Ransom Note

Now here's a familiar face from London town.

Wes Baggaley is a charming man who has become regarded as one of the city's finest selectors having graced the booth far and wide in recent times. He runs Bottom Heavy alongside Dan Beaumont and has become a champion amidst the queer electronic music community across London and beyond.

With a residency on Rinse FM and upcoming music due for release he is certainly one to watch.

His sets are fast paced, jackin' affairs built for movement and dance. No holds barred, he embodies a fun loving spirit which is channeled through his own enigmatic presentation as a disc jockey. His music is built for the club and he delivers with distinct energy.

This one bangs, much like Wes himself. A man with excellent taste, chat and beyond...

Vyvyan is an elusive character, a DJ and producer who prefers to operate under the radar. At the end of last year he showcased his tastes and influences in a mix or Bicep's Feel My Bicep mix series which gave listeners a glimpse into both his record bag and his own productions. Having delivered remixes for Psychemagik and Eclectic, last week saw the release of his new EP Coat Bra Pants on Me Me Me which includes remixes from Not An Animal's Chris Stoker and Robert Johnson resident Gerd Janson.

We invited him to deliver this week's Monday Is OK mix which flows through experimental, beatless rhythms; the music that soundtracks his home listening sessions...

Operating from his home base of Berlin, Canadian-native Mike Davis runs his Brenda Records imprint. Kicking off in 2015, the imprint has become a space for him to release his own productions as well as multiple instalments from CNCPT and Company, which focus on mindmelting and no holds barred techno. Recently offering up a remix as part of Timothy Clerkin's Unborn Remixed EP on R$N's sub label Insult To Injury, he again showcased his knack at bringing an unapologetic vigour to whatever he lays his hands on.

Off the back of the release we invited him on board to bring some heat for today's Shine A Light On mix and he didn't disappoint. Strap in for a power hour of driving techno and acid...

Very few have the capacity or grit to maintain longevity within dance and electronic music, many have tried but become swept up amidst the chaos and strife of the industry in a fickle and uncompromising climate. Bushwacka! is a producer and disc jockey with whom many will be familiar and fond - he remains a UK icon of sorts having released amidst the classic era of acid house and then evolved through his collaborations with Layo during the golden age of dance music in Ibiza. He has dabbled in a spectrum of genres but most notably during the nineties he was involved in an emerging, interesting tech house sound which has since been reborn as of late with reissues by the likes of Holding Hands amongst others. Perhaps an unsung hero of the genre his music sounds just as relevant and enticing now as it did back in the 90's...

These days appearances from Bushwacka! are sparse, a man with no need to impress he is now in a luxurious position in which he can pick his own gigs with care and attention to detail. Hence having the chance to observe him play at present is rare.

This summer Layo and Bushwacka! will return for a special appearance at Campo Sancho, a small countryside festival with a big heart and a passion which was born amidst the hedonistic days of Notting Hill Carnival. It promises to be a blistering demonstration of what the duo have achieved through their sound and commitment to dance music across many years.

In celebration of this, we invited Bushwacka! to take us through some of the formative music in his career, a deeply old school set showcasing fantastic take in deep house and tech house in all their glory. This one is a little bit special....

Let me tell you a story...

Walking through the midst of Farr Festival a few years back we were greeted by the rumble of drums and the tinkering of pristine high end filters from a tent which was not accustomed to playing music by day. Sometimes the greatest surprises lurk around the corner, amidst the unexpected as we watched a dj play to a small crowd of dancers who were focussed and engaged. Operating on a rotary mixer, Onlee, who is better known to some by his name of Leon, was meandering his way between house and techno that might have been out of place elsewhere. It was high energy, fast paced and remarkably unpretentious from a dj who was clearly in love with the nature of the craft beyond all else.

As a journalist he works with DJ Mag and has previously been involved in editorial here at Ransom Note - his taste is sprawling and wide but is largely based around late nights and tall tales from the late nineties and early 2000's. An era of change but of great revelry and remarkable stories...

This mix is built up of material that's new and intriguing, yet mixed with the love and precision of someone who has loved dance music for a long, long time. That's why we started this site to begin with...

Step back, this is a big one.

Across the past couple of decades there have been very few who can attest as much influence as that of Joakim, a singular producer who has been charted as an influential figure by many of the leading producers and disc jockeys in the present.

