Afleveringen
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We’re living in fractured times. What can art really offer us? Lyra Pramuk’s powerful new album Hymnal might just offer a clue — not through escapism or easy answers, but by embracing contradiction and carving out sonic spaces where new ways of being can start to take root.
I visited Lyra at her studio in Berlin to talk about the making of what could be one of the most bold and affecting records of the year. Building on the foundation of her acclaimed 2020 debut Fountain, she’s taken things somewhere even more unflinching — a place of dissonance, grief, ritual, and surprising beauty. Hymnal isn’t here to soothe; it mirrors the complexity of the world around us, while still offering room to breathe and imagine something different.
What’s remarkable is how central collaboration is to this work. There’s Berlin’s Sonar Quartet, whose strings thread through the record with a kind of aching elegance. But perhaps most unexpected is her partnership with a slime mold — yes, a slime mold — whose movements across poetic maps helped shape the flow of her vocal improvisations. It’s as wild as it sounds, and just as moving.
Our conversation drifts through everything from the spiritual and physical labour of music-making to the poetic logic of electronic sound. Lyra shares thoughts on technology as an extension of our bodies (think spiders sensing the world through their webs), the limits of Cartesian mind-body dualism, and why electronic music can hold radical potential — not just as art, but as a way of reimagining how we live together. Where techno-capitalism demands hierarchy and separation, Hymnal offers something else: a kind of sacred entanglement between people, nature, and machines.
Listen to Lyra Pramuk’s music:
Spotify – Artist | Bandcamp
Listen to Hymnal (2025):
Spotify – Album Hymnal | Bandcamp – Hymnal
Follow Lyra Pramuk on Instagram:
@lyra.pramuk
If you enjoy Lost and Sound and want to help keep it thriving, the best way to support is simple: subscribe, leave a rating, and write a quick review on your favourite podcast platform. It really helps others find the show. You can do that here on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen.
Thanks also to this episode’s sponsor, Audio-Technica – makers of beautifully engineered audio gear. Check them out here: Audio-Technica
Want to go deeper? Grab a copy of my book Coming To Berlin, a journey through the city’s creative underground, via Velocity Press.
And if you’re curious about Cold War-era subversion, check out my BBC documentary The Man Who Smuggled Punk Rock Across The Berlin Wall on the BBC World Service.
You can also follow me on Instagram at @paulhanford for behind-the-scenes bits, guest updates, and whatever else is bubbling up.
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Bradley Zero simply has that rare fusion of global success and grassroots authenticity.
From humble beginnings as a teenage bar back in Leeds to becoming the founder of Rhythm Section International, what makes Bradley's approach so refreshing is his unwavering commitment to community. During our conversation, he reveals how finding his tribe in Peckham transformed his understanding of creative collaboration. "I was part of something," he reflects. "It wasn't networking... it was people somehow congregating around a small geographical area with an insane amount of creative energy." This foundation informs everything he touches – from his NTS radio show to Jumbi, his one-turntable hi-fi bar that draws inspiration from Jamaican sound systems and David Mancuso's legendary loft parties.
The pandemic proved pivotal for Bradley, creating space for reflection on his role within the industry, leading him to launching Future Proof – a mentorship initiative aimed at demystifying the often secretive workings of the music industry. His observations about discovering the lack of diversity at upper industry levels led to this mission of opening doors and creating change "one step at a time."
If you’ve ever danced to one of his sets or tuned in to his NTS show, you’ll know that Bradley's musical philosophy defies easy categorization, embracing everything from jazz and broken beat to minimal techno and 90s piano house. Add to this rock solid DIY ethics, where "balancing micro and macro," help him keep check in on where he‘s at, helping him in nurturing local scenes while thinking globally.
Whether discussing the challenges of festival versus club DJing or offering wisdom to his younger self about enjoying the journey, I loved having this chat.
