De Playlist #96: mango stereo

Iedere maand 15 nieuwe tracks in de playlist. Uitgekozen door één van de heren of andere relaties van de Stookhoksessies. Het kan alle kanten op.

Back in my day, I lived in a tiny Ukrainian village with no phone lines or gas, just radio waves and a school where I spent half my school life obsessed with folk music. I was constantly on stage, singing in competitions and digging deep into the local heritage.

So, naturally, my first major influences aren't even on Spotify. I'm talking about raw, soul-crushing songs about the fate of the Ukrainian people during serfdom under the russian empire — a system of brutal, near-slavery conditions, Cossack anthems, and stories of heroes from the Second World War. 

Everything shifted when my dad bought me my first tape recorder. From that moment on, I started inhaling every piece of music I could get my hands on.

Critical Mass - Burning Love (Happy Radio Edit)
I remember finding this track on a dance compilation, and it completely blew me away. The melody was infectious, and the tune felt so dense and powerful. 

Mr. Credo - Amfetamin 
A neighbor lent me a tape of the “Fantasy” album around ’97 by Mr. Credo. It was raw, gritty storytelling about street life and the dark side of the scene, all layered over cutting-edge electronic music I’d never heard before.

Junkie XL – Dealing With The Roster 
When I moved to the city, a classmate introduced me to The Prodigy, and I immediately went out and bought every tape I could find. Back in the post-Soviet era, we had this legendary bootleg called The Castbreeder. (https://www.discogs.com/release/3103435-Various-The-Castbreeder) People thought it was a "secret Prodigy album," but it was actually tracks by Junkie XL and Lunatic Calm. That’s how Tom Holkenborg’s sound first got under my skin and I got first taste of breakbeat/big beat.

TNMK - Oto Take
After moving to the capital, I got swept up in the hip-hop and alt-culture wave. I spent my pocket money I had on festivals and internet cafes, just to dig deeper into electronic music. Groups like TNMK and Tartak were the ultimate soundtrack for the hip-hop youth back then - super relevant and full of energy.

Dolphin - Ya Lyublyu Lyudey (I Love People) 
I started getting into b-boying, and at one of the festivals, I discovered Dolphin. Seeing him perform alongside a b-boy crew was an incredible fusion of street dance and avant-garde electronics. 

Freestylers - B-Boy Stance (feat. Tenor Fly) also known as London Sound. 
In those days, I was rocking baggy pants, hanging out with guys playing raw metal in the dorms during the day, and then hitting the city squares at night to find where the DJs, b-boys, and rappers were at. 

DJ Aphrodite - King of the Beats 
A friend played me an Aphrodite tape. From that second, I was hooked on British electronic music. The breakbeats and the bass were just undeniable.

Rawthang - Scorned
Kasta - Khram Hip-Hopa (Hip-hop Temple)
While working as a courier, I finally got a disc player. I’d spend my days riding through the city with a bag full of discs, blasting DnB, Jungle, Breakbeat, Trip-Hop, and Rap.

Black Sun Empire - Gun Seller 
Once I had a bit of cash, I started hitting the clubs for real. I ended up at a DnB party, and suddenly, every weekend was a flood of fresh sounds. A couple of years later, I grabbed my first decks - Numark TT 200s and a Vestax Pro II - and started buying Jungle and DnB vinyl. That’s when my journey as a selector truly began.

Emalkay - Bats In The Belfry 
These last few tracks represent the turning points in my creative life. The portal to Dubstep opened for me with Benga’s "6306." That 140 BPM tempo and beautiful flute were something fresh for me. I started hunting for tracks that bridged the gap between 140 and my love for Jungle.

FLeCK - Rolling Soul
Bojcot - All Original
I eventually discovered the Greek producer FLeCK and the Dutch legend Bojcot (whom I actually met in 2008 at a party in Tivoli De Helling). Their sound - dense, phat basslines mixed with rolling breaks - was exactly what I had been looking for.

Cream Soda - Animado (Your Name/140 Jungle Remix) 
This all led to me producing my own stuff. Winning a remix contest for Cream Soda with a 140 Jungle flip was a breakthrough moment. It made me realize there’s no such thing as "correct" music or "perfect" production. It’s all subjective. That realization gave me the freedom to love everything and create whatever I want, whether I'm behind the decks or digging into Ableton.

I’ve got plenty more gems in the vault, but let’s save those for the next episode. Stay tuned and see you on the dancefloor, or coming through your car speakers while you're cruising the autobahn.

Cheers, Mango

Mango Stereo is a Slovenian-based bass music selector and producer with roots in the Ukrainian underground.

Active since 2008, he has built a reputation on heavy breaks, jungle, and 140 culture. His production history includes releases on Masterskaya, Future Jungle Music, and OCHI with love and support from platforms like Stranded FM, Pikanto FM, and SUB.FM.

Shared stages with legends like Zed Bias, RSD, Doc Scott, Cluekid, DJ Haus, Krinjah, M0nkey, Munchi, Run Tingz Cru, Multiplex, Bojcot and MCs: Killa P. He has performed across Netherlands, Indonesia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, and Ukraine, with festival credits including Kazantip, Atlas Weekend (’19-’21), and BigUp! Jungle.

https://www.instagram.com/mangostereo
https://soundcloud.com/mangostereo
https://www.mixcloud.com/mangostereo/