we get through this extraordinarily hard time. The music here definitely helps me feel less anxious. I have just segued it together so the credit is really all due to the wonderful souls who made the tracks I used. It is also available as a 320 download. Tracklisting -

Takashi Kokubo - A Dream Sails Out To Sea part 1
Mkwaju Ensemble - Lemore
Hiroshi Yoshimura - 小川にそって
Yumiko Morioko - Rainbow Gate 
Haruomi Hosono - Fujitsubo
Inoyoama Land - Glass Chaim
Inoyama Land - Pokala (remix)
Popol Vuh - Ah!
Justus Köhncke and Fred Heimermann - Albatros
Nuno Canavarro - Blu Terra
Erik Satie - Gnossienne No. 1
World Standard - Rozo, Du Pecoj
Testpattern - Souvenir Glacé

JD Twitch - Tranquility Mix 1

Here is the 2nd in a series of 'mixes' I intend to make over the coming weeks of music that I find particularly tranquil. I will try to make these one hour sessions filled with beautiful music that is helpful and calming to listen to while we get through this extraordinarily hard time. The music here definitely helps me feel less anxious. I have taken a slightly different approach on this one and it does feature some beats later in the mix, so feedback welcome on whether this one has the desired effect. It is also available as a 320 download. 

Tracklisting -

Ryuichi Sakamoto - Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (piano version)
Bill Evans Trio - Peace Piece
Eden Ahbez - The Wanderer
Popol Vuh - We Know About The Need
Gaelic Psalms From The Hebrides Of Scotland - Psalm 62
Geinoh Yamashirogumi - 合唱刈干切唄
David Cunningham - Blue River
Inoyama Land - Anatano Yushoku No Tameni
Raymond Scott - Sleepy Time
Sheila Chandra - Quiet 1
Sheila Chandra - Quiet 6
Resili - Corrie Caves
Dettinger - Oasis A3
Ryuichi Sakamoto - Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence

JD Twitch - Tranquility Mix 2

I started DJ'ing in 1987, am 50% of Optimo (Espacio) and I also run the Optimo Music record label.


“We are here to help each other get through this thing, whatever it is.”
Mark Vonnegut

Email - kmcivor@me.com

Optimo Music Soundcloud here - https://soundcloud.com/optimo-music

DJ bookings (worldwide) - caroline@spunoutagency.com



Press - optimopr@mac.com


Discography - http://www.optimo.co.uk/discography/