★★★★☆
Making opposites become allies — the art of the eclectic DJ mix in a nutshell, and just the job for Till von Sein’s magic needle and thread. With a start of tumbledown, shivery, emotionally charged electronica — a false album forecast turned wholly logical launchpad — TvS is a maverick, but quick-witted in overseeing a go-slow mix of seeming odds and ends.
Scouting the electronic sphere from a far-off hideaway, common bloodlines are found in a warm inspection of dying embers. Ayala and El_Txef_A eke out post-dubstep as a perfect bridge to Klaves’ plaited future soul riddims, and deep house from Ripperton and a de-misted Toro Y Moi heralds an energy spurt where the mix casually gets up and goes, staying refined while almost politely excusing itself. Viewing from a Balearic observatory — a timeshare TvS divides his time in to act out satisfying post-nap stretches and generally announce that all is well — spies DJ Nature’s slick sax scoring “Sexual Tension Scene 1” and the backlit lounge to Twit One’s “Hornoxn,” both indulging in a vibe wealthy in its humility.
The flow is one of the most seamless going — on another day some inclusions probably wouldn’t work — and the attention to mutual track properties is exceptional. Readily finding extra spark so the set emits rays of light that are smuggled to safety without any coordinates being disturbed, this is a high end back to mine.
File under: Fritz Kalkbrenner, Tigerskin, Sebastien Tellier