Back To The Beach

We return with another fantastic mix from A Deeper Groove. On episode 86, Joc provided the soundtrack, but now it's the turn of Steph. Joc and Steph began A Deeper Groove, a website then club night that showcase their sound as well as many like-minded guests. Spinning in various clubs around the country & being residents at the Vocal Booth Weekender in Spain, the boys can also be heard on Pressure Radio. After releasing some music on other labels, they decided to go it alone. A Deeper Groove Recordings began in 2012 with the Contact e.p. & goes from strength to strength. Check out their Mixcloud and Bandcamp links for more intergalactic soul music. https://www.mixcloud.com/adeepergrooverecordings/ https://adeepergroove.bandcamp.com/music

With Christmas almost upon us, we thought we'd drop our last episode of 2021. Something festive to wish you a happy holiday saeson from all of us at BTTB. We'll be back in 2022, with more sunshine music, but until then, stay safe and be kind to one another. x

When we heard Ash Long’s great shows on Alto Radio and Balamii Radio, we knew we had to ask him along to guest here on BTTB. Listen now, and you’ll understand why. Close your eyes and be transported to calm, sunnier climes, via Ash’s choice of beautiful downtempo music. https://www.mixcloud.com/ashlong/

A Deeper Groove was born in a flat on the south side of Glasgow, creating a sound that is an amalgamation of influences & cultures from 30+ years on the dancefloor & in the booth. Musically, the ADG sound can fit any night, whether it’s a chilled beach set or a dark dingy sweatbox, A Deeper Groove like to flex their eclectic muscle, playing house, soul and anything in between. Joc and Steph began A Deeper Groove, a website then club night that showcase their sound as well as many like-minded guests. Spinning in various clubs around the country & being residents at the Vocal Booth Weekender in Spain, the boys can also be heard on Pressure Radio. After releasing some music on other labels, they decided to go it alone. A Deeper Groove Recordings began in 2012 with the Contact e.p. & goes from strength to strength. Check out their Mixcloud and Bandcamp links for more intergalactic soul music. https://www.mixcloud.com/adeepergrooverecordings/ https://adeepergroove.bandcamp.com/music

Citizen Helene is a London-based DJ & musician with a deep love of boogie, disco, jazz & funk from around the world. Helene presents a monthly show on Soho Radio playing 2 hours of disco, boogie and Ceefax-adjacent smooth bangers, every 4 weeks on Thursday, 4-6pm. She can also be found performing at venues & festivals such as Spiritland, The Standard Hotel, Decimo The Social, Walthamstow Garden Party, Field Day, Port Eliot & Green Man. Helene also creates electronic music under the pseudonym Galaxy Brain, and in 2020 contributed the track ‘Cosmic Voyage’ to Soho Radio’s charity compilation ‘Together’, with all proceeds going towards the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust and Campaign Zero. https://citizenhelene.bandcamp.com/ https://twitter.com/citizenhelene https://www.instagram.com/citizenhelene/ https://www.instagram.com/galaxybrainmusic/

Ana Del Pino, aka Ana Wolf, honed her craft on the underground scene of Barcelona with some of Spain's greatest house music connoisseurs.. Her sets move through disco and house sounds, showcasing her insatiable appetite for finding music, both old and new. Ana has taken her music as far afield as Venezuela, and is part of of the Lab Sessions crew, based in Columbia. Whether found playing at a beach club, roof top terrace, prestigious hotel or a private event, Ana aims to entertain and surprise, whilst expressing her creativity. Ana currently holds residencies on eight radio stations around the world, and has appeared on many a podcast. Which is where we find ourselves now, a Sunday afternoon, with a low hanging autumnal sun shining, and the selections of Ana’s mix as a fitting accompaniment. Join us… https://www.facebook.com/Ana-Wolf-106507894442590 https://www.instagram.com/anawolfmusic https://www.mixcloud.com/anawolfmusic https://www.soundcloud.com/anawolfmusic

The blue skies, here at BTTB HQ, are the perfect accompaniment to our latest episode, mix from J-Walk. Martin Brew, aka J-Walk, has been DJing and buying records religiously since he was a teen. This desire to always keep up with what’s happening has seen him revered as one of Manchester’s finest selectors. Prior to producing music as J-Walk, Martin was the proprietor of the city’s legendary Fat City record shop, and a member of the Fat City All Stars DJ collective, recording deep dub explorations under the Strange Brew guise. Originally a duo, J-Walk is now a solo project, with Martin playing the role of all members of a fictitious band. Writing, playing and recording all of the instruments himself. Starting with the classic “Soul Vibrations”, J-Walk’s music has been a staple in the bags of those DJs that know. We’re delighted to be able to bring you this mix from Martin, and urge you to check out his music if you haven’t done so already. https://linktr.ee/JWalk_Manchester

