Search Results

NTS Radio broadcast the 5th episode of Balearic Brunch on February 25th 2024. About this show. – For those of you who follow me here, you all know by now, I suppose, how much I love Colleen's "Balearic Brunch" shows. I feel I need to share more details about the "whys"! First, these shows are shorter, and this smaller format allows Colleen to be more "focused", musically speaking, I feel the intellectual unity is stronger in these shows, the mental pictures appear quickly! Even though we would all love to have 2-hour episodes, I feel it wouldn't have the same musical impact. Also, did you notice that Colleen uses her voice differently during these shows? She's giving them another DNA by doing this, a pro is a pro, right? Lastly, Balearic Breakfast is never too far away as Colleen always mentions it during Balearic Brunch! This episode very quickly allowed me to see someone diving into an ocean, of music of course, laughs!, but we're going to come back to this vision in the detailed playlist in a few moments. A great new episode of "Balearic Brunch" for sure! Listen back to the 5th episode of Balearic Brunch: PLAYLIST Nine Voices – And so it goes Alina Bzhezhinska & Tony Kofi – Anima Yoshiko Sai – Aoi Galasudama E. Lundquist – My Sun Max Essa – Belgian Caravan Split Enz – Message to My Girl (Pete Blaker by the Sea edit) Esa – A muto (Kalson Cosmic Rework) Feel Fly – Esperanto (Marcoradi Remix) Fred Everything (feat. James Alexander Bright) – Breathe Crown Heights Affair – Dreaming a Dream (2024 rework) THE LISTENING EXPERIENCE Being welcomed by the beautiful vocal-only ensemble "Nine Voices", one can only picture oceanic depths appearing before surprised eyes. With the incredibly profound Nine Voices – And so it goes [2024-Bandcamp], Colleen perfectly sets the tone of what will be, to me, the first deep-diving show of the "Balearic series" (by the way, "Nine Voices" is a three-vocalist ensemble composed of Emma Thorpe, Ben Smith & Huw Costin)! This willingness to take us on a diving trip is confirmed by the second track, Alina Bzhezhinska & Tony Kofi – Anima - Breathe [2024-Bandcamp]. The slow rhythm and almost meditative ambience (with the use of some light electronic reverb) help the listener to picture a diver swimming towards an unknown destination, somewhere deep down the abysses... Yoshiko Sai – Aoi Galasudama [1976-Discogs] is, to me, a turning point in the story as it allows us to picture the beauties of the ocean we swim in... What a track... For your information, the Japanese singer, composer and poet did the artwork of most of her albums. Soon after her fourth album was out in 1978, she retired from the music industry until 30 years later, in 2008, when she released another album, "Taklamakan". Words are not enough to say how much we were Wowed when we all heard this song, which will be featured on the compilation Nippon Psychedelic Soul 1970​-​1979! Though the next track's soul is slightly less "waterly balearic" (laughs!), E. Lundquist – My Sun [2024-Bandcamp] allows the listener to focus on the diver as he leaves the abysses, enjoying a more relaxed part of the ocean with Max Essa – Belgian Caravan [2024-Discogs]. The music played in the first part of this 4th episode of Balearic Brunch is so nicely put together that it greatly explains why we love Colleen so much: Music simply flows whenever she shares it! The second part of the show starts with the also very oceanic Split Enz – Message to My Girl (Pete Blaker by the Sea edit) [1984-Discogs]. In several interviews, composer and Split's Enz frontman Neil Finn (now a member of Fleetwood Mac after Lindsey Buckingham left the band) shared how much every aspect of love had already been covered in songs and how much he didn't felt like saying "I love you" out loud in his songs, and peculiarly in this very one, thus meeting ways with another very Balearic (and sad) song composed by Jean-Jacques Goldman, "Sache Que Je"... Our diver, happy with what he saw, came back to the surface, ready to have a good time with his friends, and he does that while dancing on Esa – A muto (Kalson Cosmic Rework) [2023-Bandcamp]! The original 1986 track has been featured during the 160th episode of Balearic Breakfast by our dear Kieran McCann. The last three tracks of this Balearic Brunch episode take us on a trippier musical trip, starting with Feel Fly – Esperanto (Marcoradi Remix) [2022-Bandcamp] and beautifully encapsulating Fred Everything (feat. James Alexander Bright) – Breathe [2024] which makes me wanna come back to an important element of Colleen's DNA: when she mixes, she, as a human being mixing records, disappears behind the music... Ending the show with Crown Heights Affair – Dreaming a Dream [2024 rework], there is one thing we really need to do: listen to that diving musical trip once again!

Nick Callaghan's tribute mix to Andrew Weatherall made me realize how serious we sometimes should be when listening to music... Listening context. – It comes from nowhere. The Pain. Unexpected. Unwanted. Violent. A sudden rape that leaves you hanging, bleeding, almost dead, spiralling down in the unknown undertow of your own inexistence. The Blow. Unexpected. It comes from an unwanted bleeding, from a sudden nowhere, spiralling you down the rape you just experienced to an unknown undertow of your own rebirth. "I've always thought that the best music was uncontrived, it's done in an instant. The first things that come to mind are usually the best, once you start finally tuning things and honing things down you disappear up your own arse." Tell me how do you listen to Music, I will tell you who you are. A vibration. Thank god, I am a vibration. A sound. My Body has an inner instrument, and it is able to produce a sound when anything hits me; it can be a loud and absolutely dynamically deafening moment, forcing me to evacuate the sound; the deflagration can be also only felt in the inside, long after the blow has gone, it can be a calm response too, joy, who knows where you’re leading yourself to. Only you are your own conductor. Sometimes, life has a master plan, and you have to be there, experiencing your own disappearance allowing your rebirth. But at all times, you’re aware. At every single moment, your truth is all that matters. You are not somebody’s else frequency to play with. You’re not here to adjust to anybody but only there for you to grow. You should always be beyond the pain of their unwanted solicitations and keep your vibration intact should they hit you. And, understand me: it’s not about how quickly you’ll vibrate or how quickly you will fill the room with your chaos, answering their supposed heavenly belonging to you. It’s all about the reality of it, the objective reality of you accepting to drown, vibrating down, maybe in the process dying and somehow coming back to life. The secret lies here: unlike you, I am not trying to save myself. Unlike you, I am not trying to save myself. My hurt is mine to shine; my darkness does not need your false light. Everything will come back to its place one day, eventually. The thing you must take into consideration: are you aware of your vibration? Do you know how it manifests itself, when it appears, when it dies, and where it is located within you? Does it need anything more to fully express itself? Is it working against you or on par with you? Do you block it? Can it bring you up? What’s the aftermath but also, can you feel other people's vibrations... Listen to Nick's Tribute to Andrew Weatherall: Andrew's takes on music and subjective outputs. – Life had a master plan. Tell me how do you listen to music. I will tell you who you are. I waited to receive Nick’s tribute to Andrew Weatherall at the right moment. I didn’t want to just listen to the mix like "just for the sake of it". I knew it was far too precious to be overlooked. I wanted to be able to dive in. Totally. Life hit. I reacted. Pain came. I listened. Once again, it’s not about the subjectivity of the vibration, not about the importance (or the non-importance) of the pain that initiated it. It’s about the existence of these two factors and how each one of us copes with these always dynamic situations. As I listened to Nick’s tribute, as Andrew’s music penetrated my soul, I visualised my Vibration and felt the pain form its reality in my soul. This precise moment was crucial because it enlightened Andrew’s musical importance, nicely put on the forefront by Nick’s work, ultimately leading me to write... A selector’s work essential is. Repeat. A selector’s work essential is. Only he can your mortal coil portray. And this is exactly what Nick did here. The 2 hours musical journey takes us through some of Andrew’s nicest musical moments, notably showcasing: the importance of space: Whether you listen to a track like "Primal Scream - Loaded", Doves – Compulsion (Andrew Weatherall Remix), or, from Nick's Mix Big Hard Excellent Fish – Imperfect List Part 1 (the list could go on and on), the vast majority of Andrew's Music is rooted into space, large soundstages, echos, allowing your mind to loose contact with your body... the sadness: Starting the mix with Cowboys International – The ‘No’ Tune (which can be considered Andrew's "title soundtrack"), Nick not only respects Andrew's legacy but also puts on a logical forefront what makes Andrew's music so appealing to people like myself: the sadness, the lingering sadness which is present in a lot of the tracks he played and produced or mixes he crafted – I will be forever proud to have discovered such an important artist thanks to Balearic Breakfast...; the revolving questioning aspect of his music: If you take the time to dive into Nick's tribute mix, you'll feel the unstoppable questioning, lost shapes asking blurry whys, cloudy skies, lost cars driving in circles towards empty destinations...; the sonic qualities: One of the things that left me totally