Artists
REPTANT (live)
(Kalahari Oyster Cult / AU)
Ahead of his premier appearance at Dimensions festival and following his first-ever live performance in the history of the Dekmantel Selectors festival, one of the most formidable Australian reptiles, electro producer, and DJ Reptant will grace Slovenia for the first time in June.
The high-voltage retrofuturism from the South Pacific is the result of the last 5 years of work by one of Australia's most prominent electronic producers, Lucas Hatzisavas. Reptant's reptilian mythology, woven around his work, is similar to an underwater sonic resonance, distantly related to the pinnacle of electro reference, Drexciya.
Audiences craving fast-paced electro tunes that haven't sacrificed funk, mystique, and hypnotism have been faithful to Reptant for several years, opening doors for him at the Dekmantel festival and their podcast, Tresor's Globus, and lineups alongside heavyweights like Helena Hauff, DMX Krew, and Sansibar. On Friday June 14th, he will be joined by a phalanx of young local electro talent spanning from the Adriatic to the Pacific.
ZENKER BROTHERS
(ILIAN TAPE / DE)
Marco and Dario, credibility and techno. The Bavarian brothers, like true German diesel engines without glitches, reliably cruise along the techno highway, never lingering in the past. As the heads of the Illian Tape label, they confidently navigate even the winding detours.
Indeed, it's these twists and turns, or rather breaks, that characterize their vibrant imprint, where heavyweights like Skee Mask, Andrea, and Stenny emerge, shaping the technoid offshoots of the past decade. The Zenker brothers, always operating outside popular trends, infuse them with rich dubby atmospheres and melancholic melodies, resonating from Tresor to 50Weapons. The fraternal duo has spun records in all the relevant techno havens, contributing mixes to stalwart series like Bassiani, Fabric, and Fact, among others.
Without PR stunts, dwelling on the past, or succumbing to TikTok trends, the Zenker brothers have remained techno standard-bearers for 15 years. They view techno not just as a DJ tool but as a force to be reckoned with, gracing renowned festivals like Dekmantel as well as intimate gatherings. Hence, it's high time for them to make their debut in Ljubljana, specifically at the Keep in Mind festival this June.
BUUNSHIN
(BREAKBEAT KAOS, VISION, UKF / NL)
Buunshin aka Ferry Melegers is an anomaly in electronic music. At just 26, having honed his craft under the watchful eye of DnB titans, Noisia, his career continues to go from strength to strength.
Releasing on the biggest labels in Dance music including the legendary Breakbeat Kaos, Vision, UKF, Mau5trap and Critical to name but a few, Buunshin effortlessly ensures his cutting edge unique sound becomes his trademark worldwide.
Constantly breaking the rules, switching bpms and genres seamlessly is just one of Buunshin’s many strengths and this diversity is causing a wave globally.
Whether he’s touring all 4 corners of the globe or feeding his Patreon community studio wizardry and nurturing future talent himself, it’s Europe, New Zealand and America where he has a ridiculously healthy fan base, with a forthcoming album dropping on heavyweight US based label, Deadbeats.
Newly signed to Decade Management and Primary Talent, Buunshin has made himself a true force to be reckoned with both in and out of the studio and this is just the beginning of the journey for him.
THYS
(FOOL'S GOLD, VISION RECORDINGS / NL)
This is Thys (Thijs de Vlieger): DJ, producer and composer from the north of the Netherlands. His DJ sets are a reflection of a two-decade-long musical course. With razor-sharp and unexpected mixing, he seamlessly blends a multitude of bass heavy genres. Creating energetic waves, not afraid to make bold leaps, but never losing sight of the groove.
When producing club music De Vlieger loves to mix up BPMs and moods. His recent “Shoulder To Shoulder” EP is a clear statement of intent in that regard: a love letter to club music and the intuitive feeling of togetherness that loud music in a dark room can unlock for us.
But when writing music in a more “composer” role, the range stretches even wider:
Repeated collaborations with Amon Tobin, a short film for Iris Van Herpen with renowned harpist Lavinia Meijer (Biomimicry), a feature film with Salvador Breed (Mycelia; unreleased at the time of writing), three scores for contemporary dance performances, writing for full symphonic orchestra and classical ensembles, and an album composed for church organ, cello and viola, with the organ recorded by De Vlieger himself (unreleased): Thys will not be tied down to one sound or genre.
As a member of widely recognised electronic music trio Noisia, Thys has toured the world for decades, has collaborated with and remixed a range of top tier artists like The Prodigy and Skrillex, and scored for AAA videogames such as DMC: Devil May Cry and Motorstorm: Apocalypse.
ADRIAN MARTH
(ITALO MODERNI / ES)
For spicy EBM, New Beat, and Italo bombs, the collaboration between the Keep in Mind festival and the Kri Records will happen at Privee, sorry, Mizzart. Joining Lavka and Schrauff will be the Spanish matador Adrian Marth, “El Jefe” of one of the most hyped Spanish labels, Italo Moderni. Operating at the crossroads of electro, Italo, and EBM sounds, with releases by heavyweights such as The Hacker and Djedjotronic are releasing, soon joined by the local talent Black Dot with a remix by Marcel Dettmann.
Adrian has, in the past two years, broken into the always sold-out roster of David Vunk under the name Moustache Records, rubbed elbows with the renowned Tiga on Turbo Recordings, and will soon be remixed by the West Coast electro champion Legowelt.
Also worth mentioning is last year’s well-received release Crystal Ball Visions on Kri, which he cooked up together with the Italian prince of darkness Violet Poison, aka Diana Berti. As a DJ, Marth can boast performances at the cult Italorama Bar night at Panoramabar and at the connoisseur festival IFM in The Hague. From June 21st, he’ll be able to add Keep In Mind to that list.