Asa Moto: The Ransom Note Mix

Hailing from Ghent, Belgium, Asa Moto is the dynamic electronic music duo of Oliver “Oli” Geerts and Gilles Noë—a pairing forged in 2012 that has since become one of the most inventive forces on the continent’s club circuit. Signed to Soulwax’s DEEWEE label, they blend analog synths, voice, funk and uncanny grooves into a sound both club-potent and artistically bold. Through acclaimed EPs like Martino and an ever-evolving live show, they invite you to dance differently—together. November see's the pair return to the imprint with a new EP called 'Music For Disc Jockeys Pt.1'. This mix is a tour de force if you will, they cram 82 tracks into one hour and somehow manage to make that make sense. We have no idea how they've managed it but somehow in a precariously bonkers fashion... it works.

Hungarian Transylvanian artist Réka Csiszér aka VÍZ with an irresistible soundtrack for Halloween, following the release of her sumptuous second album ‘Danse Des Larmes‘ on Heat Crimes earlier this year. Read more at Ransom Note. @user-273556483 @heat-crimes

Telepathic Fish co-founder DJ Food, aka one part of Openmind, takes us on a trip into the world of 90s chill out. Strictly Kev likes the company of plants whilst working on music so that's handy for us isn't it?! We're assuming he's talking about a beautiful Calathea sitting in the corner for inspiration, tho his dream plant setup - a conservatory packed with Romanesco broccoli, trippy Caladiums, and Persian Shields - is something we'd be well on board with too. Enough of the plant talk for a second and back to the music, ambient music to be clear. For those that weren't squatting in South London back in the early 90s, Openmind were the four-piece behind the mighty Telepathic Fish - the legendary ambient afterparty that transformed chill-out rooms from dub-playing afterthoughts into proper destinations. Kev, along with Chantal Passamonte (Mira Calix, RIP), David Vallade, and Mario Aguera, started in a shared house above a shop with no neighbours to complain/bash the door down. What began as art school parties quickly grew into Sunday afternoon sessions in squatted venues - a former dole office in Brixton and even the derelict Roundhouse on New Year's Day. They hosted everyone from Aphex Twin to Mixmaster Morris among wall-to-wall mattresses, UV installations, and  Coldcut's Matt Black with his boundary pushing video projections. The idea was simple: recreate that post-clubbing comedown vibe but on a massive scale, as an "aural and visual blanket" for club-rattled minds. They even published a fanzine called Mindfood and worked at the scene's hub, Ambient Soho record shop, helping shape what Simon Reynolds called a "wombeldelic sound-and-light bath" in contrast to the current trend of hardcore and it's relentless assault. Thirty years on, that spirit's having a comeback. Events like London's A Loose Ting are bringing back the bedding and the hushed reverence, while Berlin's Overflow is going full sensory overload with vibrating mattresses, fountains, and harpists. New York's Planetarium gatherings have people mostly horizontal, inspired by psychedelic therapy sessions. There's even and ambient sauna in South London you might have come across via the wonder of Music To Watch Seeds Grow By's recent takeover.  Our very own Watching Trees dabbled in said chill out space this year, pairing the abstract and the ambient with projected dappled sunlight visuals from the mighty Jamie House. Turns out people still need those little havens away from the madness, especially in this day and age! Also handily 30 years on the Openmind crew have just compiled the first-ever Telepathic Fish retrospective for Fundamental Frequencies - a double vinyl love letter to those hazy early-90s mornings when the music finally slowed down. For this Seeds Mix, Kev has leaned into his love of minimalism and systems music - repetition built from layers of loops offset against each other to form subtle polyrhythms. There's a deliberate avoidance of drum machines here in favour of organic percussion, and around the eight-minute mark, a section from Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia that captures the feeling of being deep in the forest, phone abandoned, discovering that paradise was just a forage away. Full interview here: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/seeds-mix-005-openminds-leave-your-phone-at-home-discover-paradise-after-a-forage-in-the-forest/ @strictly

