THE MESSY MIX

Ciao, amici amanti della disco! Summer has started and I kindly invite you all for a little dance tonight. Yeah, that feels kind of strange since the world seems more on fire than ever… but maybe that’s also a necessary reminder that there are still great things worth living for. And if you ask me, a good night of Italo Disco sweetness is definitely such a thing. And that’s why I decided to dedicate an entire Messy Mix to this odd sub genre of synth pop.

However, obviously I’m not a real pioneer here because over here in Germany that revival is already in full swing. Italo Disco parties gain more and more attention in Berlin. I mean there’s even one happening at Berghain and you are actually allowed to not wear black for this (at least, nobody stopped me when I went there with a batik shirt on). And while some music revivals are questionable, this one is extremely welcomed by me.

There’s a naive beauty and simple joy in this sound. It’s the sweet spot in music history when making sounds became easier due to the invention of synthesizer while it still relied on a certain creative skill set, resulting in profound musicians creating catchy hooks – but often in a quite cringe setting. But they all loved pop music and made you dance and smile. And this mixtape is trying to catch exactly that spirit – with all the fun and flaws from 80s italo disco.

Friends, we’re right in the middle of the sweet spot of seasons, between a cosy full blooming spring and the unbearable heat waves of the summer. That calls for quality time outside with your loved ones – and if you’re in need for a proper soundtrack here, don’t scroll any further because Berlin-based DJ Jini Piju got you covered in the form of the 25th edition of my MESSY MIX series.

In a lucky coincidence Jini spring is also Jin’s favourite season so she was destined to create this hour of delicate tunes to match with the current vibe. “I stumbled upon this track called „spring has sprung“ by SOYUZ (СОЮ3), Asha Puthli & Sven Wunder,” she explains the origins of the set. “I find it very beautiful so it was clear to me that it has to be the intro to this mixtape to set the right vibe reflecting how everything’s coming alive again.”

Jini defines the spring season is a punch of energy as she further elaborates on the inspiration behind this mix: “For me it’s all about cruising around with my bike, experiencing the city in a drift, feeling the wind on my skin & enjoying how the sun tickles out the first freckles on my nose. It’s the start of endless sessions in the park, cuddling on meadows, running through fields. I want you to listen to this with a breeze in your hair, with friends in nature or at the beach. I want you to feel the primavera drift & come with me on a messy, but funky ride starting with some slow RnB, picking up on some balearic tunes, introducing a finishing touch of banging disco & one of my favorite deep house tracks.”

As the days are slowly getting warmer and longer, I am extremely excited to have one of my favourite figures of the German music scene on board to deliver the proper soundtrack for that sun-drenched vibe in the form of a brand new Messy Mix.

Tom Hessler, better known as Der Assistent, released one of my favourite records of 2024 with the mesmerizing “Amnesie am Amazonas”. The whole album is a fascinating tropical, relaxing new age trip and I was obviously longing for the man to extend that vibe in the form of a mixtape. And of course, Mr. Hessler understood the assignment. 

Welcome to “The Blue Hour”. Originally Deer Assistent wanted to call the mix „Blue Hour on a River“ to cover up the fact that it is “just another Balearic-sundown-mix” as he says. But then it went through a little change as he explains:

Creatures of the night – rejoice and join me for a Messy Mix that’s dedicated to all the mischiefs and lovers of the twilight. It’s my turn again for a set in this series and I decided to turn it into a celebration of the sublime groove gloomy music sometimes has. Want to go on a dark goth disco date with me? 

I’ve been attracted to the sombre sounds of dark wave, post-punk, and anything you could label “Goth” since my adolescence. And while I also love the colourful and life-affirming spirit of a good rave there’s something that always pulls me back to these more sinister sounds. I mean, there’s probably a reason why I named the companion playlist on my Spotify and TIDAL “Forever Goth Kid”, right? 

