Bristol-born bass explorer Laksa explores the rave’s druggy depths.
When asked earlier this year what inspired him to start producing, Callum Ross, better known as Laksa, told Hyponik it was simply “Bristol”. This makes sense: Ross’s deft blend of wobbly percussion, soundsystem-ready bass and narcotic synths is matched with the West Country city’s heritage of grit and pressure.
In the last few years, Ross has released music on Beneath’s Mistry imprint, Batu’s Timedance, Whities, Ilian Tape and Bastakiya Tapes, notching up a following for his hypnotic, dancefloor-ready constructions.
Ross also runs a regular radio show alongside re:ni for NTS called re:lax. It’s a club night too, pushing UK music and providing an hour before the DJs start for producers to test new material on the soundsystem – an invaluable provision for any beatmaker without access to a club setup, which is most of them.
Laksa’s FACT mix is a cross-genre, tempo-hopping journey through dance music’s past, present and future, blending drum & bass classics, big room techno belters, bass experiments and cuts from Bristol’s next wave. It explores the push and pull of clubbing and drugs, and is linked together with vocal snippets that only maximize the experience.
Tracklist:
Lemon D – ‘Deep Space Remix Pt 2’
Digital & Spirit – ‘Vision’
Keiska – ‘To Be, or not to be’ (club mix)
Robert Hood – ‘Assembly’
HN42 – ‘Alpha Fixe’
The Sabres of Paradise – ‘Chapel Street Market (9am)’
Piezo – ‘Art Attack Gone Wrong’
DJ Plead – ‘Rough Text’
Tom Blip & Swordman – ‘Kitala Beat’
Chekov – ‘Task’
Chris Mitchell – ‘Severing the Pain of Analysis’
Jose – ‘Electrotry3’
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RSD – ‘Forward Youth’
Dutty Ranks – ‘Dark Heart’
Ubik – ‘1991’
Stenny – ‘Adequate Force’
Surgeon – ‘Depart’
Demdike Stare – ‘Overstaying’
Metrist – ‘Qaqq Ata’
Alter Echo & E3 – ‘Rif Mountains Dub’
Sub Basics – ‘Amazon Dub’ (feat Lo Chi)
Lurka – ‘Minds Eye Tript’
FERDELANCE – ‘LOWLAND02’
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M.I.A – ‘Galang’
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