A collision of rave outsiders: Morris’s unlikely pop mystique meets Gramrcy and Loveless on the FWD dancefloor… lnk.to/GJLPH149 In Berlin where the bassweight bubbles bright, Lived Gramrcy and John Loveless, deviant and polite, They stirred a pressure-cooker full of electroclash stew, With ISDN-line scramble and a hint of something new. “Oh!” cried Tony Morris (former teacher, taxi man), “I’ll hypnotize with repetitions, catch me if you can! I’m Scotland’s most unlikely pop sensation, don’t you see? A cult figure cabaret, as deviant as can be!” They mixed it up on Phantasy Sound with textural delight, The earworming anchor bobbed and bounced all through the night, From FWD-era gumption to the disco esoteric, They created ‘Lucid’ madness, quite atmospheric! The festival-rupturing Highdive had ruptured long before, Now ‘Feel So’ tipped the scales toward the ecstatic dance floor, With post-punk percussion prancing, hi-NRG in tow, From Chicago down to Rimini, watch the bassline grow! Said Peggy Gou and Daniel Avery, “What a splendid sound!” While 2ManyDJs spun it ’round and ’round and ’round, And Moschino’s models strutted to the supreme release, As rave outsiders intersected in their bubbling masterpiece! So if you seek the throbbing beat of something deeply odd, Find Gramrcy and John Loveless – that peculiar duo’s squad With Tony Morris chanting in his late-sixties prime, Making lucid nonsense music, one earworm at a time! Three years after their all conquering ‘Highdive’, Gramrcy and John Loveless return to Phantasy with ‘Lucid’, a pressure-cooker of FWD-era bassweight and electroclash scramble anchored by the hypnotic vocals of Tony Morris. Listen below, pre order here: https://lnk.to/GJLPH149

Recorded in a small village on the Costa Brava – surrounded by seagulls, tramontana winds, and sea urchin-covered rocks – this mix comes from the laid-back Barcelona neighbourhood of Gràcia, where Parisian-born Antoine Harispuru, better known as Golden Bug, has made his home. With a career spanning over fifteen years, Golden Bug has become known for his unique signature: drum machines in a haze of smoke, chopped-up sounds with a machete edge, drenched in delay – a raw, kaleidoscopic patchwork of electronica, dub, and psychedelia. His work has graced labels including La Belle Records (his own imprint), Les Disques de la Mort, Höga Nord, Gomma, Multi Culti, and Kompakt. This mix hits as the anniversary edition of Piscolabis II, where Golden Bug teams up once again with artists from around the world to craft a new series of aural excursions. From digital reggae to cinematic electronica with Londoner Simone Butler (of Primal Scream) and Brazilian artist Max Blum, to mutant disco with Franco-Italian musician Kim Giani, via slow-burning, incandescent techno led by the captivating voice of Greek singer Scarlett O’Hanna, and krautrock infused with dub in collaboration with London-based Phoebe Coco. These six tracks offer a bold and refreshing reinterpretation of the original album: a rich, textured sonic journey shaped by diverse and unexpected influences. Among the selections, you’ll find current favouites like SAVE’s Rainy Monday — a digital dub gem from Marc Nguyen’s project on Ivan Smagghe’s Les Disques de la Mort, alongside recent discoveries like Blotter Trax’s Superconductor on Optimo. Get into that comfy chair with a good glass of wine and a proper sound system…. and press play. Interview here: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/golden-bug-the-ransom-note-mixtape/

Braiden is a London-based DJ and producer known for his genre-blurring sets and finely tuned ear for sound design. During the 2000’s he was a pivotal figure in underground club culture, helping to push and champion a new style of bass music which would go on to become synonymous with dance music in the UK and globally. Braiden gained early recognition through his diverse and dynamic DJ sets, which fluidly blend elements of house, techno, grime, UK garage, and experimental electronics. He first made waves as a presenter on Rinse FM, where his forward-thinking selections and deep knowledge of club music cultures earned him a keen following. His productions — including the acclaimed 2010 debut single “The Alps” on Joy Orbison’s Doldrums label — showcase a meticulous approach to rhythm and atmosphere. “The Alps” was reissued this year, cementing the EP amidst a new crowd with Braiden having ducked out of the spotlight for several years to focus on other outlets. Now he’s back, with new music as well.

Hardway Bros French Caribbean outing… The Hardway Bros went outre-mer, To seek Mamman Brigitte so fair, With pockets full of tree frog songs, And voodoo drums and silken thongs. They sailed beyond the infinite sky, Where Mari Galante’s beauties lie, Through heat and rain and humid air, They combed the island everywhere. “Oh Mamman Brigitte!” came their cry, “We’ve brought you frogs that never die! They sing at night, they sing at noon, They sing beneath the heavy moon!” But she just laughed a laugh so wide, And vanished with the turning tide, And left the Bros to stand and stare, At sea and sky and humid air. Now Hardway Bros play cards with frogs, And sleep on very uncomfortable logs, While somewhere near the outre-mer, Mamman Brigitte is drinking beer. The latest Hardway Bros EP is a result of some recent downtime in Mari Galante: “I recently enjoyed a rare holiday on Mari Galante in the french caribbean – a place of incredible beauty, infinite sky and sea. It’s a veritable assault on the senses, heat, humidity, sun and rain, soundtracked by a million tree frogs. Strong voodoo vibes. Herewith an audio postcard from the real Outre-Mer…” We’re premiering the lead voodoo belter here.. Order full EP here: https://outre-mer.bandcamp.com/album/en-outre-mer-3 Listen below: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/premiere-hardways-bros-mamman-brigitte-outre-mer/