This Messy Mix imagines a fun night out (except you don’t smile, obviously), featuring favourite artists from the past and present. It starts with Depeche Mode’s “Black Celebration” because that sets the mood perfectly. There’s a few obvious classics in there by Bauhaus, New Order, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Xmal Deutschland and inevitable The Cure but there’s also plenty of room for contemporary dark favourites like Curses, Trentemøller, The Fauns, GEWALT, Dina Summer, The KVB or Krakow Loves Adana. 

As the reality gets equally dark quite often these days a dance to these tunes can have a cathartic effect. It surely has for me and I hope you’ll have a bit fun with this one as well.

Now, this new Messy Mix is truly special for me. Cat Byrne runs one of my favourite shows on beloved UK independent radio Balamii, called “Biorthythms”. The field recording heavy show comes quite close to my attempt with this project to tell stories through sounds.

And luckily, the talented host followed that path on “Wild Urban Edgelands” which combines her own field recordings, spoken words and sounds that suit the atmosphere of the theme.

It’s a wonderful calming and meditative selection, made for lonesome winter walks at the edge of the city and I think it’s best enjoyed with your headphones on and no interference.

I love how Cat’s sets always take me on a somewhat emotional journey and I think she really nailed it with this mix. I’m extremely happy to have her on board.

If you haven’t done it yet, please check out all the previous “Biorhythms” shows Cat recorded for Balamii where each one tells a different unique journey. Here’s the selection in her own words:

Happy new year, folks! I’m starting the 2025 season of the Messy Mix with a musical journey provided by one of my favourite artists: Mr. Martin Kohlstedt. The German composer delivers such a fitting, meditative start for the beginning of the year that I just had to immediately share it with you , once you all recovered from your NYE party hangovers. 

This mix is fittingly titled “In The Beginning” and it perfectly suits the current mood and that special storytelling approach of Martin’s music I’ve always loved. I can’t put into words how honoured I am about him taking part in this project.

Martin is back on tour this spring and these shows are always amazing, unique experiences so make sure to get a ticket for them. He’s also very entertaining and such a sweet guy on and off stage. May this mix give you the needed energy to start 2025 in the best possible way.

And, obviously, he found the right words and here’s what he said about his selection, so I’m leaving you right here with them:

Friends! It’s (almost) the end of the year and uff… what a wild one it has been. I mean it still is and you never really know what horrifying news is already waiting around the corner, right? Needless, to say – modern life can be quite exhausting and it surely has been for me personally throughout these past months. How do you keep your head up during these times? How do you remain hopeful when Trump and Co are destroying the planet?

For me the sun plays a crucial part here. Because no matter how hard things are I know for sure that it will rise again the next day. And that also gives us the chance for a new beginning. And that’s the purest, simplest form of optimism one can have.

And since this is the 20th edition of my Messy Mix series I thought I’d come up with a special set for this little milestone instead of another end-of-the-year-party-nux. This anniversary arrives in the form of a two-parted mixtape… One hour dedicated to the sunset, one hour to the sunrise. You can also enjoy them both together as one directly leads into the other, bound together by a shared soothing, calming and hopeful character.

There are plenty of personal favourites in both mixes, songs that really mean a lot to me. As we travel from the setting sun into the night we’re accompanied by The Antlers, DJ Koze, Metronomy, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Devendra Banhart, Will Samson, Odd Beholder and a few more.

The dawn breaks gently in the second part which features music from Jon Hopkins, Kelly Lee Owens, Let’s Eat Grandma, Southern Shores, The Avalanches and Doves.

As some of you might have guessed by now I’m a dedicated fan of all things that you could label as “Balearic house”. There’s just something about those delicate tropical grooves that really resonates with me. That plays a huge part of my Burnout Sumner DJ alias and as a fan of that sub-genre I got in touch with a few fellow lovers of that paradisiac sound. Attila and Szilard from Budapest are such brothers in spirit and as Pleasure Voyage they’ve been delivering wonderful sets, remixes and own productions throughout the past years. You’ll have probably spotted tunes by them in some of my sets. Now, it’s time to shed an even brighter light on them.

