Selections: Bianca Oblivion
In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their collections. This week, Bianca Oblivion joins the dots between global club sounds with 10 party-starting, sound system-shaking bangers
Over the past half decade or so, the DJ, producer and promoter Bianca Oblivion has established herself not only as a buzzy name on the Los Angeles underground scene, but as a crucial conduit between club music strains in the UK and US West Coast. In her sets, at parties like the beloved Warp Mode she co-runs with AK Sports and Star Eyes, she spins high-voltage cuts with dextrous skill and one simple mission in mind: to turn the heat all the way up. Jersey club, grime, dembow and baile funk are fused with fiery energy, while irresistible pop edits, speed garage screamers and jungle freakouts conjure moments of pure ecstasy.
It’s a mood she captures in her monthly Club Aerobics show on NTS, as well as in her own productions. Her October 2022 single for Jamz Supernova’s Future Bounce is a breaksy rave belter buoyed by radiant lyrics from Eliza Legzdina. Last month, she released a remix pack for the single featuring three artists known for their party-starting productions: Bristol’s Dismantle, LA’s Introspekt, and San Francisco’s Chrissy. Put simply, they all absolutely go off, but listen for yourself here.
Bianca Oblivion’s Selections shine a light on her global bass sound, bringing together the energies of her hometown with club bangers from around the world. Dive in below.
“BAMBII is in her mood right now and everyone knows it (or should). A sickening DJ/producer/vocalist, she is really the club sweetheart and her debut EP ‘Infinity Club’ taps into the sensual side of the sound system. ‘Wicked Gyal’ features London’s queen, MC Lady Lykez, and is my absolute jam.”
“My fellow West Coast basshead bastiengoat is making some of the hardest rave-ready tunes right now. ‘Everybody in the Club’ is an anthem that sets the crowd off every time, and the Missy-sampling ‘Double Take’ is also a major heater.”
“The Bass Boss gets punk af with this release and dives into the hardcore continuum, channeling LA ‘90s hard house and gabber. In classic ‘deezy style, he samples rap vocals and drops into halftime trap breaks. Just another reason why he’s 2 lit 4 us all.”
“Hands down one of my favorite producers. You’ll always hear a King Doudou track in my sets. This EP features his own vocals over all the baile funk, dembow, and reggaeton heat he’s known for, plus a lil jungle moment. Those ‘Ponte las Pilas’ drums are dangerous!!”
“Have not stopped playing these songs since they came out. Huge coupé-décalé (from the Ivory Coast) drum patterns + Euro dance synths + chanty vocals = peak-time energy. I can’t get enough of ‘On Bouge En Peu’, but ‘Boukan’ goes off too. I can’t wait to hear more from this pair."
“Burna is a wiz at combining elements of grime, baile funk, and dembow style rhythms, and I can’t get enough. Sometimes I feel like he’s made tunes specifically for my sets because they always fit so well. ‘Ritmo das Vielas’ goes hard with the gritty grime bass and alien sounding synths.”
“BJF is another producer who consistently makes tracks that work so well in my sets. He has such a great finesse of Afro-latin rhythms and this release, like Burna, taps into the dark bass and icy synths you hear in classic grime tunes.”
“This album is from 2016 and still goes hard as ever. Nothing but high-energy, hectic percussion, and hypnotic vocals. There’s so much going on in these tunes yet every element is perfectly in sync, pulsating through the speakers.”
“Two of my absolute fav producers, they can do no wrong. I don’t know one club set I’ve been to in the last two years that has not included at least one DJ Guari or Dos Flakos tune. They know how to get the party activated, and OG Black’s Rave has become an anthem, Latin house done only the way these Bronx bad boys could do it, with horns, lasers, builds and dramatic drops and reggaetonero samples – AFUEEGOOO!”
“Pouch Envy always comes through with the best pop remixes, mixing in club music, jungle, baile funk, breaks, house, footwork – an edit for every party. There are now four volumes of their VIP CLUB EDIT series, but this one might be my favorite, flipping Cardi, Missy, Gwen, M.I.A. and more.”
“Had to end with this one. This is a tune throw on at the party’s climax. Rough and raunchy, blown-out bass, Pipokinha’s shrill-yet-raspy vocals commanding us to ‘Bota na Pipokinha’ (roughly translated as ‘Put it on Pipokinha’). It tears up the club (and probably the speakers).”
