Ceri Mix
Hitting up Tapes #45, with a timeless house, techno, rave and acid-tinged 90's heavy mix, is London and Ibiza-based DJ and Producer Ceri.
Her rising reputation as a selector has seen her play all around the world, playing alongside the likes of everyone from Ryan Elliot and Objekt, to Mr. G, Jeremy Underground and Paranoid London. Her diverse DJ style has seen her grace the decks at Corsica Studios, Fabric, Oval Space, Percolate, XOYO, Lion & Lamb and Pickle Factory in London, Back To Basics in Leeds, Hidden in Manchester, Bristol In:Motion, Gottwood festival and much more.
Alongside her DJ career, Ceri’s also been immersed in production for many years. Support for her music, and her label ‘Find Your Own Records’, comes from the finest purveyors of the scene; Ben UFO, Midland, Move D, and Ryan Elliot. With plays on George Fitzgerald’s Radio 1 show and K-HAND’s (RIP) RedBull Radio show, as well as featuring in Fred P’s Dekmantel mix.
Welcome to the Origins Tapes Series! Thanks so much for contributing. Let’s start with an introduction to Ceri. What are you up to at the moment?
Aww, thank you so much for having me. I love the series, it's a pleasure to take part. At the moment I am deciding if I should be based in London / Ibiza or both! Launching my second online Music Production Masterclass. And on Friday I’m playing all night long in Leeds back to back with Anna Wall.
I am starting to get back in the swing of things after taking a lot of time off life to recover from long covid. I’m in the middle of Hyperbolic Oxygen treatment for it at the moment (amongst other things) too, which is amazing.
What’s the story behind this mix? Favourite track inside?
It's pretty 90's heavy and features a mix of older and newer tracks, all with a timeless feel.
I moved to Ibiza during the Pandemic and only recently reunited with my vinyl collection when I came back to London. So it was fun going through them, getting reacquainted, and remembering why I love 90's (and 80's) music so much. I wanted to ship my records and studio out there, but until I decide where I’m going to be I am slowly digitising them, so they can come with me anywhere.
As for a favorite track, it's so hard as I love them all. The last tune is a proper classic singalong and who doesn't love a cheeky classic vocal number every now and again!
How did you land into producing / DJing?
From being a raver, it was a natural progression for me. I originally went to clubs because I loved music and dancing, and then at uni, I turned into a bit of a musical trainspotter, which led to me collecting and playing music myself. My boyfriend at the time worked in a club, so he would let me go in during the day to practice.
After going traveling and doing a debauched summer in Ibiza, I came back to London and started getting a few gigs in smaller bars and clubs. Eventually, some bigger promoters noticed me and I landed a few residencies including Jaded, at Cable, then Corsica Studios, where I played for 9 hours. That was a proper musical education and was great because I could take people on a journey and earn my DJ stripes.
I realised I wanted to start making music too, as I had so many ideas I wanted to be able to get down. So I did a few short courses in Music Production and then completed a Masters in Music Production. It took me a long time and a lot of mistakes to learn. Eventually, I found a sound I was happy with which is one of the reasons I called my label 'Find Your Own Records'. I make a lot more than I release, and have a quality over quantity approach to releases.
Tell us more about your online Masterclass series, ‘Find Your Own Sound’. For those of you who don’t know, Ceri’s courses help artists overcome compositional issues such as ‘hitting a brick wall when writing music’ and ‘developing a signature sound’. As someone who also tends to get stuck in a loop when producing and struggles to finalise a track, this sounds great! When’s the next one?
The next one starts on 02/02/2022 (cosmic numbers!) It sounds like you’re exactly the kind of person I would love to have and who would benefit from them!
Yes, I've been making music for over 10 years and have made all the mistakes there are to make in the process. I've taught people of all ages, backgrounds, and genres, and like to help people find their unique musical style, and share my top tips for improving tracks and finishing them quickly.
Click here to find out more about Ceri’s Music Production Masterclasses.
You also often describe yourself as a wellness advocate, which you discuss in-depth in interviews about your sober lifestyle. Tell us about the importance of wellness, especially surrounding the nightlife industry.
It's SO important, now more than ever. Especially in nightlife, where people are often staying out crazy hours and many also drink and do drugs, it's so important to look after our bodies, minds, and spirits. I have seen there's a massive push in the industry to address mental health at the moment which is great, although I do think we need to address physical, emotional and spiritual health too, as they're all interlinked and part of the same puzzle.
I cured myself from a so-called 'incurable' illness years ago. It's a long story and means my body will probably always be a bit more sensitive than the average person. Therefore, I am always learning and adapting, to make sure I keep myself feeling as good as possible. Our culture thinks it's normal to feel tired all the time and burnout and exhaustion are so common, especially in London, but it doesn't have to be that way. It's really important to know your own mind and body and tune in to your intuition because our body holds innate wisdom if we can just learn to listen. Symptoms are messengers from your body that you need to change something. A lot of Western Medicine focuses on suppressing symptoms, which doesn't actually get to the root cause of why you're having that symptom in the first place. I'm so happy I found Functional Medicine, Naturopathy, and Shamanic and Energy healing because I would not have recovered if it wasn't for these things. Functional Medicine is the future of medicine in my opinion.
I incorporate meditation and mindfulness techniques into my Masterclasses too, because I believe most people who don't think they're creative, or can't finish a track, benefit from quieting their minds, minimising distractions, and overcoming negative self-talk, (something that's becoming increasingly harder in these social media instant gratification times) as well as learning some of my cheeky top creative inspiration and technical tips! ;-)
Top tip for anyone wanting to dedicate to a sober life?
Start with a month or two, rather than trying to 'cut back' generally. The reason for this is if you tell yourself you're not drinking for a certain amount of time, it's a tangible goal. If you say I'm 'cutting back', then one can always lead to two, and three and four and the next thing you know you're on some random’s couch at 11am wondering what happened!
It's also for other people too. Often friends who are drinking tempt you with 'just one', but if you say 'i'm having a month off' people (should) respect that.
What are you looking forward to most in 2022?
Playing Junction2 festival! I was supposed to play the main stage for the first time the first summer of the pandemic, so I’ve been waiting a long time, and I’m sure it will be more than worth the wait!
**Quick Fire** Favourite music-related memory of 2021?
Probably my back-to-back with Cici at Pikes in Ibiza. We had so much fun playing a really varied all night long set, including some house, techno, garage, and a few cheeky classics and it brought a massive smile to my face.
Ableton or Logic?
Ableton for sampling, Logic for everything else.
New Year’s Resolutions?
More music. More joy. More love. More fun. More sex. More music. (And to finish all the things I said I would last year).
Favourite road trip album?
It's not an album, but I made a seven hour playlist of my favourite 'happy' tunes for a friend who was getting over a bad breakup. It's soul, funk, disco, r n b, and ends with old school house and garage classics. And I love to play that on road trips.
Thanks so much for joining us!