Waste Mail 025: The best music of 2024 🔥

Your guide to the year in cutting-edge electronic music

Dec 20, 2024

Welcome to Waste Mail, the newsletter that’s dedicated to cutting-edge club music and is written by Seb Wheeler for Tropical Waste 🔥

Another year in the bag. Here’s your digest of the “best” (read: interesting, important, mind-melting, scene altering, not covered elsewhere) cutting edge club and electronic music of 2024.

Like last year’s EOY issue, this is a bonus Waste Mail that compiles my fav music of the year into one bumper mailer for you to enjoy at your own pace and in your own leisure over the holidays. If you’d like to survey the year, I’d recommend hitting the archive, but for convenience here’s the highlights in A-Z format.

It’s longer than usual so you’ll have to view in your browser to read the whole thing (you’ll find a link below at the point where this mailer hits the email length limit).

Thanks for your support this year. Out to the OG heads, the recent subscribers, all the artists and labels who share the link across social and anyone who’s recommended this mailer to a friend or via their own Substacks.

And special thanks and respect to my core crew of paid subscribers – you lot most definitely ensure that this thing goes out on time every month. Salute to each and every one of you <3

Hope you enjoy browsing this one and getting stoked on all the great music that came out this year.

Enjoy! 🙏

Photo: Nicholas Daley’s badge collection, Soho, December ‘24

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Tracks & EPs 🔌

5RVZ ‘2 Out’ Back in January I shouted out Dj wiggles as one of a handful of selectors pushing toward a new kind of deep, rhythmic bass music in DJ mixes that expertly blend various forms of soundsystem music into unexpected combinations. Now that vision manifests into a record label, kinetic, and its first release by 5RVZ which sounds like it’s been A&R’d specifically for a Wiggles’ set; from the ‘Trench’ EP comes ‘2 Out’, a weighty, spacious roller that draws on skeletal drum ‘n’ bass, ghostly eski and night bus ambience. Familiar elements leading the way toward a new zone entirely Listen
96 Back ‘Rubber Knife’ Looking forward to the 96 Back album on SVBKVLT if ‘Rubber Knife’ is anything to go by. A fully warped, backflipped, post-club banger that I can’t wait to hear/play in the club Listen
A.Fruit & Itoa ‘Slow Teleport EP’ Big collab on Hong Kong’s Unchained label, which sees A.Fruit and Itoa roll out darkside 160 that catalyses footwork, autonomic d’n’b and dubstep into big, rolling, low-end mutant club music Listen
ABADIR & Nahash ‘Marchadair مرشدير’ This collab EP sounds like a continuation of ABADIR’s incendiary ‘Mutate’ album, where contemporary club styles are fused with traditional Egyptian music. The sample inspiration this time comes from Arabic pop songs, majestic strings and triumphant vocals giving a real sense of occasion to the blizzard of percussion and bass that pushes these tracks forward. Thrilling stuff Listen
AG ‘Throw Some D’s (AG x Pherris Edit) I’ve been searching for the kind of footwork edits that could unite a dancefloor (or something to counteract my obsessions with battle tracks, at least) so I’m stoked to come across this anthemic rework of Rich Boy by AG and Pherris out of NYC. Will make you feel that Saturday night sparkle instantly Listen
Async Figure ‘Exiles’ Async Figure return with their trademark synth sound that makes you feel like a lightning bolt of ecstasy is coursing through your body. A little lighter than previous work, this reconfiguring of trance, club music and god-like synths arrives just in time for spring and a move toward British Summer Time Listen
aya ‘Lip Flip’ Really enjoying these EPs on aya and BFTT’s YCO label. Here’s some sticky, clicky, hi-def club music from aya, which is fully loaded with cool ideas and also sees a collab with OG alias LOFT Listen
Bancal ‘Slide’ French producer and new Teklife signing Bancal comes through with a cinematic piece of footwork, splicing a choral melody with an angular, rib-snapping, grimey bassline. Strong! Listen
Bell Curve ‘Heart Alarm EP’ Nice to see Moveltraxx giving space to some 160 experiments. New York’s Bell Curve deconstructs jungle on ‘Just A Lil Bit Of Sweat’ and builds tense, cinematic slow/fast on ‘A Second Obelisk Appears’. A link up with incendiary rap duo They Hate Change on ‘Heart Alarm’ ties up the package nicely, providing a hype vocal-led counterpoint to the foggy low-end of the other two instrumentals, as well as adding to a growing number of rap/footwork tracks that have been released this year Listen
BFTT ‘Horsin’ Around’ Properly backflipped club music from BFTT out of Manchester. Type of stuff that can melt a soundsystem before your very eyes and make your hair stand on end like you’ve just been electrocuted. Come for the immaculate sound design and head-spinning track arrangements, and stay for the moments of unbridled euphoria. Like on ‘Way U Do’, when gorgeous 90s rave keys appear amid the turbulence of a particularly unruly bassline. This kind of avant-garde ecstasy is reminiscent of Mark Fell, and the way classic house informs his brand of angular electronics Listen
Bitter Gold ‘SHELL’ This EP hits the sweet spot of heavy ambient, urgent warehouse party music and sheer noise. One for the heads who want to go further Listen
BJF ‘Sirens’ BJF is an exhilarating club music producer and a leading light on France’s underground club scene. ‘Sirens’ is a three-track EP that further showcases his fusionist style, which re-energises the concept of the club construction for the 2020s. The rhythms of UK funky, baile funk and miami bass are used as the motor to drive home his lithe productions, which also come loaded with ecstatic melodic loops Listen
BULLYACHE ‘Never let’ Exciting development from cutting-edge dance company BULLYACHE. Having scored their own shows with fierce, deconstructed sonics, here’s a fully-fledged debut single that is a swirl of Jersey, ballroom, orchestral strings and futuristic pop. Hopefully there’s more to come Listen