awestruck when listening to Nick's mix is the sonic quality of Andrew's music; it's sharp, it has a 3D element to it, it constantly surprises your ears (listen to a track like "Ricardo Villalobos – Dexter (Two Lone Swordsmen remix"), even on loudspeakers you'll be surprised by how much the sound on that one will grab you...; the musicality: Even though we can of course think about artists like Reich, Stockhausen, Boulez, Penderecki or even Medek, or as Andrew puts it "Seeking transcendence through repetitive beats", there is always an absolute Musicality to the sounds Andrew created or played (making me think that really I wasn't, like other people I suppose, really about a Musical style but more about notes that are awakening my soul (the stop sign being, obviously, for me, musical creations where Music in its musicality element was not present or far less present than what I needed); the Artistry of the music: Andrew's music is never a flat line (listen to his "Music's not for Everyone" on Mixcloud shows). It's always and Absolutely Dynamic; it slows; it speeds up; it has sound effects; there are so many information to be found in Andrew's sounds, perfectly joining his analysis of what music should be like "I think music should be like a movie soundtrack in a way, it should be like a journey, it should tell a story". When listening to Nick's mix and diving deeper into Andrew's music (My Bloody Valentine – Soon (Andrew Weatherall Remix)), I was able to picture paintings by the great Beksinski or Dali; I was able to see Artaud's face flying over me, thinking about some of his writings, and even picture other artists' creations... Andrew's music is an open door to Art, and it is because of its own artistry... So, yeah, Nick's mix is something to listen to times and times again as it is a beautiful resume of Andrew's musical Legacy! Lastly, Nick’s tribute showcased how important it is to dive into Music while taking into account your mental state. By choosing wisely the moment you’ll listen, you’ll be able to allow revelations to occur and the healing process to start, even oh so indirectly... I'm on my knees, I’m drowning, Andrew. Stay there, Lioncub, I’ll help you. THE PLAYLIST (Thank you, Nick, for the playlist and the picture!) Cowboys International – The ‘No’ Tune Andrew Weatherall – Thirteenth Night “The first music that moved me…” Big Hard Excellent Fish – Imperfect List Part 1 (Rimming Elvis the Andy Weatherall Way mix) Ricardo Villalobos – Dexter (Two Lone Swordsmen remix) “Sydney Opera House…” Two Lone Swordsmen – Spin Desire “Sean Johnston - I first met Andrew back in the summer of 1999…” My Bloody Valentine – Soon (Andrew Weatherall Remix) “When did the DJ’ing start off?…” Fort Beulah N.U. – 002 “Andrew on Tony Wilson…” Mike Garry & Joe Duddell – St Anthony: An Ode to Anthony H Wilson (Andrew Weatherall Remix) “Basic human need for transcendence…” Cut Copy – Son God (Weatherall ARP mix) Two Lone Swordsmen – It’s Not the Worst (Lali Puna Remix) “The Boys Own story…” Primal Scream – Don’t Fight It, Feel It (Weatherall Scat Mix) “S is for Sabres of Paradise...” Sabres of Paradise – Ballad of Nicky McGuire “At the moment the studio is really productive…” The Asphodells – Another Lonely City Andrew Weatherall – Ghosts Again “Dave Beer… but what about Weatherall?!…” Primal Scream – Come Together (Weatherall extended remix) “Life has Surface Noise…” Sabre of Paradise – Smokebelch II (Beatless Mix)

A few weeks ago, Douglas Noble kindly asked me if I felt like sharing my story about the Balearic Breakfast Blog. I was humbled and gladly accepted his invitation! About the interview. – December 2023. When Douglas proposed to me on Instagram to do a feature about the Balearic Breakfast blog, I was really humbled. As you all know, this adventure started because of the show itself and its quality. I gladly accepted Douglas' proposal and we started working on the interview in the course of January 2024. I will never forget that Interview for a lot of reasons. First things first, I was as tired as I could be (hence the few mistakes I made during the interview) because I wasn't able to sleep the previous night, you know, "life's Downs and ups". So I was a little bit nervous. Would I be able to sustain a 40-minute conversation in English? I haven't done that for years! Secondly, and this is the main reason I will never forget this experience, Douglas has been incredible: relaxed, gentle, and joyous, and he made me quickly forget how tired I was. 5/10 minutes into the interview, I just started telling my story, finding my own rhythm, you know... (laughs!). I was really happily surprised when we got to the end of it! I said to Douglas, laughing, "I think we nailed it; it was perfect"! Then, I proposed to Douglas to edit the interview (o so slightly to cut some uninteresting things and some blurps and some more, you know..., laughs!). I quickly felt I could do something original with that recording. Almost 8 hours later, I sent him the first draft of the interview with the songs mixed in. But, what happened is that when I listened to this first edit on my speakers, I felt our voices were not loud enough. So I quickly said to Douglas, "let me correct that, I know how to handle it". Douglas gave me "carte blanche". And I did compress our voices slightly more to bring them out. They have been equalised, too, to bring out small details that were not audible in the first place. It's a tedious process, but I felt I could not do better than that, so this is the version you're going to hear now. Take the time to listen to it; you'll hear how music underlines the message I tried to convey and how it pops out on specific occasions. It is a small work of art I did, I believe, really. Oh, and listen also to my Silences… So, so important… All in all, despite me being so tired, despite the internet's small cutouts making me sound like a fish out of water, and despite trying to speak between a tear and a laugh, this experience was really worth it. Douglas has been incredible in every step of this wonderful journey. He's been absolutely Balearic, and I can only hope that one day you, too, have the chance to do an interview with him! Also, not to mention, the rhythm he gave to his show was perfect. I wasn't aware that he would cut the interview into two parts, but he really nailed it! It is such a good idea because it allows the listener to take some distance with my never, well, you know... ending flow, laughs! Once again, thank you, dear Douglas. And a big hello, and thank you, for his kind words to DJ Don Pablo! To Colleen. To Adam. To the Artists. To the Music and to each and every one of you, you, the Members of the Balearic Breakfast Family... Listen back to Douglas' interview with Artur: PLAYLIST Eddie Palmieri – Chocolate Ice cream Astrud Gilberto – Light My Fire Mike Lindup – World Is Ready (feat. Ursula Rucker) Oluko Imo – Were Oju Le (The Eyes Are Getting Red) (Edit) Ahemaa Nwomkro – Yebre Ma Owuo Douglas in conversation with Artur (Part 1) Jacob Gurevitsch – Elevation in Minor (Cosmodelica Remix) The Prince St. Reels – Johnny Mathis - Simple The Grid – AW Floatation subsonic Grid The Mighty Pope – Sweet Blindness Chuck Magione with the Hamilton Philarmonic Orchestra – The Land of Make-Believe Roberta Flack – The Impossible Dream Los Charly's Orchestra (Aka Juan Laya & Jorge Montiel) – Open Up Your Mind Chiara Civello – Sono Come Sono (Whodamanny remix) Douglas in conversation with Artur (Part 2) Francois Feldman & Joneice Jamison – Joue Pas Linda de Suza – Gri-Gri Gwen McCrae – Keep the fire burning Paul Valery At the Disco – A Man Called Adam (Farmaram Remix) The Cranes – What Is Love Chalupa – Jungle Fire Karl Hector & The Malcouns – JB Rip La Clave – Latin Slide Blue Lines Trio – Dark Goeree Circling Sun – Kohan Thomas Haak vs BOW-tanic – Magic Hancock (Instrumental Essence) Lego Edit – Escucha Mi Melodia A Balearic Lioncub The Playlist Nota. – To me, Childhood is the most important moment of life. Some of us forget that period of time, and some of us don't. I compiled in this playlist songs that I grew up with. Don't use the "shuffle" option, as I worked countless hours on this one to propose a Musical Flow. Simply select a song, click play, and let me take you to my Dreamland... Mike Oldfield – The Inner Child Akademia Pana Kleksa, Małgorzata Ostrowska – Podróż w Krainę Baśni (z filmu Podróże Pana Kleksa) Noir Désir – Le vent nous portera George Koutalieris – Silent Messages Commodores – Nightshift François Valéry – Aimons–Nous Vivants Tina Turner – We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome) - Extended Version Alannah Myles – Black Velvet ABBA – Eagle – Long Version David et Jonathan – Bella vita Luba – The Best Is Yet to Come Kim Carnes – More Love François Feldman, Joniece Jamison – Joue Pas Johnny Hallyday – T’as le bonjour de l’amour – Version 2014 Linda De Suza – Gri-gri Chico & Roberta – Frente a Frente La Compagnie Créole – Vive le Douanier Rousseau Charles D. Lewis – Soca Dance Zouk Machine – Maldòn Kaoma – Lambada Jimmy "Bo" Horne – Don't Worry About It Cliff Richard – Doing Fine Garland Jeffreys – Hail Hail Rock 'N' Roll Daran Et Les Chaises – Dormir dehors France Gall – Babacar – Live 1988 Patrick Bruel – Décalé (Live "Si Ce Soir") Michel Sardou – Afrique adieu Rose Laurens – Africa (Version longue) S'Express – Theme from S'Express – 12" Version Donna Hightower – This World Today Is A Mess Dominik Hauser – Love Boat Theme Marie Dauphin – Lady Oscar Solomon Burke – Let Your Love Flow Traks – Long Train Running Jacob Gurevitsch, Cosmodelica – Elevation In Minor (Cosmodelica Remix) Budka Suflera – Martwe morze Czerwone Gitary – Płoną góry, płoną lasy Matia Bazar – Solo Tu Ray Charles, Dee Dee Bridgewater – Precious Thing Nicole Croisille – Léo Gérard Lenorman – Nostalgies Canada – Mourir les sirènes Fredericks, Goldman, Jones – Nuit Gianna Nannini – Luna dell'est Matia Bazar – Ti Sento Rammstein – Angst Robert Miles – Children Dschinghis Khan – Moskau Claude François – Je vais à Rio Gilbert Montagné – Les sunlights des tropiques Aqua – Cartoon Heroes Desireless – Voyage voyage Jean-Pierre Mader – Macumba Gwen McCrae – Keep the Fire Burning – U.K. Club Remix Moon Martin – Kitten of Love Gold – Ville de lumière The Korgis – Everybody's Got To Learn Sometime Black – Wonderful Life Candy Dulfer – Lily Was Here Chris Isaak – Blue Hotel Sylvester – One Night Only Alain Bashung – Madame rêve Diana Krall – If I Take You Home Tonight Eva Cassidy – I Can Only Be Me Dan Fogelberg – Tucson, Arizona (Gazette) Frankie Goes To Hollywood – The Power Of Love Donovan – Sailing Homeward Steven Wilson, Ninet Tayeb – Rock Bottom Pink Floyd – Comfortably Numb – Live Ange – Capitaine cœur de miel – Live Eagles – Hotel California – Live; 1999 Remaster Led Zeppelin – Kashmir – Live: O2 Arena, London – December 10, 2007 Fleetwood Mac – Rhiannon (Live 1977) Czeslaw Niemen – Pod Papugami Jacques Brel – Les Marquises Francis Cabrel – Hors-saison Nourith Sibony – Ten Od Yom Céline Dion – Tu nages Vangelis – Conquest of Paradise Vangelis, Piano in a Living Room – La petite fille de la mer Joe Dassin – L'été indien Patricia Kaas – Mon mec à moi Johnny Mathis – Simple Jairo – Les Jardins Du Ciel (Sun Of Jamaica) Frankie Goes To Hollywood – Relax Matthew Wilder – Break My Stride Dorothée – L'étranger Jimmy Cliff – We All Are One Philippe Lavil – Elle préfère l'amour en mer Charles Aznavour – Trousse-chemise Evanescence – Secret Door Vaya Con Dios – Lulu's Song The Doors – Riders On The Storm (2021 Remaster) Julie Pietri – Eve lève–toi Aural Exciters – Spooks in Space (Disco mix) John Paul Young – Love Is in the Air Bernard Lavilliers, Jimmy Cliff – Melody Tempo Harmony Ace of Base – Happy Nation Serge Gainsbourg – Relax Baby Be Cool Mory Kanté – Yeke Yeke Kassav' – Syé bwa Bézu – La Queuleuleu Crystal Waters – Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless) (La Da Dee La Da Da) Everything But The Girl, Todd Terry – Missing (Todd Terry Club Mix / US Radio Edit) Kat Mandu – I Wanna Dance Peter Brown – They Only Come Out at Night Róisín Murphy, Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy – Murphy's Law (Cosmodelica Remix) Ren Woods – Everybody Get Up (12" Mix) Julio Iglesias – Souriez madame (Con una Pinta Asi) Thierry Pastor – Sur des musiques noires Natalia Kukulska – Puszek-okruszek The Earons – Land of Hunger Linda Clifford – Runaway Love Lou Rawls – You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine The Getaway Plan – S.T.A.R.S. Thierry Pastor – Where is My Love Josefine Cronholm & Ibis – My Room Paul Desmond, Dave Brubeck – Koto Song How To Destroy Angels – A Drowning Barbie Bertisch – Warm In The Dark (Release) Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – Swan Lake (Suite), Op. 20a, TH. 219: I. Scene – Swan Theme Luciano Pavarotti – Caruso Chuck Mangione, Esther Satterfield – Land Of Make Believe Bernard Lavilliers – If. Maxime Le Forestier – Né quelque part Nina Simone – Baltimore Nino Ferrer – Le sud Israel Kamakawiwo'ole – Somewhere Over The Rainbow_What A Wonderful World Roberta Flack – The Impossible Dream The Doors – The Crystal Ship Janis Joplin – Kozmic Blues Cerrone – 101 Tori Amos – A Sorta Fairytale (Live In Toronto 10/23/07) Gerry Rafferty – The Ark Kim Carnes – Sailin' Baccara – Yes Sir, I Can Boogie Vincent Lagaf' – Bo le lavabo Róisín Murphy, DJ Koze – Can’t Replicate Dan Hartman – Instant Replay (12" Single) Haddaway – What is Love Dr. Alban – Sing Hallelujah! Jimmy Somerville – You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real) Dzem – Do Kołyski (Live)

Lee Zee is, without any doubt, one of the architects of Colleen's request show, Balearic Breakfast. I am so happy he accepted to join us here! Let's meet him! 1) Hello Lee! It’s such a pleasure to have you here on the Blog! We owe the show’s title to you! How did it come to your mind back when the show started? Hi Artur – many thanks for inviting me. It’s a pleasure to be here. Well, as you know, Colleen was holiday-hosting Gilles Peterson’s breakfast show on Worldwide FM, and it had the running name of ‘Summer Staycation’. When summer came to an end, Colleen put a call out on Instagram for listeners to suggest an alternative name for the show. As soon as she put the call out, I messaged her back, saying, “How about Balearic Breakfast?” Then I quickly did a check to make sure there wasn’t another show with that name already!! Thankfully there wasn’t. The name just came to me – it felt like a natural choice. I’ve always felt there was a significant overlap with the musical aesthetic of the Loft and the Balearic movement. A musical open-ended-ness and psychedelic quality. Knowing Colleen, her deep knowledge and love of music across genres, space and time, the name just felt like a good fit. 2) have been featured in the 160th show of the series, and your beautiful mix obtained a lot of praise from the Family. Are you aware of your ability to propose musical stories through the tracks you select? Generally speaking, how do you create a set? It's great to hear the mix was well received. I’m not on social media at all, so when Colleen told me about the positive feedback, I was really touched. Thank you. When Colleen asked me to contribute, it was originally going to be for a mix for the launch event of the first Balearic Breakfast compilation in 2022. I wrote the track list on the back of an envelope in a couple of minutes and told myself I had to stick to it – no matter if a “better” track then came into my consciousness later that day! I can’t really tell you why I chose the tracks I did or why they are in that order. That’s just how I wrote them down. I’m quite interested in Taoism and being in the “flow state”. I generally like to go with the first idea that comes into my head. It’s about listening to your inner voice and trusting it. There is a beautiful power in doing that. It’s also a good way to honour your uniqueness. What I love about the mixes from the Balearic Breakfast family is how completely different and personal they are. 3) You also work with Colleen on the request posts pictures; without any doubt, you have an artist’s soul to me! Is your creativity conscious, or does it come almost silently and unpredictably, fueled by music or other forms of art? Thank you! I have been creative since I was old enough to pick up a pen. It was my mum who spotted this – when I was about two years old and was playing up / whingeing, she was wondering what she could do. So she gave me a big roll of paper, and some felt tip pens. Needless to say, I stopped crying and spent the rest of the day lost in drawing. I’ve been that way ever since. I think creativity – in whatever form it takes – drawing, cooking, playing an instrument, writing, gardening, painting, photography – whatever it is – nurtures the soul and raises your vibration. I do love visiting galleries, reading, and obviously listening to music, but really anything can be inspiring. A sunset, a walk in the forest, a really deep conversation, a really good cup of coffee – (the latter is a daily essential!). I do think that meditation, yoga and various herbs and fungi also have a powerful part to play in letting you tap into your inner creative spirit. You also need to stop worrying about whether people like what you do or not. If you love it – that really is more than enough. 4) The Balearic Musical scene is vast. If you had to choose five albums that are Balearic to you, which would they be and why? Firstly – sorry. I know you asked for five albums, but I’m going to give you 8 of them! As with the mix, I quickly scribbled them down in a couple of minutes! (but this time on a post it, not an envelope (laughs)! I guess the joy with the Balearic genre is that it literally can be anything you want it to be. I first heard the word Balearic (in a musical context) with the Balearic Beats Compilation LP, which came out on FFRR in 1988. But at the time, the music on the LP wasn’t really my cup of tea (apart from the Nitzer Ebb track, which has a great dub mix on the 12”, btw!). Going out clubbing in Manchester in the late 80s, you would hear records that are now considered “Balearic” (such as Carly Simon’s “Why”), but they were just part of an overall “club” / house music soundtrack back then. It wasn’t until 1993 or 1994 when a friend of a friend at University came back from Ibiza with a Jose Padilla mixtape, that I had my proper introduction to what I perceive as being the “Balearic” sound. Of course, this was only a part – the chill-out / Café Del Mar part – of the Balearic sound. But it immediately struck a chord with me. This was the pre-internet era, so trying to find the tracks on that cassette really did take years. Still, that tape opened a lot of musical doors for me. The albums below? Well, they vary somewhat in both genre and notoriety, but, for me, they are all Balearic because they share an otherworldly, transcendent quality. An ability to take you to another place and time. Music to transport. Music to transform. Music to heal. Music to help you connect with the universe. That’s my take on Balearic. So……. In no particular order: Laurie Anderson – Mister Heartbreak (Warner Bros - 1984) Mr. Fingers – Amnesia (Jack Trax - 1989) Collin Walcott – Grazing Dreams (ECM - 1977) Wally Badarou – Words of a Mountain (Island - 1989) Michael Shrieve / Kevin Shrieve / Klaus Schultze – Transfer Station Blue (Fortuna - 1984) Nina Simone – Baltimore (CTI - 1978) Michal Turtle & Suso Saiz – Static Journeys (Planisphere - 2021) Pat Metheny Group – Still Life Talking (Geffen - 1987) 5) I can’t end this interview without asking you, what does it take to “be Balearic” in this life? Having an open heart and an open mind but always dancing to the beat of your own drum! Thank you So Much, Lee...

