Trainspotting with Martel

Martel is a composer and sound designer whose path into music came via architecture, film, and the gaming world. Originally trained as an architect, his work is grounded in a deep understanding of space and structure, both physical and sonic. He’s contributed to underground club scenes and scored for film and video games, including the darkly atmospheric Bleak Faith: Forsaken. That varied background feeds into a practice that’s as much about texture and tension as it is about melody or rhythm. Driven by a strong political instinct, Martel’s work often explores the aftershocks of history, interrogating how sound can carry memory, resistance, and unresolved conflict. As his new single, ‘The Ghost’, lands this month on his own Evil Ideas label, DMCWorld goes Trainspotting with Martel.

Javier Salazar – Kandahar – Klape Nunsen

A great set opener, atmospheric with a good trip to it – a sound to make concrete come to life, to put it metaphorically…

Vardae – Flaming as a Cloud – Samurai Music

As always with Cedric, the rhythms drive you off-road but the way the synths build around it give its magic. Subtle, elegant, with a grungy polish.

Amotik – Assi – Amotik

This one I cannot get enough of, the ideal sensual drive of club intimacy. Tight, dense but humid, a slow-burn for sure in all the right ways.

Truncate – Missing (Kai Van Dongen Remix) – Truncate

Gentle, airy and a nuanced nostalgia in this one. Resonates with a depth as well however, and I love it as a follow-up to “Assi” to release its tension while keeping a set tight.

Chontane – Chrome Foil – ARTS

I really think bells are the hardest to get right in techno and it usually feels misplaced, but Chontane always gives them an unexpected tribal edge. Love this!

Menzi – Impazamo – Hakuna Kulala

This one is kind of close texturally to where I’m currently thematically at. It’s a serious, grimy Gqom track that I often use as a transition into my own stuff during a set.

Ninos du Brasil – Nocturno Culto

These guys are just insane with their dreamy layering and percussive magic, and quite an innovative piece as well.

Robert S – Origens – Robert Limited

One of my all-time favorites. The pulse of the past with a mystic, enchanting vocal. Primordial peak-time artillery!

PWCCA – Ningyo – Koryu Budo

Dense, tense and to the point. Perfect for those rave-peaks later on in the night.

Gab Rhome – Say Goodbye – Get Physical Music

I too enjoy a good beachside cocktail, but a lot of summer house has lost taste over the years – Gab Rhome saves the day with this incognito track that should be breaking records really.