Carré ‘Soft Fascination’ Carré’s productions get better and better. This EP for her Fast At Work label contains fluid, uptempo workouts that are built around agile rhythms and purring basslines. Can’t wait to dance to these Listen
D’TCH ‘Sweat EP’ Hooversound continues to drop wildly imaginative hybrid rave music. Here’s four tracks for Bristol’s D’TCH, which revel in a fusion of ‘ardcore, jungle, tekno, grime and juke. ‘Ay!’, a grimey 160 banger, sounded particularly good at Tropical Waste the other night Listen
DJ Acey ‘Your Lovin’’ Battle-focused footwork that is rooted in the taught percussion ‘n bass of Chicago, but draws on the vocal snips of UK hardcore and loose low-end of jungle. This is the new school of footwork, right here Listen
DJ Manny ‘Feel The Love’ Manny’s been hitting home runs for months now and this lead track from his new EP on Moveltraxx puts scores on the board yet again. Manages to reference Larry Heard, Kraftwerk and Stardust in a totally new way that only a footwork producer could manage to do. You know label boss Big Dope P is feelin’ that French Touch sample too! Listen
DJ Phil ‘Boarding Pass | Prelude To The Flight’ DJ Rashad’s legacy is a form of footwork that is charged with energy, deep with soul and mixed and mastered to perfection by the time it hits the club. Frequent Rashad collaborator DJ Phil is one of the main torchbearers of this school of footwork, a producer who knows how to deploy a killer sample and summon the kind of vuluptuous bassline that keeps dancers going for hours on end. This EP for Moveltraxx adds to his short but sweet discography, leading with footwork flips of Chicago house (‘House Love’) and piano-driven UK breakbeat (‘Only You’), before honing in on a trio of battle tracks that really get down to business. Any of these could be a 2024 scene anthem, but the friction between a Nipsey Hustle vocal snip (f*ck I wanna hear your CD for?!) and Roy Ayers-esque keys on ‘Somethin New’ is an example of footwork’s cathartic ecstasy at its finest Listen
dru-1 ‘tabanca’ dru-1 demos have been road tested on Tropical Waste radio and at the parties, so I’m stoked to see this debut EP emerge on experimental club music label Yegorka (co-run by low-key legends Why Be and Dan DeNorch). ‘tabanca’ is an explosion of rhythm, drum beats and other percussive elements (played by Marta Rosa and Luca Giacobbe) that are sliced and diced into unpredictable patterns that evoke joy, rage and sensuality Listen
dogheadsurigeri ‘Fluid Matter’ Love to see a DJ morph into a producer. dogheadsurigeri (surely one of the coolest names in dance music) has been banging out hard ‘n fast sets across Europe and now she’s making her own club tools. ‘Fluid Matter’ could soundtrack the rave scene from a film like Blade; it sounds like a strobe-lit moment in a cyberpunk techno club with only a looped neon vocal snippet to remind you where you actually are. Fire it up and head towards the light Listen
eye measure ‘Why do people vomit?’ (Rian Trenor remix) eye measure’s computer-generated poetry asks the question “Why do people..?” and is met with Rian Trenor’s slinky avant dance music. Algorave at its best Listen
Forest Casual ‘Drum, Botany & The Brash’ What happens if you’re into soundsystem music but don’t live among the pirate radio antenna and booming dancehalls of the metropolis? Forest Casual present a pastoral kind of dub, drawing for field recordings of the dawn chorus and serene, fragmented strings as the launch pad for meticulously-crafted basslines. The samples are mulchy and wet with dew but the production sparkles with digital detail, modern dub impressionism that also doesn’t take itself too seriously (“for the fungilist massive” reads the Bandcamp blurb) Listen
God Colony ‘North West Tonight’ God Colony continue to diligently release idealistic dance music designed to make you fall in love with The Club over and over again. Different styles play out on this EP – gqom filtered through the hardcore continuum, sunrise-ready neo acid house, M62 techno – all tied together by a sense of wide-eyed adventure ‘n mischief. Late nights and early mornings really are the best, aren’t they? Listen
Heavee ‘Sumthin’ Different’ Heavee’s collab with Sinjin and Zora, ‘Loud’, is one of the greatest mutant footwork tracks of all time. Those thirsty for more backflipped 160 (me!) will be stoked on ‘Sumthin’ Different’, the opening salvo from the Chicago artist’s forthcoming album on Hyperdub. It lives up to its title, fusing elements of synthy experimentation, grime and dancehall into a minimalist banger. Can’t wait for the LP Listen
Hojo feat Novelist ‘16 O’s’ Great to hear Nov spitting on grimey techno again. Hojo refreshes the template by building a rolling, forceful instrumental that would slap at both Outlook and Tresor Listen
Isaka ‘Elytra’ Post-genre net music that gobbles up digital detritus and multiple sonic inputs, from Pinkydoll to Mark Fell’s algorithmic workouts to SOPHIE’s glossy, flubberised sound design. Isaka calls it ‘hyperbass’, which feels accurate; this is playful, innovative (club) music that revels in information overload and how that could manifest on the dancefloor Listen
James Massiah ‘True Romance’ James Massiah’s poetry reflects the joy, pain, hedonism and romance of (London) nightlife. The fleeting poignancy of kitchens, Uber rides and bike rides home from the club. This is his best music yet, irreverent lyricism gliding across neon-hued riddims that reflect his love of 80s and 90s dancehall Listen
Jetty ‘Feet Don’t Fail Me Now’ New York’s Jetty comes through with the backflipped club music. Three tracks for All Centre, fusing the DNA of Jersey Club, footwork, jungle, dancehall and baile funk into new forms, landing somewhere between early Hemlock records and the current output of AYA and BFTT. Super fun, avant garde club that’ll get kids dancing Listen
