thecatrave*

SoundCloud DJ mixes

The best SoundCloud DJ mixes worth hearing

Eight mixes from DJ Mag and Dekmantel, from Wata Igarashi’s techno to SHERELLE’s footwork and jungle, followed by a mix of my own.

Finding mixes on SoundCloud.

SoundCloud still suits the DJ mix better than most streaming platforms. A mix can sit on an artist or label page, gather a tracklist in the comments and remain available long after a radio broadcast disappears. You can follow the selections through a tracklist and return to a transition you want to hear again.

These SoundCloud mixes range from hypnotic techno to fast, rhythmically restless selections. Every one of these DJ mixes on SoundCloud comes from a named series. The list is deliberately cross-genre. The separate guide to the best techno mixes stays inside techno, while Live DJ Sets covers the platforms that film the booth.

Find a mix to start with.

The order follows a listening route: begin with house and techno, move into stranger rhythmic territory, then finish with mixes that accelerate.

Ogazón gives house and techno grooves time to settle. Djrum changes tempo as he moves between spacious electronics and jungle. Choose according to how much movement you want in the mix.

House, techno and the space between.

Wata Igarashi, Recognise 081

Igarashi's contribution to DJ Mag's Recognise series works through driving, psychedelic techno without relying on blunt peaks. The percussion stays in motion while small changes in texture keep redrawing the room around it.

Listen for the small changes in percussion and texture.

Ogazón, Recognise 096

Ogazón digs through house and techno with the patience of a resident DJ. The records share a swing while the intensity changes.

Listen to how long she allows a groove to establish itself before the next record changes its colour. The pacing gives each transition somewhere to go.

Sedef Adasi, Recognise

Sedef Adasi brings house, acid, trance and electro into one set without flattening their differences. The records get brighter and rougher by turns. Rave references appear as part of the flow and never feel like novelty drops.

This is the broadest club mix in the first half of the list, and a good route for listeners who find single-style sets too closed.

Doudou MD, Recognise 078

Doudou MD keeps the drums loose. Swung house grooves sit beside punchier techno, and the change in weight comes through rhythm instead of a sudden jump in speed.

House and techno share the selection, with the drums carrying the changes between them.

Breaks, bass and leftfield routes.

Objekt, Dekmantel Podcast 116

Objekt's Dekmantel podcast is built around exact choices and sharp turns. Techno, electro and broken rhythm meet at unusual angles, yet the transitions remain clean enough that the oddness never feels random.

It rewards close listening. A record may arrive because of one drum sound or a shared patch of empty space, then pull the set somewhere the previous track did not announce.

Djrum, Dekmantel Podcast 267

Djrum moves between spacious electronics, broken beats and jungle with a pianist's attention to touch. Fast passages retain their detail. Quieter records reset the ear before the next rhythmic change.

Choose this when a fixed tempo feels too predictable. The mix changes pace while keeping a recognisable mood.

DJ Python, Dekmantel Podcast 208

DJ Python's music is often filed under deep reggaeton, but the useful description is in the drums: dembow patterns slowed until there is room for dub, ambient haze and long low-frequency tails.

The podcast is the calmest selection here. It works at low volume, although the bass and syncopation become more persuasive when played properly.

SHERELLE, Dekmantel Podcast 285

SHERELLE closes the route with footwork, jungle and fast broken rhythms. Her transitions keep the pressure high while changing the shape of the drums, so speed never becomes the only idea.

Footwork and jungle sit side by side here, and the mix moves between their different rhythmic grids.

A mix by thecatrave.

thecatrave, I Like to Smoke in Silence After Raves

I made this mix over about four months, arranging 30 tracks through breaks, garage, bass music, techno and rave.

Try it after Djrum or SHERELLE if you want to keep listening to broken rhythms.

Which SoundCloud DJ mix should you play first?

Wata Igarashi is the direct techno entry point. Ogazón and Doudou MD are better for rolling house and techno, while Sedef Adasi covers the widest stretch of a club night. Start with DJ Python for something slower, Objekt for detailed leftfield mixing, Djrum for tempo changes, or SHERELLE for the fastest mix.

Follow the commissioning series when a mix lands: Recognise and Dekmantel Podcast both publish selectors whose own pages may be hard to find through SoundCloud's charts. If the personal pick earns your trust, thecatrave's SoundCloud has the rest of the mixes.

Sources.