Matt, like a lot of us, has been there from the very start. I was happy we got to discover more about him through his mix! I met the "I'm no DJ" guy, and we had a fantastic chat! 1) Hello Matt! I’m thrilled to welcome you to our Home! If I understood things the right way, you used to DJ in the past. Can you tell us more about how that passion started? Thanks for having me, Artur. I only really did a small amount of DJ-ing over 20 years ago when I was a uni student at house parties. I’ve always been passionate about music from a young age. I can remember making my own compilations from the ‘Now that's what I call Music….’ tapes I had, basically just compiling all the dance/hip-hop! I was slightly too young when acid house swept the UK, but I used to love the endless tapes that used to get passed around (Sasha at Shelley's was a big favourite as that was local to me). I also used to listen to a lot of local radio, like the ‘New Dawn’ show on Signal radio. When I went to Uni, I got my own decks and used to love going into town on Mondays and trawling through all the new releases. I think my musical tastes really matured in the 2000s as I started listening to a much wider variety of music. If anything I’ve become more obsessive in the past ten years than ever! 2) How did you feel when Colleen asked you to prepare a mix for Balearic Breakfast? What was the most challenging part of that journey, and how did you get things done? I was really pleased to be asked, my first thought was that I probably couldn’t do it as I’m a little out of practice on the djing side. The most challenging part was technical, just getting the setup working on my Mac, getting it recording etc. (I’m quite a technical person and I know it’s not that hard but it was just being a bit stubborn). The actual mix and song selection came together really quickly; I started with about 40 tunes and just played around to see what was working. I guess working with the range of bpm was also slightly different as I’m used to mixing more 4/4 stuff. Getting it all down to an hour also made me appreciate how hard it must be for Colleen to juggle everything every time she does a show. In the end the actual tune selection came pretty easy and I did the mix in one take. I went from saying ‘maybe’ to Colleen to submitting a finished mix in about three days! 3) We both share the « no dj » label spirituality as I call myself « the record cueer » (laughs)! There are a lot of people starting this musical adventure nowadays, often for bad reasons with mitigated sonic results. According to you, what should a « true » DJ be like both spiritually and technically? It’s weird; I read so many conversations on X and Threads from younger DJs obsessed with BPM, technical mixing and working social media (which I guess is inevitable these days). I think the best DJs are the ones who you know would still be doing it passionately as a hobby even without success because they are just obsessed with the music and the culture. For me, Colleen, Bill Brewster, Luke Una and Tim Sweeney all optimise that (I think of Tim doing his show on student radio for 15+ years). I think true DJs don’t put themselves into narrow lanes musically and don’t get bogged down by trends and formats. They listen and play music across the decades and not just new tunes. There also seems to be an obsession with ‘how can I make this bigger’ instead of ‘how can I make this more intimate’. 4) An active member of the Balearic Breakfast family, your requests are very often “of quality,” if that makes sense (laughs)! How do you listen to music, and, most importantly, how do you keep yourself up to date? I love this question! To be honest, Bandcamp has really started to dominate how I listen to music; it has the perfect blend of social that means you have close contact with the artists/labels and get great recommendations from the people you choose to follow. I love how you can ‘subscribe’ to labels you want to support too. I’m amazed the other music sites haven’t followed their lead. I still use Apple Music a lot to listen to albums, make playlists, share music and go through new releases. I also subscribe to a few people on Patreon, like ‘The Reflex’ to get exclusives; again, it’s great to support those whose work you appreciate. I also listen to a lot of podcasts and radio stations like WWFM, BBC 6Music and NTS. Good music can come from anywhere, though, really - Instagram stories, WhatsApp recommendations, TV shows, etc. I just like to keep my ears open. I’m not really one to be found in the basements of record stores though, I leave that to the true obsessives ;) 5) If you had to choose, let’s say, 3 Balearic Breakfast shows, which would they be and why? Hmm, that's trickier. I think the ones that stick in my mind are… Episode 15 - I think this was the first one I got a request played - Apiento/She Walks, that gave me a real bug for trying to get requests on; Episode 124 - International Woman’s Day Special - I think Colleen did about 4hrs, avoiding filling in her taxes and making sure everyone’s request got played. I asked for Jessie Ware/Remember Where You Are which is one of my favourite tunes from the past 5 years; Episode 127 - Children on the Sun. I think Paul Hilary’s mix truly blew everyone away, he takes digging to a different level. Also, before I go… Having done the mix for BB I’ve really got the bug back for dj-ing and making mixes. I’m gonna try and do at least one every three months and try and do something with the music I spend so much on! So can I plug my Mixcloud page and the first mix I’ve done (which is much housier than the one I did on the show)!

Balearic Breakfast is "Our Thang". I had a chat with Virginia Tzioti who just reminded us, through this nice interview, the core of our Message... Enjoy! 1) Dear Virginia, thank you so much for being here with us on the Balearic Breakfast blog! How important is music in your everyday life? Music is my way of Life, Patti LaBelle 2) Working as a Jewellery designer, does Music influence you when crafting new models? When I am working, I always listen to music. I am not sure if it affects me directly, but it definitely influences me subconsciously. While creating new designs, I draw inspiration from various aspects of the art world. One aspect that is particularly important to me is cinema, which is also connected to some of the most iconic soundtracks. 3) What does Balearic Breakfast mean to you? I love Balearic Breakfast. I truly appreciate, respect, and admire Colleen as an artist and for all her great work on the show. It's brilliant how all these people, who don't know each other, gather every Tuesday and exchange musical information. Thanks to this amazing community, I have discovered many beautiful songs and artists. Without a doubt, it is my favourite show! 4) You were featured in the 159th episode of the series; congratulations! Can you tell us more about how you prepared your set and what you wanted to convey? I must admit, I was quite nervous about it. My initial thought was to present some of my favourite tracks that, as far as I remember, were not featured in any previous episode. I started with a first selection of about 30 records and listened to them in the order that felt right at that moment. Eventually, I managed to narrow it down to the final 12 tracks that I chose. 5) Can you share with us one moment of pure happiness you had while listening to the show (was it a show in particular you liked, a song that moved you, etc.)? I was incredibly thrilled with the recent 3rd birthday show. It was truly epic and served as a reminder of all the wonderful moments we have shared thus far. Each of us has specific songs that are deeply connected to memories, both sweet and bitter. I want to express my immense gratitude once again to Colleen and all the Balearicans for taking us on this incredible journey. Find out more about Virginia's musical tastes on her Mixcloud! Thank you once again Virginia!

Parbleu! Andres Balbucea and Andrea De Fazio answered a few questions about the band's origins and their latest musical effort, Elios. A sunny musical trip, Indeed! 1. Hello to you, Parbleu, and thank you so much for joining me here on the Balearic Breakfast blog! You issued "Dance cette Zik" in March 2020 amidst a tremendously severe phase of the Covid pandemic when the world was facing lockdowns. The funny lyrics and the musical positivity (including the clever ep's cover - "Parbleu!", a French expression that means "Good Lord!"...) had a great impact on the Balearicans! Can you tell us more about Parbleu's origins and Philosophy? Hello Artur! First of all, Thank you for the interest that led you to exchange a conversation with us about our project and our music. Parbleu was born in March 2020 from our collaboration (Andres and Andrea) in a not-easy time for everyone. We decided to transform those feelings of uncertainty into something positive and original that could renew our happiness and soul. We started sending each other the progress we were making with the compositions from home via email every day, comparing ourselves daily to arrive at a satisfactory synthesis for both of us. The name comes from a joke with Roberto, our friend and musician: we were looking for a cool name without success when he exclaimed, "Parbleu!" almost as if he wanted to make fun of us, and it was right there that we understood that it was the right name for the band... 2. Your latest track (Elios) is so different from "Dance cette Zik". Colleen featured both of them during Balearic Breakfast. Do you feel it's easier to compose a track like "Elios", which is lurking into the Disco Era? We have always been passionate about funk and disco, although we don't like to confine ourselves to a single genre or category. We have the most disparate influences and listening, and indeed, we often like to mix colours to try to arrive at something original done with authenticity. Said with sincerity, the bass line is inspired by the Latin disco world. Specifically, it comes from listening to a record by "The Conga Kings". We decided to synthesize it into a dark disco jam with different contaminations and string instruments contrasting with the acid synths. We hope you like the result! 3. How did you come up with the new album's theme? While we feel that musically, the adventurous journey holds up very well, we can't help but feel the lyrics on the album are somewhat darker... The album's theme Elios is dedicated to a genesis, a new birth, and in particular, the birth of little Elio, Andrea's son, from which we were inspired with our hearts to achieve that feeling. 4. Have you ever thought about the sound you wanted to achieve as a band? When listening to your songs, there is a "soothing" approach to the sound while the rhythm is dead-solid on every track. I can't help but feel a deep "duality" in all that you do. Would you agree, and is that conscious? The dualism, for example, the tight drums and the open, ethereal voice, wasn't intentional. It is the fruit of our collaboration since we both come from similar worlds, yet one of us plays the drums, and the other plays the keyboard and sings. Even though we have these different aspects, we still want to achieve the same outcome. Therefore, we've created this sonorous. This type of sound wasn't necessarily what we were going for, but it was the outcome of our collaboration. This is our way of composing at the moment. In the future, when we'll be in the studio, we'll see what we can create. 5. What can we expect from Parbleu in this coming year? Will you take your music on tour? We will most probably have an EP coming out. At this moment, we need to understand what to do first. We have a lot of new things going on, as well as concerts and growing musically. We will definitely play around Europe and, of course, Italy. We hope to see you when we play! Thank you so much, Parbleu!