Jialing ‘FREAKY HORNS’ The Clasico label is doing a great job of presenting club music within a geographical context, zooming in on distinct regional styles and spotlighting what’s happening at the cutting edge. Baltimore’s Jialing comes through with two of the finest tracks of the year on this EP: straight-up B-more Club banger ‘FREAKY HORNS’ and the hella catchy ravey house workout ‘ADDY’. Watch out for grime/B-more blend ‘GET OFF MY JOGWHEEL’ too Listen
Jlin feat Philip Glass ‘The Precision Of Infinity’ Of course the lead single from the new Jlin is a collab with Philip Glass. She continues to transcend, pushing the limits of footwork and the very parameters of dance music. The throb of a Chicago dance battle underpins this track, Jlin layering in gorgeous, cascading piano and majestic choral voices. It sounds big and bold, primed for soundsystems as well as concert halls Listen
Joe Mili ‘Manifest Leisure’ Four weighty takes on UK funky, veering between the reload energy of ‘Mono’ and the one-red-light-and-a-feeling hypnotism of ‘Radiate’. Mili keeps it moving by making innovations to the funky blueprint, keeping things fresh for 2024 and producing a set of tracks that are more than ready to rock a system Listen
Kill Team SCX ‘King Of The Iron Fist’ Scarlett Star and Grifter160 have been putting out inventive takes on footwork for a minute and this link up with Poison Jr. as Kill Team SCX delivers a battle track loaded with cathartic verses from Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire and LEX Nyre. The world needs more rap 160! Listen
K1RA ‘Cerebalis EP’ Slow, stuttering, explosive club music that works the tension between clean, icy melodies and throttling bass. Reminiscent of Sami Baha, Endgame and that lane of mid 2010s URL/IRL club Listen
Ma Sha ‘Pull To Stop’ Been enjoying Ma Sha’s output via her Kindergarten label (as well as the rest of the imprint’s releases) and it’s great to see her stepping out on crossover dance label Steel City Dance Discs. This EP showcases her pulsating, fwd-facing sound design, leading with the technicolour breakbeat splurge of ‘Turboflow’ and getting deeper and more acidic on ‘Cerulean Rush’ Listen
Manni Dee feat Manuka Honey ‘All Of It’ Manni Dee and Manuka Honey go straight for the jugular with this walloping crossover club cut. Sleek rhythmic weight comes topped with choppy neon vocals and it’s all brought vividly to life with a suitably unhinged music video Listen
Mia Koden ‘34U’ Mia Koden dropped a fire production mix (below) then asked her fans which beats they wanted full versions of. Three new tracks emerge on ‘34U’, including the slinky, groove-y ‘Wait A Minute’, which is a prime example of Mia’s fwd» approach to dubstep Listen
Naina ‘I’d Rather Be Here (Than Anywhere With You)’ Naina demolished 160 Unity recently, finishing her set with one of her own productions, which sounded pumping. And here it is, released officially, as Naina’s debut single, a 160 workout powered by big kicks and fluttering breakbeats, hinting at a crossover sensibility but keeping it very much dark ‘n sweaty. Can’t wait to hear more Listen
Nkisi ‘The Altar’ Four new techno meditations from Nkisi, who continues to create space in which listeners (and dancers) can lock into the spiritual rhythms summoned from her drum machine Listen
Princess Xixi ‘work me up’ Fwd-thinking pop out of LDN as Princess Xixi goes emo over a killer jungle-footwork beat by CA$TLE. The music video also features two of the capital’s leading footwork dancers, Tiger and Malt Beverage. Sick! Listen
RP Boo & Armand Hammer ‘Blood Running High’ More crossover footwork! Chicago OG RP Boo and rap duo Armand Hammer get the keys to Sun Ra’s ‘Blood Running High’, reworking it into a fierce afrofuturist anthem that contrasts reality with dreams of footworking across the astral plane Listen
SLACK 1NE ‘Chemistry’ Super exciting club music from an Australian producer who seems to be channelling the unpredictable spirit of labels like Hemlock, Fractal Fantasy, Night Slugs and Decisions. Four tracks and a remix bend and bounce, zapping between elements of UK techno, deconstructed club, Jersey, baile funk, instrumental grime and hyperpop. This is what club tracks in 2024 should sound like Listen
SUUTOO ‘EXTRA / LOUD’ Maximalist club concrète and seismic shoegaze from SUUTOO, who I vowed to stan after seeing them play a thrilling swirl of noise and kuduro at Kelela’s RAVE:N party. ‘EXTRA’ collages techno, highlife, noise and the beat blasts of breakcore while ‘LOUD’ unfurls an unholy riff that Kevin Shields would be dead proud of. Killer stuff Listen
TAALIAH ‘Boys’ A hyperpop hit for summer from TAAHLIAH, who encapsulates the heat and horniness of high June in just under three minutes. The peak-time squelch of electroclash is elevated by intricate sound design that’d make this sound particularly good among the lasers Listen
The Era ‘Combo Pack’ If you needed any more proof that footwork is having a vintage year, Chicago’s The Era crew come out hitting with ‘Combo Pack’. A footwork dance crew that’s now making its own music, The Era drop battle-themed verses over productions by DJ Spinn and Taso, who pair minimalist drum programming with expertly sliced soul and jazz samples, warm melodies draping themselves across the 160bpm glide. ‘Combo Pack’ sounds a little like a footwork version of Guru’s Jazzmatazz project, The Era showing footwork’s versatility, with Spinn and Taso on the boards cooking up the quality we’ve come to expect from them. The accompanying mini doc is great too Listen
Tim Reaper & Kloke ‘Alienation’ Fully rude first single from the forthcoming Reaper & Kloke collab album on Hyperdub. You know this one’s gonna be a mean ride! ‘Alienation’ comes kitted out with a purring bassline that guides you through a storm of razor-sharp breakbeats, before increasing the intensity at the second drop Listen
Verraco ‘Breathe… Godspeed’ Verraco has come through with the record of the year, again. ‘Breathe…’ follows up 2023’s phenomenal ‘Escándaloo’, further refining the Colombian producer’s signature style and providing exhilarating new forms of club music Listen

