Mix Up Look Sharp: The Best Mixes Of The Week

Grimey badness, Lisbon club tracks, David Bowie and Jazzy Jeff all feature in one way or another.

None

Here at Complex, we understand the grind of listening to the best music each week. There's so much new music uploaded to every single platform, every single day, that following just one of your streams can become a dizzying, life-consuming task. To help you out on at least one front, each and every Friday, our music team will trawl the depths of the internet to bring you the best mixes from the past week. House, hip-hop and bass, grime, trap and techno—it'll all be represented in our picks to get you warmed up for the weekend. So let us do all the hard work; click through below and enjoy.

Buraka Som Sistema's Mix For Boiler Room

Roughly a month ago, Boiler Room trekked out to Portugal to link up with some local talent and explore the crossovers between African and Portuguese dance music. With a mission like that they naturally had to get in touch with Buraka Som Sistema who have made a career out of exploring that particular area of cross-pollination. Buraka Som Sistema have been tearing up parties globally with their fusion of traditional Angolan kudoro and African zouk with European club tracks to remarkable effect since the late '90s. For this session they opted for a retrospective, drawing on a decade's worth of Lisbon club tracks.

Slackk's 'Music To Charm Snakes To' Mix For i-D

Another heavy on for you this week. Ahead of his appearance at Sunfall Festival, alongside Mala, Benji B, Jamie xx and Kamasi Washington, Boxed co-founder Slackk has mixed together some heavy, grimey classics—both forgotten and revered—with a ton of newer bits from big names and rising stars alike. "I don't normally plan anything about my mixes," he explained to i-D, "but I thought I'd like to start this one with this old(ish) Wiley vocal. It's kind of forgotten now but I always thought it could have done something and it's finally starting to get sunny. This new Spooky tune called Fiesta after that to keep the summer mood going, albeit briefly. The rest is just an impromptu thing; going through a load of stuff I've liked over the last couple of months and the odd old bit."

Anëk's Mix For Clash

Danish twosome Anëk will be bringing their brand of taut, funk-filled house and techno to Ministry of Sound in London (July 16) alongside Adam Beyer and Ida Engberg. To get us all in the mood they've mixed together this hour of power. Packed from start to finish with heavy, club-friendly grooves. It's not just relentless 4x4 though, Anëk throw in plenty of leftfield selections to keep your ears hooked. Seriously, look out for the jazzy breakdown around the 23rd minute and then thank us when you get to the pay-off.

DJ Jazzy Jeff & MICK's 'Summertime Vol. 7' Mix

Any day that involves Jazzy Jeff is a good one. Whatever else happens with your day, at least you got to hear some flames from hip-hop and turntablism's architects. Now on its seventh volume, the Summertime (see what they did there?) series with Brooklyn-based MICK (formerly Mick Boogie) does exactly what it you want. With classics from Jay Z, David Bowie, Big L, Clipse and more, your barbecue soundtrack is in the bag.

Maurice Fulton's Mix For The Ransom Note

Easing you into what masquerades as summer round here, Maurice Fulton comes with a wild and eclectic mix that takes in heavy house and techno beats, euphoric disco and ultra-cool funk. There's so much more to it than that, though. The blend from dark, minimal dance music into a gloriously ecstatic piece of soul music is beyond inspired. A life without the music of Maurice Fulton is no life at all. Take it all in and then do everything in your power to catch him live.

Brenmar's 'Grey Zone Vol. 1' Mix

Grey Zone is the new mix series launched by Chicago club veteran Brenmar with a view to releasing a new volume at the top of each month. It's not clear whether each volume will feature a different style or genre, but Volume 1 is an all-out hip-hop workout featuring Kanye, Torey Lanez, Future, Kodak Black, Young Thug and French Montana to name just a few. 

Big Dope P's Mix For Solid Steel Radio

Hot on the heels of his Off Da Bottle EP on Local Action, Moveltraxx boss Big Dope P has put together this collection that goes some way to informing the eclectic club music he puts out on his label and plays out in his sets. DJ Earl, Finn, Sega Bodega, Taso, Rashad and Cam'ron all feature, as well as a couple of his own cuts. "When I was 14 years old," he explained to the Solid Steel crew, "my girlfriend stole the Solid Steel / Herbaliser mix CD from FNAC (French HMV) for me cause I was fan of Ninja Tune and that mix series. Sorry about that. Most of the tracks in this mix haven't been played anywhere else, new tracks from my label Moveltraxx, things I produced/remixed, songs from friends and my new record "Off Da Bottle" on Local Action."

Riz La Teef's 'Sub Work Out Vol. 5' Mix

Radar Radio regular Riz La Teef, who you can catch at Sequences Festival on July 23, has taken a moment away from his radio show (and the ton of other stuff he does) to give us a this low-end work out of grime and bass featuring, in his own words, "loads of classics, couple lost dubs & some fresh bits from Foamplate". So crank the sub up on your speakers and brace yourself.

Dev79's Mix For Rock The Dub

Another grime-based assault for you this week. Dev79, co-founder of Seclusiasis and Slit Jockey, brings his proven grime credentials that come from over a decade of bringing the bleeding edge of grime to the U.S.—something he's only just starting to get credit for. If this grabs you, make sure you check out the Seclusiasis show on Sub.FM for more low-end badness.

Latest in Music