Follow Bradley Zero on Instagram @bradley_zero
Explore Future Proof, his emerging‑artist mentorship programme at Rhythm Section: Future Proof
If you enjoy Lost and Sound and want to help keep it thriving, the best way to support is simple: subscribe, leave a rating, and write a quick review on your favourite podcast platform. It really helps others find the show. You can do that here on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Lost and Sound is sponsored by those good people at Audio‑Technica – check them out here: Audio‑Technica
It’s that time of the year where if you‘re looking for a beach read about Berlin and you‘ve not done so already, grab a copy of Coming To Berlin, my journey through the city’s creative underground, via Velocity Press.
And if you’re curious about Cold War‑era subversion, check out my BBC documentary The Man Who Smuggled Punk Rock Across The Berlin Wall on the BBC World Service.
You can also follow me on Instagram at @paulhanford for behind‑the‑scenes bits, guest updates, and whatever else is bubbling up
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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Talking with Nicola Cruz feels a bit like tuning into a different frequency—the producer and DJ has spent the last decade helping redefine perceptions of South American electronic music through a series of transcendental releases and live appearances. Based in Ecuador, Cruz doesn’t give many interviews, so I was super happy to have this rare conversation
He talks about his approach to DJing, where instead of scanning a crowd, he locks into the energy of one or two people and lets that guide the set. It’s a more intimate, slower way of connecting, sometimes taking hours, and sometimes never quite happening at all. But when it works, it shapes everything.
We also get into his field recording work—using geophones to capture the movement inside glaciers, recording whale sounds deep underwater. These aren’t just sonic experiments; for Cruz, they’re a way of exploring how we relate to the parts of the world we can’t usually hear. His new album Kinesia lives in this space—somewhere between the physical and the imagined.
At the heart of it all is a deep belief in creative freedom. Though he’s formally trained, Cruz talks about the importance of unlearning, of breaking structures down in order to build something new.
If you’re interested in where electronic music, listening, and inner exploration overlap, this one’s worth your time.
Listen to Nicola Cruz’s music: Spotify | Bandcamp
Listen to Kinesia: Spotify | Bandcamp
Follow Nicola Cruz on Instagram: @nicola_cruz
If you enjoy Lost and Sound and want to help keep it thriving, the best way to support is simple: subscribe, leave a rating, and write a quick review on your favourite podcast platform. It really helps others find the show. You can do that here on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen.
Thanks also to this episode’s sponsor, Audio-Technica – makers of beautifully engineered audio gear. Check them out here: Audio-Technica
Want to go deeper? Grab a copy of my book Coming To Berlin, a journey through the city’s creative underground, via Velocity Press.
And if you’re curious about Cold War-era subversion, check out my BBC documentary The Man Who Smuggled Punk Rock Across The Berlin Wall on the BBC Sounds app.
You can also follow me on Instagram at @paulhanford for behind-the-scenes bits, guest updates, and whatever else is bubbling up.
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Cristobal Tapia de Veer on instinct, tension, and walking away from The White Lotus
It‘s not often I have a guest on the show primarily known for scorring for screen but the outspoken, punk-rock ethosed, voice-warping composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer is so Lost and Sound it hurts.
Whether it’s the unnerving soundworld of Utopia, the chaotic beauty of The White Lotus, or the warped voices of A24‘s Babygirl, his scores don’t just sit behind the picture—they shape how you feel it.
In this conversation, we talk about how some of his most striking ideas come in a flash. How one of The White Lotus‘ most memoral earworms: “took me the time it takes you to listen to it,” he says. “I feel like somebody else did it for me.”
We get into why scoring the show felt like “trying on a yellow dress,” and how stepping into unfamiliar territory let him bring something raw and unexpected to it. He’s honest about how uncomfortable that space was—and how that discomfort helped him land something sharper.
Cristobal opens up about working in an industry that often pulls in the opposite direction of intuition. We talk about trusting the subconscious, letting go of control, and how stepping back sometimes allows something better to come through.
We also touch on his recent public split from The White Lotus—and the bigger questions that come when creativity and power don’t align.
