Scenenoise Podcast

On our 315th Select, we have Egyptian-Kuwaiti DJ NAZ with an emotive mix of afrobeats and melodic house, titled ‘Broken Wings’. Speaking of the set, NAZ says, “This set was curated to not only help me process the loss of my twin flames but also to encourage listeners to tap into whatever it’s their soul is now going through, to hopefully bring closure to the adversity they endured.”

This week on SceneNoise’s Select series, we have a special set from Tunisian-Algerian selector and NTS resident Cheb Mimo, who has been actively pushing the traditional rhythms of North Africa - like Rai, Ganwa and Stembli - into the UK clubbing scene. His sets are a treasure trove of rare retro cassettes and vinyl records from the 80s, 90s and 2000s, a byproduct of his relentless digging through classic disco, funk and drum n bass. For Select 314, Cheb Mimo cooked up a chill groovy mix of downtempo and Rai music that bursts with uplifting melodies, featuring tunes by legendary artists like Cheb Hasni and Jean Baptiste.

This edition of our Select series comes courtesy of Beirut-based DJ, producer and percussionist Julian Naman, aka JOOL. Inspired by his parents’ extensive music collection, he started producing tracks at the early age of 14, merging various sounds, from jazz, hip-hop and ambient, to progressive rock, techno and house. He has performed alongside a slew of prominent international artists, including Dasha Rush, Ion Ludwig and Answer Code Request, traversing prestigious dancefloors at B018, Ballroom Blitz, Paris’ Sputnik and Athens’ The Place. Speaking of his Select set, JOOL says, “This set was born out of the challenging times we face in the region, where stress and uncertainty feel overwhelming. It’s a reflection of that journey - an offering of love, a message of unity through sound.”

This week on SceneNoise’s Select podcast, we have WAN, a Berlin-based Egyptian selector and the founder of the newly-launched Delete Collective, which recently made its debut at the famed Club OST. Deeply influenced by the disarming rave energy of Berlin’s underground scene and hypnotic deep techno vibes, WAN brings a hard groove techno set, featuring driving basslines, minimalistic waveforms and razor-sharp transitions.

Egyptian multi-instrumentalist and live electronic act Chiati has become a staple across clubs and festivals across the region in recent years - armed with an unmissable set that combines blissfully timed drops, soulful riffs, melodic rhythms and touching falsetto, expertly performed between keys, guitar, vocals and the charisma of a veritable rockstar. For the first episode of the new season of #SceneNoise’s long running stream series Houseplant Chiati gives us a taste of his new sound set to hit dance floors this year. Featuring mostly unreleased music, nestled in the confines of a lush Cairean greenhouse, we journey between highly danceable afro house to arab house anthems.

Houseplant 023 | Azzouni by SceneNoise

Youssef Yasser has come up as one of Cairo’s youngest and most talented selectors, making appearances on several international airwaves like the NTS radio show, France’s Rinse, as well as a multitude of prominent party series across the city’s nightlife scene. For the second episode of the new season of SceneNoise’s long-running stream series, Houseplant, Yousser treats us to a spin-off on the sound he previously embraced with a heart-pumping mix of 90s electro, house and breaks that demonstrates his refined crate-digging style. (Look out for a special surprise at the end of the set).

In this episode of SceneNoise’s Select series, Cairo-based DJ and producer Mahib performs a live set of his own productions, a blend of electrifying mahraganat and EDM beats, with a ting of hip-hop and emotionally driven rhythms. The set takes us on a throbbing journey through the bustling sounds of Cairo, featuring echo-laden vocal samples, synthesised instrumental melodies, and pumping edits of classic shaabi tunes.

This Saturday on Select, we have Alaa Jazaeri. Emerging from Riyadh’s vibrant underground scene, he established himself as one of Saudi Arabia’s top-rated DJs, landing spots at major events like Sandstorm Festival and Freaks of Nature. Jazaeri is also the founder of Narratives, a storytelling music platform, curating mixtape podcasts and a series of dynamic events across the Kingdom, Canada and Lebanon, that saw global headliners like Nick Curly, Dolby, Violent Sentir and Gorge. For our Select 311, Jazaeri brings a carefully curated soulful groovy set, blending dreamy and minimal vibes with funk and jazz-infused deep house melodies, featuring soothing and chill tunes by international bands and producers like Mara Lakour and Jesse Maas.

Egyptian experimentalist and Kafr El Dawar Records co-founder YUNIS is set to premiere ‘The Partridge Bird’, an evocative track from his latest project, ‘Opera for 1000 Crows’ (*الحجلة). This exclusive release offers an early glimpse into the sonic landscape of the performance, blending live electronics, cello, voice, and toys to explore the paradox between grief and celebration. ‘The Partridge Bird’ embodies the thematic essence of ‘Opera for 1000 Crows’, drawing inspiration from a traditional funeral dance ritual in Upper Egypt and Delta villages. This limping movement, performed by women around graves, mirrors the motion of crows, creatures deeply tied to burial myths in Islamic traditions. The track encapsulates this duality, transforming it into a haunting, funeralistic soundscape that bridges life and death. Following the track premiere, ‘Opera for 1000 Crows’ will make its full debut on February 13 at the French Institute in Cairo, marking YUNIS’ first performance of the project in Egypt after extens

Select 309 features Kontrast, a Beirut-born DJ based in Riyadh who has crafted a distinctive sound that blends melodic house, techno, indie dance, and progressive house. Drawing inspiration from the Lebanese electronic music scene, his collaborations with international artists like Rafael Cerato, Tim Taste and Sam Gino have further shaped his unique style. For his Select set, Kontrast delivers a fluid mix of melodic house and techno, driven by high-energy tempos, intricate acoustic drums, and uplifting frequencies. The set maintains a steady rhythm of flowing grooves. Tracks like ‘Benigne’ by Upercent, ‘Can't Stop’ by Jonathan Kaspar and ‘Flores’ by TWiiNS shape the vibe of the set.

