Fact Mix 811: Katiusha

Diaphanous rave selections from a rising fixture of the Berlin scene.

If, like us, you’re an avid listener of the London-born, Berlin-based DJ, writer and artist Katiusha’s Cashmere Radio show, you would, by her own admission, be forgiven for having her pegged as someone with their head firmly above the clouds. Describing these monthly transmissions as “soundtrack-like odes” and “audio cloudscapes”, the beloved show is a sonic exploration of Earth’s troposphere, stratosphere and mesosphere, with each installment themed after a different cloud formation and covering an expansive palette of nebulous music connected primarily by texture and mood. See ‘Cirrus’, featuring Happa & Jabes, two meditations on the strange ‘Mammatus’, featuring Lewis Barnes and CCL respectively, and ‘Noctilucent’, featuring A Psychic Yes, for some essential listening.

Yet, while Katiusha might have her sights set on the skies, her heart rests in the rave, which is where we find ourselves for her Fact mix. Spinning together a diaphanous selection of elegant breaks, sensual techno and breakneck house, Katiusha skips effortlessly between technicolour breeze and corporeal heft, translating her heady taste for slower sounds into an emotional and intimate approach to the dance. “As I got into the recording headspace, I wanted to chuck a bunch of different bits together – colourful stuff beside bassy grit; psychedelic halftime with ghetto tech, basically playing with hard/soft/light/dark contrasts around a 150/75 axis,” she explains.

“In other words, it’s a rave mix through and through. Tracks-wise maybe it goes without saying I love all these tunes? But some real special favourites include that deeply exhilarating Subsurfing track (shoutout to the Coniston crew there), double Ron Wells cameo, and ‘Babel’ off the (imo undersung) Massive Attack album Heligoland. Also really enjoyed blasting the mix back into four four with that dubby party pumper from Roza Terenzi – ‘Stylish Tantrum’ up there in my top 10 favourite track names. I recorded it on 1210s, CDJ2000s and a rotary Rane, which was kind of an unexpected candidate for these speedy gonzalez tunes, but very satisfying and smooth to use.” 

For more information about Katiusha and her work you can check out her SoundCloud and find her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Tune in to Above The Clouds at Cashmere Radio.

Tracklist:

Popol Vuh – ‘Nachts’ (Schnee Mika Vainio Remix) 
Christos Chondropoulos – ‘Letter to Mother’ 
Subsurfing – ‘The Number Readers’ 
Felix Leifur – ‘Michael Buble Vont Vedur’
Healion – ‘About Breathing’ (Ludwig AF Remix)
Massive Attack – ‘Babel’
Floral Resources – ‘Botanic Panic’
Liftin’ Spirits – ‘Volume 2’ (Mix 1) 
Brain Rays & Quiet – ‘Tigress Canisha’
Dat Nigah Tha Schit – ‘Every Tyme I See Your Face’
DJ これからの緊急災害 – ‘Dielectric Polarization’
crouds – ‘Larking’ 
Mr. Ho – ‘O$P$’
20 Hurts – ‘Sound Entity’
Air Liquide – ‘Liquid Men With Liquid Hearts’
Eliphino – ‘IG Messenger’
Sam Interface – ‘Side Shadows’ 
Glume & Phossa – ‘Jitter’
Modeselektor – ‘Social Distancing’ (JManuel & Anna Z Remix)
Roza Terenzi – ‘Stylish Tantrum’ 
Speedy J – ‘Beam Me Up!’ (The Pegasus Mix) 
Fast Floor – ‘Touch The Sky’ 
Dan Curtin & DJ Haus – ‘Druids Dream’