Gettin' mystic up there

Gettin' mystic up there

A festival in a valley not so far away...

SOCIAL & LIFESTYLE

Are you excited for Mystic Valley or what? Frankly, we couldn't think of anything better than spending three days in a luscious green valley in the cool depths of Khao Yai, listening to nothing but your favourite music. Because at Mystic Valley, there's a stage for everyone. So long as you're into electronic music, or hip hop, that is. If you're into country, best to leave this one out sweetheart.

We caught up with some of the local DJs who'll be running and performing on their own stages at the festival. Let's just say, they've got us pretty amped up now! Read on, ravers.


SUNN STAGE

Coran Maloney, a techno DJ from Melbourne Australia, is the co-founder of the Kolour and Sunn events and festivals that started in 2011. Sebastian Keush, from Lake Constance in Germany, was majorly involved in the drum and bass scene in Austria for a few years but founded a love for techno in Thailand when he moved here three years ago and became a part of the Kolour and Sunn crew.

SUNN STAGE: Coran Maloney and Sebastian Keush.

Why did you guys decide to perform at Mystic Valley?

Coran: I'm performing to represent the sound from our brand Sunn which is hosting the house and techno stage at the festival.

Seb: It's great fun spending time outside of the city. It's more about sharing the experience together and appreciating the moment. You get closer to people you wouldn't think of, and Mystic is definitely the place for that.

What kind of sound or vibe are you looking to bring to the festival?

Coran: My sets of late have moved more into a hypnotic style of tech-deep house and techno. I don't like big drops. For me, a good set is all about the journey.

Seb: I would like to put a smile on everyone's face.

What are you looking forward to most at Mystic?

Coran: Apart from hosting our own stage -- which is going to blow the socks of everyone btw -- probably the fact that there will be music running 24/7. That's a huge plus for me and very rare for Thailand.

Seb: To break out of the concrete prison and go on an adventure for a weekend.

What is your most favourite track ever?

Coran: Super hard to say -- probably a tie between Daft Punk's One More Time and The White Lamp's It's You (Ron Basejam Remix).

Seb: I don't really have a favourite as there is so much good music out there, but I like this one a lot: Roy Ayers' Everybody Loves The Sunshine.

What song can you not get enough of right now?

Coran: Kalyma's Lay Down. It's fire on a quality sound system!

Seb: A Man Called Adam's Que Tal America (Mericana Mix).

Which DJs and producers inspire you the most?

Coran: So so many. When I got into DJ-ing it was Sven Vath, Erick Morillo and Felix The Housecat. Nowadays I'm listening to new music from a variety of genres like indie, downtempo, acoustic and electronica. Recently I was really inspired by an acoustic performance by Lucy Rose. I'm also a huge fan of Chet Faker, and Shook.

Seb: Those who manage to direct their imaginative power into creating beautiful pieces of music despite the crazy times we're in.


DARK WHITE STAGE

This Bangkok-based DJ duo -- Walt Mattsson from Finland and Rory Roketto from Canada -- has been playing at some of Thailand's most celebrated underground events since they first formed in 2013. They currently perform under the Dark White alias as Sir Walt and Slomororo.

Dark White's sound is that space between disco, house, RnB, soul, funk, breaks, rare grooves, boogie and hip hop, but more importantly, it is the glue that pulls all these sub-genres together. Take it from us, their music is dope AF.

DARK WHITE STAGE: Rory Roketto and Walt Mattsson. Photos: Mystic Valley

Why did you guys decide to perform at Mystic Valley?

Walt: Mystic Valley is one of the biggest festivals in Thailand to date. As a DJ, you would be out of your mind NOT to want to play there, especially when you consider how versatile the line up is.

What kind of sound or vibe are you looking to bring to the festival?

Walt: We will go from a smooth and groovy afternoon feel-good vibe to some French house and late night classic house joints.

Rory: Basically, everything of the left field disco variety, ranging from some classic disco, edits, RnB, rare grooves, funk and soul all the way to soulful house music.

What are you looking forward to most at Mystic?

Walt: In a nutshell, piña coladas with music at sunset against the nature backdrop of Mystic Valley.

Rory: 1) Satin Jackets Live, because I love seeing artists reproduce their music live as things change in the moment and other things come up on the fly; 2) Metroplane which is Alex Metric and Aeroplane performing b2b; 3) DJ FFan from Seoul. He isn't very well known here but I caught him closing the Seoul Boiler Room and he is FFAN-TASTIC!

What is your most favourite track ever?

Walt: It's a bit of a slow jam, but I'll still go with it; Daft Punk's Something About Us.

Rory: IMPOSSIBLE to answer. I'll give you five off the top of my head: Madonna's Lucky Star; Whitney Houston's I Wanna Dance; Rare Earth's Get Ready; All Along The Watchtower by Jimi Hendrix and Give it Up or Turn it Loose by James Brown.

What song can you not get enough of right now?

Walt: Another curveball slow jam, but I'll just be honest, it's Lihue by Nohelani Cypriano, a 1977 Hawaiian funk rare groove and it's been playing on loop for months and months. I just can't get enough.

Rory: Algorytme by Lindstrom -- it's been stuck in my head for a couple weeks now. Simple but effective!

Which DJs and producers inspire you most?

Walt: French Kiwi Juice is an absolute machine. Overall, all the DJs and producers who are moving into the live performance direction inspire me. Obviously to add to the list are all the local heroes like Axel Groove aka Sex Panther.

Rory: I really like good selectors regardless of their ability to produce music or not. Ben UFO, DJ Harvey and The Black Madonna, to name a few.


Catch these guys spinning at their respective stages at Mystic Valley. For more information, visit http://fb.com/mysticthailand.

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