Select 308 comes courtesy of K.led, a DJ, musician and engineer with over 13 years of experience, with notable performances at venues like Montreal's Salon Daome and Soundstorm in Riyadh. K.led’s eclectic and genre-fluid approach to sound began in local underground clubs, where his ear for rhythm and evolving style led him to shape diverse sets that speak to a broad spectrum of listeners. This three-hour set was recorded during a recent performance at Beast House, K.led blends a mix of deep grooves and pulsating beats with moments of rough, gritty energy. The set transitions between diverse sounds with tracks like Terry Hunter & Aaron Smith's ‘Enuff Enuff’ (feat. Frankie Knuckles) and Shonky's ‘Mama Queen’ combining elegance with a bit of rawness.

Select 307 comes courtesy of Ghent-based Syrian/Libyan producer and DJ Bader Shahit, known behind the decks as Bader. Growing up immersed in Libyan tagaza majrouda rhythms and Syrian classical music, Bader has built himself a distinctive musical identity, merging contemporary club music of heavy bass patterns with various musical elements from across the MENA region. His select set, recorded in Yalla Worldwide studio in Ghent, is a bass-heavy mix of acid, breaks, techno, electric boogies and Middle Eastern textures, featuring Mix Monster Menno on the scratch and Acid Ponch on drums. The set also features hard-hitting tunes like El Sawarikh’s ‘Ekhwaty’ and Cheb Naser’s ‘Ole Ole’.

This week on our Select series, we have Cairo’s indie rock rouser Dirty Backseat, the electronic solo project of producer and singer-songwriter Moe Hani, with an exclusive mix of a string of unreleased productions that he recorded back in 2024. Dirty Backseat is best known for his nuanced melancholy-tinted sound that serves as a distillation of Moe’s influences of post-punk, psych-rock, synth-pop and electronica. His select set is as dreamy as it’s danceable, featuring thick basslines, gritty rhythms and heart-pumping tunes with some of Egypt’s veterans the likes of 200 Shams and Omar Zahran.

On the 305th episode of SceneNoise’s Select series, we present Brooklyn-based Alexandria-born selector Solofan, a resident and the host of El Commodino show on Radio Flouka. Having spent years immersed in the underground scene in Berlin and Brooklyn, Solfan developed his own signature sound where he experiments with free-form mixes that unravel like symphonies. His Select set is a high-energy mixture of early EBM, acid house, IDM and hardcore, featuring Tarab influences, African polyrhythms, and deep club cuts, intermingled with tunes by the likes of Trinity Magas and Assassins of Youth.

This week on Select, we have a special set from Egyptian-Bosnian vinyl maven Taty, whose distinct crate-digging approach and hypnotic sets cemented him in Berlin’s underground electronic dance scene. Taty turned up with a vinyl-only set of deep and ambient techno, featuring textured obscure sound, echo-laden hypnotic beats watered down by reverb effects, and atmospheric soundscapes. Recorded on his home setup using technics turntables and an Xone 42 mixer, the set evokes a certain vibe of trance that’s certainly meditative.

In Select 303, we have Cairo-based selector and producer P.O.V with a futuristic bass-heavy electro set, exploring the interplay between sound, space and time with a fresh approach to music synthesis. The set opens with an ethereal drone noise that seems to drift aimlessly through space, which then dissolves into pulse-pounding bass-driven beats with subtle frequency modulations and granular textures, embodying the chaos and order of the universe. The set features bumping tunes by a slew of international producers the likes of Deemphasis, Koova, Logitech and more.

This week on Select, we have France-based Moroccan DJ, producer and Radio Flouka resident Leïla Koumiya with a stormy left-field bass set, mixing syncopated Amazigh rhythms and elements of dnb with chopped rap samples from the likes of Julmud and Caïn و Muchi. Koumiya has cemented herself in the regional underground scene with her hybrid and versatile sets, exploring the nuances of her North African roots through a poetic blend of traditional sounds, polyrhythms, rap influences and percussive bass music.

This week’s Select comes courtesy of Omar Taa’i, aka Taai, a Cairo-based music producer behind Abyusif and Marwan Pablo’s collaborative track ‘SMACK THAT’. His prolific discography features tracks with regional hip-hop artists the likes of R3, Alvin, BEGAD, and Xander Ghost. For our Select 301, Taai cooked us a mix of hard-hitting trap beats and instrumental tracks, featuring some of his favourite Egyptian hip-hop tunes.

This week on Select, we have a special set from Dublin-based Saudi-born maestro Moving Still marking THREE HUNDRED episodes of our exclusive mix series