If you’re interested in how a politically minded Iggy Pop fan became one of the most highly revered film and TV composers working right now, or just curious about what it takes to stay true to your instincts inside a system that often doesn’t want you to, this one’s worth your time.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Cristobal Tapia de Veer on Instagram
Cristobal Tapia de Veer on Apple Music and TIDAL.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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The boundary between imagination and technology blurs in Lila Tirando a Violeta's mesmerizing sonic experiments. From her early DIY noise experiments in Uruguay to her current position as one of electronic music's most distinctive emerging voices, Lila's creativity has flourished despite—or perhaps because of—the challenges of living with a chronic condition.
When health issues confined her to hospitals and home at age 23, Lila found herself transitioning from improvisational performance to structured composition. The internet became both her music school and lifeline, leading to collaborations with artists like Loraine James and Amnesia Scanner—relationships that began digitally before materializing in the physical world. This digital-first approach mirrors the themes in her work, particularly her fascination with David Cronenberg's Videodrome, which she references in her new album "Dream of Snakes."
What makes Lila's creative process so compelling is her transformation of limitation into innovation. She samples her own pulsating tinnitus, captures field recordings from hospital rooms, and builds intricate sonic collages without formal training. Though her aesthetic suggests urban futurism, she's found her creative sanctuary in the quiet Irish countryside, where nature and technology intertwine in unexpected ways.
Most striking is Lila's openness about navigating the music industry—from including special lighting requests in her rider to dealing with international promoters who expect her to play reggaeton simply because of her South American heritage.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Lila Tirando a Violeta on Instagram
Listen/Buy Dream Of Snakes here
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Bartees Strange makes music that doesn’t sit still. One moment it’s soaring indie rock, the next it’s touched by soul, punk energy, or the weight of hip-hop—yet it all holds together in a way that feels completely his own. We sat down in a quiet Berlin hotel room to talk about the creative process behind his new album Horror, produced by Jack Antonoff and released on the iconic 4AD label.
Bartees doesn’t approach songwriting as a straight path. It’s more like piecing together different fragments until something unexpected clicks. “I might write five or six sections and not know they’re in the same song until I start plugging them into each other,” he said. That instinctive method pulls influence from across the board—Fleetwood Mac, Parliament, Burial, Neil Young—and filters it through a sound that’s urgent, intimate, and ever-shifting.
What stood out most in our conversation was his view on genre itself. For Bartees, it’s not just about music—it’s about identity, and how people are often encouraged to box themselves in. “Music is representative of people,” he told me. “And people separate themselves from each other because of all these things that don’t make sense. Through music, I can show people that all those things you thought were unique to you are also unique to them.” His work holds a quiet defiance, a kind of gentle political energy that moves through emotion rather than statement.
Before committing to music full-time, Bartees worked as deputy press secretary at the FCC under Obama. That experience brings a clear-eyed perspective to his writing—but it was never about strategy. “I tried not to do it. I got a job, I worked… but after a while, I was like I’d rather just not survive than not do what I want to do.” That sense of risk and necessity lives in every note.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Bartees Strange on Instagram
Listen/Buy Horror by Bartees Strange here
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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David Longstreth on Dirty Projectors, Orchestral Experimentation, and the Radical Psychedelia of Fatherhood
David Longstreth stands at a fascinating creative crossroads. For twenty years, he's been the driving force behind Dirty Projectors, crafting music that defies easy categorization while earning collaborations with icons like Björk, Rihanna, and Paul McCartney. Now, with his ambitious new orchestral song cycle "Song of the Earth," Longstreth explores our shifting relationship with nature while processing what he calls "the radical psychedelia of fatherhood."
Speaking from his California home studio (formerly a kitchen, before that a garage that "bloomed with mold"), Longstreth reveals how this project emerged from conversations with his longtime friend Andre de Ritter, conductor of the Berlin-based ensemble Stargaze. Drawing inspiration from Gustav Mahler's "Das Lied von der Erde," Longstreth initially set out to write nature poems, only to discover his feelings about the natural world had "gotten weird" – reflecting our collective anxiety about climate change.
