DHA AM Mix #267 by Monkey Safari

Riding in with the power to deliver sunshine to the world’s rainiest open-air events, Monkey Safari brings rays of light to whatever dance floors they cast their shimmering spell on.

2015 saw the brothers swinging to new trees, retiring their previous labels to focus on their new label ‘Hommage.’ It was the year of transformation for the German producers, developing and tailoring a sound suited perfectly for the unique club nuances while still keeping the core elements of melodic chords and grooves synonymous with the duos productions. 2015 unveiled Monkey Safari’s remix for Marc Houle’s “Pepper” on Richie Hawtin’s label Minus and their hugely successful “Cranes” and “Walls“ EPs that presented opportunities for Monkey Safari to work with some exciting musicians, such as Wolf + Lamb and Kölsch, techno heavyweights Guy Gerber and Josh Wink, as well as one of dance music’s most iconic producers, Moby.

2016 followed in a similar fashion with a series of EPs and remixes released throughout the year showcasing the developed and matured sound apparent in the brothers’ latest movements. At the start of the year, Monkey Safari’s remix for Moby & The Void Pacific Choir was the pick of the bunch, returning the favor after Moby’s successful rework of the duo’s track “Walls” last year. Their first EP of 2016, “On”, featured remixes from Paco Osuna alongside French producer Chloé, followed by a second EP in June, “Bernstein”, with remixes by John Digweed & Nick Muir and Spanish DJ and producer UNER. August saw the release of their most recent 4- track EP, “Boris”, with remixes by Tel Aviv-based producer Guy Mantzur and Brazilian producer Victor Ruiz, reaching Beatport’s Tech House Top 10. After the successful “Woo” and “Woo Remixes” EPs, Monkey Safari was able to sign amazing Blond:ish, legendary John Tajada, and newcomer Marino Canal for a four-track EP on their Hommage imprint.

The duo’s efforts in the studio have transcended to their DJ sets with shows at Time Warp USA & Germany and Awakenings Festival as a highlight. On top of a heavy touring schedule at world-renowned clubs and headlining slots at festivals, the duo rekindles their love for party promotion since their tender years in their hometown of Halle, Germany, where they own the infamous and recently remodeled “Charles Bronson” club.

2017 has been yet another impressive year for the duo to with releases on the likes of UNER’s Solar Distance and their own Hommage imprint. Their most recent release ‘Oxy’ featured as part of John Digweed’s ‘Bedrock Frequencies’ compilation which included 31 exclusive tracks from some of the labels favourite artists, reaching #2 in Beatport’s Progressive House chart.

The same year also saw the release of Monkey Safari’s album ‘Odyssey’. The brothers can look back on a personal odyssey that’s lasted more than 30 years so far. They have a mutual musical spirit and through good and bad times have only grown closer. As such, the artwork for the album reflects that and was made by stitching both artist’s faces together, creating one persona from two individuals. Musically, Monkey Safari produced the same kind of tracks for this album they were playing as they toured nightclubs and festivals around the world, rather than simply a listening album.

In 2018 Monkey Safari carefully handpicking remixers they saw as most capable of continuing their vision for the album. Split in 3 separate EPs, ‘Odyssey Remixes – One’, ‘Two’, and ‘Three’ featured reworks of the original album tracks by the master himself, Carl Cox, international stars Hernan Cattaneo, Guy J, Musumeci, Tensnake and Reboot, studio geniuses Dubspeeka, Hannes Bieger, ROD, and Phil Moffa, as well as up-and-coming talent Avidus and Trivmph .

Monkey Safari’s third album comes in perfect time for the summer sunshine of 2019. The duo follows up their last LP, ‘Odyssey’, with this warm, inviting collection of music designed to brighten your day and complement the glorious sunny days that bless us during the summer. Sven and Lars learned some valuable lessons from their last long-player, and the new album ‘HI’ comes from a far more relaxed, easy-going place. An organic project that came together quite naturally, their third album sees the duo in high spirits ready to bring a large dose of positive vibes and emotional depth to the party. With Lars about to welcome his first child, the duo is clearly full of goodwill, optimism and good vibrations and ‘HI’ is reflective of this positive headspace. We had the pleasure of premiering their single HI.

The German outfit has been on an incredible run of form with promising developments in all of their endeavors and exciting news still to come. Be it a fresh remix or EP drop, DJ set or party, Monkey Safari will be sure to touch all scopes of dance culture with no signs of deceleration on the horizon.

Their mandate remains the same, sending sunny vibes to make even the darkest dance floors brighten up.