Dulcet Tones have mixed for us before, but we'll be first to admit that it was rush job. The mix is great, but no article, no interview, barely a sentence in the Mixcloud description - how are we to know what these guys are all about?

Thankfully, they agreed to return, this time allowing us to poke them and probe them with invasive questions until they were truly sick of our presence. Because that's how we like it.

We caught up with the Dulcet Tones crew following their last event, which saw them book Solid Blake and Smokey of Apeiron Crew - a night which, by all accounts, fucking banged. After hearing reports of these guys turning MONO inside-out, we decided that it was about time to drag them in for another mix. Enjoy:

How did Dulcet Tones come about? 

It came together pretty naturally. We’ve all known each other for a good few years now and had wanted to put on an event, and Laurie was itching to book Bjørn Torske. The name was the result of a laborious and very lengthy discussion over a curry of a number of potential names which ranged from the inspired to the insipid.

Eventually we settled on Dulcet Tones, if not through a unanimous decision then through protracted weariness. One anonymous member of the crew whose name might begin with an H still feels upset that we didn’t go for Higgs Bassoon.

Who are the people behind Dulcet Tones? What are their duties?

Joe brings copious volumes of chutzpah, Harry provides the awkward mumbles and the oat milk, Sam is the communications officer of naval-themed techno, and Laurie helps to remind us that it always, honestly, is going to be fine. Ana and Katie occasionally provide geometric lighting apparatus but more generally hold the whole thing together by being cool and stylish and really nice.

We’ve also been lucky enough to have had some incredibly talented artists involved with the visual side of things, such as Goldsmiths design graduate Alec McWilliam and It’s Nice That graduate John Molesworth - check them out!

You guys have been doing this for less six months, but what have you learnt in those six months?

- Booking Scandinavians seems to always be the best policy.
- Adverse weather conditions need not ruin the party.
- The story always begins with Ink.

Well, you must be doing something right because you absolutely killed it at your last event - tell us about that.

Our last event felt really, really special to us. Everything just came together. We invited two thirds of Copenhagen’s amazing Apeiron Crew to MONO in the form of Solid Blake (live) and Smokey (DJ), and they were both really incredible. Not only were the musical gifts they brought to the table of the highest order, they were also some of the best people to hang out with and get to know.

They were matched by an amazing, engaged crowd, including some people from other nights in Brighton that we really appreciate and respect like Innaspace and Gardenn. Basically everyone inside and outside the venue brought their A-game and we were bloody humbled by each and every moment.

Tell me a little about your next event?

Having felt like it was such a tight-knit community affair at our event in September, we decided to make it an all-family affair on the 20th October, just residents and maybe one or two special guests. It’s absolutely 100% definitely not because of the fact that we just left it too late to book anyone or get anything sorted because we are a compendium of useless, disorganised human beings. It’s also going to be one of the last opportunities to come to MONO so it’s a must for everyone who loves that great little club.

Where do you intend to take Dulcet Tones in the future? Have you got your eye on any up and coming acts?

Of course, it’s going to be sad to say goodbye to MONO, which is kind of exactly what we have wanted in a club in Brighton. There are plenty of very good venues in Brighton we would be excited to put on events at; we just need to make sure everything about it feels right for how we want to approach the event.

We are also working towards putting on events which don’t have so much of a dancefloor focus, and instead will be moving towards more experimental stuff. In essence, a lot of stuff falls under what we would define as Dulcet Tones, and we would like to explore those things. Some names we have talked about are Donna Leake of Brilliant Corners, and Tryphème of Central Processing Unit, as well as KANN’s Mary Yalex, as well as plenty of others, but we have nothing concrete planned at the moment for these guys. 

Before we finish - can you give us a few words on the mix?

It was thrown together pretty hastily but hopefully is a pretty solid indication of the range of styles and mood we are into. We wanted to draw on different influences and have a lot of fun while doing so. There are a few hairy moments and needle-skips in there but we’d probably rather have it be that way and have it still be pretty human. (No doubt you will note this is a handy excuse).

And finally, what are you listening to right now?

The person answering these questions has been listening to Tryphème’s Rinse FM podcast, as well as one of her ‘Tryphème’s Mood Swings mixes' whilst doing so. Otherwise we have just been rinsing all things Apeiron all week after they spellbound us so much last month, with recent mixes on NTS from Mama Snake for the Ectotherm show and Solid Blake & Smokey representing the SHAPE platform standing out.