The French outsider has amassed a notorious reputation for his eclectic style as a disc jockey and producer having released music on the likes of Versatile, Kitsuné Music, Life And Death, Crosstown Rebels and beyond. As the founder behind Tigersushi Records and Crowdspacer he has been responsible for leading a new generation of talent into the dance and has played a key role in the future development of dance and electronic music.

As an individual his own take on music is wide and vast, not one to shy away from the alternative or experimental he has done well to channel a sprawling array of style, genre and sound across his own lengthy career and in all honesty Joakim continues to surprise and intrigue with delight.

A Dj's dj, he is a firm favourite and we welcome him as part of the series.

Peak's origins are unknown, though it has been said he may have been raised deep in the Brokeback Mountians of East-Saxonia, but this is all mere speculation. Maturing (or not) in the club/rave scene and quickly picking up the art of DJing at the tender age of fifteen, he has made a name for himself in this urban jungle of Berlin. The Swift was brought up by a less than normal band of carnies in southern Germany and spent much of his childhood in such far off places as Istanbul and Kolkata.

Swift was first spotted in the Berlin area around the year 2000 or so when he teamed up with his partner in crime, Peak. They quickly melted their musical interests of house, disco, deep and dubby techno into a powerhouse sound that's main mission was banish the cold, dark, "minimal" sounds of that era in Berlin and warm the city up to the current sound that has taken over now. The duo was seen ducking in and out of the shadows of Berlin's most infamous clubs, before they finally found they're home in the mysterious, Salon - Zur wilden Renate.

Together the pair are fierce in the booth, spinning an eclectic array of far reaching sounds drawn from years of experience gathered in dark rooms and beneath the flashing lights.

The pair regularly feature at ELSE, the open air Berlin club which has become a staple of the summer months.

Peak's origins are unknown, though it has been said he may have been raised deep in the Brokeback Mountians of East-Saxonia, but this is all mere speculation. Maturing (or not) in the club/rave scene and quickly picking up the art of DJing at the tender age of fifteen, he has made a name for himself in this urban jungle of Berlin. The Swift was brought up by a less than normal band of carnies in southern Germany and spent much of his childhood in such far off places as Istanbul and Kolkata.

Swift was first spotted in the Berlin area around the year 2000 or so when he teamed up with his partner in crime, Peak. They quickly melted their musical interests of house, disco, deep and dubby techno into a powerhouse sound that's main mission was banish the cold, dark, "minimal" sounds of that era in Berlin and warm the city up to the current sound that has taken over now. The duo was seen ducking in and out of the shadows of Berlin's most infamous clubs, before they finally found they're home in the mysterious, Salon - Zur wilden Renate.

Together the pair are fierce in the booth, spinning an eclectic array of far reaching sounds drawn from years of experience gathered in dark rooms and beneath the flashing lights.

The pair regularly feature at ELSE, the open air Berlin club which has become a staple of the summer months.

In recent times we have seen a wave of hugely talented disc jockeys emerge from Japan...

Yuzo Iwata is from Sapporo and has been working prominently in the city as a promoter behind his party, FLOPPY. As a disc jockey he is superbly talented, taking an eclectic approach to his sets which often meander between style and genre. He also makes use of field recordings and plays experimentally from the perspective of telling a story through his own musical representation.

Now based in Berlin, he spends his days working in second hand record shops and producing his own music which has so far been released on the likes of Pluie/Noir and Rotate. He has forthcoming music soon to be released on SJ Tequila's record label Shot of T which lurks around the corner.

This mix was recorded live as part of an opening set at Precious Hall in Sapporo at his own FLOPPY party - it is recorded entirely on vinyl with the exception of one unreleased track and some overlaid field recordings.

Lock in.

In recent times we have seen a wave of hugely talented disc jockeys emerge from Japan...

Yuzo Iwata is from Sapporo and has been working prominently in the city as a promoter behind his party, FLOPPY. As a disc jockey he is superbly talented, taking an eclectic approach to his sets which often meander between style and genre. He also makes use of field recordings and plays experimentally from the perspective of telling a story through his own musical representation.

Now based in Berlin, he spends his days working in second hand record shops and producing his own music which has so far been released on the likes of Pluie/Noir and Rotate. He has forthcoming music soon to be released on SJ Tequila's record label Shot of T which lurks around the corner.

This mix was recorded live as part of an opening set at Precious Hall in Sapporo at his own FLOPPY party - it is recorded entirely on vinyl with the exception of one unreleased track and some overlaid field recordings.

Lock in.