Mina Mix For The Astral Plane

If you follow our FACT column or listen with any regularity to our show on Radar Radio, you’ll surely be familiar with Mina, the rising production star behind some of the bounciest mid-tempo hits of the last year and co-head of London’s Boko! Boko! club night and radio show. Coming off a busy Carnival weekend that included a number of gigs across the city and a surprise b2b session with funky legends Crazy Cousins, we grabbed Mina for Astral Plane Mix 122 and the result is an idyllic run down of original and likeminded material that links from funky, afro house and gqom to soca, dancehall and kizomba. With releases out on Lisbon mainstay Enchufada and Los Angeles-based Friends of Friends (a joint effort with longtime collaborator Lorenzo_BITW), Mina has quickly justified her place in the conversation over the past 12 months and if you haven’t heard her signature xylophone melodies peek through a mix this Summer then you’re clearly not going to the right parties.

At the beginning of August, Boko! Boko! (co-run by Mina, Tash LC and DJ Chin) released the JOY compilation, a kaleidoscopic effort rejoicing in ebullient dancehall, kizomba and more from the likes of DJ Bboy, Gafacci, Mapalma and more. From a curatorial perspective, the inclusions are decidedly in line with the crew’s jubilant aesthetic and two lighthearted Mina collaborations, with Lorenzo_BITW and Svani respectively, pull the whole affair together nicely. Tracks from JOY and forthcoming collaborations with Nané, Wanted, Boyfriend and the aforementioned Lorenzo_BITW are peppered throughout Mina’s Astral Plane mix, which flips the rule book a little bit and descends in tempo from the rhythmic chop of Ahadadream, Jay De Silva and Champion into more a lethargic riddim territory populated by Busy Signal, Popcaan and Beenie Man. Like everything Mina has done to date, the mix has enough bounce and funk to carry even the laziest dancefloors and if you’re looking for a mission statement from this rising London artist the look no further.