Design Studio manager by day and DJ by night, Swedish-born Andrea Meilgaard or Meilgaarden has carved out a name for herself in the NYC scene and beyond with her genre-fluid music focusing on bouncing, groovy, playful, yet emotional sounds.
First and foremost thank you so much for taking the time to put this mix together, can you tell us a little bit about the energy behind this mix, is there anything you would prescribe doing while listening?
Thank you for having me! The mix is a representation of songs and sounds that I’ve been inspired by lately, which is always a mix of things, old and new. I wanted it to feel like a recording from a club night and so the mix has a steady groove and is filled with bangers. A mix for getting your energy levels up!
You’ve been running Mister Sister, a night of queer electronic music, that’s taken place in NYC and beyond (taking flight to Bakken, Copenhagen, alongside our friend Fruit DJ). Can you tell us a little bit about how Mister Sister came to be, who’s involved and what sort of sound we can expect at a Mister Sister Club night?
Mister Sister is an initiative I started with my friend and DJ, Alex. We started the party with the intention to showcase a specific sound that we felt was/is missing in New York. We also wanted to bring our crowd to venues that are actually cool spaces but are not a place we normally go out at. That’s why we had our first party at the club Le Bain in Manhattan. At our club nights, you can expect a warm, dance loving, queer and queer-friendly crowd as well as music that spans across genres but lean progressive tech-housey, bouncy, driving and up-lifting energy.
You’re also a resident of Sound Gymnastics that’s hosted the likes of Olivia Sugar and our new friend 131BPM to name a couple. How long has Sound Gymnastics been running and how did this party come to be? How does its sound and line-ups differ to that of Mister Sister?
Sound Gymnastics was the first project I started when moving to New York in 2018. I didn’t know anyone in the scene or anything about throwing a party. It was a series of small DIY events at first but then it became a regular night and found a home at the club Mood Ring for about 2 years. It was a good way for me to connect with artists and club people. I found the scene in New York to be very welcoming and open, and it truly feels like a community in many ways. The focus was primarily local DJs but eventually I brought DJs from out of state (which is quite hard in the US as travel is way more expensive than in Europe) and had the pleasure to host international ones, (as 131bpm and Olivia Sugar). It was less focused on a specific sound but more so showcasing the talent we have in NYC and giving artists that are doing their thing a space to do just that.
“Otherwise I’m actually trying to slow down, be more mindful of my time and energy, and have more intention behind the gigs I play and things I do. Music is my happy place and deep love, and I’ll be working on our relationship for a lifetime.”
You’ve dabbled in producing before with a handful of tracks across different compilations from what I can see, is there any chance of an EP or full length LP anytime in the future? And what would you envision or hope to envision your sound as being?
Hopefully! The hardest thing is to make time for producing - I have my full time job, DJ, organize parties, and I also worked at a club every other weekend and on top of that I love spending time with friends, so I find myself not having more than 1-2 nights home alone per week. I started learning Ableton during Covid as most of the above wasn’t possible at that time. I also have such a long way to go and so much to learn here - I feel like I’m barely scratching the surface so this is gonna be a long journey.
What’s next for Meilgaarden?
Well speaking of producing, I have a track release coming early next year with a Brooklyn-based label and with a remix from a sick artist I really admire. It’s been a long time coming so I'm excited for this. I’ll be closing out the year (on NYE) in Mexico City, a city I love so much, with my favorite party/collective there. I’ve been lucky to spend a lot of time there the past 2 years and met some really beautiful people. Otherwise I’m actually trying to slow down, be more mindful of my time and energy, and have more intention behind the gigs I play and things I do. Music is my happy place and deep love, and I’ll be working on our relationship for a lifetime.