I’m a passionate, shameless lover of the esoteric strain in dance music, particularly the first flower of ’90s psychedelic electronic music. It’s that potent, powerful stuff that firmly believed that you could move the booty to expand the mind.
As a label, a collective and each of the artists individually, Hardkiss has done it better than anyone. Gavin Hardkiss’ sound has changed since 1991 but it still has at its core that deep spiritual longing and the feeling of something magical you can just touch with the furthest edge of your fingertips. You can hear all of this in Grapeseed Meditation, the latest EP from Gavin Hardkiss (not, interestingly, as Hawke).
The original mix is stunning, epic in scope and with a dramatic, jarring but beautifully moving shift in tone at the 5 minute mark. I don’t know where the DJ (or the vocal) is leading me but that’s the chance you take when you dance with your eyes closed. And Oona Dahl shows some pure-hearted affinity with the ethos of this type of stuff, with a fearless 8 minute mix:
Oona Dahl’s mix is a free download for one of those click-to-follow-and-here’s-a-link services. The full EP is for sale now at JunoDownload and on Spotify for the masses.
Photo via Oona Dahl at Liaison Artists
Artist: Gavin Hardkiss
Title: Grapeseed Meditation (Oona Dahl Remix)
Label: Hardkiss Music
CAT: HK 26
Release Date: June 28 2019
