Selections: Eris Drew
In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their Bandcamp collections. This week, Eris Drew spotlights some of the sounds that make her DJ sets so special, from breakbeat techno rollers to buoyant house cuts and beyond
There’s nothing quite like an Eris Drew DJ set. To see her play is to watch a true expert at work; her technical prowess is matched only by her unmistakable love for the records she’s playing. Euphoric house cuts old and new are played against rip-roaring breakbeats, acid bangers and classic hardcore, while her trademark vinyl scratching, pitch riding and high-octane mixing make everything feel totally alive and electrified.
It’s a style Eris has carried through in her debut album, ‘Quivering In Time’, released via her and Octo Octa’s T4T LUV NRG label. The release, which was DJ Mag’s album of the month in October, is a powerful demonstration of house music at its finest, with a message of healing radiating through it, as it does through her sets.
In her Selections, Eris gives us some insight into the music that makes her sets so special, describing how each track works in the context of the dancefloor: from breaky techno rollers and buoyant house stompers, to the new release on T4T, ‘The Last Illusion’, from Bored Lord.
Dig in below.
“The new D Palace has been in my record bag for weeks. I play ‘Treat You Good’ in every set. In the mix, I use this record to transform my favourite house tracks into frenetic breakbeat techno workouts. Each time the dancers and I have made a lot of noise and gone ecstatic in the best way.”
“I played ‘Sea Cave’ deep into an eight-and-a-half-hour closing set with Octo Octa at Sustain Release a few weeks back. Found out later that Ronan was on the floor that morning. I love the psychedelic arrangement, which, like my sets, morphs from breaks to house rhythms in these little magical moments. Pitched-up, this track is jammin’.”
“Octo Octa made sure I didn’t miss out this fantastic record by one of our favourite producers from the USA, Escaflowne. The tracks are hard and powerful but also psychedelic, funky, and beautiful. ‘Ray Cloud’ is an amazing breaky techno banger which also sounds incredible in the mix.”
“I have a serious collection of progressive house, but most of it is from the ‘90s. I was delighted to get a copy of ‘COY004’ containing ‘Goodbye Sunshine’, a beautiful and rapturous prog-house tune by producer Remotif. If you missed Remotif’s ‘Chromium Hangover’ EP in 2020, it is also a fixture in my bag.”
“My first b2b of 2021 was with Saoirse at Gala Festival in London. The set built intense energy over three hours and culminated in me dropping Baby Rollén’s ‘Onion Cake’ as a powerful encore. The artist’s ‘RIDE02’ EP contains similarly uplifting house rollers with real magic. Check ‘Dirty Blond’.”
“‘The Last Illusion’ EP is the first music to be released on the T4T LUV NRG label that isn’t by me or Octo Octa. We fell in love with Bored Lord after playing with her in LA and are beyond delighted to have her first tunes on wax in our bags. She’s masterful at sampling and programming and we are both in love with the chaos and beauty in her music.”
“The main track on this record for me is the DJ Sports remix of ‘Think About Me’, but I really like all the tracks. The DJ Sports remix fits perfectly in my sets because it sounds like a 2-step tune that has been dissolved into a psychedelic dream.”
“Gallegos is hands down one the dopest producers I know. I love his chaotic approach to sampling and the rawness of the tunes. ‘A New Day’ is a song I sing to myself when I need to make sense of things. It is one of my theme songs for late 2021, because it contains a message we all need to hear right now: “I want to see you, I want to look into your eyes... This IS a brand new day.”
“‘Old Dog New Tricks’ is my main tune on this release. I dig the pitch- shifting powerful rhythms and the pad breakdown is ultra-cathartic. It is a druggy monster of a bass-adjacent breaks tune that resolves ultimately in love.”
“It is all about ‘Framboise Baby’ for my sets. I used the quarter-note claps which start on the one to blend between classic jackin’ house beats and Guava’s delicate bass banger. Played this track on a recent set for Boiler Room to honour the launch of my ‘MOVE’ clothing collection with them."
