In our last episode of the Æmix for 2016 balErik steps up to the booth with a rich variety of dance floor cuts in which he justifies his chosen moniker. Spanning the range of Disco, House and even Techno, balErik approaches his Jæger mix with an eclectic charm that leaves no stone unturned in his pursuit of the perfect dance floor feeling. From 909 kick to a talking tabla, balErik’s sonic landscape is varied and unbiased, void of generic codes and where no defining borders exist, a palpable energy prevails.
balErik digs deep through the history of the music, finding percussive workouts that avoid the stale pre-disposition of a 4/4 kick and disappear in the hazy pursuit of visceral charm, amongst melodies and harmonies that speak of more than just function. Karim Sahraoui’s “land of promise” that appears in the latter half of the mix is an apt way to sum up the mood of the entire mix with its rich orchestration and its off-kilter nature that refuses to plant a flag in any camp and exists as an entity all onto its own. It carries that energy all the way through to the end where the mix fades out in the cold embrace of legato strings.