DR MYSTERY: The ‘Shine A Light On’ Mix

Music

Mystery by name, mystery by nature.

The Manchester-based masked DJ and producer prefers to lurk in the shadows. Under the moniker DR MYSTERY, she metamorphoses through different tempos and styles, blurring the lines between genres and sounds. After all, it’s usually the bits that fall in between that are the most interesting.

These cerebral sonics make up her regular slots on radio, whether it’s something special for NTS or her Synesthesia project on Worldwide FM, in which she picked a colour for each show that guided her mix.

She first made her production debut back in 2020 with a slick melodic electro cut called ‘Vecher’ but this year her first long player entered the world. In May she released Far From Home via Ono, a dreamy album that connected the spirit of the mind and the body.

This visceral quality continues on her newest release, Basquiat, a three-track EP for Manchester’s Left, Right & Centre. Eerie soundscapes sit next to emotive melodies and crisp drum programming, all coming together to paint a picture of “urban skylines and vivid dancefloors of her life in Manchester”.

Following the release we asked her to take control of this week’s Shine A Light On mix. She’s provided a very special recording that moves through haunting electronica, forceful DnB and heavyweight jungle cuts.

Ransom Note · DR MYSTERY: The ‘Shine A Light On’ Mix

Please introduce yourself… Who are you, where are you and what are you

I’m DR MYSTERY. I’m asking myself the same question.

What does your music sound like? Can you draw what you think it sounds like for us (an image from the old internet is acceptable)?

Where was the mix recorded?

In my living room.

What would be the ideal setting to listen to the mix?

Wherever really, as long as you have a good pair of headphones/speakers/soundsystem and an opportunity to blast it.

What should we be wearing?

Less is more.

What would be your dream setting to record a mix: Location/system/format?

In the Louvre.

Which track in the mix is your current favourite?

I’m really feeling ‘Sourcer’ by Demdike Stare, it’s not a new track, but I only discovered it recently and it’s giving me life.

What’s your favourite recorded mix of all time?

I don’t think I have a favourite mix, but there are a few that come to mind. DJ Stingray at Dekmantel in 2016. The legendary Jamie XX set at that Boiler Room with Young Turks on the roof and object blue for London Unlocked. Djrum’s jungle to techno set for Mixmag. The list is endless.

If you could go back to back with any DJ from throughout history, who would it be and why?

I’m going to add another back into your question and say Machine Woman and Actress. We can all get weird and wonderful together.

What was your first DJ set up at home and what is it now?

Stanton turntables + very basic 2 channel Numark mixer. Still have both and a pair of XDJ 700.

What’s more important, the track you start on or the track you end on?

Both.

What were the first and last records you bought?

Can’t remember the first one for sure, but I think it was RP Boo ‘Fingers, Bank Pads & Shoe Prints’ and the last it’s O Yuki Conjugate ‘A Tension of Opposites’.

If this mix was an edible thing, what would it taste like?

Pomegranate.

If it was an animal what would it be?

Jaguar.

Upcoming in the world of …

Let’s wait and see, gotta keep the element of surprise present.