Greeting, greetings! With spring finally breezing in the air, our fourth MailTape LIVE event is also only less than 5 days away.
There is no better time to have Machka, who will showcase her DJ set at our event, to sit in and share with us some of her favourite Sunday tunes.
Machka is Eleonore Reyes, the Franco-Colombian artist’s electro-instrumental project that travels through melancholic ambient, rapid-fired broken beats and mystical trance. The composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist is often fascinated by the environmental sounds of our world, she loves to play around with electronic components, acoustic compositions and field recordings to transport the listeners towards unexpected turns and territories. Her stellar debut EP “L’Aigle et Le Serpent” was released last June.
Machka’s selection
Orbital - Halcyon and on and on
Machka: ” Invoking a feeling on peace and happiness - as the mystical bird ” Halcyon ” refers to (they had the power too calm down the agitated waves over the sea) - this track reminds me the softness of seeing the sun rise after a (sober for myself) party, or the feeling of falling in love with the rising beauty of life. “
Plaid - Sincetta
Machka: ” Melancholic feelings of some grey mornings turning into a progressive waltz transforming the bitterness of the past into bright glimpse of hope. “
Clark - The Pining pt1
Machka: ” Sonic illusion or ambiguous truth? Drawing some kind of epic riddle by upbeat rhythms and mysterious texture, this track makes me perceive the day as a game to play (an was actually a good alarm clock for a while!) “
MailTape’s selection
Machka - Gold Day
Ling: ” I feel like I can’t start introducing my part of the selection this week without mentioning my encounter with Machka first - it was over 2 years ago when I got introduced to Rinse France crew on a night-out, and we had this conversation on our way to the club about our mutual musical interests - especially how we love to play 80bpm downtempo tracks and double it up to 160bpm in our sets, and I felt instantly connected to her idea of “contemplative dance music”.
We didn’t meet again until I went to see her playing a DJ set at Le Hasard Ludique with MT crew. That was when I determined to invite her officially on board for MailTape’s Live event. I was so glad when she confirmed my invitation and told me that she has been a MailTape subscriber all along since the early days.
It was a pleasant surprise to discover that acoustic compositions play some major parts on Machka’s debut EP - percussions, guitar, bass, flute that reminiscent of 70s psychedelic sounds are weaved seamlessly with synth pads. Gold Day is a stand-out since it opens up a different facade of Machka’s musical universe, and maybe it is closer to its origin. “
NEU! - Hallogallo
Ling: ” To follow up the 70s alternative rock vibes, here’s a track from a personal memory - when I was in Berlin last year, I encountered a boy in a club after a long night of dancing, and we took a walk along the tram way in the early morning. I was still under influence so everything was so enhanced - the chilly but refreshing air, this boy’s big big smile in the blazing morning sun, the sound of the train coming up the tramway… when we woke up few hours later at his place he played me this record - not the first time I had listened to NEU!, but it refreshed my memories.
In the end it was probably just another encounter with a stranger from the club, but something about it stayed deeper, as this track perfectly started the day, every time I listen to it now, it brings back those sunshines from that morning, and those magical moments when different realities clash together on all of those early mornings. “
Locust - Just Like You
Ling: ” A dreamy trip-hop track from Seefeel’s Mark Van Hoen’s alias Locust. I’ve been a fan of Seefeel’s discography, and I recently discovered its former member Mark Van Hoen’s solo projects. It’s one of those tracks that put you on your couch on a Sunday afternoon, and just do absolutely nothing. “
Life Form - Come Down (Hypnotic June 7 Mix)
Ling: ” Saving this secret weapon for the last one standing - heard it first time from a radio show of my dear DJ friend from Chengdu, Cora. This is 90s broken beats at its best - stunning piano solo breakdown, the blissful echoey vocal, drum&bass fused percussions, all you need for an epic closing moment in 7am. I haven’t got the chance to play it live in a club yet, but I am definitely hoping for soon! (Also certified as a classic - recently reissue by my favourite Berlin record shop Sound Metaphors.) “
Thank you Machka, and thank you for tuning in with us. If you’re in town on the 29th, don’t miss out Machka’s DJ set after S8JFOU’s A/V show. I will also be warming up the pot from 19h. Come early, we will be impatient to meet you all. My infinite gratitudes to Patricia for the stunning cover art. Until next time.
