Stereo Six: ENiGMA Dubz Deliberates on Some of His Favourite Records

If there’s one guarantee with an artist like ENiGMA Dubz, it’s that you know the vibe is going to be right. The proof is in his latest release, Mixtape 2: #Vibes, released early last month. This is the follow-up to his Beatport chart-topping Mixtape 1: #Heaters, both released on the artist’s Morii Records. ENiGMA Dubz views his music as an outlet, a place where he can fully escape into a world of his own. So, these mixtapes are essentially glimpses into his creative and emotional headspace. These emotive songs can’t help but move you and elicit a reaction. #Vibes has received particular attention, largely thanks to “Free Ur Mind.” The song features Lauren L’aimant, one of the biggest names in UK bass music right now.

While #Heaters was a collection of bass-heavy bangers, ENiGMA Dubz has changed things up a bit with this follow up release. #Vibes explores the more melodic and emotional side of dance and electronic music. The production quality is pristine, and it still maintains the club appeal of its predecessor. Dubz enjoys getting a party started, but he also likes to challenge his listeners with more sophisticated tracks. #Vibes features future garage and electronica sounds, as well as trap and melodic breakbeat. It packs the right punch for any fan of electronic and club music.

Today, we are joined by ENiGMA Dubz for a Stereo Six in which he shares with us six seminal releases that have had a huge influence on him as a musician.

1. Burial – Untrue (2007, Hyperdub)

“Probably the most influential and powerful album in my musical journey. This album came out when I was 19. I’d been producing garage, grime, and speed garage up until that moment under an earlier alias, and I hadn’t heard garage music like this until then. My mind was totally blown and it was from here that I decided to get more experimental with my garage music. Shortly after I discovered dubstep too and the mixture of both at this moment was a total game changer. It was here when I launched my alias ‘ENiGMA,’ and the rest is history.”

2. Board of Canada – Tomorrow’s Harvest (2013, Warp)

“This album got right under my skin after the first listen, in particular, ‘Reach For The Dead.’ Boards have always taken me to a unique place mentally. I first heard their music around 2004 and immediately knew I’d found something off the grid and like nothing else. It’s their retro, tape-like feel and sound to their music, paired with the beautiful synth and production work. Then, alongside this, the dark and unsettling feel to some of their music is a combination I absolutely love.”

Artwork for the albums ENiGMA Dubz lists in this Stereo Six

3. Dusky – Joy (2021, 17 Steps)

“What a vibe. This whole album is just sick. I’ve loved Dusky for years, and with Joy, it’s such a sick mix of retro synths, breaks, garage, and overall coolness. In particular ‘Hildegard,’ makes me want to put some shades on, some linen shorts, and rollerblade through an abandoned city as the sun sets. Damn, what a vibe. For real, though, sick album.”

4. KÁRYYN – “Ever” (2019, ANTEVASIN)

“This track is very important to the #Vibes project and the track ‘Walk Away’ in particular. I went on tour in 2021 to America for just under a month. My first show was in Seattle, and after the show I had five days before my next show in Atlanta. I was staying in a hotel, a nice spot just outside the city, but I had the worst jet lag. I had a tough time sleeping, so I’d hit the hotel gym each morning and try to exhaust myself. However, without fail, I was up at 3:30 or 4 am each morning.

“A friend I’d made in Seattle, shout out to Aleks aka Owleks, had shown me this track as part of a sick playlist he’d recommended I check out. Each day, I’d go out walking into Seattle, looking for cool coffee spots, and listening to this KÁRYYN track pretty much on loop. I was absolutely hooked.

“After three days of this cycle of jet lag, gym, working on music in the room and wandering the streets, I wrote the track ‘Walk Away’ from #Vibes at 4 am on day four of my stay in Seattle. Listening to ‘Walk Away’ takes me back to this time, which in part was a bit uncomfortable and dark at times, yet it reminds me how powerful music can be and how valuable creativity is in mentally testing moments.”

5. George FitzGerald – All That Must Be (2018, Double Six)

“Stunning album. George FitzGerald is such a great producer and this album is a journey from start to finish. I love the rawness and organic sound of the tracks, yet it has an energy and warmth that just hits the spot. ‘Two Moons Under’ is the opening track and my favourite from the album. There’s also a sick collab with Bonobo, another artist I absolutely love. Plus a sick track with Lil Silva too, who’s also dope.”

6. [Curveball] Recomposed by Max Richter – Vivaldi, The Four Seasons (2012, Universal)

“This album/rework of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons has been so well done and arranged. ‘Spring 1’ is a personal favourite from the piece. I’ve loved Max Richter’s work for a long time, his project Sleep is also a big influence for me. I grew up studying and playing classical music. I was cellist form the age of five and that was my initial career path in music. I had the opportunity to play The Four Seasons by Vivaldi on two occasions with orchestras over the years and I’d always enjoyed it.

“However, the way Max Richter has flipped it and given it a very modern rework is stunning. I just love how he creates such powerful chord progressions, how he holds onto dissonance at times and how melancholic it can be. He never fails to hit me in the feels, and I always feel inspired to create and compose when I listen to his music.”

ENiGMA Dubz “Vibes” single artwork