The Stockholm based Aniara artist and Ritmo Liminal party co-founder Mattias El Mansouri steps up for our next Phonica mix.
With three releases on the Aniara label, his most recent being the beautifully crafted “Time Dilation In Ultraviolet” Mattias has proven his understanding of what gives a dance track more meaning. This is also founded in his DJ sets all over Europe which have seen him share B2Bs with greats like Genius Of Time and Hunee. For this Phonica mix Mattias takes us from the house party and transitions us to the club and straight into the morning with a mixture of vocal delights into deep club moments leaving us on full blown euphoria. We had a little chat with Mattias about the mix and what he has up his sleeve towards the end of the year.
Hey Mattias, thanks for joining us! Can you tell us about your mix and what the idea behind it was?
Thanks for having me! It took me a good while to record this mix, and I probably switched out the tracklist around 10 times or something, haha! I think the mix is a reflection of where I’m at, at the moment (musically), and the direction I think I’ve been heading this last year; warmer, groovier, maybe a bit more emotional? I don’t know, really. It is intentionally eclectic, because I think I would go crazy If I only listened to – and played – dance music. It’s also a bit warmer than usual, which is a result of it being recorded by a DJ who is trying to delay his silly little SAD as much as possible. It’s getting cold and dark here in Sweden, so this mix is my way of holding onto summer a little bit longer I think.
Can you tell us a bit about how you usually approach recording a mix or a set?
When I DJ I don’t prepare too much beforehand, more than that I bring the records I think I might want to play at some point, and make sure to have as many things on my USB:s as possible, that could allow me to take different directions. I get bored quite easily, so the last thing is very important for me: it’s nice to have a packed USB-stick! I tend to lose them all the time though, so maybe I should go and become one of those cringy vinyl only dudes. It’s a little bit trickier to lose records! If I’m playing at a new place though, I always take a look at the lineup and try to be there earlier, if someone is playing before me, to do a vibe check. Mixes on the other hand require quite a lot of headspace from me. I can’t just hit record and be spontaneous. For me it’s all about conjuring a mood, entertaining a thought, or mapping out a scenario that I somehow want to score.
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 like both, but I’ve become bad at dedicating time to go and look for records in actual physical record stores. I really should, though—it’s one of the few things I do just for me, almost like a ritual. I’ll usually grab a big coffee to go, then head to some of my favorite shops in Stockholm: Fade Records and Snickars Records for dance music, and Record Mania for world music, dub, jazz, and occasionally some dollar-bin house gems. I listen to a lot of music, but mostly mixes and DJ-sets, from which I try to ID the tracks and songs that I like so that I can add them to my wantlists on Discogs and Bandcamp. I have a huge backlog of records that I want to buy and I constantly add new music to playlists, in my wantlists on Discogs and bandcamp. Youtube, Discogs and Spotify are my go-to’s!
What are five records you couldn’t live without?
Oh! Tricky one, there’s so many, but maybe (in no particular order):
Grouper – A.I.A Alien Observer
Björk – Vespertine
How To Dress Well – Love Remains
The Knife – Silent Shout
Slowdive – Souvlaki
What has been one of your most memorable sets over your career?
I always have a lot of fun with my friend Sergej when we play (we host the club Ritmo Liminal together in Stockholm), but the most fun I’ve had this year in the booth so far was playing B2B with Hunee at this year’s Draaimolen! We’d only chatted a bit over the summer and actually met for the first time just 15 minutes before we went on, but playing with him was so much fun! Hopefully we get to do it again sometime, and preferably for longer than two hours!
What do you have up your sleeve for 2024/5?
We only have 2 months left of this year, but I’m gonna try to finish some tracks that have been way overdue, as well as play some sets here in Stockholm and maybe one or two in Europe. Me and my friend Sergej also just booked Prosumer for our Ritmo Liminal club Night at Under Bron in Stockholm in December, so I’m very much looking forward to that!
Thanks Mattias!
