The mix a DJ creates can often tell you more about who they are than a complex personality test. It tells you where they come from, what they’re interested in, and, above all else, what inspires them.
It’s always special to hear an artist who produces a mix with all that in their debut. apoorva’s edm-house mix based on a daylist once accomplishes just that. While most of us are consistently trying to marry the creative right and intellectual left of our brains, she’s trying to synthesize the ideologies of East and West. She has invited you to a wedding of those ideologies and asks that you be an active participant in their union.
Starting off with a remix of Pakistani-Canadian Asad Khan’s “Turiya Turiya,” she blends Khan’s inherently Eastern sound with Western beats. The West get their first turn at the wheel a few minutes in by way of A.CHAL & Ivory Twin’s “TYPE”. The song choice feels intentional, given its use of a sound so closely associated with Western culture. This type of familiarity can sometimes be used as a crutch by DJs, especially with American crowds, to bring listeners back into the fold. This mix didn’t need that to be successful. apoorva has masterfully blended various Pakistani and other Eastern sounds in a way that welcomes listeners who didn’t grow up with them.
Further into the mix, you get to hear her playfulness as she seamlessly blends Ivory Twin’s “no tmrw” with Talal Qureshi and Maanu’s “Rangeen”. The transition feels so natural that you’d be forgiven for assuming they were the same song. She continues this feeling by diving into a remix of Blessd, Alan Gomez, Midel, and Elixir’s “ARGENTINA”. Bringing yet another part of the Western world to the mix, she reasserts the idea that the West is more than just North America, and the East is more than just Asia.
Backed by a consistent thrum that drives the mix forward like a train engine, it never feels boring, repetitive, or sloppy. Each transition feels deliberate and thoughtful, without reading like a textbook of music theory. You can easily imagine apoorva smiling behind the decks at a daytime set as she welcomes us to explore the intricacy of her being.
This is a mix for the first 60 degrees of Spring, the last 60 degrees of Autumn, and for those below zero days in Winter that have you dreaming of a warmer time. What’s even more exciting? aproova is just getting started. It’s going to be exciting watching her refine her craft and taking us on trips around the world without ever leaving the room.
Listen to apoorva’s edm-house mix based on a daylist once on SoundCloud.