The beauty of Longstreth's approach lies in his embrace of uncertainty. Throughout our conversation, he repeatedly describes putting himself in musical situations "beyond what I'm capable of," allowing the learning curve itself to become part of the creative process. This has been his method since recreating Black Flag's "Damaged" album from memory for Dirty Projectors‘ 2007 "Rise Above" (deliberately avoiding revisiting the original) through to this orchestral collaboration that marries environmental themes with deeply personal transformation.
Perhaps most captivating is Longstreth's description of how parenthood has fundamentally altered his perception. Watching his three-year-old daughter experience the world for the first time has made him question everything he knows, creating a profound sense of renewal that directly influences the emotional landscape of "Song of the Earth." Twenty years into his career, Longstreth has found a way to make music that feels simultaneously ambitious and intimate, political and personal – a rare achievement worth celebrating.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Dirty Projectors on Instagram
Dirty Projectors Official Store
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Seamus Rawles Malliagh, better known as Iglooghost, is an artist who doesn’t just make electronic music—he builds entire worlds. His sound is hyper-detailed, bursting with surreal textures, and deeply tied to the mythologies he creates around it.
In this episode, we dive into how growing up in rural Dorset shaped his imagination, from childhood experiments with ley lines to the eerie, folklore-like atmosphere of empty landscapes. We also explore the making of his most recent album, Tidal Memory Exo, crafted during a five-year stint living near Thanet’s brutalist seafront. Immersed in what he calls “aesthetic ugliness”—concrete towers, decay, a nearby sewage plant—he channeled these surroundings into an intricate fictional narrative, where a storm isolates Thanet from the mainland, birthing underground music subcultures.
Iglooghost shares how discomfort and constraint fuel his creativity and how mythology plays a key role in his artistic process. Whether you’re deep into his sonic universe or discovering him for the first time, we get into one about how environment, storytelling, and electronic music collide.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Iglooghost on Instagram
Iglooghost on Bandcamp
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Étienne de Crécy is one of the architects of the French Touch movement—those lush, filter-heavy grooves that shaped house music in the ‘90s, right alongside acts like Daft Punk, Air, and Alex Gopher. But his journey didn’t start in the clubs. Before electronic music, he was a punk bassist, navigating Parisian record shops that looked down on house music before the scene exploded worldwide.
In this conversation, Étienne reflects on three decades of pushing electronic music forward, from his groundbreaking Super Discount series to his latest album, Warm Up. This new record marks a shift—more organic, more vocal-driven, and carrying a double meaning: a reference to its sound, but also a nod to the global moment we’re in. “We are just at the warm-up… for the climate, for politics.”
We talk about his creative process, his mathematical approach to composition, and why he avoids the easy route of plugins in favor of crate-digging for samples. Plus, the story of how he unearthed a long-lost collaboration with Damon Albarn, recorded twenty years ago and now perfectly fitting Warm Up’s aesthetic.
As electronic music culture shifts—where younger generations lean into harder, faster sounds—Étienne remains committed to a philosophy: “What I’m learning is to stay simple and to be amazed by simple things.”
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Étienne de Crécy on Instagram
Warm Up Listen/Buy
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Loraine James is one of the most forward-thinking artists in electronic music today. Her sound is instinctive, fluid, and deeply personal—whether she’s crafting glitchy, jazz-infused beats, bending genre expectations on Hyperdub, or exploring mood and texture through her Whatever the Weather project.
In this episode of Lost and Sound, Loraine talks about her approach to making music without rigid plans, letting emotion and instinct guide the process. She shares insights into the creative freedom that shapes her work, from improvisation to embracing imperfections in her own way. We also dive into the personal themes in her music, including the deeply moving 2003, a track that reflects on loss and memory.
With a new Whatever The Weather album out now on Ghostly International, Loraine talks about the balance between control and spontaneity, how she navigates external expectations without compromising her sound, and why she’s never been interested in fitting into any one scene. Thoughtful, open, and refreshingly down-to-earth, I feel we got a rare look into the mindset of an artist constantly pushing her own boundaries.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Loraine James on Instagram
Whatever The Weather on Bandcamp
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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What happens when music becomes so deeply personal that it reshapes the course of your life? Kali Malone joins me to explore this through the lens of The Sacrificial Code, the album that transformed her from an underground experimentalist into one of contemporary composition’s most vital voices.