In this age of information, it’s usually a straightforward task to find out about a DJ or musician online. However our latest guest David Pickering, aka One Million Sunsets, is something of an online enigma. Small snippets of information are available: An award winning radio show for Reform Radio, his regular Music For Dreams Radio show, but not much else. Bar airing his political views on Twitter, alongside posts about his beloved Everton FC, what we are left with to truly know him are his musical choices. Isn’t that what should define a DJ? We’ve been lucky enough to get this wonderful mix from David, so get comfortable, and enjoy the musical decisions of One Million Sunsets. Oh, and COYB! https://www.mixcloud.com/pickod/ https://soundcloud.com/picko-d https://twitter.com/Pickod

Residentes Balearicos are a duo from Ibiza, consisting of Luca Averna and Alessandro Doretto. Luca is a DJ and works mainly with his friend Camilo Miranda at the legendary Pikes Hotel. Residentes Balearicos is a project founded by Luca Averna and Ale Doretto, both resident DJs in Ibiza and both hailing form Venice, Italy. Together, they make music that tries to capture the amorphous energy of Ibiza, sizzling on sunny beaches, lulling through lounge conversations, and reaching palpable states in throbbing club nights before disseminating into the countryside air for replenishment. The project is based on a collaborative idea where Luca and Ale invite other artists from the island into the studio with the aim of sparking up new and fresh ideas for how Balearic music can sound, both within chillout and dancefloor disciplines.

We came across Mikee's excellent mixes on Mixcloud, and instantly knew he'd be a perfect fit here at Back To The Beach. A specialist in producing dreamy soundscapes that instantly transport you to sunnier climes, Mikee has created this beautiful mix for you lucky people. Sit back, grab a glass of something cold, and let Mikee's mix bring some aural sunshine into your life. Make sure to check out his other mixes on too. https://www.mixcloud.com/balearic_unlimited/

Francesco Farfa has been DJing since the 80s, laying down vital sets of funk, disco & proto-house sounds. The Florence born DJ is a true digger & sound obsessive, armed with decades of experience & musical appreciation, doing what he does best: turning musical emotions and compelling rhythms into dance floor art. His deck skills & rare knack for selection & sequencing meant he soon became one of Italy’s most famous DJ exports, with his unique skills earning him sets at some of the most prestigious night venues and festivals around the world. From a production perspective, Farfa is always evolving with each new 12″. Timeless sounds that always leave an impression, Farfa’s records have earned a renaissance of late thanks to the support of numerous high-profile players from the scene. Farfa’s music has been called everything from psychedelic techno to cyber-trance, but it is impossible to truly define, with Farfa instead going in whatever direction his heart takes him.

If you love sun-kissed, dreamy music, there's a fair chance that your music collection contains something by Fukagawa Kiyotaka, aka Calm. The Japanese producer made his debut way back in 1997, joining the dots between nu-jazz, breakbeat & deep house. He has delivered a dizzying number of albums over the last 2 decades, mostly on his own Music Corporation imprint, and more recently on the excellent Hell Yeah! Recordings. The label, a perfect fit for Calm, being a place to find some of the best recent “Balearica”. His album, “By Your Side”, supported by scene big hitters Phil Mison, Chris Coco & Mixmaster Morris. "The concept of Balearic is still abstract to me," Kiyotaka admits. "There are so many things I do not understand, so I am still collecting records and absorbing information about it like a sponge. I have never been to Ibiza, so I hope to go over and DJ there soon." We think you’ll agree, after hearing this mix, that Calm’s understanding of Balearic is just perfect.

If you’re suffering the Monday blues, have we got just the remedy in our latest episode? Kerry Jean Lister has recorded this sun drenched, musical hug, just for you. Kerry has been DJing for the past twenty years. Starting out throwing parties with her friends in and around London. Co-hosting regular nights with Terry Farley, Kerry has played alongside Theo Parrish, Gilles Peterson, Terry Farley, SecretSundaze, Katie Barber, Benji B, Trevor Jackson and loads more. After moving to Hove with her family in 2016, she was invited to join the excellent 1BTN. Every other Wednesday, from 10am until midday, you can tune into her “Feel Up Radio Show”, which was named after the podcast and night she ran in London with Nuphonic’s Billie Jean DeVoil. Kerry says, of Feel Up: “Don’t expect to hear any naval gaze or melancholic shenanigans, do expect to hear house, disco, soul, boogie, hiphop, world, easy listening, funk and rnb. And a LOT of Prince… https://linktr.ee/KerryJeanLister

Deeply prolific Bristol-based house connoisseur Andy Compton has released over 40 albums & over 180 EPs, (either under his own name or as part of his legendary group The Rurals, COMPTON or L.A.M.P, Blue Dream), on his Peng label & many others. South Africa has embraced Andy's deep house sounds, & because of his popularity over there, he has toured the country 20 times in the past 5 years. Since discovering house music in the early 90's, Compton has released a dazzling array of music & worked with an army of artists (from Motown legends to budding underground names). Andy's DJ skills have turned heads and twisted bodies worldwide, with his thumping brew of electronic beats swathed in coolly-crafted melodies, with Peng becoming one of the premiere labels on the planet, garnering support from house big-hitters like Louie Vega, Larry Heard, Mark Farina & Osunlade (to name a few). All this has solidified Andy's reputation as one of the most respected house music players on the planet.