Usually, Pleasure Voyage’s feel-good music draws inspiration from their seaside journeys, but for Messy Mix, the guys decided to take a different route. Here’s how their “Mystical Forest Mix” came to be:

“Szilard was gazing out of his window at the misty autumn forest and felt inspired by the scene. He suggested to Attila to use this as the theme for the mix. Attila, who’s also a talented photographer, then dove into his archives to find some fitting photos that support the vibe. The mix is an ethereal, floating journey that captures the mood of the changing seasons.”

Happy to report back with a new entry of my Messy Mix series. And I’m thrilled to have one of my favourite new artists from the past years on board for this one. Emily Underhill aka Tusks has been releasing wonderful albums full of sinister, sensual and soulful songs throughout the past seven years.

Her most recent album “Gold” from earlier this year is a wonderful meditative experience and Tusks is also dropping a few alternative versions of songs from it in the form of the “Gold For Synths And Strings” EP on November 1st via One Little Independent Records.

Emily’s music is quite emotional, so it makes sense that her Messy Mix is dedicated to these emotions and feelings as she also explains to me:

“This is my feels mix – it includes tracks that deeply move, inspire and relax me on a day to day basis and make life just feel that extra bit more beautiful and intense. I always find myself gravitating towards really emotive music with a lot of texture and a certain feeling of darkness; which I think all these tracks have in common.”

While I consider myself to be a quite okay music curator, I bow down before a man like Prop Joe because this guy remains a true expert when it comes to selecting proper tunes, surprising the audience and creating very cohesive vibes with his DJ sets. After being recently invited to be part of his legendary “Music For Ears” series I’m now more than happy to return the favour by having the man from Sydney over for his very own edition of my “Messy Mix” series.

His one-hour set is less about big musical storytelling but more about creating a very specific vibe which he fittingly labelled “Irrational International”. This set is also a little different than Prop Joe’s usual style, being more European, Arabic & Caribbean. Usually he’s always up for strolling down the hip hop, street soul / reggae path but avoided that inherent temptation in favour of something more surprising. However, the mix keeps that vibrant smooth 80s/90s retro character which I come to love about his sets and the whole “Music For Ears” series. It’s a celebration of music, especially the one that’s harder to find. And I think that’s what the job of a good curator/ DJ should be – finding those treasures, putting them in a great setting and giving the audience a good time. And let me tell you – this set is definitely giving me a good time.

Jump into the digital Delorean, kids – we’re time travelling right back to the high times of 80s synthpop. Although arriving in the sweet setting of the summer, I actually produced this mix back in personal lockdown when I caught Covid during Christmas. I found myself digging through my personal archive of 80s pop tunes while also scouting the internet for new ones. There’s something extremely fascinating about that era and this sweet spot between synthesized pop and club sounds and this is my tribute to the music of that time.

These were also the early days of remix culture and most of it was focussing on the creation of Extended Mixes that were used to literally extend the fun on the 12-inch-singles of these tunes. Lots of loops, tight basslines and MPC craziness were part of this and you can literally here the fun everybody had while playing around with this new technology in the studio. Shep Pettibone was a pioneer here so you’ll catch him a few times during this mix along with tracks by some of my all-time heroes like New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Depeche Mode, Madonna, A-ha, Bee Gees and Prefab Sprout. But next to some well-known hits there’s also room for a few hidden treasures from artists like The Blow Monkeys, Public Image Ltd., Nicole McCloud as well as Chinese performer Danny Chan.

Danish producer Kasper Bjørke is what I would consider a true good guy on multiple levels. Not only is he one of the finest DJs around, he’s also dropping great and surprising releases on a regular basis for almost two decades now, he’s also a vocal artist when it comes to political topics.

Especially environmental topics and the health of our dear planet is as equally close to Kasper’s heart as it is to mine. I consider him a brother in spirit when it comes to these things… well, and our mutual love for Balearic beats.

So, obviously… I’m thrilled that he participated in my little mixtape project.

