First Floor

A newsletter from @shawnreynaldo focused on electronic music and the culture/industry around it.

[Shawn Reynaldo @ShawnReynaldo]

Pretty sure this is the first time I've ever talked to an artist about the lingering effects of their traumatic brain injury. Kudos to @ayescold for both the honesty and vulnerability she brought to this interview.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

Find the link to the newsletter in the usual spot...

Or just subscribe so that it goes directly to your mailbox and you don't have to rely on the algorithm.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

Long before "Latin club" became dance music's hottest hype, Colombia's @julianna_808 was turning out dancefloors on multiple continents—and doing it with hard-to-classify, genre-busting sounds.

She applied that same sensibility to her guest recommendation in today's First Floor.

[Emily Witt @embot]

Had a really nice conversation with @ShawnReynaldo for his music newsletter @_FirstFloor that's unpaywalled for 24 hours.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

You can find @driftingover's recommendation by following the link in the usual spot... his selection not surprisingly highlights something that's as delightfully unorthodox as the music he himself makes.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

After many years of making top-shelf techno as Shifted, @driftingover adopted a new name (Carrier) and started making some thrillingly unconventional tunes. He honestly sounds better than ever, and today he's contributed a guest recommendation to the latest First Floor mailout.

[Shawn Reynaldo @ShawnReynaldo]

The upcoming book from @embot is quite unlike most dance music titles, and is primarily set in the Bushwick scene during a time of mass political and social upheaval. She told me about that and more in an interview for @_FirstFloor.

Link in the usual spot.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

Find the link to today's First Floor in the usual spot, and after you're done giving it a read, you can get a little taste of @DJmadamX's forthcoming EP at the link below. https://t.co/QKU5cWu4LW

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

It's hard to believe that @DJmadamX, who's been a staple of the UK bass circuit for years, has never produced a record before, but with her debut EP scheduled to arrive in October, now felt like a good time to have her pop into the newsletter with a guest recommendation.

[Shawn Reynaldo @ShawnReynaldo]

Tim Reaper has an LP coming out soon on @Hyperdub and has been widely anointed as a leader of "new-school jungle." He didn't ask for that, but he sure does seem determined to bring as many other artists as possible along for the ride.

I interviewed him for @_FirstFloor.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

Find the link in the usual spot, and while you're at it, make sure to sign up for @aidabaghernejad's newsletter, which is called Recommended Reading.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

It's always a pleasure to feature other music journalists and their work in the newsletter, and that goes double when the journalist in question is a legitimate multiple award-winner like @aidabaghernejad. She put together a special guest recommendation for today's mailout.

[Hyperdub @Hyperdub]

There's an interview with @futureretrodnb - Tim Reaper up at @_FirstFloor free to read for the next 24 hours - link in bio - 'In Full Effect' his new album alongside Kloke is pre-ordering now.

[Shawn Reynaldo @ShawnReynaldo]

Nobody sounds like Shackleton, which is a big part of why his music is so amazing.

But have you heard all of his collaborative projects during the past decade? Sometimes Shackleton doesn't even sound like Shackleton, so I decided to do a deep dive tracking his sonic evolution.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

If you haven't already heard "FREAKY HORNS," do yourself a favor and remedy that situation.

And if you want to read today's newsletter, find the link in the usual spot. https://t.co/IsCLj3GpE6

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

"FREAKY HORNS" is one of the most enjoyable bangers of 2024 - especially for anyone with an affinity for Baltimore club - so it was a real pleasure to have @JiaLing_bigJ contribute a guest recommendation to today's newsletter.

[Shawn Reynaldo @ShawnReynaldo]

I know that @Vinncent isn't the likeliest candidate for a @_FirstFloor interview, but when I wanted to talk about the politicization of cultural discourse and the role of the media (and social media) in that, I figured it made sense to look beyond the DJ circuit.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

Today's newsletter features a special guest recommendation from the ultra-versatile, genre-blurring, modular-building NYC producer @braillesounds, who shares a track that first blew his mind more than two decades ago.

[First Floor @_FirstFloor]

No journalist is more dedicated to documenting the most fried corners of online music + culture than @kieranpressreyn, which is why it's such a pleasure to have him contribute a guest recommendation to today's First Floor.

p.s. Brazilian funk fiends won't want to miss this one.