Albums & Compilations 💿

2K88 ‘SHAME’ Polish producer 2k88 is embedded deep in the Polish rap scene and is also a keen student of the bass mutations of the last 10 years or so. His new album, released via Unsound, situates his own bars (‘SPEAKERZ‘) amid a cacophony of breakbeats and blown–out basslines, while instrumental tracks take on a range of uncanny, speaker–melting forms. These dark, ghostly riddims join the spectral bass continuum of Modern Love, Ilian Tape, Kevin Martin and Burial, and are, given last year's Unsound performance, absolutely devastating in a live setting too Listen
Actress ‘Statik’ As time goes on, each Actress album feels like a new neighbourhood plotted onto the map of his soundworld. I imagine ‘Statik’ to be his version of dawn breaking across the the AZD zones; as the white noise of darkness recedes, a bumpin’ groove and the flicker of a melody appear. Light dancing during the first hour of the morning Listen
Antonina Nowacka ‘Sylphine Soporifera’ Pastoral ambient that sets a mood with delicate strings before Nowacka’s voice comes sweeping in. The sweet calm of the countryside is invoked by instruments and noise makers from Italy, Mexico and Nepal Listen
BABii ‘DareDeviil2000’ BABii continues to develop her razor-sharp hyperpop, delivering alt anthems with a crew of producers that includes Iglooghost and Mun Sing among the ranks. She counteracts loud with quiet, noise with melody, her songs full of crunch ‘n sparkle, like digital popping candy. The LP is set in Nevaworld, with a host of characters and graphics to explore too Listen
Blank Mind ‘Lost Paradise: Blissed Out Breakbeat Hardcore 1991-94’ One of life’s simple pleasures is hearing sweet synths paired with jagged breakbeats. Here’s an awesome compilation of deep cuts that’ll remind you of every time you saw the sun rise and/or felt the sun on your face at 6am after experiencing a full-bodied rave epiphany Listen
Big Dope P ‘Toto La Castagne’ Big Dope P must be a busy dude. His label, Moveltraxx, pushes a constant stream of juke, footwork, ghetto house and French Touch-inflected club music. And now he’s produced a short, sharp album of party anthems that reflects the music he loves and his ear as a tastemaker. Many of the tracks are collabs with producers and vocalists, situating the LP at the heart of the Moveltraxx network, with incendiary results like juke-drill hybrid ‘Top Shelf’ (with Littlez from Smoke Boys!) and the industrial spank of ‘Stomp Yo Ass’ (with Katie Got Bandz). Solo outings like ‘Benzocaine 18’ and ‘2089’ reveal Big Dope P’s love for sparkling French Touch and 80s funk, and it’s these longterm influences that pulse through the album, making ‘Total La Castagne’ an exciting addition to this year juke and footwork renaissance Listen
Clasico ‘Superclásico Vol. 1’ Clasico kicks the year off with a packed compilation that showcases the label’s taste in ‘global cutting-edge club music’. That’s a manifesto that makes this an instant cop and DJs will be pleased to know the mastering sounds weighty for the club Listen
Dance Maniacs ‘Built Like That’ Tuff, sample-heavy US club trax from the Juke Bounce Werk label. DJs - don’t sleep! Listen
Dawuna ‘Southside Bottoms’ A tender and introspective set of songs from Dawuna, whose golden hour r’n’b has been the talk of The Underground for a minute. Imagine a gorgeous distillation of Prince-esque funk, whispered beat poetry and lofi bedroom pop and you’re basically there (out through Geng’s ever brilliant and resolutely independent PTP) Listen
De Schuurman ‘Bubbling Forever’ Another trove of bubbling bangers from Dutch scene leader De Schuurman, who delivers raw drum beats and monster synth riffs (‘Ayaa’) alongside tracks that are altogether more playful, like the mash-up of old-skool rap and calypso on ‘Stylez two’ Listen
DJ Anderson do Paraiso ‘Queridão’ I’ve always thought of baile funk as pure maximalism – bass, vocals, whizzing FX – but this repositions it as minimal and mournful, a kind of hypnagogic funk for those calmer moments away from the chaos of the dancefloor. Also a reminder to dig deeper into this vast and exciting genre Listen
DJ Earl & King Agee ‘Stepbrothers’ When I was watching DJ Earl play Tropical Waste in December, he was blending tracks like a dub scientist and always seemed to have a soul melody on the go. It was a masterclass in the manipulation of bass frequencies and layering of instrumental and vocal ecstacy. It’d take you years to even come close to mixing tracks like him but that soulful vibe is distilled in ‘Stepbrothers’, his collab LP with King Agee, another producer who’s been doing the most for Chicago footwork. Here’s 24 tracks of sublime sampling and beat programming, with guest appearances from DJ Manny, DJ Phil, DJ Chad, Cuenique and more Listen
DJ GAWAD ‘DJ GAWAD presents: Volume 1’ Anonymous producer DJ GAWAD draws together MCs from the Jordanian and Palestinian underground to create a mixtape that pays homage to the art of Memphis rap. Vocalists involved include Tony Bleng, Fara7, rknddn, Julmud, Movenwomen, MrF13, Twinkie and Jurum, with some ice cold artwork from 3YN. The beats are low ‘n slow and the bass fully overblown, with a cult cassette deck used in the mastering process to get that dusty purple feel. This is loads of fun, basically Listen
DJ LUCKY ‘TRIPLE 7’ Teklife gets it goin’ for 2024 with DJ LUCKY’s new album ‘TRIPLE 7’, which hits the high notes of the footwork crew’s sophisticated production palette. Collabs with Teklife mainstays DJ Manny and Taso are a highlight, as are original productions like minimalist workout ‘Lost Without You’ and acid battletrack ‘GAWD’ Listen
DJ Rashad feat DJ Thadz & DJ Clent ‘The Juke Project’ A ‘lost’ DJ mix from Rashad, with collab credits from Thadz and Clent, has been re-issued and re-mastered for DSPs (real spotters will have noticed it on Bandcamp since last autumn). It looks like it dates back to the late 90s/early 00s, judging by baby-faced Rashad on the cover, and is a blast throughout. It’s also kind of outrageous that this was released so long ago because the music is raw, urgent and ingenious, and would definitely still stand up today. An instant spin for footwork heads and anyone into next-level dance music Listen
