Optimo announce 25th anniversary compilation

Optimo have announced a celebratory 25th anniversary compilation. 'Optimo 25' will land on double-vinyl — parts one and two — on 2nd February 2024. 

The release is a tribute to the landmark club night Optimo (Espacio), which held 550 parties at Glasgow's legendary Sub Club between 1997 and 2010, and the DJ partnership of JD Twitch and Jonnie Wilkes which shares the same name and has continued since. 

Established on "a wet, windy, wintry November Sunday", the event was a direct response to the overtly serious nature of club culture at the time, and aimed at people who wanted to reprioritise having fun. A significant aspect of this was the unpretentious yet forward-thinking music policy, which is reflected in the forthcoming release.

Spanning ambient, bleep, dub, Gwo Ka, Hi-NRG, post-punk, UK Garage and more, contributions have come from both Wilkes and Twitch as Optimo, and a number of guest artists. Listen to The Wad's '15 Inches' below.

To mark the album's arrival, a launch party will be held at Monorail, Glasgow, on 25th January 2024, including a live conversation with the duo.

2022 saw Optimo take charge of music programming for debutant festival Watching Trees. After a hiatus this year, the event recently announced its return with a one-day format on Saturday 1st June 2024 at an as-yet-undisclosed location in North Wiltshire, England. Full details will be announced in the coming months, with the last edition offering two stages of music, wellness and art elements. 

Revisit DJ Mag's feature interview to mark Optimo's 25th anniversary.