His “Messy Mix” was inspired by (and compiled during) a recent train ride between Berlin and Copenhagen since Mr. Bjørke’s avoids flying as often as he can. The result is a soothing and wonderful listening experience.

Here’s how he describes his approach:

Oh sweet, sweet technical evolution. A bliss yet also a burden, isn’t it? And it’s affecting us all in our daily life with music being no exception at all. Audiovisual artist JJ Weihl knows a thing or two about that. Her work – whether it is in the fabulous indie band Fenster or under her solo moniker Discovery Zone is often addressing the relationship with technology. So, it’s no surprise that her Messy Mix was also inspired by her own musical and creative process in relation to how she use and interacts with different types of technology. 

Or in her own words:

“I wanted to put together a collection of songs and sounds addressing the presence of technology in our daily lives and especially in regards to the way it shapes our experience of making and consuming music.  It has become so ubiquitous that it’s almost invisible. 

Some of the songs on the mix are about technology thematically.  I chose a variety of material highlighting the use of different types of technology – from some of the earliest computer music compositions to some of the latest uses of AI in songwriting techniques.

Where do we draw the line? How does it affect our perception of what we’re listening to? What does the past show us about the present and future?

Crank up those amplifiers, folks … we’re time-travelling back to a specific period in time 20 years ago! This latest Messy Mix is a throwback to that sweet spot in modern pop history before that weird thing called “independent rock” conquered the mainstream and basically made everything “indie” in some form. It was a time when a new and exciting generation of guitar-driven bands reclaimed rock and roll and blasted it into the world with confidence and that decent level of youthful arrogance you need in that musical territory. 

This mix is my personal tribute to those sweaty nights out in sticky alternative clubs when you bands were performing while the DJ played classics and hottest underground stuff for all the cool kids in town. It was bands like The Rakes and Bloc Party who introduced me to a new musical world and of course there’s early stuff by these bands in this set which contains tracks that were released between 2002 and 2004. Next to early tunes by well-known acts like Franz Ferdinand, Gossip and Maximo Park there are also lesser known bands like The Departure, The Others, The Long Blondes or The Von Bondies (of course, they all had to have a “the”) in there. 

The voice is a beautiful instrument, isn’t it? Maybe the most essential one of all. At least for me. And I’m happy that the first Messy Mix of 2024 celebrates exactly that – the human voice. And I’m happy to have befriended Leipzig-based audiovisual artist Pony Pracht on board for this edition. Not only does she have a beautiful voice by herself but she also knows how to modulate it in a fascinating way. Well, you might have spotted her on my track “39/93” which I released last summer. Here’s the artist telling us about the approach of her selection:

“For the Messy Mix I went in search of songs in which the voice is used in an interesting way. Voices that are not solely used to convey a text in the most beautiful and intriguing manner, but also voices that are detached from the strictness of poetry and employed for instrumental purposes.“

Right next to many great artists you’ll also find the music (and voice) of Pony Pracht in this mix as well. So make sure to check out her EP “Lomb” which came out last year right after this stunning musical journey which she furthermore describes in the following words:

Happy one-year-anniversary to my Messy Mix project! And since I started it in late 2022 with a big dance party I thought it might be natural to also end this first round of mixtapes with another one. Because honestly: What else is there left to do in these troubled times then to dance the pain away, right?

Like with last year’s End-of-the-year-set I still find it challenging to gather overall hits for this one because they simply don’t exist anymore in our fragmented media landscape. But these are MY personal favourite go-to-tunes of 2023 – from the life-embracing pop of Romy and Caroline Polacheck to the disco vibes of Jessie Ware. From the comebacks of old heroes like Everything But The Girl and Bloc Party to banging rave tunes by Overmono and Mall Grab. 90 minutes of genre-hopping euphoria awaits you in the 11th edition of the Messy Mix.

Thanks for listening to it and the other Messy Mixes throughout 2023. Thanks to all the artists that contributed so far … it means the world to me.

The Messy Mix will return in 2024. Until then: Take care of each other!

