First Floor

Pretty sure this is the first time I've ever talked to an artist about the lingering effects of their traumatic brain injury. Kudos to @ayescold for both the honesty and vulnerability she brought to this interview.

Find the link to the newsletter in the usual spot... Or just subscribe so that it goes directly to your mailbox and you don't have to rely on the algorithm.

Long before "Latin club" became dance music's hottest hype, Colombia's @julianna_808 was turning out dancefloors on multiple continents—and doing it with hard-to-classify, genre-busting sounds. She applied that same sensibility to her guest recommendation in today's First Floor.

Had a really nice conversation with @ShawnReynaldo for his music newsletter @_FirstFloor that's unpaywalled for 24 hours.

You can find @driftingover's recommendation by following the link in the usual spot... his selection not surprisingly highlights something that's as delightfully unorthodox as the music he himself makes.

After many years of making top-shelf techno as Shifted, @driftingover adopted a new name (Carrier) and started making some thrillingly unconventional tunes. He honestly sounds better than ever, and today he's contributed a guest recommendation to the latest First Floor mailout.

The upcoming book from @embot is quite unlike most dance music titles, and is primarily set in the Bushwick scene during a time of mass political and social upheaval. She told me about that and more in an interview for @_FirstFloor. Link in the usual spot.

Find the link to today's First Floor in the usual spot, and after you're done giving it a read, you can get a little taste of @DJmadamX's forthcoming EP at the link below. kaizenltd.bandcamp.com/album/homecomi…

It's hard to believe that @DJmadamX, who's been a staple of the UK bass circuit for years, has never produced a record before, but with her debut EP scheduled to arrive in October, now felt like a good time to have her pop into the newsletter with a guest recommendation.

Tim Reaper has an LP coming out soon on @Hyperdub and has been widely anointed as a leader of "new-school jungle." He didn't ask for that, but he sure does seem determined to bring as many other artists as possible along for the ride. I interviewed him for @_FirstFloor.

Find the link in the usual spot, and while you're at it, make sure to sign up for @aidabaghernejad's newsletter, which is called Recommended Reading.

It's always a pleasure to feature other music journalists and their work in the newsletter, and that goes double when the journalist in question is a legitimate multiple award-winner like @aidabaghernejad. She put together a special guest recommendation for today's mailout.

There's an interview with @futureretrodnb - Tim Reaper up at @_FirstFloor free to read for the next 24 hours - link in bio - 'In Full Effect' his new album alongside Kloke is pre-ordering now.

Nobody sounds like Shackleton, which is a big part of why his music is so amazing. But have you heard all of his collaborative projects during the past decade? Sometimes Shackleton doesn't even sound like Shackleton, so I decided to do a deep dive tracking his sonic evolution.

If you haven't already heard "FREAKY HORNS," do yourself a favor and remedy that situation. And if you want to read today's newsletter, find the link in the usual spot. soundcloud.com/pbnstrawberryj…

"FREAKY HORNS" is one of the most enjoyable bangers of 2024 - especially for anyone with an affinity for Baltimore club - so it was a real pleasure to have @JiaLing_bigJ contribute a guest recommendation to today's newsletter.

I know that @Vinncent isn't the likeliest candidate for a @_FirstFloor interview, but when I wanted to talk about the politicization of cultural discourse and the role of the media (and social media) in that, I figured it made sense to look beyond the DJ circuit.

Today's newsletter features a special guest recommendation from the ultra-versatile, genre-blurring, modular-building NYC producer @braillesounds, who shares a track that first blew his mind more than two decades ago.

No journalist is more dedicated to documenting the most fried corners of online music + culture than @kieranpressreyn, which is why it's such a pleasure to have him contribute a guest recommendation to today's First Floor. p.s. Brazilian funk fiends won't want to miss this one.