Cardiff-born DJ and producer Elkka today announces her forthcoming EP DJ Friendly, due for release on October 27 via Ninja Tune. Alongside the announcement, Elkka premiered the high-octane EP title track on Mary Anne Hobbs show on BBC 6Music this morning, which has already been making waves across the festival circuit with support from the likes of Bicep, Barry Can’t Swim, Pearson Sound and many more. To celebrate the release, Elkka will be shelling down a headline DJ set at Brixton’s Phonox on EP release day – RSVP for priority access to tickets HERE. General sale tickets will be available to buy at 10am on Wednesday Sept 6. Fans will also be able to get their hands on a dubplate version of the EP – pre-order one of the limited, 300 hand-stamped white label vinyl.
Launching off the back of a packed out summer of touring including Glastonbury, Secret Garden Party and Junction 2 festival, DJ Friendly sees Elkka sharpen her club tools with a collection of energetic dancefloor cuts primed for use within her own DJ sets. In contrast to the melodic technicolour of her live show, this EP is maximalist on tempo, percussion and rave euphoria. Speaking on the body of work, Elkka explains: “DJ Friendly is the expression of the urges and intensity that the club space gives to me. I feel like I tend to walk a tightrope between the club and more live-facing music. This one is firmly on the club side. Sometimes I need to release that side of me, inspired by the parties I have played at and partied in over the summer. It builds and builds until the urges are met and I can refresh and allow myself to start again creatively. I’ve been playing the tracks in my sets all summer and the crowd reactions have been giving me so much energy, so I hope it translates at home.”
Elkka’s deep intuition is the unifying thread throughout her illustrious career: vibrant releases for Local Action, Ninja Tune and her own label and party, femme culture, have marked her as an unstoppable force within the London underground. This recognition metabolised when she was awarded BBC’s prestigious Essential Mix of the Year in 2021, spotlighting her radiant blend of classic house, breakbeat and experimental electronica to the world over. She has been widely supported by her peers including Four Tet, Floating Points, TSHA, Caribou, Sofia Kourtesis, Jon Hopkins, Fred Again.., SHERELLE, and recently won an AIM Award for Best Remix for her rework of Ela Minus’ ‘Megapunk’. Earlier this year, Elkka also contributed to the trailblazing DJ-Kicks series with a spellbinding mix that championed her love of women and the LGBTQ+ dance community of which Elkka is fiercely part of, regularly performing in intimate spaces and queer parties like UNFOLD and Panorama Bar. Emma is concurrently working on her debut album, set for release in 2024.
Elkka ‘DJ Friendly’ EP
Tracklist:
1. Babe
2. Thirsty
3. DJ Friendly
4. Make Me*
**only available on vinyl copy
Elkka Tour Dates
02/09/23 End of The Road Festival, Wilts (DJ)
07/09/23 ION, Dhermi, AL (DJ)
16/09/23 WHP, Manchester, UK (DJ)
18/09/23 DC10, Ibiza, ES (DJ)
23/09/23 Elkka b2b Myd @ Le Cargo, Caen, FR (DJ)
29/09/23 TSHA, at the Ruins KDC, NY (DJ)
07/10/23 Cirque Micheletty, Paris, FR (DJ)
21/10/23 RAW Factory, Amsterdam, NL (DJ)
27/10/23 Phonox, London, UK (DJ)
Photo Credit: Alexandra Lambert
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