The ‘Shine A Light On’ Mix: Kessel Vale

Kessel Vale's cosmic debut EP "Shapes" came out earlier this year on John Osborne’s Tanstaafl Planets imprint, and won plenty of praise for its fresh, melting-pot approach to German house/techno. Since then, the young producer has been getting plays from DJs such as Scuba, George Fitzgerald, Alex Coulton, Dubspeeka and B.Traits.

Kessel Vale's latest EP is called "Blue Portrait", and it's out now on Rhythm Nation. To celebrate, he's turned in a tasty mix for us, which you can listen to below. We also caught up with him over email to chat sausage and Stevie Wonder…

I’ll let you introduce yourself!

Dominik Lekavski aka Kessel Vale. I live in Munich. Most of the time I'm in my studio producing music and messing around with synths, instruments and my voice.

Describe the ideal setting to listen to your mix.

No matter where, try to close your eyes and listen to it on a good soundsystem.

If the mix were an edible thing, what would it taste like?

Wurstsalat.

If the mix were an animal, what would it be?

It would be Minka my awesome cat.

If it were a country, what would its flag look like?

There would be a blue portrait on it haha (illustrated by my sister Anja).

Describe the mix with a GIF.

Which track in the mix is your current favourite?

First one and the last one 🙂 First one is "Linkwood – Love Lost", the last one is unreleased.

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

Both equally!

What’s your favourite recorded mix of all time?

To be honest there is no all time favourite for me. It depends on how I feel. But watch this amazing live performance by Stevie Wonder. It makes me feel good all the time.

If you could go back to back with any DJ, who would it be?

With Aphex Twin in a pub!

What were the first and last records you bought?

The first one was "Nirvana – MTV Unplugged". The last one was "Lnrdcroy – Much Less Normal".

London’s clubs are closing down at an alarming rate. What can our politicians learn from Germany about nightlife?

We are just lucky enough that they aren't trying to regulate the nightlife that much. They should focus on solving social issues and not destroying this important culture.

Where would you take us if we came to visit Munich for the day?

We would eat some Weisswurst and hang all day at the Botanical Garden.

You’re having a dinner party and you can invite any five guests from history, real or fictional.

Nikola Tesla, Stevie Wonder, Sun Ra, Helge Schneider and Charlie Chaplin.

Show us a funny YouTube video.

Would you rather have springs for legs, or a Swiss Army Hand?

Springs for legs. Imagine how I would dance with it.

Kick, snare or hi hat?

I like kicks a lot. You can even make snares and hi hats out of a kick.

What’s your favourite episode of The Simpsons?

“The Mysterious Voyage of Homer”.

Who is the most famous person in the world?

Jesus?

Any other business?

I’m working on lots of new tracks. Follow me on Facebook or Soundcloud and I’ll keep you up-to-date! And you should buy my new EP “Blue Portrait” on Vinyl! 🙂

"Blue Portrait" is out now on Rhythm Nation, buy it here.