These are this week’s Bandcamp Essentials (23rd October)

Clubs around the world are shut, and opportunities to find new music out in the wild have been ripped from under our feet as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. While hearing new music played out by your favourite DJs will have to be put on hold due to these unprecedented circumstances, it’s never been easier, or more important, to support the artists and labels putting out EPs, albums and compilations in the midst of all the madness.

With tour cancellations and festival postponements leaving many members of the international electronic music community out of pocket, Bandcamp has become an even more vital platform for supporting the music you love, with 80% of all sales from the online music store going directly to artists and labels. In March, the platform announced it would be waiving its revenue share for all sales for one day, and on Friday 20th, took no cut from purchases made. In total, $4.3 million was spent on music over the course of 24 hours, all going straight to the creators. Throughout lockdown, Bandcamp continued to waive their fees on the first Friday of every month, as well as on 19th June (Juneteenth), when the platform donated 100% of its profits to the NAACP Legal Defence Fund. In July, it was announced that a fee-free "Bandcamp Friday" would take place on the first Friday of each month for the rest of 2020. 

Earlier this year, as a show of solidarity to support the artists and labels impacted through the pandemic, and to support releases raising funds for charity initiatives and organisations, we launched a weekly roundup of the most vital Bandcamp releases. This week, DJ Mag's editorial team have collated essential albums, EPs and comps from the likes of Actress, Call Super, AceMoMa, Nkisi, DECISIONS, Dark Entries Records, Jubilee and more. Dig in.