When I heard Axnér's "Shoot from the rooftop", I knew I had to ask them a few questions about that song and about their musical duo. Come on, let's meet them! 1) Dea Chris, dear Julia, I am over the Moon to actually have you Here, on the Balearic Breakfast Blog! Your song, "Shout from the rooftop", has received a beautiful blend of re-mixes, and a limited edition vinyl has been produced. Congratulations! Can you tell us more about how the song was originally born? Hi Artur, thanks for having us. The song was the first track that we wrote together - it started life at least five years ago. It’s taken many forms since, with different lyrics and melodies and for a while, we were a little stuck on it. We returned to it after we’d released our first single, ‘Got The Look,’ and something clicked, and it came together a lot easier. The drums were recorded in a session with Ralph Rolle, drummer for Nile Rodgers & Chic, at the same time as Got The Look, and when we thought the track was finally finished, we sent it over to Ralph to see what he thought. A couple of days later, we received it back with some extra vocals from another member of Nile Rodgers & Chic, Audrey Martells, who’d added some amazing backing and ad-libs to the track. We’ve been amazed by the journey this track has taken us on, partnering with some legends of disco from Ralph & Audrey, John Morales & Al Kent, who, along with Kousto, produced great remixes of the track and Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy who, ’s, shown some wonderful support. Limited quantities of the record are still available :-D 2) Colleen played John Morales' M&M Main mix version of the song during the 144th edition of Balearic Breakfast. I remember that this edition was, musically, a special one as it showcased how much "Balearic Music" was not only about the musical style itself but also about the music having a specific "soul". According to you, what makes "Shout from the rooftop" a Balearic Tune? Colleen spinning the track makes it Balearic! We feel honoured Cos included the track in her show, as we’ve listened to it for years and never expected to hear our music featured. It’s connected us to a number of people, including yourself. Radio is still such an important medium for reaching listeners - we prefer it over a Spotify playlist any day. Colleen also launched her new chapter of The Loft Party at the start of December and played our record on the night. This felt really special for us. The New York link has been so strong with this track that we mixed it in Brooklyn; Ralph Rolle & John Morales are from The Bronx & David Mancuso started The Loft Party on Broadway in New York City. Full circle complete! 3) Can you tell us more about your musical journey together? We started making music together after Acid Jazz Records proposed Chris produced some original music under ‘Disco Freaks’, his DJ partnership, after they’d released a couple of remixes on the label. Soon after, Ralph Rolle overheard Julia singing while he was being interviewed on The Disco Freaks Radio Show and offered to drum for us! That was pretty inspiring so we pulled our finger out and got some songs together to demo with him. Lockdown gave us the time to write about ten tracks, ones we’re currently focusing on finishing, and everything’s continued from there. We do have to thank a lot of people who have shared advice and helped along the way. We hope you know who you are, as there are too many to list! We’re very grateful to have creative and talented friends who have worked with us on everything from artwork to photos & videos and the songs themselves. We’re very much independent, co-dependent artists! 4) You did a guest mix for 1btn radio a few weeks ago, showcasing your broad musical tastes, and influences. It also included another stunning track of yours, "Got the Look". There is a great sense of unity in what you propose, musically speaking. Would you say that, in a way, Music extends your human existence, showing you things you weren't aware of in the first place? Music has always been a major part of our life. It’s connected us, family & friends, and we do what we can to keep that connection through the music. As well as Julia & Audrey Martells singing on the track we’ve got Julia’s twin, best friend, Mum & Auntie singing on it so you’re hearing that unity on the record. SETLIST AXNÉR - Shout From The Rooftop (John Morales M+M Acapella Mix) Bosq - Out Of My Head LAZYWAX - Hotel Colomba D’oro AXNÉR - Got The Look (Al Kent’s Feel Good Instrumental Remix) MORE AMOUR - Solar Flair Lenny Williams - When I’m Dancing (Sam Flanagan Remix) Wee Willie - Get Some (Aroop Roy Rework) Prince - 17 Days (Zach Witness Version) Kelly G - Feels Good (Yeah!) (Kelly G. Little Louie Party Mix) AXNÉR - Got The Look (DK’s Super Disco Edit) Jungle - GOOD TIMES (Braxe + Falcon Remix) L’Impératrice - Submarine (Todd Edwards Remix) AXNÉR - Shout From The Rooftop (John Morales M+M Club Mix) Freda Payne - I Get High (On Your Memory) 5) What are your plans for the foreseeable future? Can we expect an album? We’re currently working towards an EP & a live show in May. It’s going to sound a little different. Still rhythmical with plenty of grooves, actually more Balearic in places, which you’ll be happy to hear! Thank you so much, Chris & Julia!

There are names you can't forget. I was absolutely thrilled to be able to chat with Rob Calcutt, who is a dedicated Listener of the show, a great requester and Colleen's friend! Rob has put together a guided, 45-minute journey for Balearic Breakfast listeners, containing all kinds of breathwork and ambient sounds. You can get this at www.urbanhealer.co.uk/balearicbreakfast 1) Hello Rob! So happy to have you here! You've been a longtime listener of the show! Working as a shamanic practitioner, it all makes sense to me! Can you tell us more about your professional practice? I ditched the corporate ladder 15 years ago to provide support to victims of violent crime & terrorism, later moving to prisoner rehabilitation & homeless services. I'm also a shamanic practitioner, which is a thread that began in the Australian outback in 2003. These days I work with misfits and outsiders in the urban jungle, since the queer experience lends itself to this kind of narrative. I offer a range of things from drum/gong journeys to guided visualisation, breathwork, plant medicine ceremonies, tarot readings and other fun stuff, both online and in-person (North London). I’m also a proud cat mother - Fred, since you asked. 🐈‍⬛🤣 2) What is your approach to music? I'm sure you use it in some ways during your professional practice. But, more than that, does your professional practice influence the way you listen to it and the way you Experience it? I'm not a fan of New Age spirituality, so flutes and panpipes aren't really my bag. More Brian Eno and less Clannad, please (no offence, Enya). I sometimes incorporate music in my ceremonies, since they're quite long and cover a dramatic arc. This can include Biosonic tuning forks, singing bowls, shamanic drums, rainsticks, rattles, leaf bundles, tingsha cymbals, an ocean drum and a bull roarer for dramatic effect. It's all about holding space and framing silence, so when I'm working, any musical interventions are to facilitate a natural flow, rather than prescribe a specific mood. On a normal day, anything goes! 3) Do you believe Souls can communicate through music? I have a powerful feeling about what Colleen "sends us" through the way she mixes and the musical choices she makes. There's more than just music in Balearic Breakfast. Does it make sense to you? Complete sense yes. Since conscious listening is about stopping time and coming into the present moment. Giving someone your undivided attention is a rare and meaningful gift in today's world, and there's something about the immediacy and community that translates across Wi-Fi. 4) You must have been appealed by Colleen's aphorism! According to you, what does it really take to "Be Balearic"? I spent a huge portion of the nineties and noughties as a beach slug, passed out listening to Jon Sa Trinxa. Jon's music was always about accessing a flow state and he'd change it up depending on the weather, positioning of the sun, or how nature was responding on a given day. I still love Ibiza despite the horrific Vegas takeover in recent years. Rain or shine, it was always a mood, and Pat Metheny Group's 'Slip Away' never fails to take me back. That old "Balearic" tag is a mutable genre and moving goalpost that reinvents itself every decade – so the jury's out. It’s all about searching for that b-side or vinyl oddity and flexing rigid genre restrictions to blend seamlessly alongside 80s synth-pop, acid folk, early house, flamenco guitar and Bristol trip-hop. Anything Steely Dan wouldn’t do without his fez on, basically! 🤠🙃 ... And YES, you can overthink these things, but isn't that the point? 😜 5) You were featured in the 159th episode of the series; congratulations! Can you tell us more about how you prepared your set and what you wanted to convey? The first thing I did was panic. HOW on Earth was I supposed to curate a setlist of tracks that haven’t already been aired on the show, whilst still making it light and listenable? I guess my secret weapon was an obscure South Korean jazz import from ‘93. I don’t understand a word, but somehow, the sentiment still transmits. Playing ‘jazz’ (a blanket term for depraved Western music, not sanctioned by the state) has been a crime in North Korea since the 50s, so I hope it somehow carried across the border. 🙏 Being a 40-something gay man, I'm also a cliché – so Madonna had to feature. 🤣 It's a good Madge moment, though – I'll let you decide if this lowers the tone! 🤔 It was a pleasure to have you here Rob! Thank you!