Fever AM ‘It’s Elastic’ 10 tracks of forward techno from the Fever AM camp, who submit a finely combed tracklist that includes Karenn, DJ Doomscroll, Lurka, RONI, Peder Mannerfelt and label co-founders Mor Elian & Rhyw. The Fever AM approach is fast, propulsive and preloaded with at least one or two left turns, a not-so-subtle reconstruction of the techno form that is lively to listen to and fun to dance with Listen
Fractal Fantasy ‘FF Club Edits 2’ I’m a Fractal Fantasy stan so this package of edits from Sinjin, Zora and the gang would be the soundtrack to my perfect clubnight, from start to finish, from the sonics to the samples. It’s nearly 10 years since the label’s landmark ‘Visceral Minds’ comp and this stuff still sounds like the future Listen
Fracture ‘SLOW0860’ Fracture contributes to the growing canon of ambient jungle records, where pirate radio broadcasts, the dry ice atmosphere of warehouse raves and dubplate vinyl crackle is distilled into a haze of futuristic nostalgia. He does an incredible job, evoking tangible memories of big parties and walks home at sunrise. Lone rave stabs appear like mythical sirens, breakbeats skitter in the near distance, birdsong gives a sense of time and place among the endless, weightless euphoria Listen
Guests ‘“I Wish I Was Special”’ Awesome lofi jams from Glasgow, written and recorded (presumably) during sessions in a bedroom or living room, and combining concrete poetry, off-kilter electronics, gauzy melodies and plenty of tape hiss Listen
Heavee ‘Unleash’ 2024 is a landmark year for footwork as the Chicago sound enjoys a boom of creativity and on the 10th anniversary of Rashad’s passing no less. Maybe it’s cosmic, but I also suspect things have been bubbling beneath the surface, ready to pop, like this long-awaited Heavee album for Hyperdub. Previous singles and EPs have displayed the producer’s avant garde approach to the dancefloor and now we have a full LP of glorious twists, turns and backflips Listen
I. Jordan ‘I Am Jordan’ The debut album from I. Jordan is a celebration of trans joy as well as the expression and connectivity of the dancefloor. The production is big, bold and colourful, I. Jordan’s love of peak-time energy funnelled into workouts that nod to UKG, techno, trance and harder dance styles. There are also some epic beatless moments that offer a little respite, natural breathers that reflect the ebb and flow of the euphoria of a Big Night Out Listen
Iceboy Violet & Nueen ‘You Said You’d Hold My Hand Through The Fire’ Manchester’s Iceboy links up with Barcelona’s Nueen for an album on Hyperdub, placing Iceboy’s cathartic lyricism in softer, more vulnerable sonic spaces than it has been before. The result is mellower but no less deep or powerful Listen
Jawnino ‘40’ After a series of singles, ‘40’ is finally here. The debut album from London rapper Jawnino has taken just the right time to arrive, building on the cult status of his now seminal banger ‘It’s Cold Out’ and delivering a couple other nailed-on hits in the run up (‘Westfield’, ‘Wind’). The vocalist is often touted by the press as a new wave grime MC but that undermines how he shows up on record. ‘40’ is full of UK innovations, like a British form of cloud rap that pulls in elements of grime, road rap, trap, jungle, garage and sends them up in a puff of smoke that perfectly encapsulates Jawnino’s dry wit and irreverent couplets Listen
Jlin ‘Akoma’ Every Jlin album is a gift, in the way her music pushes footwork’s elemental features even further into the future. ‘Akoma’ features collabs with Philip Glass and Björk, continues to display Jlin’s masterful approach to percussion and rhythm and there’s real emphasis on the low end, rounding out the artist’s signature jagged edges. Moments like ‘Grannie’s Cherry Pie’ reveal a new, sentimental side too Listen
Kelela ‘RAVE:N, The Remixes’ Kelela’s remix comps are always new albums in themselves and also manage to document the energies moving through club music at the time of their release. This one’s now different, with producers and guest vocalists teaming up to rework tracks into new, standalone forms. It’s a gorgeous ride from start to finish and is a rare contemporary example of remix album as art in its own right Listen
Kindergarten Records ‘Fluo IV’ Kindergarten is a very sick crew/label out of NYC and is emerging as a trusted source of avant club. There are eight choice forward-thinking workouts on this, featuring input from Ma Sha, Sobolik and Despina, among others, with all proceeds going to Medical Aid For Palestinians Listen
King AGee ‘We Are Chicago Footwork Vol. 2’ In 2011 the ‘Bangs & Works’ compilation on Planet Mu curated a who’s who of footwork and acted as the sound’s year zero for a European audience who had yet to be turned on to this frenetic music and dance style coming out of Chicago. I’m gonna argue that King AGee’s ‘We Are Chicago Footwork’ comps are the 2020s equivalent, charting this decade’s surge in Chicago footwork output, and have – shamefully – gone overlooked by an electronic music press who’ll salute Rashad but fail to dig any deeper into what’s going on right now. On Vol. 2, 27 tracks (!) are offered as a free download (!!) with notable hits coming from Cuenique, one of few women producers on the Chicago scene and an artist who also deserves flowers from the international footwork community; C-Lo, one of several names on the comp I’ve not come across yet, whose contribution ‘Hornz & Werkz’ is a certified banger and a previously unreleased remix of Jill Scott by Rashad himself that was made in 2004 but obviously sounds as fresh as ever Listen
Lankum ‘Live In Dublin’ Great live recording of post-folk band Lankum, made across three nights of shows in their home city. I’m late to the party, having only just got into them via their recent fourth album ‘False Lankum’, but I’m drawn to their slow, intricate dirge like a moth to a flame. This record mainlines the dirge, accompanied by some cracking on-stage banter too Listen
