Meet Bambi, resident DJ of Macadam Nantes, a host of Rinse France as well as curator for tentacular, a show and mix series on Dia Radio. Bambi has prepared us a beautiful down-tempo mix, full of trip hop, jungle and other sexy slow rhythms.
First off, can you tell us a little bit about the energy behind this mix? Any artists or tracks you wanna give a shout-out to? What activity would you prescribe doing while listening?
I recorded it at the end of this past summer, which coincided with the end of the festival season. I needed to recharge my physical+emotional batteries after a summer-long marathon of playing non stop in clubs and festivals all over France and doing my Berlin debuts.
I think the mix is an accurate reflection of my mood in that moment. It’s a nostalgic combo of slow rhythms, soft vocals and transcendental vibes, which help de-clutter the mind and ease the soul. I would recommend giving it a listen on a sunny afternoon, going out on a walk in a park or while riding a bike near a body of water.
Tell us about tentacular and your role in this beautiful series? How did it come about and what are you looking to showcase?
tentacular originated from my friend Hewan Aman’s residency on DIA! radio, which started a year ago with a mix I recorded for her. Even though Hewan and I have our own respective style and unique identity, we share a close and similar vision to music, which we feel is complementary to our creative partnership. We now co-curate and co-conceptualize tentacular together, and see this mix series as a celebration of our common love for trance sonorities: 90s old school trance, psy, balearic, eurodance, progressive, downtempo, etc. Through tentacular, we also want to represent like-minded artists who inspire us musically, as well as highlight what they embody, and connect them together around common values.
Very exciting to see the first tentacular party with some familiar names on the line-up as well - will there be many more to follow? And will this be an on-going project in collaboration with some of the other projects you’re running?
Exciting indeed! Our first tentacular night took place last Saturday, October 22nd in Paris. We were so honored to invite artists such as ANNX (WHOMP), Eoin DJ (Radiant Records Berlin) for their first time in Paris, and Malouane (Sarcus) to play his beautiful live. We also collaborated with set designers and VJs. We even had an ephemeral radio show called « Ondorphine », and it was beautiful to see all these artists bring something different to the party. tentacular is really about re-imagining the party through a 360 angle, and offering a new approach to the ways in which we collectively occupy a club. It’s also a laboratory for research, multidisciplinary artistic creations and festive experiments for our collective « au-delà du club » (created with Hawa Sarita, Hewan Aman & Astan). It’s a safer space where we can celebrate intimacy, freedom, consent, but also where we can question the established order. Hopefully there will be more to come! We’re also working on a fanzine called « flashes » and a tentacular exhibition for next spring.
“Through tentacular, we also want to represent like-minded artists who inspire us musically, as well as highlight what they embody, and connect them together around common values.”
Who are some people and spaces we should be checking out/listening to in Nantes? (I did exchange there many moons ago lol so I’m very curious!)
It’s funny, everybody thinks that I’m from Nantes because of my Macadam residency! I’m actually from the Parisian suburbs :) I don’t know the Nantes scene super well yet. From what I’ve seen so far there are very exciting local artist collectives and radios there. Starting with the Androgyne crew and residents (Youl, Moksha, GTI, to name a few), we share a common taste for music and a similar approach to clubbing, so it was an immediate match. They really make me feel at home every time I play in Nantes. I would definitely recommend checking out Macadam for the quality of their programing, their sound system, and the sweaty/feel good vibe of the crowd there. I would also recommend a local collective called « Zone Rouge », which was co-founded by AASANA (Macadam’s artistic programmer) and that is led by women DJs only. There is also a local web radio, DY10, which curates really cool residencies and shows, such as Ybizar, for which I got to participate with GTI last year.
Finally, what’s next for Bambi? Where can we catch you spinning out and/or what are some future projects you’re working on?
Some v v v very exciting gigs are coming up! I will play at Positive Education Festival in November which is one of my favorite festivals. I’m really excited (and nervous, not gonna lie lol) about this one, seeing my name alongside some of the most talented artists of the current electronic scene. It’s a pretty big deal for me, as I started Djing only 2 years ago, and I feel like I still have a lot to learn. I’ll also be playing at a festival called les « Transmusicales » in Rennes, which I’m also looking forward to, as well as other gigs here and there in France, Berlin, London and hopefully other European dance floors, tba in 2023 :)
Future projects include developing tentacular, learning new skills, meeting inspiring artists, and keeping the debate open about alternative clubbing with my crew from « au-delà du club » ❤️
Stay up to date with Bambi here!