Ben A & Chic Hooligan Deliver Late-Night Heat With “La Mezcalina”
Magnetic Magazine Recordings rolls into its 61st release with La Mezcalina, and this one feels aligned in a way that matters. Ben A and Chic Hooligan didn’t throw parts at a timeline and hope for the best. They built something patient, controlled, and ready for a proper room.
If you’ve followed Ben A’s path over the last decade, this release makes sense. He’s been sharpening his approach for years, playing everywhere from Beta and the Beatport Lounge in Denver to Output in Brooklyn, 01 Cero Uno in Playa del Carmen, The End Up in San Francisco, and Avalon in Los Angeles. That kind of mileage changes how you produce because you stop chasing moments and start designing records that actually work at 1:30am when the room is full and the DJ before you just pushed it hard.
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You can hear that lived-in experience all over La Mezcalina.
The track sits at 122 BPM in Ab Minor, and it leans into that organic house pocket without drifting into background territory. The low end rolls with intention, the percussion is clean and deliberate, and the arrangement unfolds in a way that respects the DJ. There’s space where you need it, there’s tension where you want it, and nothing feels forced. It’s built for long blends, for subtle layering, for moments when you want to hold the floor instead of shock it.
Chic Hooligan’s presence adds shape without overcrowding the frame, and that collaborative restraint is what makes the record land. Too many collaborations feel like compromise. This feels like alignment.
Ben A has been relentless in the studio lately, stacking releases on Toolroom and Saved Records while continuing to represent Denver on a global level, and that studio discipline shows here. His sets have aired on Ibiza Radio One, Proton Radio, and Frisky Radio, and being named an Official Artist of the Winter Music Conference in 2019 and 2020 didn’t happen by accident. That kind of consistency comes from knowing what works and refining it instead of reinventing yourself every six months.
La Mezcalina reflects that mindset. It’s not flashy for the sake of being flashy. It moves with control, it builds with purpose, and it gives DJs something they can actually use. When I listen to it, I hear a record that understands pacing and trusts the room, and that’s a rare quality in a market that often pushes for instant payoff.
Magnetic Magazine Recordings has been carving out a lane that favors depth and functionality, and this release fits that direction cleanly. It feels club-tested without sounding formulaic, and it carries enough personality to stand on its own outside of the booth.
If you’re digging for something that can anchor the middle of a set and hold attention without exhausting the floor, La Mezcalina deserves space in the crate. It’s focused, it’s intentional, and it sounds like two artists who know exactly what they’re doing.
Out now on Magnetic Magazine Recordings.