Things are getty gloomy and existential in the latest edition of the MESSY MIX. And I’m very excited to have one of my favourite German groups of the past years on board for this dark adventure – HOPE from Berlin just released their long awaited and pretty brilliant second album “Navel”, a true testament of musical strength and meditative intensity.

And when I asked them to contribute something to this project I was sure to get something in a similar sense. And I’m not disappointed at all.

The band introduced their mix with the words “Growing, nurturing, dwelling. In a place of your own. In contact with the world, yet detached from it.” Yes, that sums it up pretty well. “Music For A Womb / Before We Were Born” is also a pretty epic title, I have to say.

It’s a vers fascinating 60-minute journey. Listen best with headphones and any big distraction. And then give “Navel” a spin afterwards… it’s a fitting combination.  

Here’s how HOPE describe their selection:

Following a brief summer break the Messy Mix returns and I’m happy to have a true personal favourite on board for its ninth edition. The music of Alice Costelloe has been an important part of my life for more than a decade now, mainly through the three albums of her previous band Big Deal.

That voice still does something with my heart so I’m happy that she recently returned with her first pretty lovely solo EP called “So Neurotic”. And I’m even happier that she took part in my little mixtape project.

The story Costelloe tells is one of friendship and the musical family that surrounds her. Her mix consists of tracks and artists that were recommended to her by these kind people and who ended up playing a crucial part in her life.

So, this time you’re getting a mixtape in a pure oldschool sense and it truly is a fun ride. I Hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do. And make sure to check out the sweet songs of Al Costelloe as well.

Well, and I’ll let her explain her vision in her own words now:

Nothing wrong about a proper pool party, right?

Following the last more mellow mixtapes here I decided to shake things a bit up with my latest Messy Mix and provide a proper mood-lifter that takes us right back to the heydays of late 90s hedonism. Let me invite you to a posh pool party with way too cool people that takes place somewhere in 1998. While I was clearly too young and too uncool to ever get invited to such a celebration I always envisioned it as a place where slick house music grooves would be playing so that’s why I compiled these tunes from around ‘95 to ‘98. So this set ended up including legendary producers like Dave Morales, Tony Humphries, Mousse T., Bob Sinclair and Danny Tenaglia. You’ll find a few legendary pop smashers in there as well, just in a different musical form.

Even without the pool party context this selection represents a sound I’ve been digging a lot lately. Maybe there’s a nostalgic notion in there as well, maybe it’s the summer. Well, I’ll leave the interpretation up to you. Until then: Grab a drink, enjoy the summer days and dream yourself away to a better place. Love, Burnout Sumner

Ah, sweet sweet summer sun. We better enjoy it all before it gets too unbearably hot, right? A good sunrise is even better when it happens across the sea and when the impending new day isn’t packed with work or other commitments – and this new Messy Mix is dedicated to that special feeling. To capture it I asked Leipzig-based DJ and music lover Gili who I first met during a party of our mutual friends Stolen Money Posse and whose sets I’ve been enjoying a lot since then.

However, I quickly noticed that Gili is not just about nice house bangers but has an eclectic musical taste. And the timing for my message to her couldn’t have been better as it collided with her trip to beautiful Sardinia and that elated feeling that you just get when you have just arrived in a beautiful place and know that you will stay there for the next few days.

The result is a mixtape that is closely connected to her vacation experience and Gili’s thinking and feeling there as she explains.

The arrival of spring always comes with a feeling of renewal to me personally. It’s a fresh start after a harsh winter and it always fills my heart with joy and energy to experience the “return” of nature as everything gets more colourful again. You know these spontaneous strolls you do during that time when you suddenly realize that winter is gone? That’s the feeling I wanted to capture with the sixth episode of the Messy Mix.

Going for longer walks around Berlin’s surprisingly green neighbourhood (at least where I live in the Wedding district) really helps me to put things in perspective. And yeah, I guess during the Covid-pandemic we all learned the importance of that to a certain degree. So, this is my tribute to these meditative moments, to the fields, to nature’s regenerative power and the overall beauty of spring, even in such desperate times like now. 

