‘Triple Vision’ 12.08.25 feat. Residual Birth
Cutting his teeth in the multi-genre chaos of Oakland’s noise scene & the underground spirit of Bay Area raves, LA-based hardware performer, DJ & renegade enthusiast Danny Lewis AKA Residual Birth is a seeker of otherworldly sounds, harnessing joy & connection in every set. Drawn to the sounds of Australia’s underground rarely heard in the States, he spent time in Naarm connecting into and exploring a music culture where genre-blurring journeys and nature-bound dance floors are abundant.
Beyond the dance floor, Danny champions the transformative power of shared experiences through music, moments that foster genuine community & connection, sparking socially conscious conversations, allowing a party’s energy to ripple far beyond the final track. His latest release, Echo LA, is a politically charged rally cry for unity against the violent, fascist systems of power wreaking havoc on migrant communities in Los Angeles.
Links: Instagram | Soundcloud | Bandcamp
Q&A with Residual Birth
Q1. Was there a particular mood or feeling that informed the selections for this mix & are there any artists or labels you've included that you're particularly digging at the moment?
A: So for this mix I went back through my archive, and I wanted to pick music that I’d imagine you would dig. I imagined myself back in your home studio where we spent so much time together. When I’m out and about and the music is hitting, I often think of my friends abroad or outside my city. Like, “OMG, Eric would LOVE THIS!” I guess it’s one way that my love for my friends constantly reveals itself to me across space and time. So, I really wanted to balance that sense of what I thought would be appealing to you and your listeners, and select those leftfield, nebulous or amorphic tracks that I wholeheartedly vibe with in my archive.
Some artists that I included in this mix I’d want to highlight in particular are Command D and OK EG. If you live in OZ, you’ll definitely know those first two names. Command D and OK EG are two acts that I look up to with a lot of respect, especially with their integration of hardware into their live sets and productions. Dubby, psychedelic, driving yet meditative. All of their releases are worth checking out and supporting. They’re also very nice folks!
Q2. What was it about music coming out of Australia that first drew you in to wanting to spend a chunk of time here & what do you feel you've taken from the experience that you want to foster back Stateside?
A: Initially I was super drawn toward the proggy and dubby techno side of the Australian music scene. Artists like DJ Life, Reflex Blue, and Cousin for example. Right before I headed out, I heard Eastern Distributor’s An Xileel EP and just absolutely dug the freetek/psy vibes. These were styles that I just did not hear out and about at parties, renegades or clubs in the States. Nowadays things are a bit different across the west coast with some Ozzy artists like LOIF and Cousin, or European artists like Spekki Webu and Polygonia getting booked for little festivals or events in Portland, SF, and LA. But a yearning for that kind of music culture where those sounds are the norm rather than the exception, really got me stoked to spend time in Melbourne. I feel like a really big takeaway for me from my time there, was a reinforcement of the power of narrative and the notion of taking the listener on a journey. Often times the most memorable or impactful DJ sets that I’ve experienced transcend a singular genre, disintegrate time, and tend to be experienced in nature and in the company of friends. Tangela’s NYE set at Diega, Command D’s set at the prior Diega, and Lava Brain’s set for Melbourne Deep Cast are all great examples of this for me, having experienced them with the above protocol.
Q3. What's something you've found creatively inspiring recently and how do you harness that spark of energy when it hits?
A: Inspiration is a difficult subject. People have written treatises, dissertations, and made careers talking about the subject. For me it’s a constant struggle, and I’m working on ways to have more creative discipline to meet my goals. I think that through discipline, learning, and intentional practice - more sparks will come more often! A lot of the time, and I know a lot of folks can relate, we might not “feel” like working on a creative practice is fun, even though deep down, we know it is a part of what makes us happy, and gives extra joy and meaning in our lives, so it’s worth nurturing. I’ll give a recent example of inspiration for my songwriting work. A track I put out last month called “OJO” started when I was trying to improve upon my sound design in composition, moving away from pure sample work and integrating more synthesis. It started by analyzing a song I included on this mix called Psyte Seeing, by Emelexy. I tried to recreate some of those sounds on my machines, and contemplate the relationship of those weirder sounds contextualized with the percussive and core elements of the track, constantly A/Bing them until I got lost in the sauce of sound design. I ended up making something totally different, that I wouldn’t have otherwise made in the echo chamber of my studio.
Q4. What's something within a community you're a part of that you'd like people to know about?
A: A bunch of crews in the Bay Area and here in LA will have a table full of zines at their events. With topics ranging from Consent, Immigration infographics & hotlines, Anarchist philosophy, Animal Liberation, Direct Action, Harm Reduction, international struggles, or reportbacks from demonstrations. Of course there is great value in sharing knowledge, but more than anything, I think that literature opens up conversations between people outside of the party space. I think this is so important, especially in these times. You hear buzz words like “community,” etc. thrown around a lot promoting events, and I do think dancing together is one way to reinforce community bonds through experiences of collective joy. But leaving a party with a zine, and giving it to a friend, family member, or having it out on your coffee table to spark a conversation can lead toward building an even stronger, more resilient community outside of a party space, or can change someone’s way of thinking about the world or their relation to others that they wouldn’t otherwise have been exposed to.
Lava Brain Track list:
Echology - Inner Strength Dub [Self Released]
Deemkeyne - Ending Dynasty [Scale Limited]
Pedro Capelossi - Falling Into Confusion [spclnch]
Simone Bauer - Meta Programming [Lowless]
Fefe - The Mudlark [Danza Nativa]
Command D & Zara - 2Pulse [Butter Sessions]
Beatrice M. - Poison [Tectonic Recordings]
Sonic Wave Collective - Arise (Forest On Stasys Tribal Mix) [Arketip Discs]
Raytek - Familiar Place [Sungate]
Akmuo - Glint (Ambient Edit) [sedubtive]
Residual Birth Track list:
Sanguine - Jane's Rehabilitation
Command D - Half Blue (Violet Mix)
Playedby.wav - 808 Voleur
Sam Brickel - Sunset on Freeside
Carré - Season Seven
Cousin - Muster
Jeigo - Wing Systems
Doubtingthomas - Fragment
Joy Orbison - Better (w- Léa Sen)
Valentino Mora - Solarized
Nils Edte & Magnus Lindgren - Tilia's Tribe
Primal Code - AI Calculator (Priori Remix)
OK EG - Oxygen Channel
Malwen - Floresta
Emelexy - Psyte Seeing
Kobayashi Maru - Induction Texture
