The driving force behind Adelaide's underground resurgence over the last few years is none other than our next guest. On top of being a fantastic DJ, producer, collaborator, booker and an all round great guy, Babicka is also one of the men responsible for arguably Australia's best vinyl imprint in recent times, Untzz Twelve Inch (and its meatier brother label Big Doint).
With international props coming in thick and fast it’s to no surprise that he and label mate Mic Mills are off to take on the world next month, with a string of dates locked in at haunts like Corsica Studios, Studio 80 and an extended session at Panorama Bar among others. The mix is straight vibes from start to finish with Babicka’s full palette on display, moving from summery afrobeats to jackin’ 90s house and atmospheric dub techno, we really can’t speak of it highly enough.
Congrats on a great year so far with your label Untzz, the countless parties and your own music demanding serious national and international respect of late. I hear you recently just got back the masters for your first artist EP too, what can you tell us about that record?
Thanks man. The record is just three tracks that I made to fill gaps in my DJ sets. They are maybe a bit bland for some people and quite loopy but they’ve been a joy to blend for me.
Your debut warehouse party Percussions sounds like it was a big success. What can you tell us about the idea behind the party, and do you have any more planned under the same name?
The only idea behind Percussions was to throw some larger scale parties in different spaces in the CBD. Too often Adelaide misses out on great internationals because the two clubs that would host them hold no more than 300 people combined. I’ve got several things planned that I’m hoping take shape early next year.
I know you’re off on a European tour with your local partner in crime Mic Mills in November and playing some notorious parties with none bigger than Panorama Bar… Are there certain records you’ve always wanted a chance to play or hear in that room?
I honestly have no idea what’s going to happen in Panorama Bar, I’ve got a whole bunch of records that I love but have never played, maybe that night will be the perfect opportunity to explore some dub territories as we’ve got a three hour stint on Saturday night….
I also hear you and Mic have been working on a live set for a while now, how far along are you with that project, and what gear have you guys incorporated into the setup so far?
It’s not exclusively Mic and I that are working on the Live show. It’s basically all of us on the label investing more time and money into hardware and playing back to back in the same fashion we would in a DJ set, but on gear instead. It’s been pretty fun so far, the improvised show I did with HVCK at Ancient World a couple of weeks ago was sick.
What can we expect with this mix you’ve put together for us? Who are some of the artists featuring?
The mix is a selection of records that I pulled out after a few beers. There’s old and new music alike from labels like Guidance, new stuff from Roman Flügel etc.
What do you have coming up with Untzz as well as your own music to round out the year? What else is coming up?
The trip to Europe is in November so I’m trying to nut out as much music as I can in that time so I’ve got stuff to take over and test in different environments I don’t usually have here in Adelaide. Hopefully some remixes coming out and a collab EP with HVCK in the near future + some random singles on the label off shoots.