The multifaceted talent Michael Diamond steps up for the next edition to our Off The Record mix series with a selection of bass driven leftfield club sounds.
Off the back of his excellent EP “Placid Wakefulness” on his own Vasuki Sound imprint, which closed out the artist’s 2024 to much critical acclaim, we reached out to the South East Londoner for a mix. With a sound that draws elements which would stretch from the likes of Music From Memory all the way to Hessle Audio Michael has deemed himself unique in production but also very much so in his DJ sets. With a massively expansive taste we knew he would be a perfect edition to Off The Record. With a more club focused mix delving into the UK techy and bass vibe it gives us an example of Michael Diamond at peak time. We had a brief chat with Michael about the mix and what he has coming up:
Hey Michael, thanks for joining us! Can you tell us about your mix and what the idea behind it was?
So the idea was to explore the idea of ‘wakefulness’ in my own way – something I’ve been thinking a lot about in the last few years, specifically what is it about the sets I enjoy that seem to keep me captivated for the whole night (it’s multifactorial ofc). There are some heavier / intense moments in this mix, interspersed by more reflective passages. I like how it ebbs and flows and the multiple layers converge to make something new, some relatively well-known tracks (as a bit of a homage) reinterpreted through their blending with others.
What are your preferred methods for finding new music—do you still enjoy digging around in dusty crates, or do you prefer to buy online?
I do enjoy it, but my day job is pretty demanding so I feel I’m currently going through a period where I’m spending less time than I would like digging and enjoying record stores. So recently I’ll be honest it’s mainly been getting the rare special record that really resonates with me, mainly online now for that reason. But then again I do miss those random tracks I’ve found only because I was in a physical store in some random place and time – so yea thanks for asking that question, i’ve been having an urge to reconnect with physical digging. Ask me next year how it’s going : ) I’ll come into the shop soon so I look forward to what recommendations you guys have for me.
What are five records you couldn’t live without?
Finding it hard to commit to just five. These records have elicited some of the strongest emotional responses to music I’ve ever had in recent times. There are others, but these five I can confidently say I wouldn’t be able to live without, or at least my life would be different if I hadn’t heard these..
Ishmael Ensemble – Songs for Knotty
Jon Hassel – Listening to Pictures
Alfa mist x Yussef Dayes – Love is the Message
Floating Points – Crush
Mansur brown – Shiroi
What has been one of your most memorable sets over your career?
Ooosh that is a hard one. Different ones were memorable for different reasons. In terms of musicality I recently performed at the British Academy where there were moments I remember being taken aback by how good it sounded. annoyingly I never hit record on my Zoom that day, and it’d be impossible for me to recreate it (too many instances of 3 or more tunes coming together at the perfect timing to create these moments) so it’ll have to live on in memory… But for the sheer contagious energy and love, it’s gotta be some of the forest free parties I’ve played at over the years. A particularly important one for me was debuting my and Alex Wilson’s sax & electronics set last year, it was such a cute night and we loved it – definitely more coming soon!
What do you have up your sleeve for 2025?
More music, more of this hybrid organic-electronic sound. And more events. Honestly I’m just quite happy to do my thing, work on my bits n bobs and see what arises – there’s always projects on the go (too many imo), and I pretty consistently spend at least few hours each day on some form of music, so I’ll just see where that takes me. More practically you can expect some tunes and some performances, including some of the live instrument x electronics stuff I mentioned with Alex (and others).
Thanks Michael 🙂