When I launched the blog, I wanted to share the "Family Feeling" I felt on the Mixcloud chat. Bertrand Vraiment is a passionate member of the Family indeed! Let's meet him! To our French readers, we translated the interview below, enjoy! 1) Hello Bertrand! I am so happy to have you here on the Balearic Breakfast Blog! How did your musical journey start as a kid? What were your influences while growing up? Hi Artur, thank you very much for the invitation! My passion for music dates back to my youth, taking shape during my teenage period. At that time, my early party experiences coincided with the emergence of French house in the mid-90s, with Daft Punk leading the way, of course! It was a period of positive and joyful music, perfect for partying and bringing people together. This influence remains relevant to the music I dig and appreciate today. My true musical turning point occurred in 2001 when I moved to Paris for my studies. My radio was consistently tuned to Radio Nova and FG. I particularly remember the late-night show called 'Al-Loungez Vous', two hours of downtempo music hosted by selectors like Eric Rug, Gilb'R, Emmanuel S, and especially Chloé, whom I was a big fan of at the time. A style quite close to the Balearic spirit – Hazard ou Coincidence? Je ne crois pas! 😊 2) You invited me a couple of times to your live sets, and I must say I love how you mix! Can you tell us more about your passion for DJing? Ahah, thanks again, Artur! I enjoy preparing these live sessions with the Melomaniacs, alternating between the latest additions to my collection and tunes I've accumulated over the past twenty years! As in Balearic Breakfast, I like gradually building up the rhythm and exploring some curiosities before transitioning from disco to house, which is generally a winning formula! Regarding the technique, I quickly wanted to feel comfortable behind the turntables. During my studies, I actively organized parties and was part of the school bar team. Every Wednesday, we provided 4 hours of vinyl music for parties 200 to 300 students attended! Between these events, I would take the organization's MK2s and Ecler mixer to practice in my student apartment. Looking back, it reflects my significant motivation at the time. As a result, I completed my studies with a degree, a certain confidence behind the turntables, and a lasting addiction to records! 3) Do you believe being part of the Melomaniacs enhances your journey? Absolutely! The Melomaniacs have played a key role in my musical emancipation since I arrived in London in late 2021. This group of music enthusiasts formed through regular participation in the same radio shows, primarily Gilles Peterson and Worldwide. fm, where Balearic Breakfast started. The dedicated members of Colleen's Balearic Breakfast on Tuesday mornings include Pops, Mofonk, SwayOfTheVerses, JL, Curate, and Sean, to name just a few. We now have between 20 and 30 participants actively contributing to the Melomaniacs community, sharing our live or recorded mixtapes on our Mixcloud page, and performing in London. What is appreciable is the musical curiosity of each member, the bridges between musical genres, and mutual support for our musical projects and ambitions. These are wonderful people who have become friends! Personally, having worked abroad for about fifteen years, I remained a collector without really being able to share my passion. I discovered the Melomaniacs thanks to JL one Wednesday night at BBE Store, where Louie Vega was a guest. He then invited me to the monthly Melomaniacs show on RunDemRadio hosted by Charlie Dark. Since then, I've been doing live sessions for the Melomaniacs once a month from my home, which we've dubbed "Disco Towers," and it always brings a smile to my face. Thanks to the Melomaniacs, I became a more diligent collector, a more active DJ and, therefore, a happier man! 4) Lately, you launched the "Boogie Across Borders" YouTube channel! Congratulations! What is the reason fueling this new musical adventure? Thank you for asking about Boogie Across Borders Artur! This recently created YouTube channel is a natural progression of my musical journey. I share approximately one-hour mixes of 12* records every two weeks on YouTube. Boogie Across Borders allows me to organize and share my music collection in a targeted way. What I particularly appreciate at the moment is that I manage this project from A to Z, from selecting the records to video editing and then publishing and following it up via an Instagram page. However, I want to open the doors to other DJs to participate in this project. Two Melomaniacs have proposed interesting selections entirely in line with the spirit of Boogie Across Borders. They will soon come to spin at Disco Towers, and I am really excited to host them! I conceptualized Boogie Across Borders around two distinct axes. First, the idea is to share about a dozen songs from a particular country, exploring the period of the 80s when traditional music blended with disco sounds. I present tunes specific to the chosen country, often from the mid-70s, following the evolution throughout records. We discover catchy sounds with slapped bass that I particularly love. The second axis is dedicated to original disco music from the United States, shared year by year between 1977 and 1983. I like to alternate between iconic songs of the time and more obscure gems discovered over the years. This approach reveals interesting trends, ranging from original disco bands to the rise of divas, especially in 1979 in my selection, and the arrival of synthesizers in the 80s. In this adventure, my program is already planned until the summer of 2024, but I wonder about the future. Will I continue by sharing my passion for House music? Time will tell! 5) What makes Balearic Breakfast so special to you? Balearic Breakfast is special to me because Colleen offers us two hours of meticulously selected music every week that takes us through various styles and eras. While respecting the Balearic style and injecting her personality as a lover of the '70s/'80s, inspired by the Loft and the spirit of David Mancuso. It's exciting to see Colleen bring together a passionate community from many countries, such as Italy, France, Greece, Spain, England, and even the United States, with Bert François waking up at dawn to listen to the show live from New York! It was only natural for me to become a dedicated listener of Balearic Breakfast. Upon my arrival in London, I attended the exhibition by photographer Bill Bernstein, capturing moments in New York clubs in the late '70s and early '80s. Colleen interviewed him at Defected Records on that occasion. By the way, I am the proud owner of the iconic Larry Levan photograph at Paradise Garage, visible on almost all my Instagram posts, reminding everyone that the music I love originates from that spirit and era. A few months later, the first significant party I attended in London was Hacienda 51, where Colleen performed. It was the first time I saw her live. Shortly after, I attended a Loft party right next to my place in East London. There were too many coincidences not to be more interested in Colleen's musical world. Consequently, I became a regular listener, not only for the musical universe that Colleen "Cosmo" Murphy presents, which I fully endorse, but also to discover new tracks that I later play on vinyl 😊 Thank you so much Bertrand, Vraiment! 1) Salut Bertrand ! Je suis très heureux de t'avoir ici sure le Balearic Breakfast blog! Enfant, comment a commencé ton voyage musical ? Quelles étaient tes influences pendant ton adolescence? Salut Artur, merci beaucoup pour l’invitation ! Ma passion pour la musique remonte à ma jeunesse, prenant forme pendant mon adolescence. À cette époque, mes premières soirées ont coïncidé avec l’émergence de la French house au milieu des années 90, avec Daft Punk en tête, bien sûr ! Une musique positive et joyeuse, propice à la fête et au rassemblement, cette influence est toujours d'actualite a propos de la musique que je recherche et apprécie de nos jours. Mon véritable tournant musical a eu lieu en 2001, lorsque j’ai déménagé à Paris pour mes études. Ma radio était constamment réglée sur Radio Nova et FG. Je me souviens notamment de l’émission en deuxième partie de soirée appelée ‘Al-Loungez Vous’, deux heures de musique downtempo animées par des sélecteurs tels que Eric Rug, Gilb’R, Emmanuel S, et surtout Chloé, grand fan a l'epoque. Un style assez proche de l’esprit de Balearic Breakfast, hasard ou coïncidence ? Je ne crois pas ! 2) Tu m'as invité à plusieurs de tes sessions live sure Mixcloud et je dois dire queue j'adore ta façon de mixer! Peux-tu nous en dire plus sure ta passion pour le Djing? Eheh, merci encore Artur! J’aime préparer ces Live sessions avec les Melomaniacs, alternant entre les derniers arrivages dans ma collection et les morceaux que j’ai accumulés au fil des vingt dernières années ! À l’image de Balearic Breakfast, j’apprécie monter progressivement le rythme, explorant quelques curiosités avant de glisser de la disco vers la house, une formule généralement gagnante ! En ce qui concerne la technique, j’ai rapidement cherché à me sentir à l’aise derrière les platines vinyles. Durant mes études, j’ai été actif dans l’organisation des soirées et ai fait partie de l’équipe du bar de l’école. Chaque semaine, le mercredi, nous assurions 4 heures de musique vinyle lors de soirées rassemblant 200 à 300 étudiants ! Entre ces rendez-vous, je prenais les MK2 et la table de mixage Ecler de l’association pour m’entraîner dans mon appartement d’étudiant. Rétrospectivement, cela témoigne de ma grande motivation à l’époque ! Ainsi, j’ai terminé mes études avec un diplôme, une certaine assurance derrière les platines, et une addiction persistante pour les disques ! 3) Estimes-tu que faire partie des Melomaniacs enrichit ton voyage musical? Absolument ! Les Melomaniacs ont joué un rôle clé dans mon émancipation musicale suite a mon arrivée à Londres fin 2021. Ce groupe de passionnés s’est formé grâce à une participation régulière aux mêmes émissions de radio, en tête de file Gilles Peterson et Worldwide.fm, où Balearic Breakfast a débuté d'ailleurs. Les membres assidus de Balearic Breakfast animé par Colleen le mardi matin incluent Pops, Mofonk, SwayOfTheVerses, JL, Curate et Sean, pour n’en nommer que quelques-uns. Nous sommes maintenant entre 20 et 30 à participer à faire vivre le crew Melomaniacs, partageant nos mixtapes en direct ou enregistrées sur notre page Mixcloud, et effectuant des performances à Londres. Ce qui est appréciable, c’est la curiosité musicale de chacun, les passerelles de genres musicaux qui existent entre les membres, et le soutien mutuel dans nos projets et ambitions musicaux. Ce sont des personnes formidables qui sont devenues des amis! Personnellement, après avoir travaillé à l’étranger pendant une quinzaine d’années, je suis resté collectionneur sans vraiment pouvoir partager ma passion. J’ai découvert les Melomaniacs grâce à JL un mercredi soir chez BBE Store, où Louie Vega était l’invité. Il m’a ensuite invité au show mensuel des Melomaniacs sur RunDemRadio de Charlie Dark. Depuis lors, je réalise des lives pour les Melomaniacs une fois par mois depuis chez moi, que nous avons surnommé “Disco Towers”, ce qui me fait bien rire. Grâce aux Melomaniacs, je suis devenu un collectionneur plus assidu, un DJ plus actif et donc un homme plus heureux ! 4) Récemment tu as lancé la chaine Youtube "Boogie Across Borders"! Félicitations! Qu'est ce qui a motivé le commencement de cette nouvelle aventure? Merci de poser la question sur Boogie Across Borders 🙂 Cette chaîne YouTube récemment créée représente la suite naturelle de mon évolution musicale. J’y partage des mixes de 12 disques d’environ une heure que je publie toutes les deux semaines sur YouTube. Boogie Across Borders me permet d’organiser et de partager de manière ciblée ma collection musicale. Ce que j’apprécie particulièrement pour le moment, c’est que je gère ce projet de A à Z, de la sélection des disques, aux prises et montages vidéo, jusqu’à sa publication et son suivi via la page Instagram. Pour autant, je souhaite ouvrir les portes à d’autres DJs pour participer a ce projet. Deux Melomaniacs m’ont proposé des sélections intéressantes, respectant tout à fait l’esprit de Boogie Across Borders. Ils vont bientôt venir tourner à Disco Towers, et je suis vraiment excité de les recevoir ! J’ai conceptualisé Boogie Across Borders autour de deux axes distincts. D’abord, l’idée est de partager une douzaine de morceaux d’un pays particulier, explorant la période des années 80 où les musiques traditionnelles se sont entremêlées aux sonorités disco. Je propose ainsi des morceaux propres au pays choisi, souvent du milieu des années 70, en suivant l’évolution au fil des disques. On y découvre des sons entraînants avec des basses “slappées” que j’affectionne particulièrement. Le deuxième axe est consacré à la musique disco originelle des États-Unis, partagée année par année entre 1977 et 1983. J’aime alterner entre des morceaux emblématiques de l’époque et des pépites plus obscures découvertes au fil des années. Cette démarche révèle des tendances intéressantes, allant des disco bands à l’origine, à l’avènement des divas, surtout en 1979 dans ma selection, et à l’arrivée des synthétiseurs dans les années 80. Dans cette aventure, mon programme est déjà planifié jusqu’à l’été 2024, mais je m’interroge sur la suite. Partager dans de prochains épisodes ma passion pour la House music ? L’avenir le dira. 5) Qu'est ce qui fait que Balearic Breakfast est si spécial à tes yeux? Balearic Breakfast est particulier parce que Colleen nous offre chaque semaine deux heures de musique minutieusement sélectionnée qui nous transporte à travers les styles et les époques. Tout en respectant le style Balearic et en injectant sa personnalité d’amoureuse des années 70/80, inspirée du Loft et de l’esprit de David Mancuso. Il est enthousiasmant de constater que Colleen rassemble une communauté passionnée issue de nombreux pays tels que l’Italie, la France, la Grèce, l’Espagne, l’Angleterre et même les États-Unis, avec Bert François qui se lève aux aurores pour écouter le show en direct depuis New York ! En ce qui me concerne, c’est tout naturellement que je suis devenu un auditeur assidu de Balearic Breakfast. À mon arrivée à Londres, j’ai assisté à l’exposition du photographe Bill Bernstein sur ces moments capturés dans les clubs new-yorkais à la fin des années 70 et au début des années 80. Colleen l’avait interviewé chez Defected Records à cette occasion. Au passage, je suis l’heureux possesseur du cliché emblématique de Larry Levan au Paradise Garage, que l’on peut voir sur quasiment tous mes posts Instagram, histoire de rappeler que la musique que j’aime trouve ses racines dans cet esprit et cette époque. Quelques mois plus tard, la première grande fête à laquelle j’ai participé à Londres était Hacienda 51, où Colleen a eu une performance. C’était la première fois que je la voyais en direct. Dans la foulée, j’ai assisté à une soirée au Loft, qui était à côté de chez moi dans l’est de Londres. Il y avait trop de coïncidences pour ne pas m’intéresser plus largement à la musique de Colleen. Ainsi, je suis devenu un auditeur régulier, tant pour l’univers musical que propose Colleen “Cosmo” Murphy, auquel j’adhère pleinement, que pour découvrir de nouveaux morceaux que je convertis ensuite en vinyle 🙂 Merci Bertrand, Vraiment!