Sitting in the space between digital dub and synth-pop, with nods to Spectral Display and Primal Scream’s Simone Marie on vocal duty. There once was a Bug who was Golden and bright, Who lived in La Belle Records by day and by night, With Simone Marie (who plays bass, don’t you see), They danced ’round a digital dub-a-dub tree. “Oh Piscolabis!” cried the Bug with glee, “Let’s craft something strange ‘tween Milan and the sea! We’ll mix synth-pop sounds with a spectral display, And premiere our tune on October the day!” Max Blum and Kim Giani came hopping along, With sonic UFOs and a dub-a-dub song, They twirled and they whirled in their Belle-ish delight, At La Boule Noire on a Froid Dub-ish night. The Golden Bug giggled, “How perfectly queer! Our NoLo will drift in its own sonic sphere!” And off they all sailed in their musical boat, While anniversary editions began to float. We’re premiering “NoLo,” a new track from the upcoming anniversary edition of Golden Bug’s Piscolabis II, out October 3rd via La Belle Records. The track features Simone Marie, known as the bassist for Primal Scream and The Jesus and Mary Chain, lending her voice to the collaboration. Working with longtime collaborators Max Blum and Kim Giani, Golden Bug crafted something that sits between digital dub and synth-pop, with nods to Spectral Display, with Marie’s vocals forming the emotional centre. “I’ve always been a fan of Simone’s unique musical universe but what brought us together this time wasn’t one of her cosmic basslines — it was her voice. A rare and soulful voice, one that seems to carry a thousand stories in a single note. It became the foundation of the entire track. As with many of my tracks, this one was born from a beautiful encounter — I started this track between Milan and Barcelona, and the vocals were recorded in London by Simone Marie.” Antoine aka Mr Golden Bug Golden Bug – Piscolabis Live Experience is happening on October 6th in Paris at La Boule Noire, with our very own adopted Froid Dub as the opening act! Details: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/premieres/premiere-nolo-feat-simone-marie-golden-bug-la-belle-records/

West London’s Tutu Ta returns with their most haunting work yet on “Violence Or Violets” via the ever excellent Long Gone Are The Old Traditions There once was a Samurai keen, Who lived in an Igloo pristine, With his Tutu Ta sound, Where the dub beats abound, And violets grew violet-green! He mixed up his beats in the snow, With post-punk and spoken word flow, “Long Gone Are The Old Traditions!” he’d cry, As ethereal vocals flew by, From West-London’s factory echo! His Violence Or Violets EP, Made the arctic winds sing with glee, For LONGGONEIII, Was the label so free, Where heart-aching sonics run free! Producer-singer-songwriter Tutu Ta dives deeper into their fusion of dub, spoken word, and post-punk atmospherics. Following acclaimed releases “The Shrine” and “Clay Birds Are Grey,” this latest offering from Long Gone Are The Old Traditions stable showcases an artist unafraid to explore more intimate, spectral territories while keeping one foot firmly planted in the UK’s rich sound-system heritage. Ethereal vocals float above punchy rhythms that nod to their hometown’s legendary dub legacy, creating “a driven heart provoking siren.” https://www.theransomnote.com/music/premieres/premiere-tutu-ta-samurai-igloo/ @long-gone-dublin-london

Australia’s electro master shows another side with a mature, experimental IDM sound. A haiku: Broken bones A time to reset A new way Jensen Interceptor isn’t normally one to stay still but after a freak accident left him with multiple fractures in his foot he was forced to stop and take a few months off. Luckily for us he put all the pent-up energy into his new LP, Interception, out this week on his International Chrome imprint. The LP pulls in influence from IDM, Footwork, and Baile Funk to create his most experimental work yet. “Since I started making music I’ve always made music geared towards use in my DJ sets but there’s always been an urge to explore the deeper side of electronic music. That time off after the accident gave me the space to dive into genres and really experiment.” https://www.theransomnote.com/music/premieres/premiere-jensen-interceptor-hes-cute/ @internationalchrome