The louder and the more chaotic this world gets the more we all long for silence. But is true silence even possible in an accelerated world of noise? Norwegian artist Tuva Hellum Marschhäuser aka Tuvaband asked herself the same question when we started talking about her very own Messy Mix. “I’ve realised it’s never really completely silent,” she says. “Silence always has a sound. Sometimes I want to control what silence sounds like.“ And this fifth edition of my ongoing mixtape project wants to do exactly that – it gives the silence a sound, handpicked by Tuva.

The result is a fascinating and very calming listening experience, packed with a few familiar names like Nicolas Jaar, Sylvan Esso as well as a brief musical greeting from Tuvaband at the end it are tracks and sounds that are unknown to me. Almost 90 minutes of meditative pleasure for your personal retreat from whatever the heck is going on right now in the world. It’s an invitation to deepdive into these calming sounds and maybe even yourself and I’m thanking Tuvab very much for this beautiful trip about which she says:

I have a long lasting fascination for the whole Blade Runner franchise ever since I first saw Ridley Scott’s iconic science-fiction movie as a kid. I also enjoyed playing the PC game that was released back in 1996 as well as the late follow-up movie from a few years ago. In many ways that movie might have initiated a subtle love for dystopian fiction and those desolate worlds which fascinate me ever since. The saddening fact that our society is slowly heading towards such a bleak scenario is quite an iconic twist here. Maybe I need that reminder that things can get even worse in order to fight for a better future. I honestly can’t tell.

I’ve been digging the whole aesthetic of the movie as well as the sound that late Greek composer Vangelis composed for it in 1982. So, the idea to explore this world musically is a very personal one and I came up with the question: How would a night out in that dystopian moloch of futuristic Los Angeles look like? What if Harrison Ford’s Rick Deckard went from club to club during one of those rainy nights? Do androids rave to electronic beats? That’s the story I wanted to tell with this tape.

This Messy Mix is constantly switching between quiet and loud moments with an overall feeling of darkness and doom clouding it. The more melancholic ambient moments (including music from the original 1982 score as well as from the 2017 sequel by Hans Zimmer and Ben Wallfisch) are interrupted by pumping and heavy electronic beats, underlining the intensity of the scenery. In it you’ll find the work of admired contemporary producers like Daniel Avery, Rival Consoles, Ellen Alien, HAAi,Kurt Uenala, Moderat and a few more surprises. It’s indeed a journey right towards the end when Jehnny Beth fittingly states “I used to be a human being”; something that’s quite fitting to the themes of this series. Link is in the Bio and I surely hope you’ll enjoy it.

I’ve been happy to call German band Kraków Loves Adana friends for a few years now. Over the past 15 years the musical brainchild of songwriter Deniz Çiçek has delivered outstanding songs and records and it really bothers me that they haven’t reached global stardom yet. Well, they got a loyal constantly growing fanbase and Çiçek’s songwriting and storytelling only get better with age. Her seventh album “Oceanflower” is set for a release on February 14 and her Messy Mix is directly influenced by the work on this new record which does indeed come with a certain ‘back to basics’ approach from Kraków Loves Adana following the last more electronic releases. 

Lovers of profound 80s and 90s indie will find a few few familiar faces (and voices) in here, including Slowdive, The Cure, Peter Gabriel as well as the critically underrated 00s indie group The Organ. This Messy Mix does indeed feel like a good old fashioned mixtape, something your younger self would burn on a CD for you to remind you about the things that used to be close to your heart.

I’ve been following German artist Jennifer Touch since her early days and I’m as honored as I am happy that she’s the first person to join me on this new adventure called “The Messy Mix”.

As a fellow lover of dark 80s wave sounds I was more than curious about the story she would be telling here. Jennifer went for the theme called „Purple Postpunk Poets of Pop“.

Next to some fascinating tunes by The Bug, SF-X, Twin Tribes and Broken English Club Jennifer also included a tune of her own as well as overdub extracts of poets from Sylvia Plath. Very fascinating journey, I gotta say.