How do you start a New Year? Simply by asking a Legend to tell you his Story. That's what I did by contacting D.C. Larue! We had a chat, let's see how he's building Cathedrals... 1) Hello David, I'm over the moon to have you here on the Balearic Breakfast Blog! Colleen played "Cathedrals" on the 158th episode of the show. You shared in an interview that the Idea for the song was born during a party at the loft when Steve D'Acquisto said, "Ahh, Discos are the Cathedrals of now!" Yet, Instead, the lyrics seem to present, within a worried world, a somewhat sad statement of abandoned cult places. Do you remember how the lyrics came to you and what you wanted to convey through them? Hello Artur, and thanks for having me! First of all the "CATHEDRALS" metafore included and covered more than just discos although I was at THE LOFT when it inspired me. It sounded like the perfect title for a concept album. Concept albums were the big thing in music at the time. The lyrics refer to all the various places that were part of what was considered the "disco" lifestyle at that moment ("they're in the dance halls [ie discos]"). And, at the time, I don't believe those places were abandoned. Were they ever truly abandoned? I don't think so. They still apply today from what I can see. I might add that they weren't specifically referring to gays (try to watch the "LOOKING FOR MISTER GOODBAR" film. It says it all about it being a heterosexual thing as well). It took me a few weeks to come up with a title track for the album. The first song was "I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU". I wrote the melody and lyrics over those wonderful  "churchie" chords. I thought it was very appropriate considering the album title. Then came "CATHEDRALS". Aram presented a guitar riff and a chord progression and it took me about an hour to come up with a melody and lyrics. It just happened. No great story. Maybe it was just a tad autobiographical! Then I wanted to write lyrics to a mass (album title again) and I had always loved Handel's MESSIAH so I arbitrarily chose a movement and wrote the song "I'LL STILL BE HERE FOR YOU".  The final track and the least disco of the album was "DEEP, DARK, DELICIOUS NIGHT''. It was a tune I had written around 1974. I was a huge Bruce Springsteen fan and wanted it to be very much like "BORN TO RUN''. Aram tried his best to "disco-fy'' it but it was always a little too rock and too fast. From end to end, the song chronicles a love affair from its inception to the waiting for the unfaithful lover and the realization of how hopeless searching for true love is, then accepting reality and dancing off into the night search for sex with no expectations of love! 2) Another track on that incredible album of yours, my personal favourite, is "I Don't Want to Lose You", with its whooping 14:14 minutes, allowing you, through music, silence and a swirling wind, to, once again, present a very pictural track to the listener. Of course, in hindsight, we see the "Summer Influence" there, but still, the visual capabilities are stronger. Do you believe that Disco, thanks to its intrinsic musical structure, helped musicians create a vision that freed the listener? Correct! "LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY" was a huge influence. I had been recording since 1961 to no avail. Then I signed with KIRSHNER RECORDS in 1975, the record was produced by Wally Gold and arranged by Ron Frangipane. I felt it was the best I had made in my life. It was not successful and it was because of the music business politics and payola. At that point, I promised myself that I would never record again... Then I met Aram Schefrin while doing the graphic design for his TEN WHEEL DRIVE album and we became great friends. And at that juncture, I started going out and dancing at the disco in my neighbourhood. One evening at 12 WEST the dj Tom Savarese played Donna's track and it blew my mind! Stopped me cold. And it did make me want to record again, if for no other reason except to make a similar recording.  So the flame had been ignited. Then, a month or so went by and Steve came up with the "CATHEDRALS" title. I presented the concept to Aram and he loved the idea. I wrote "I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU" and played him "LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY" as a template. It's better and more densely musical because I feel Aram was a great arranger and producer and creatively different from Georgio Moroder. Do I believe that Disco, because of its intrinsic musical structure, helped musicians create a vision that freed the listener as well? Of course!! 3) An insider of the Disco Era, you saw its rise, lived its fall, and met the greatest names associated with its history. Though as we know it, people were still fighting for equity and a recognition of their freedom on many levels, it seems musically there was "something more". How do you reflect upon what you experienced back then as an artist? Unannounced to me I was breaking a lot of the rules and making a lot of music people very unhappy. I could never get on Top 40 radios because of my lyrics and the length of my tracks. By 1981, I was very bitter and felt abused. I wanted nothing to do with disco for about 30 years. Fortunately, I have lived to see a total 360-degree turn in the respect and acceptance of disco. I will pass knowing I was right and courageous and innovating and, I guess, years before my time. I am thankful to have lived to see it happen again. Now I am having more top-five charting tracks with my remixes than I could have imagined. And this upcoming year of 2024, there are so many vinyl releases and new remixes scheduled for release. It Makes me very happy, indeed. And that "something more" you refer to was just that. If you were open to new experiences, just listening to the disco from that era was a life-changing experience... with or without the drugs. But I guess, looking back, it took courage. Really. Going to a disco was nothing like hanging out at an EAGLES concert with your friends. It was an entirely different communal experience. 4) 2018 saw the release of brand new remixes of some of your tracks, including "Cathedrals", after you got your hands back on your masters! Soundwise, it's brilliant! We owe these new remixes to your dedication towards your body of work! I have only known one thing in my life and that is to do what I love. I don't think I ever (and to this very day) thought much about the future. My dreams are of the moment. I never cared about the money, I only created for the joy of creating. And the universe has always taken care of my needs. That's about it! 5) You launched your radio show in 2020: DISCO JUICE is listened to by a Worldwide audience. Though you haven't produced any new music for quite a long time, can we expect new music from you in the future? As you stated rightfully, my DISCO JUICE programs contain disco at its very best and are doing great with thousands of listeners around the world! I even listen to them myself! Musically speaking, as long as these brilliant young DJs and musicians keep reaching out to rework my music, it will be there for them. In a sense, I am reproducing all my past recordings through them and making new recordings all the time. But don't expect brand-new music from me in the future, as, unfortunately, the disco muse flew away 35 years ago! Sorry! I wish you all a Happy New Year and the best for 2024! Cheers! D.C.