Malone’s approach to the organ exists in a liminal space—both ancient and futuristic. She explains how recording on a 16th-century instrument for the album’s reissue created radically new interpretations despite the composition remaining unchanged: “The music is strictly composed, but the registration and delivery change its identity so much.” You could read it as a poetic parallel to human evolution—our core essence intact, yet constantly shifting.
We dive into the tension between intuition and discipline, a defining force in her work. In an era of relentless digital noise, Malone advocates for silence as a creative act: “Remove all the layers and all the noise, and you’ll slowly start to hear what you feel, what you want, what you believe in.” It’s a philosophy that resonates far beyond music, speaking to anyone searching for artistic clarity.
From Colorado’s DIY punk scenes to Stockholm’s experimental avant-garde, Malone’s journey reveals the role of artistic communities in shaping sound. Her deep collaborations with Caterina Barbieri and Maria W Horn (both previous guests on Lost and Sound) highlight how musical friendships create “secret languages” that transcend time, breaking down artificial boundaries between traditions.
And when asked what she’d tell her younger self? Without hesitation: “You’re not crazy.” A simple but powerful affirmation for anyone carving their own path—where instinct often feels irrational but, in the end, is the most honest route forward.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Kali Malone on Instagram
The Sacrificial Code pre-order on Bandcamp
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Tesfa Williams has been shaping the sound of UK underground music for over two decades. From his early days as Dread D in the Black Ops crew—helping define the sublow sound that fed into grime—to becoming a key figure in UK funky, his journey has always been about pushing bass culture forward.
In this episode of Lost and Sound, Tesfa breaks down the evolution of UK club music, from jungle and garage to grime and beyond. We talk about his early days in West London’s underground scene, the impact of pirate radio, and the industry challenges facing electronic artists today. He also shares the motivations behind his recent name change and how it connects to identity, culture, and artistic evolution.
We also get deep into his latest album, Raves of Future Past—a record that bridges the past and future of UK bass with Tesfa’s signature blend of raw energy and deep musicality. Plus, we explore the fragmentation of today’s music landscape, the struggle for meaningful connection in a digital world, and the importance of community and reclaiming spaces for underground music.
This is an essential listen for anyone passionate about UK club culture, sound system lineage, and the future of bass-driven music.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Tesfa Williams on Instagram
Beyond Today EP by Tesfa Williams is available now on Heist Recordings, Bandcamp.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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What happens when music and psychoanalysis occupy the same creative headspace? This week on Lost and Sound, I chat with Ezra Feinberg—composer, guitarist, and practicing psychoanalyst—about the deep interplay between experimental music, the subconscious mind, and the subtle forces that shape creativity.
We dive into Soft Power, his latest album—a lush, hypnotic fusion of minimalism, kosmische music, ambient soundscapes, and psychedelic influences and one of my favourite albums of the last 12 months. We talk about how intention and perception collide in music, whether the emotions a listener feels mirror what the artist originally set out to express, and what it means to truly trust the creative process.
Ezra shares how his twin worlds of music and psychoanalysis aren’t as far apart as they seem, touching on problem-solving, patience, and artistic intuition. We explore the realities of navigating a career in underground music alongside parenthood, and how New York’s evolving music scene has shaped his journey.
Plus, we get into formative influences, spontaneous collaborations and the long game of making music on your own terms. A conversation about sound, time, and the quiet forces that shape creativity.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Ezra Feinberg on Instagram
Soft Power by Ezra Feinberg is available on Tonal Union, Bandcamp.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Alva Noto—aka Carsten Nicolai—has spent decades at the forefront of experimental electronic music and multimedia art. Growing up in East Germany, his work has been shaped by the country’s stark aesthetics, Leipzig’s bookmaking traditions, and the GDR’s Bauhaus-influenced design. In this episode, we talk about minimalism, sound as texture, the NOTON label and how his collaborations with Ryuichi Sakamoto (including The Revenant soundtrack) have redefined electronic music.
