1. Bluetech – Finding The Future By Looking Backwards – 2009
Hello there! Its great to be presenting a 10 track list of music that has influenced me throughout my life so far. As an introductory track to this piece I’d like to begin with the deep IDM sounds of Bluetech – a producer whose music has influenced me not just technically but also on a spiritual level. I was introduced to his music purely by chance when I found it on a friend’s flash drive. It was my first time hearing something like this and I was instantly drawn in to the deep atmospheric sounds and emotionally driven melodies.
2. Aphex Twin – Ageispolis – 1992
This electronic masterpiece defined a moment for me when I first heard it during college. Admittedly I had never heard any Aphex Twin tracks before this one and honestly some of them are hit or miss for me. But still, he’s an artist that inspires big time. This particular track is a special feeling and brings back some memories of an important time. I love the analog signature sounds of that era.
3. Enigma – Look of Today – 2003
Enigma is one of my all time favorite groups. I was introduced to the music of Enigma in the 90s through my father’s CD collection, growing up in India. This particular track is from a later album in their career – Voyageur. This album is beautiful front to back and holds a very special place in my heart. Growing up in a small town in India meant not much exposure to electronic music, so I consumed whatever came my way. This track to me has that drive and energy that’s kind of an industrial/progressive/90s techno feeling. Love the heavily effected vocals which is a common theme with Engima’s music.
4. The Prodigy – Climbatize – 1997
Growing up, one of my biggest influences was The Prodigy and they simply crushed it with Fat of The Land. An absolutely killer album front to back. If I could pick one track from this album for this particular piece it would be Climbatize. It has an infectiously energetic bassline and that percussive groove that just doesn’t fail to lift you up. I tend to imagine a track like this as an action packed cinematic scene. Totally inspiring even after all these years.
5. BT – Mercury & Solace (BT 12” Mastermix) – 1999
I got into DJing and production through trance music. I think everyone goes through a trance phase in their lives and growing up in India in the late 90s/early 00s – Trance was life! This beauty of a track by BT is one that still captures the euphoria of that genre to me. The vocals, the bassline, the classic breakdown. It’s just so good. To come to think of it, trance still is life!
![[HD] BT - Mercury And Solace (BT's 12 Mastermix)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/-MU-PGePJsQ/0.jpg)
6. Tigerskin – Bordeaux – 2008
Back when I started to DJ I had no access to record stores because there were none in my hometown in India and probably none in the country that were well stocked with underground music. That meant going to underground music blogs online, downloading music illegally at the time as I had no means to buy them. That’s just how it was. That’s how I found this tech house beauty from 12 years ago and it got me to start exploring more minimal styles of dance music. I still get goosebumps during the breakdown and drop of this track by Tigerskin aka Dub Taylor.
7. Dorisburg – Kassiopeia – 2016
There are some albums that have stayed with me, made a huge impression on me and inspired me to get to the studio and create. (Not so) Recently, Dorisburg’s ‘Irrbloss’ is one such album. A fantastic work of moody modular synth and drum machine compositions with a mysterious and ethereal quality to it. Although it’s difficult to pick just one track from the album, I thought Kassiopeia felt like the right one for this moment. This one is a classic in the making if not already.
8. Petar Dundov – The Lattice – 2016
I’m a sucker for arpeggios and plucky synth melodies. Naturally when I first heard Petar Dundov’s stunner ‘Distant Shores’ I was instantly drawn towards his productions. His deeply emotional melodies and harmonic interplay between different synth lines makes for an introspective, mood altering, almost revelatory experience. I’ve chosen The Lattice particularly for this reason. It’s a dance track that really takes you on an immersive journey through the mind of Petar Dundov.
9. Ruede Hagelstein, Lily, Kazan – Bir Alem – 2018
I’m always curious to find Electronic dance music that manages to capture the soul of an acoustic folk piece. When I had travelled to Turkey I was absolutely in awe of the beauty and magic of the place, especially the mesmerizing music and dance of the whirling dervishes. Soon after, I came across this beauty from German producer Ruede Hagelstein. His productions are always top notch but this one is truly unique with its long solo lines of Turkish strings – I suppose from a Baglama.
10. Thievery Corporation – Culture of Fear – 2011
Last but not the least, it felt apt to conclude this list with this particular track by US based multi-instrumental ethno-electronic group Thievery Corporation. We are currently in the midst of highly uncertain times, civil tensions on the rise and political drama – a ‘Culture of Fear’ prevails. Let’s make sure to take time to recenter ourselves and look inwards – the changes we need have to take birth from within. Let fear not drive our outcomes. Love conquers all. Thank you DMC Mag for this opportunity to present some of my favorite music.
Filtergeist – Invocation EP ( Loot Recordings)
US house and techno imprint Loot Recordings welcome India’s Filtergeist. The Invocation EP sees Filtergeist, aka Aditya Prabhu, deliver three original tracks while Innvervisions’ INVŌKER, All Day I Dream’s Roi Okev and Silence Path supply remixes. Title track ‘Invocation’ opens the EP in mesmerising style with drifting chimes, washing soundscapes and distant voices sat on top of a bassline which asserts itself throughout. INVOKER’s remix of ‘Invocation’ channels the hypnotic aesthetic of the original but takes a less organic approach with tough, filtered synth tones providing counterpoint to the soft melodies and vocals. ‘Deja Vu’ follows and shows Prabhu’s knack for providing immense detail and otherworldly yet organic sounds while keeping one eye firmly on the groove. Roi Okev, an artist who has also cropped up on Little Helpers, delivers a moody, heavier interpretation which brings the drums and bottom end to the forefront while teasing just the right amount of melodic ebb and flow. ‘Wisterian Waves’ closes out the EP with undulating, pacy toms and rich, textural toplines while Silence Path reworks it into a playful, heavily organic piece of trippy funk.