When I heard "Silent Messages", it took me away. George's music is like an invisible hand, leading you towards an unknown destination. I had to meet the man behind the trip... 1) Thank you so much, George, for joining me here on the Balearic Breakfast blog! Your track « Silent Messages » was played by Colleen on Balearic Breakfast, and it shares with the 3 other tracks of your EP something allying solid but non-overwhelming bass, an extended sonic soundstage, with a beautiful equilibrium of musicality and realism in some of the effects (which are quite seizing on secret messages!). When composing a track, does it happen to you that you already have in mind the sound you would like to achieve in the mastering process? Thank you for having me on the Balearic Breakfast blog, Artur; it is a truly fantastic experience for me. I have immense appreciation for your work and Colleen's shows, and this blog is a constant source of inspiration for me. Your warm welcome and featuring my track in the show were truly highlights. 'Silent Messages' was born from the realization that our interactions often convey much more than the mere words we speak. The title emerged in parallel with the song's production, which is typical for me. I might start with one title and concept, but as the creative process unfolds, it can undergo significant changes, leading to a completely new name and concept. This creative evolution is active during the writing, production, and mixing phases. What drew me into electronic music was the unique opportunity to explore subtle nuances and convey various shades of the same emotional colour. In my productions, I prefer to explore different shades and their interplay rather than using many different colours. Throughout the production process, a concept gradually takes shape and evolves during this creative journey. While a track is never truly 'finished' in the traditional sense, at a certain point, it's ready to meet its audience and embark on its unique voyage. 2) When listening to your other musical creations (thinking about « Stop, look, listen), one can feel there is a worried touch to your music, enhanced by the non-harmonic tones you put here and there, almost lending a hand to sadness but without totally falling into it. The listener is almost always on the verge of surprise when listening to your music. Is there a hidden (and Balearic…) message in there you are trying to convey? 'Stop, Look, Listen' marked a significant turning point in my approach to production and my connection to the broader Balearic community. Collaborating with NuNorthern Soul and Phil Cooper offered me a valuable opportunity to channel my creative potential and cultivate trust in my instincts. In my music, I always seek to introduce moments of tension and carefully develop them in the track I am working on. Often, subtle moments of tension arise unexpectedly during the production process. Rather than viewing them as mistakes, I see them as fortunate occurrences that I strive to preserve. I have always appreciated these nuances or imperfections in other artists and I believe they are integral to defining the character of the music and the artist. So I devote careful attention to them and try to make way for them in my compositions, especially when they bring a fresh perspective or the element of pleasant surprise. While my music doesn't convey hidden messages, it is anchored in recurring emotions that you'll find in much of my work. These emotions primarily stem from a sense of nostalgia. Not for a specific place but rather for an ideal imaginary place. It's a complex feeling of fulfilment and well-being in this present moment while being aware that there is much more to the human experience than meets the eye. Simultaneously, there's a deep gratitude for the places, moments, and people that life has introduced along the way. In many ways, it echoes the story of Odysseus, who yearns for home and ultimately returns to Ithaca. 3) In 2001, Michael Jackson issued “Invincible”, an album showcasing a very specific and modern approach to sound. Do you believe an artist should work on his sonic identity? How much is that aspect important to you? In addition to my deep love for my family and music, I have a deep passion for innovation and engineering. In my view, progress doesn't necessarily mean only moving forward. It can also involve taking steps backwards when it's the right move at the right time. Often, we readily embrace technology and the array of options it offers, overlooking the fact that limitations can actually fuel our creative potential. Recently, I had the opportunity to listen to isolated a cappella backing tracks of Michael Jackson's iconic productions from the Quincy Jones/Rod Temperton era, and they were simply breathtaking. These tracks are complete compositions on their own. For me, researching and developing my music is a key motivator. I view this development as moving along different dimensions and playing with limitations. Juxtapositions such as dense versus sparse, lighter tones versus darker tones, or even using the guitar in unconventional ways in place of a synth part, often serve as the starting points for my creative journey. Speaking of which, I'm keen to get my hands on a vinyl copy of "Invincible." Vinyl offers a unique way to truly experience the music, and I've heard great reviews about this album. 4) You shared with me your past musical experiences, which are absolutely impressive. If there was one thing you learned from all of these years working in music, which one would it be? I can only share my personal experiences and lessons, hoping they can be valuable to even a few readers. However, we can all agree that each person's journey is unique, and there are no real mistakes as long as they come from within and teach us something. We live in an era where knowledge is more accessible than ever, and many people are eager to share their expertise and offer support. Decide what it is that you want to learn and pursue it with intention. I mean, simply browsing through videos and teasers won't get you far, but purposeful research can be immensely helpful. Music production is an ongoing journey, but it means little without developing the creative facets of our personality as well. Many iconic recordings were created with very limited resources and even feature what some might call 'mistakes.' However, these 'mistakes' didn't diminish their mass appeal and enduring legacy. Finding your own voice and fully owning it is the most important objective any artist or any creative person could have. Everything else stems from that. 5) What are your future plans? A couple of months before the end of 2023, I had the privilege of releasing my new mini-album titled "Silent Messages" with the Barcelona-based label Balearic Ensemble (https://balearicensemble.bandcamp.com/). Working with Vitor Silva and all the label's collaborators was an absolute thrill, and I'm particularly delighted with every aspect, from the mastering to the artwork. The album swiftly made its debut through Dream Chimney and was warmly embraced, receiving airplay on Balearic Breakfast and numerous other fantastic shows and mixes. I'm always deeply grateful to all the DJs and producers who take the time to listen to my music and seamlessly blend it with the incredible releases that drop month by month. As a token of my appreciation, I make sure to feature new mixes in my social media sources and promote the shows within my networks. In 2024, I plan to continue supporting and promoting "Silent Messages" and even consider some remixes or reworks. Additionally, I'm diligently working on a concept album of short ambient tracks that I like to call "post-chill." I believe there's room for a more accessible yet still captivating and organic chill sound. Furthermore, I'm interested in assembling a small music group where we can collaborate, using original tunes and reworking tracks from my back catalogue. They say there are too many ideas and too little time, and I couldn't agree more! Participating in Balearic Breakfast and sharing my thoughts and experiences has been an absolute pleasure. I'm especially grateful to Colleen and to you, Artur, for the incredible work you're doing. The Balearic community is a vibrant and ever-evolving hub of artists, and the opportunity to share our ideas and stories is something I deeply cherish. Here's to a Happy New Year! Thank you so much, George! Merry Christmas to you and to our Balearic Breakfast Family! George's Musical Journey... "Silent Messages" is such an important track to me that I wanted to discover more about George's musical universe. He gladly shared his story with me. Here it is, enjoy... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uht4FhLTs7Q: a little history University freshman and member of the pop-rock band Rififi circa 95. It's too bad that the original YouTube videos have been taken down due to copyright claims because this song has reached over 100K hits, whereas a number of other band hits (not with me in them) were over 2 Million. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyEBWtlGbRY Since 2010 I have been self-producing my music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5FIbKRDf7c: circa 2010 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSWGnMIP0S0: Spring Breeze (Scatters the Flowers): another original and unreleased track. I am happy for the careless vibes and ultra-smooth sound https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDd-N35clAA: this somehow started the Balearic trip. This short-lived duo called FAREL freed me to play more openly and compose a sound closer to my long soul-jazz influences in the spirit of Grant Green, Pat Martino and Ronnie Jordan. I produced the video and sent it around. Immediately as I posted this on Facebook, Grant Williams of Eclectics label made a very supportive endorsement. At around the same time, a short demo went to Phil, and he decided to sign me in Nu Northern Soul. This has led to my first album with the label "Stop, Look, Listen" in 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFVwYLx_klg: "Theme For My Father" is a nod to two of my favourite artists, Steely Dan, who used the bass line of "Song for My Father" by Horace Silver in their famous "Rikki Don't Lose that number". Of course, the similarities ended up much less obvious, but I have kept the title. One of the bands that have led the not-so-recent Yacht Rock craze with original material, impeccable musicianship and LA-style lush productions is the State Cows, a duo of great Swedish musicians. At some point, I contacted one half of this duo, Stefan Olofsson, an amazing keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist, and he decided to contribute to the Rhodes el. piano riffs and solos in this track. I take some chances with my guitar as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_HM2R_nB-o: "Early Morning Ferry" is still the most listened track from this album. I prepared the video with my own footage from a place that I like to visit during summer. It's not far from Athens but it's great. Actually, it seems other famous people prefer this same place too!  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11121089/Boris-Carrie-Johnson-children-beach-holiday-Greece.html In late 2020, we talked with Phil, and he had an idea to release "Early Morning Ferry" as a beatless version. I listen to the work, and I understand it needs much more than eliminating the drums. So I offered to rework the track, and although the clock was ticking for the Winter Warmers compilation, I managed to prepare a completely revamped "Morning Ferry (Sun Fanatics Beatless Mix)" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDLZd7Kiu_Q: The track was one of the 10 tracks that were included in the Nu Northern Soul 10 years Special Anniversary Vinyl Boxset. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ul8sz51Qakc: "Stop, Look. Listen" from my album with the same name is also a very special track for me because it was the result of my effort to create an original folk-funk experience. The vocals remain undisclosed because no one would afford to disclose them (this is of the record). I was really happy that my label has decided to release this as a rework in 2022. I am still very fond of the original mix: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrFrCo2E2qo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUrEwZBR4L8 La Nuit Blanche started as a nod to the early Cafe Del Mar sounds, less electronic and more organic. Multitracked guitars and string manipulations created an ethereal sound that I was really happy to achieve. Immediately Imaginaria label masterminds Giovanni Santucci and Luca Fani liked the track and encouraged me to build a vinyl production project around it. This turned out to be a very special release that was implemented with the support of Filippo Dala VIlla of the super creative Italian agency Freskiz. You can read about the project here (I use google translate too...): https://www.frizzifrizzi.it/2022/01/11/garbin-project-tra-musica-grafica-e-illustrazione-allinsegna-della-contaminazione/ A small number of high-quality red 7' vinyl have been printed and have been available since last month: https://www.hhv.de/shop/en/item/george-koutalieris-george-koutalieris-1052632 https://www.phonicarecords.com/product/george-koutalieris-george-koutalieris-pre-order-imaginaria-records/189850 https://www.jetsetrecords.net/725006221469/ Dream Chimney is a truly special blog for me, and I have been following it for nearly 20 years! (right time flies!). I was so thrilled to see their logo in the video premiering my new album https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7xhyABvDHc https://www.instagram.com/reel/CylTYX_MkS9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Last week's Balearic Breakfast Show was a highlight for me. Not only because of my immense admiration for Colleen's work and aesthetics but also because the show was such a trip in itself. Eagle by the Abba and then the amazing Amigo by Roberto Carlos followed by the Kraak & Smaak remix of Lies put out by my friends at Naya Beat, wow just wow!!