MoMa Ready & Regal86 ‘The Trax’ MoMa Ready’s hi-tech soul meets Regal86’s lowrider techno on this surprise collab album. You can hear MoMa’s astral synths and deep basslines go to work with Regal’s raw, spankin’ percussion across 10 jackin’ tracks that are so hot they don’t even have titles yet Listen
naemi ‘Dust Devil’ A long, blissful excursion into contemporary ambient. Helmed by naemi, who invites an impressive list of collaborators, ‘Dust Devil’ is an expanse of vapourised r’n’b, bedroom shoegaze, disintegrated sampledelica and warm, blurry collage. I can see this soundtracking a lot of my downtime, and becoming a cult classic like PAN’s ‘mono no aware’ Listen
Nehza Records ‘Transmental’ Nehza’s last compilation, a link up with Porto’s XXIII, was a total revelation. Here were two imprints cutting through the BS with new, exciting, cutting-edge club music. That was in autumn of 2023. Now it’s summer 2024 and Nehza, run out of Paris by DJ/producer RONI, comes once again with the curation that’s two steps ahead. Waste Mail faves Burna, Jdotbalance, SLACK 1NE, BJF and Burna all feature on a tracklist that comes brimming with ideas. Full trust in RONI, who also worked the Tropical Waste dancefloor back in February Listen
Nídia & Valentina ‘Estradas’ Killer combo from a master of Lisbon batida and the Italo-British drummer/percussionist who’s currently in a rich run of form. Energy fizzes between the pair on this collab album, Nídia’s ever excellent drum programming given extra layers of percussive rhythm by Valentina, as synth melodies dance and glide across it all. Strong contender for AOTY lists Listen
Phelimuncasi & Metal Preyers ‘Izigqinamba’ Nyege Nyege is on a roll atm and this is another essential listen. A collaboration out of Durban between Phelimuncasi and Metal Preyers which warps the boundaries of gqom as well as the wider template of dance and electronic music. Check in for head-spinning song arrangements and some stunning vocal performances Listen
Shabjeed ‘SULTAN’ Heavyweight rap out of Palestine on the consistently great BLTNM. Shabjeed’s full-bodied flows move nimbly across mind-bending productions that blend up trap, jungle, synth music and abstract beats Listen
Skewed From View ‘Told Through Embers, Far From Fear’ A compilation of experimental electronics, darkside club music and avant ambient from LDN crew/club night/label SFW. A manifesto of something new stirring deep in the capital’s underground, a meeting point similar to ‘mono no aware’ or ‘Dust Devil’. Get on the front foot and check it out Listen
Traxman & DJ Twan ‘GOAT TALK 2’ Traxman and Twan get footwork off to a fierce start in 2024 with this 25-track album that’s packed with heat. There’s a ton of good stuff for DJs and dancers to play with and it’s also a portal for casual fans looking to see what’s going on in Chicago right now: the urgent soul music of ‘DANCIN HEAT’ with its thunderbolt bassline that drops at the 2-min mark; lover’s jam ‘DON’T SNOOZE ON ME’; rhythmic hallucination ‘HUMAN TRAXBOX’; the clean minimalism of ‘LOWGROOVE’ and, of course, battle tracks like ‘YA FUKIN WARNED!!!!!!’ Yup, that’s exactly six exclamation marks, which is also how gassed I am on this record Listen
Ulla & Ultrafog ‘It Means A Lot’ Grabbed an ID off this album from BFTT’s NTS mix, which I featured last month. It provided a portal into a larger body of work that is spacious and emotive, a dawn chorus of strung-out keys and guitar strums, synthesised siren calls and digital dew drops. An absolute gift Listen
SIM - Keep Hush Now that most everyone’s gone high speed, 100bpm tech-hall stuff sounds groovier than ever. A few pioneers of mutant waist winding are still out here delivering slo-mo, robotic soundsystem music and this set from SIM is full of low-slung, low-end club constructions that feel proper crucial Listen
Suzi Analogue ‘ONEZ’ A brilliant mixtape from Baltimore-born, Florida-based producer Suzi Analogue, who serves up highly innovative and crazy fun club music across 12 tracks. ‘ONEZ’ takes heavy inspiration from footwork and juke, re-angling those genres’ tempo and beat pattern to incorporate elements of rap, r’n’b, techno and, of course, B-more club. There are some perfectly executed samples (Normani flip ‘Wild Blend’ is an instant banger) and collabs with INVT, Jlin (!) and King Britt (!!) And while there’s a multitude of ideas on ‘ONEZ’, it’s held together by a warm, textural production palette that sounds unique to Suzi Analogue Listen
The Body & Dis Fig ‘Orchards of a Futile Heaven’ I knew this collab album was on the way but totally missed its release a couple months ago. Club/noise provocateur Dis Fig links up with doom duo The Body to create towering armageddoncore. Fans of heavy music will revel in this particular blast furnace Listen
TT ‘TT 10: A Place Outside Time’ Congrats to TT for 10 years of hits! The London label has dedicated itself to experimental club music with a restless energy and enthusiasm over the last decade. This celebratory comp is a nice lil victory lap, featuring Iceboy Violet on an amapiano beat (!), a cinematic club cut from object blue and a lofi song from Organ Tapes’ iPhone recordings archive (the 2020s equivalent of taping a demo to a mixtape?!) Here’s to the next 10 Listen
Wh0Wh0 ‘groove 16’ Polish drummer Wh0Wh0 is invited to contribute to Polish label Outlines’ groove series, which invites musicians to respond to the blueprint of Chicago footwork. Wh0Wh0 goes for the psychedelic route, opening up a chasm of dub that pulsates at 160bpm Listen
XENIA REAPER ‘Luvaphy’ Every so often there’s a glitch in the algorithm and I’m presented with a no-context record that bears few clues as to where it came from or how it made its way to me. This one’s an album of ambient IDM by XENIA REAPER, where haze and low-end create a fog around the skitter of hypnagogic breakbeats. A memory of rave as we travel somewhere far more ephemeral than the feed Listen

