Maroki Mixx
Hailing from West Wales and now living in Amsterdam, Maroki joins us for our next installment of Origins Tapes #30. Having taken an 8-year hiatus from releasing and producing music whilst chasing a Michelin Star, he has come back this year with a slew of releases. From his own Imprint 'Handy Records' along with a diverse 12" on the legendary 'E-Beamz' label. Following that is a 12" coming out on Shall Not Fade's 'Lost Palms' in Late August/September along with 2 more records via Lobster Theremin and an album towards the end of the year.
His mix is a journey through some records he has collected over the past 15 years. Hard-hitting, trance obscurities and packed full of grooves. Enjoy!
Tracklist
Birchgrove Pleasure Gardens - Maroki
Retrospect - Rasoul & Mcarthy
Riddem Control - Hipp-e & Tony
Don't You Know Why - Deetron
Hatchi - Maroki
Cyklik - Herwig Maurer
Deep006
Dpecial - J.K. Experience (Fions Hard Beat Mix)
One Sound - Chris Domingo (Thomas Penton Remix)
Shop002
Schizophrenia - Headspace
House Of 909 - Trevor Lovey (Kev Waller Remix)
Passion - DJ Djinxx
Hey Maroki, I absolutely loved this mix! thanks for putting it together! Am I right in thinking you've gone for the infamous Vinyl Only? For the heads, where did you record it and what was your setup? I'm quite happy for you to make up your response here for maximum effect with the heads :D…
Yesyes. Thanks for the kind words and having me on with you guys had a lot of fun on this. I recorded it at home on 1210s and a DJM250. Haha yes - all vinyl, some cheeky chicken slippers in there so don’t watch that... it's just a collection of randoms I have collected over the years & some new bits I have released this year.
Your fave tune in the mix?
'herwig maurer - cyklik' for sure. Absolute stinker. I bought loads of records off of Terry Francis when I was 19 or so and this was among them. Firm favorite and just chugs and hits all the right spots for me.
Can you tell us a bit about Handy? How did it come about, absolutely love the garmz. (just gonna cop some for the family)
So kind man, thank you! So Handy was conceptualised by James (Pointless Illustrations) around 4 years ago and he used it as an output for graphics for t-shirts because the guy has ideas falling out of his head at any given time. It then turned into custom clothing when he found a trove of vintage fabrics. As he got busier with his projects for Pointless, I got involved around a year and a half ago on the operational side. I had just come out of a bit of a shit show personally and careery due to covid and bailed from my life and the UK, James was also in a similar boat so he also ended up moving. We were discussing all our mates making silly records, and following that we wanted to build a platform where we could push out music around us and elevate music we love. Since then we have gone further into custom clothing, making a range of suits and signature stripes and tees. Musically we have scheduled releases right to the end of 2022 with some serious gas incoming.
I don't normally go too technical in questions but why not... How long have you been writing and how did you land into it? I think people would love to hear what you use and the inspirations behind your music.
I started writing music when I was 14. I stole a copy of Reason 3 from my big brother along with loads of his records. Old jungle/Aphex/experimental stuff. I got really into it - I think because I was trained classically on piano but didn't have an outlet for improvisation and I had quite a dope music teacher too for GCSEs who pushed me to get more granular with software while everyone was fucking around. I was making bass-heavy music and a lot of odd sound design for a few years and from there I ended up doing a degree in Audio Engineering in Rotterdam when I was 19 where I built a hefty setup. Sadly sold it all when I moved back to the UK to start cooking and sort my life out (I thought). Although I have recently started collecting bits again; my current setup is a Rhodes MK60, Deepmind 12, Roland 808, Erica DB-01, Focal 65s, and UAD along with a few effect pedals. I've got some other bits on order though just waiting for payday... I use Cubase with Reason running rewired. Predominantly using Reason for sound design and writing and arranging in Cubase. My workflow is quite long in that I really prefer recording raw audio and resampling until I'm feeling it. Incidentally, I upgraded to 11 the other day but am still using R5 as I don't like change. FML. Inspiration front - everything. I listen to everything. My Spotify is a disorganized mess of pure vibes.
**Quick Fire** - the best club in the world?
For me, it would be Fold right now. I do prefer smaller spots though. I'm excited to get stuck into Amsterdam once things start opening up again. Trouw in Ams was incredible when it was still going - RIP. Maasilo in Rotterdam has some pretty mental memories for me. Notably a Marcell Dettman b2b Ben Klock 6hrs for NYE when I was young un' was stupid.
Best festival you've been to?
Glasto 2019. Peak weather. Packed all the wrong extras which made for a fucking merry knees up, great company and absolute nonsense. Looking forward to Dekmantel Selectors this year though.
If you could pick any food to eat pre-gig what would it be, remember eating too much before a gig is dangerous (nervous gas)…
Sushi or fish tacos. Danger is my middle name. Into a Kurdish feast but real talk I'm a gourmet motherlover so I'll find the spots. Notable mention of 'Nandine' in Camberwell. Slaps.
You're closing fabric on NYE of this year, after the shit show of the last 18 months, what do you play? (‘All I Want For Christmas’ is not allowed in your response :D)
'Silver Pozzoli - Around my Dream' for pure unadulterated vibes - if that bombed or that Horse Meat Disco edit of 'Lovemaker - Wham (Horse Meat Disco Edit)'. But I mean if everyone was on the HMS Jawside then 'Fade 2 End - Feel the Magic' - One for the Garys that. Fuck it ... Born Slippy.
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Interview by @armand.origins