Terminal V Podcast 061 || AISHA

We head to the heart of Glasgow for this mix, and it is there that AISHA first started to make her mark. Since then, her trademark high-energy sound has taken her all across the UK and to releases on esteemed labels like Soma, Taapion and Elements, and to residencies at the legendary Sub Club and long-running Animal Farm.
Though her sounds are hard, they are never short on euphoria, which she says is a hangover from the hardcore raves she used to attend in her earlier years. From trance-y to raw, she always mixes it up and keeps things fresh as she proves on this week’s podcast. It’s a snapshot of where she is at now and comes with an interview in which she discusses her inspirations, the impact of the weather on her musical mood and more besides…
Summer will soon be over. Does the weather affect your mood in the studio, the sounds you make and the sort of tracks you play in your DJ sets?
Yes when it comes to production – it tends to get split into hot weather festival tracks + cold night tracks! My latest EP, Enter Bounce, was made with summertime in mind – fun and bouncy vibe. When DJing, I tend to play dark sweaty clubs generally so my sets stay trippy, hard and euphoric always ๐
Where else does musical inspiration come from – dreams, TV, books, friends, your own inner feelings or somewhere else?
My inspiration comes from club experiences, psychedelics and my emotions. I’ve just finished a track inspired by a recent clubbing experience in Berlin, combined with a first kiss there. I play it in this mix…I’ll let you guys guess which one it is haha.
How much did you learn from your residency at Animal Farm? What is the art of the resident DJ in your view?
I’ve learned how much I bloody love playing in the Sub Club booth – it feels like home! I have also learned what it feels like to be in a funny, caring, and supportive collective like Animal Farm. The whole team really have each other’s backs, and surprisingly never have in-house squabbles! Residencies help you expand your musical mind by connecting with like minded people.
You have released on several key labels – do you make music with a certain label in mind or do you make the music first and then see where it might end up?
II tend to work best with deadlines – I have a lot of requests for tracks, I find it hard to keep up – so atm I tend to do one track at a time for that deadline. Then I move onto the next. I tend to accept track requests with deadlines from a label that I have already purchased from or already have a good connection with sound wise.
What do you have coming up?
An extremely busy halloween period with 5 gigs in 6 days, one of which is of course at Terminal V on 29th October! Can’t wait ๐ and a release of my track ‘sweet + Juicy’ on Terminal V Records on 27th October, which I play in this mix. The track has had great support from DJ’s like Ki/Ki already ๐
What do you have coming up?
Tell us about your mix, the aim you had with it, and what you wanted it to say.
The mix is a good representation of what I play at the moment – a blend of different techno styles with a psychedelic theme throughout. And as always, fun euphoric trance at the end. I also like to support female producers in my mixes, I don’t think enough people think about producer diversity when recording their mixes. You’ll find some insane quality productions when you expand your mind further than the usual producers you hear.
What gear did you use, is that important to you in any way whether in the booth or studio?
I used my CDJ900’s and Xone23, with a focusrite soundcard going into ableton. That’s the setup I have in my studio – it needs updated haha. Sometimes I use Animal Farms studio, which has my usual setup – Xone96 and CDJ3000’s.
Interview by Kristan Caryl