The Waste List 🚨

The Waste List playlist includes all of the artists that are featured here and is updated every month alongside each new issue of Waste Mail

DJ Mixes 🎧

BAMBII in The Lab LDN - Mixmag BAMBII has elevated the art of the party set, selecting remixes, edits and originals in a way that recontextualises tracks and brings together genres in a way that keeps you guessing, makes you sweat and never, ever gets boring. BAMBII is in the top percentile of DJs who can rock the floor while also schooling everyone in attendance Listen
Beatrice M. - Mixmag Beatrice M. is one of the new dubstep vanguard, running the Bait label and party out of Paris. This session for Mixmag goes properly deep, grinding up the spirit of Lee Perry and Skull Disco in order to deliver huge hits of head-spinning, psychedelic bass Listen
Carré - Fast_Cast 014 A live recording from Fast At Work, the LA party that Carré co-runs with a crew of committed underground DJs and ravers. I’ve written about her mixes before but this one feels like a reflection of her own musical journey, starting with the grime and rollage of the UK before moving into faster, leaner tracks that no doubt sound amazing in an LA warehouse, before ending on the kind of futuristic bass music that she’s been releasing as a burgeoning producer Listen
CA$TLE w/ DJ SPINN - Subtle Radio Great to see DJ Spinn back in the UK after a minute. Spinn blesses us with a fierce selection of footwork, while CA$TLE sets things up really nicely with a mix of his own brilliant 160bpm productions - tip! Listen
Cascade w/ Jeneen + ex.sess Two rising London DJs team up to propel through an hour of big, bold neo footwork that’s firmly rooted in the school of DJ Rashad. These tracks are powerful and fluid, mixed with plenty of long blends and quick fader chops that keep the energy high - big recommend Listen
Charli XCX - Boiler Room Kinda struck me how hyperpop is one of the longer lasting UK music phenomena of the 2010s. The strobe-lit impact and unpredictability of it still slaps all these years later, still has that newness to it. As such, this DJ set from Charli and friends rocks Listen
Clasico Records w/ No Bias - NTS Chunky link-up between the Bay Area’s No Bias crew and LDN’s Clasico Records (hot off the back of the Jialing and Jialing x Farsight EPs!) The aforementioned plus Bored Lord, RITCHRD, and Bastiengoat pile into the booth to spin two-hours of crucial club music, the blends fizzing around between different strains of North American dance music and assorted edits and ravey moments. Really skillful, really fun Listen
DJ Haram and Yas Meen Selectress - Lot Radio A great episode of Haram’s Monday Night Raw show. Haram warms up with a hybrid live/DJ session, with the live part moving toward distorted, muscular drum workouts, before Cairo’s Yas Meen Selectress serves up crackling experimental club music that’ll appeal to fans of Toumba, ABADIR and Safety Trance Listen
DJ Lag at Lente Kabinet 2024 A masterful session from the gqom pioneer at Lente Kabinet, the Dutch festival that seems to be going from strength to strength as each summer passes. Lag is an internationally recognised touring DJ, yet his sets never get any less fierce or frenetic Listen
DJ Spinn - Elevator Music By now DJ Spinn sets are a showcase of the Teklife sound past, present and future. Always one to get things cracking, this set for Elevator Music sees Spinn on tight form, throwing out edits, anthems and some new bits too. If ever there was an advert for footwork as peak-time party music, this is it Listen
DJ Swisha - Kiosk Radio x Lot Radio x Horst I often think of Elijah’s ‘DJs are music journalists’ yellow square. It definitely contextualises this live recording of DJ Swisha, the Philadelphia-born DJ who has lived in LA and New York and champions regional North American club music. Deep in the Belgian countryside he draws for Philly, Baltimore and Jersey Club, Chicago Juke and plenty of the records that he’s produced while working at the vanguard of the LA and NYC scenes. It’s a portal to a kind of dancefloor that many Horst attendees probably haven’t experienced before and, as you can see from the YouTube stream, they lap it up accordingly Listen
Dj wiggles - Live @ UNFOLD DJ Wiggles is building a sound world via her kinetic party, record label, Substack and, of course, her own DJ sets. Wiggles is working toward something new in the realm of deep, rhythmic dance music and this live recording documents where her experiments are currently at: Chicago acid and juke, Detroit techno and trippy UK bass are layered to perfection, resulting in a streamline of exciting new blends for that’ll hypnotise your mind and move your feet Listen
HOWE - POUND AND YAM One that I missed from late last year… HOWE goes in on mutant club, funk and trance edits, grime instrumentals, hard dance workouts and blasts of deconstructed detritus. The adventurous mixing is reminiscent of the halcyon days of parties like Endless, Bala Club, Janus and Trance Party, presented through a crystal clear 2023/4 lens Listen
Jealous Orgasm - SHOCK VALUE Came across this face melter after seeing Juliana Huxtable post the deliriously cool cover art that she created for the mix. She’s in TONGUE IN THE MIND with Jealous Orgasm and Via App and here Jealous Orgasm goes solo to collage an hour of deconstructed club concrète, punching in and out of solo piano, walls of synth, breakneck electro, distorted euphoria, pummeling tekno, neon indie sleaze and a ton of crazy, rhythmic, experimental dance music from deep inside the Jealous Orgasm harddrives. Kinda like the soundtrack to the best night out of your life that you haven’t had yet Listen