There are blue skies over BTTB HQ this morning, but can neither confirm or deny that this is a side effect of our latest episode from Problematic Disko. Who are Problematic Disko? Well, we’ll let them introduce themselves: “We mix house, disco, acid, deep & the occasional slice of techno, for the freaks, jammers, queens, lovers & all others. We could go on to say things such as 25 blah blah years ago experience behind the blah blah ones & twos, or made people shed tears on the dancefloors circa 94 blah blah. However we’d rather let the music do the talking. Here’s a downtempo beach set with a Problematic Disco twist.” Bookings/Media /Insults problematicdisko@yahoo.com We can’t promise blue skies where you are, but why not give it a try?

Hailing from Leeds, you can find Andy playing Balearic beats, left field disco, deep house, cosmic jazz and more at some of the North’s finest venues. A regular at Outlaws Yacht Club, Headroom House, North Bar and Belgrave Music Hall, Andy is also the in-house DJ for the Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield. Andy is a founding member of the Downtown Science collective, who you can find hosting parties across Leeds, bringing in top flight guests, such as The Mighty Zaf, Mixmaster Morris, and Talking Drum. You can hear Andy on his monthly radio show for KMAH Radio, and every weekend on Rising Edge Radio, but first make sure you check out this fantastic mix he’s put together for BTTB. www.mixcloud.com/andyhickford/ www.facebook.com/DowntownScience/

Here at BTTB, we like to bring you likeminded selectors from across the board. Not just from recognisable names, we also like to shine a light on people who’s music we’ve enjoyed, and hopefully introduce them to you for the first time. We first heard Sparky’s mixes on Mixcloud, and knew he’d be a perfect fit to provide you lucky people with a mix. Collecting and playing all kinds of Balearic inspired, soulful music from all over the globe, Sparky has put together this mix together for us, and here we present it to you. Sit back, grab something cold to drink and enjoy the sunshine sounds of Backyard Balearic. http://mixcloud.com/thebaddsignal/ https://twitter.com/thebaddsignal

A proprietor of all things chill, Faint Waves specialises in mellow mood music. In addition to releasing his own unique music, independently, he has had the pleasure of working with labels such as Eclectics, Higher Love Recordings, Real Balearic, NuNorthern Soul, and Cafe Del Mar. As fans of his music, we just had to invite him to BTTB. Sit back, as Faint Waves transports you to a sunlit terrace, at a table with friends, enjoying a café solo, or maybe a caña. Featuring tracks from his recently released “Cabana Edits Vol. 2”, alongside his favourite artists and inspirations, let this mix flow over you, and feel the sunshine.

We first came across Howler via his Balearic Breakdown series on Mixcloud, and knew we had to ask him to provide a mix for BTTB. Since we first spoke, Howler has launched the excellent Balearic t-shirt company Disco Tees, bringing you dancefloor inspired clothing, with a high Balearic quotient. As well as the great t-shirts, the site also has a very informative blog section, which we highly recommend. You can find Howler out in the wild, so to speak, at this year’s always brilliant Alfresco Festival, where he’ll be playing on the Eclectics stage on Friday 27th of August. The sun’s shining here at BTTB HQ, and I’m sure you’ll agree, Howler’s mix is just the thing to accompany those blue skies. Get it on and take it easy. It is the weekend after all. https://www.mixcloud.com/chris-howell-jones https://www.discotees.co.uk/

One of the musical pioneers, bringing house music to Spain, Cesar de Melero has been at the forefront of the international DJ scene since the early 80’s. One of the pillars of forging what was to become known as the Balearic sound, he was one of the first to play acid house on the White Isle, with his 10 year long residency at the world famous KU club in Ibiza. He was also one of the first Djs to play at both Space & Pacha. Not to mention his 6 year residency at Amnesia for, “people From Ibiza”. 1987 saw the opening of Ars Estudio in Barcelona. Spain’s first house club, with Cesar as DJ & promoter. The club even attracted Keith Haring, who created one of his paintings live. In 1992, “Night Moves”, a collaboration with brother Chito, entered the British charts, and started Cesar’s successful & long production career. Cesar, along with some Parisian friends started Pro-Zak Trax one of the most recognised labels of the French house scene.