The best tracks of the year 2023 so far - October - Music - Mixmag

Karen Nyame KG & Leonce ‘Nightryde’ (Rhythm In The City)

Brimming with that trademark low-end heat that The Rhythm Goddess has become renowned for, the second single from Karen Nyame KG’s forthcoming EP ‘RED’ featuring Atlanta-based producer Leonce is a transatlantic exploration of amapiano and sensuality. Shuffling, buoyant percussion slides alongside KG’s mixture of vocals and rap to create a sexy club tune, primed for sweaty basements.

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Jennifer Loveless ‘Pleasure’ (Butter Sessions Records)

Having just undergone an eye-watering festival season, showing audiences on all corners of the planet her unique, shuffle-laden take on house, techno and bass, it’s no surprise that Jennifer Loveless’ new single ‘Pleasure’ continues in this effervescent tradition. Delicate hats and kicks build in severity towards a goosebumps-inducing techno crescendo - before Loveless pulls the rug from under us, stripping everything back and highlighting each element in true deep house style.

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Olof Dreijer 'Camelia' (Hessle Audio)

The one we’ve all been waiting for! Olof Dreijer’s three-tracker - ‘Rosa Rugosa’ - dropped this month, and while we’ve been steadily rinsing the EP’s lead single for a minute, it’s been a pleasure to sample the record’s other two contributions to the Hessle Audio catalogue. Our favourite is ‘Camelia’ and its delicious juxtaposition between trickling hats, groove-ridden bass and soft synths. Serotonin for the dancefloor.

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Laidback Luke & Steve Angello ‘Be’ (Bok’s Dub) (Self-released)

Bok Bok’s latest edition of his Hardbody Dubs series has brought us an absolute stonker. Bok Bok’s refix of the electro house heavyweights Steve Angello and Laidback Luke’s track ‘Be’ is a guaranteed roof-raiser. The Night Slugs boss brings Rowetta’s vocals to the fore in an epic breakdown before drums, synths and signature Bok Bok stings cascade in for a club track full of frenzy.

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Fold ‘Billa’ (FLDIN2)

DJ and producer Fold christens his new label FLDIN2 with ‘Billa’, a sub-heavy garage sensation. The track, which has been rinsed by Joy Orbison this summer, pays homage to pirate radio with its captivating acapella. The track had been sent out to a select few DJs ahead of its release, with Fold coining the slow rollout of ‘Billa’ as “dubplate season”. Now that it’s out, full clubland takeover beckons.

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Luca Duran ‘Ojos Cerrados’ (Laksa’s 3rd eye rolla’ remix) (TraTraTrax)

Colombian-Swiss artist Luca Duran returns to TraTraTrax with three tracks that embody the eroticism of a dark, hot, sweaty dancefloor. Accompanying the tracks are two remixes, with the pic of the bunch being Hessle Audio, Ilian Tape and Timedance producer Laksa’s 3rd eye rolla’ remix. The 145 half-time track moulds and warps elements of dubstep and guaracha to mesmerising effect. Laksa’s remix continues his fine vein of form in the studio, having kicked off his and re:ni’s label re:lax with the splendid ‘Body Score’ EP earlier this year.

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SICARIA ‘Still Swingin’ (Club Confi:DANCE)

Following up from her debut solo single which landed in September, London’s SICARIA christens her Club Confi:DANCE imprint with a new club corker, ‘Still Swingin’. With influence from her Moroccan roots, ‘Still Swingin’ fuses flittering drums and hypnotic vocals under a cut-throat bassline, doubling down on her solid strides as a 140 veteran.

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Giulia Tess ‘Gloves’ (LG105)

We might be far out from World Cup Mania, but Giulia Tess is reliving that footy fever with her latest single inspired by “football and gardening”, ‘Gloves’. This airy house number, slashed by choppy vocals and bubbling synths, is the first single to appear on the producer’s ‘Serie A’ EP coming in December on LG105.

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Ma Sha ‘KV December’ (Nervous Horizon)

‘KV December’ is the club-ready centrepiece from Ma Sha’s latest EP ‘Elastik’, comprising four blistering new cuts including a refix from Ehua. The New York producer goes hard on the penultimate track, inspired by the concept of self isolation-induced time, distorting textures and rhythms to create an all-encompassing and slightly off-kilter techno number.

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Caroline Polachek ‘Dang’ (Perpetual Novice)

A track worked on by Cecile Believe, Danny L Harle and Caroline Polachek herself, ‘Dang’ is a playful release. Everchanging, the single uses multiple vocals from Polachek, including repetition of the word “dang” and some muffled, inaudible mutters. The easiest way to understand the track is as a confused pop song as its catchy lyrics match something built for the charts yet its abstract composition makes it even more exciting than your ordinary pop hit.

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Skepta ‘Can't Play Myself (A Tribute To Amy)’ (Más Tiempo / Island Records)

In a tribute to the national treasure Amy Winehouse, fellow North Londoner Skepta has reincarnated her track ‘My Tears Dry On Their Own’ into a tech-house banger. Giving room to Amy’s soulful lyrics with a gentle bassline, as soon as that chorus is sung out, the beat drops into a plummeting dance anthem. This really is an uplifting fist-pumper.

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Lord Apex 'Phoenix' (feat. Freddie Gibbs) (E/M Worldwide)

Despite being continents apart, Lord Apex and Freddie Gibbs have been friends for a while now and have finally released a joint track. Covering subjects of regret, hope and rebirth, both artists have moulded some flawless bars that drift on top of a jazzy sample loop produced by Argov.

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L’Rain ‘Uncertainty Principle’ (Mexican Summer)

Taja Cheek’s third album as L’Rain sounds like someone exiting a period of reflection with a maniacal laugh and leaning into chaos. The tracks explore deep themes that can never be black and white, accepting the contradicitons with a playful edge. Standout cut ‘Uncertainty Principle’ reflects this sonic MO, moving between spellbindlingly beautiful vocals that wouldn’t be out of place in a church choir and smash-your-guitar-on-an-amp level rage rock.

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James Benjamin ‘Team Break’ (Self-released)

James Benjamin’s latest EP arrives emblazoned with the maxim ‘dance beyond genre’, and duly delivers with some hybrid bangers designed to work up a dancefloor. Opener ‘Team Break’ is a heady blend of bouncing bass notes, chopped breaks, urgent vocal samples, with unhinged production flourishes throughout.

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DJ IC ‘My Story’ (All Shades of The Drum)

London Afro house don DJ IC gets in his feelings on his latest EP, which intends to show a “more sincere side” of his music. The title-track is gentle, soothing production that will whisk you away to planes of relaxation on a deep house highway to the sky.

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