Joe Milli 100% production mix - Rinse Joe Milli closes out his Rinse residency with a set of his own productions, firing out angular UK funky and energetic, low-end UK techno. Milli’s sitting on some secret weapons, some of which are already out and others that are forthcoming – don’t sleep on this set Listen
Jurango - CRACK 562 You know by now that this is a Jurango stan account. The Bristol don is rewiring UK club music at fast and slow speeds so get stuck in to this one to hear where his head’s at right now Listen
Karen Nyame KG - RA.936 A meticulously well mixed hour of afrohouse, which simmers and bubbles toward boiling point. The sound of a DJ fully in the flow, showcasing a grown ‘n sexy sound that’s ripe for summer Listen
Ma Sha - Rinse France The New York artist’s taste in club music ripples with energy and this radio set goes from fast to even faster, with much of it sounding like it was concocted in a subterranean science lab by a professor hell bent on pushing the limits Listen
Mala b2b Skream - Boiler Room What’s the difference between good wobble and bad wobble? It’s a fine line, but it’s great to see Skream re-embrace the mid 00s dubstep sound that he helped invent and which, during the 2010s, got just a little out of hand. After rinsing out his Boiler Room b2b with Benga with countless reloads, the boy from Croydon keeps a steady hand here alongside longtime associate Mala and the two meet in the middle of tough, angular basslines. This is it Listen
Manami - The Mix 018 Manami steps up for Mixmag’s new flagship The Mix series and shells out broken techno, bass-heavy acid, new school 140 concoctions and some speedier bits too. Great session from a DJ-to-watch Listen
Manuka Honey - RA.921 Manuka Honey forges DJ sets from rage and libidinal energy, making space for dancers to revel in communal catharsis. It’s a heady experience as she makes sparks fly between rebel music and aphrodisiac tracks and this one for RA is a great snapshot of how it goes down when she’s at the controls. It’s packed full of cutting-edge club tracks and plenty of new ones from herself and her circle Listen
medea mad - Radio 80000 Many DJs reference juke and footwork but few go all the way and dedicate themselves to the art of 160. This episode of medea mad’s 160 More Or Less show mixes up cutting-edge strains of those genres as well as some crucial mutations and party-starting edits. Blends are impeccable too - tip! Listen
Mia Koden ‘Made by Mia Koden Vol. 2’ A 100% production mix from the new-school 140 luminary, which has resulted in a fan-voted EP of fresh tracks. This whole thing is full of whomp, groove and percussion that’ll make you want to wind your waist. Mia Koden is a scene leader for a reason Listen
Nervous Horizon w/ Tommy Wallwork & Saroor Nervous Horizon was one of the most consistent labels of 2023, putting out 7 releases of mind-expanding club music. The label’s radio show has also been contributing to the overarching vision, spotlighting who’s likely to be your new favourite DJ months ahead of other platforms. Here, Tommy Wallwork sets it up with 60 minutes of his trademark freneticism, with Saroor knocking it out of the park for the second hour, delivering a brain-and-body dance of pulsating techno, in which multiple rhythms seem to be weaving in and out of each other at any one time Listen
Paide - outlines Mix 50 A mix of deep, percussive footwork from Paide, the co-founder of Polish Juke and boss of outlines, the label that specialises in releasing 160bpm experiments and abstractions. The mix is a journey through sleek, minimalist rhythm and bass, showcasing outlines’ catalogue, forthcoming releases and recent footwork hits, like Manny’s remix of Kelela. Quality stuff - raid the tracklist for IDs and get immersed in the long, hypnotic blends Listen
Precious Metals with Endgame and HMX DON - NTS Experimental club king Endgame invites flex dance music pioneer HMX DON on for an hour of next-level dance music. Endgame warms up with blast furnace sonics before HMX DON blends flex – the hydraulic club style that recalibrates the DNA of dancehall, r’n’b and drill – and dark, angular amapiano Listen
RAPRAVE with HiTech - Lot Radio Probably the most fun you can have during a 60-minute radio show (both in the booth and as a listener). The Detroit trio lay down red-hot ghettotech, juke and footwork in their inimitably hype style Listen
Stolen Velour - TANK Mix Brilliant blend of warped, hyperactive and ~~deconstructed~~ club music from a producer/DJ who always refuses to take the linear route Listen
Thakzin - Rinse FM 3 Step is an evolution of afro house from South Africa that’s making its way onto the wider international scene. Imagine a sweet spot between afro tech, deep house and amapiano and you’re just about there. Anyway, allow this blurb and let Thakzin be your guide Listen
THEMPRESS - Voices Radio Rhythmic heat ‘n intensity on this recent radio show from THEMPRESS, which’ll leave you gasping for air while drawing for Shazam. The DJ/community organiser has also just co-founded Bumpah, a QTIPOC-centered ‘bass rave’ that, judging by its first line-up, is set to become a launchpad for DJs/artists operating in the zone between experimentalism and low-end Listen

The Best of Tropical Waste 🫡

With Love from Tropical Waste ✌️

Next party Feb 21. 160 Unity in South London. 20 advance tickets left. See you down the front x