Carsten takes us back to the late ’80s and ’90s—a time when electronic music was shifting from analog to digital, opening up new creative possibilities. He shares how artists like Kraftwerk and Brian Eno paved the way for his work and how embracing imperfections in technology led to the birth of glitch.
We also explore how music distribution evolved from CDs to MP3s, how that shaped the way we experience sound, and what it means for artists today. Plus, Carsten reflects on his friendship with Ryuichi Sakamoto and their artistic journey together.
Listen in for a deep dive into sound, technology, and the art of pushing boundaries.
If you’re enjoying Lost and Sound, please do subscribe and leave a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Alva Noto on Instagram
Alva Noto Website
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Turntablist, composer, and sonic explorer NikNak joins Lost and Sound to talk about pushing DJing into new dimensions. From layering ambient textures to weaving intricate narratives through sound, she’s redefining what turntables can do.
We get into her creative process, the influence of video game soundtracks, and how she’s carved a space in the UK’s experimental music scene. She shares stories from performing with Grandmaster Flash, winning the Oram Award in 2020, and navigating the realities of being an artist today—where financial pressures, privilege, and technology all shape the landscape.
This was a really fun chat and NikNak makes some great points about sound as storytelling, the tension between artistry and survival, and why embracing play and experimentation is more important than ever.
If you’re enjoying the show, please consider subscribing and leaving a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
NikNak on Bandcamp.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Underground Bass culture never sits still and when it comes to forward momentum, Slikback is at the heart of it. With at least 28 projects since 2018, his sound is restless, urgent—pushing bass, distortion, and rhythm into new forms. In this conversation, we get into the discipline behind his experimental process, how fatherhood has reshaped his approach, and the impact of his latest release on Tempa.
We also talk about the move from traditional labels to self-releasing on Bandcamp—a decision that cracked open new creative freedom, especially during the pandemic. For Slikback, aka the very charming Freddie Mwaura Njau, it’s not just about breaking industry norms; it’s about the raw energy of finishing ideas, pushing sound forward without losing the impulse that made it exciting in the first place.
From early influences growing up in Nairobi to global collaborations, from DIY scenes to Nyege Nyege’s cultural force, this episode traces the connections that shape his music. We talk process, community, and the balance between instinct and refinement in electronic music today.
If you’re enjoying the show, please consider subscribing and leaving a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Data by Slikback is out now on Tempa, listen or buy here.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Emo ambient? That’s just one way to describe the ever-evolving work of boundary-pushing artist Mari Maurice, better known as more eaze. Her prolific output defies the norms of the music world, blending ambient, noise, autotune, and pedal steel with a deeply personal, human touch. In this episode, Mari shares her unique approach to making music that dissolves the lines between pop and what’s considered, in inverted commas, „serious“ music. Her collaboration with claire rousay on Never Stop Texting Me beautifully exemplifies this artistic ethos.
We talk about the challenges Mari faced in Austin’s experimental scene and the creative freedom she‘s discovered since relocating to New York. Immersed in the city‘s rich musical landscape, she’s embraced collaboration and opened up new dimensions in her sound, drawing from both minimalist and maximalist influences to reshape her approach to composition.
Mari also reflects on the joy of making experimental music more accessible, sharing how a live performance sparked her own musical journey and shaped her ethos as an artist. Along the way, we explore the serendipitous nature of sound creation and the growing acceptance of pop elements in avant-garde music.
If you’re enjoying the show, please consider subscribing and leaving a rating or review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or wherever you listen. It really helps to spread the word and support Lost and Sound.
Kinda Tropical by more eaze and claire rousay is out now on Thrill Jockey, pre-order the album No Floor here
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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What happens when a rock and roller decides to venture into clubland? Singer, songwriter and author Lias Saoudi, the charismatic frontman of the Fat White Family, joined me initially to explore this question. Lending his seductive, slinky and sleezy tonsils to techno supergroup, Decius: their second album "Decius Volume 2: Splendor and Obedience,” absolutely pumps and you can see why they were picked to play at Berghain’s 19th Birthday.
The Fat White Family have a rep. As Lias says in our conversation, they were a band made up of some of the five worst people in England, yet I found him to be a charming, erudite gent. From the psychological chaos of band dynamics to the romanticized notion of the tortured artist, our conversation touches on the existential struggles of maintaining artistic integrity. Lias offers a raw and honest perspective on balancing creative freedom with the pressures of performance, sharing humorous anecdotes about societal expectations and generational quirks along the way.
If you like the show and you havn‘t already, please give it a subscribe and consider leaving a rating and a review on Apple, Spotify, Amazon or wherever you listen. It all really helps build the show.
Decius Vol. II (Splendour & Obedience), released 31st January 2025 on The Leaf Label
The Moonlandingz — The Sign Of A Man, listen here.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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There’s a quiet power in rediscovery. Some music doesn’t just endure; it pulses beneath the surface. A.R Kane were one of those bands. This week on Lost and Sound, I had the honor of sitting down with Rudy Tambala, one-half of the groundbreaking duo and also a key figure in the formative acid house/chart smashers M/A/R/R/S.
Rudy Tambala isn’t someone who shouts about legacy. But you can feel it in everything he says. Back in the mid-to-late ’80s, A.R Kane crafted sounds that were indescribable at the time—blurring post-punk guitars with dub’s spaciousness, the ethereal textures of dream pop, and rhythms that felt beamed in from a future club culture still in its infancy. Their debut album, 69, and its follow-up, “i”, eschewed the live band format for a studio playfulness that pointed to bedroom producers and Ableton a good decade before this would even start to become norm.
On the surface, AR Kane might not be a household name. But dig deeper, and their fingerprints are everywhere. You hear it in shoegaze, trip-hop, and the experimental corners of electronic music. The seeds of jungle, ambient, and post-rock are there too. These were records for outsiders, yet their influence seeps through so many of the sounds that defined the ’90s and beyond.
It’s easy to place AR Kane in the same breath as My Bloody Valentine, Cocteau Twins, or even Prince in the way they created entire worlds of sound. But there’s something so singular about their vision, it incorporated old films, literature and design concepts. Rudy spoke candidly about what it meant to exist in a space where commercial success wasn’t the goal, but creating something new—something honest—was everything.
This episode isn’t just about AR Kane’s legacy, though. It’s about the art of listening differently and I got the impression it’s clear that Rudy is no nostalgist. We talk about sonic boundaries, connecting this with both Marshall MacLuhan and, I’m sure you’ll be pleased to know a food analogy or too.
Tune in to Lost and Sound this week to hear Rudy Tambala in his own words—reflecting on the past, navigating the present, and imagining the future of sound.
Rudy records now as Jübl, I think you could say AR Kane Mk 2, here’s the Bandcamp.
Up Home Collected by A.R. Kane on Bandcamp
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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Oliver Johnson, the synthesizer maestro better known as Dorian Concept, graces our latest episode with tales of musical evolution from "failed jazz artist" to electronic music luminary. Renowned for his collaborations with Thundercat, MF Doom and Flying Lotus, Johnson opens up about his unorthodox journey and the creative philosophies that guide him. We journey through the making of his latest EP, "Music from a Room Full of Synths," recorded at the Swiss Museum for Electronic Music Instruments, where jazz, funk, and hip-hop merge with club sounds.
Another topic that came up was on how Dorian navigates artistic identity and societal expectations, revealing how personal experiences can forge a path to authenticity. From childhood piano lessons that prioritized play over pressure, to encountering musical influences that shaped his tastes.
If you like what I’m doing with Lost and Sound, please like, rate, review or subscribe to the show on your podcast app of choice – it really does help.
"Music for a Room Full of Synths” is out now, check it out here.
Follow me on Instagram at Paulhanford
Lost and Sound is sponsored by Audio-Technica
My BBC World Service radio documentary “The man who smuggled punk rock across the Berlin Wall” is available now on BBC Sounds. Click here to listen.
My book, Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culturet Capital is out now on Velocity Press. Click here to find out more.
Lost and Sound title music by Thomas Giddins
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