Editorial Notes | August 2024

Welcome back to the hot summer we are having here at Dust & Grooves. The heat is only ramping up this August, and here’s why.

Our Team Just Got Bigger

Hi, I’m Fiona, a Brit based in the Netherlands. I’m a sound and cultural theorist wrapping up my MA, and listening to way more music than my schedule allows. Eilon has recently welcomed me to join the team as an editorial intern, which I’m super excited about. I’ve always wanted to write about music properly- and it’s great that this time it’s not just me reading it! I’m ready to be keeping you all up to speed as the new book speedily approaches, and getting together some ever-cool content to feed appetites in the meantime. 

Hello, my name is… Fiona.

The *almost* final unbound book samples are here, and yes, they weigh more than I can bench. I have to say they look incredible, and we’re so excited for you to see why too!

Booking Hell – Fresh Samples

Eilon has kept adamant that print quality is king. If there’s one thing we all want, and got, to do more, is treat our damn selves to the good stuff. Luckily for us, Dust & Grooves Volume. 2 is a step up from Volume. 1. Yes, it’s possible. These improvements are seen predominantly in the print quality, something we think is pretty delicious. When speaking to Eilon, he is excited to mention that the editorial section of Volume. 2 uses an uncoated paper. This special paper doesn’t have that shine, you know the one on photographs in books? Instead, it lets the ink soak right in, giving us an amazing spectrum of beautiful colors, and an incredibly striking dark black. Yum. 

We paid tons of $$$ for this paper quality! Damn.

Fine, crispy uncoated paper stock. Yum!

Wild and unbound DGv2 and Portables books

The good stuff goes beyond the book’s interior and includes the deluxe slipcases. This is not only for Dust & Grooves Volume. 2 but for the box set too. Hell yeah. The pallet is clean and minimalistic, and no compromises have been made in the chic of it all. In this minimal pallet for the box set, you can subtly see the 250 names of all interviewees in black UV stamping across the slipcase. That is cool, and that is classy. 

Dust & Grooves Volume 1 & 2 box set slipcase with almost 300 names engraved on it.

box set slip case with blind deboss (and some camera sensor dust on the bottom right corner)

DGv2 deluxe slipcase with UV stamping.

DGv2 deluxe slipcase with some more quote UV stamping.

It may seem excessive to be this gassed about a slipcase, but finally being able to see details like this in the real world, in your own hands is what makes the book-making process so exciting. Every few days bring each new part and each new layer of anticipation. Dust & Grooves Vol. 2 is just ready to burst!

New Website is Live!

The excitement is real in our digital lens too; big congrats to the new website going live! A major facelift has been given, getting smoother every day. There’s a full archive waiting for you, with incredible interviews from the likes of Gilles Peterson, Four-Tet, Questlove and many many more! This really means that I get the chance to dig through some mad cool reads, which is a neat deal for a total music nerd—I’m pretty sure I’ve cheated the system here somehow!

Fresh Interview: Kristine Barilli

You can keep coming back to these and keep up with fresh conversations. Check out the most recent interview with the wonderful Kristine Barilli here. New York Native Barilli talks of how she was initially drawn in by classics such as Bowie and Eno until she found her way into New York Punk and BDSM-themed records. This led to her not wanting to subscribe to one rule, loving the grit and glamor of it- even in how she dresses. An entwinement of music and fashion is significant for Barilli, as she idolizes: “The biggest influence on me has probably been Vivienne Westwood. What she was doing with Jordan and all of those bands at the time—she was a genius progenitor. That marriage of the fashion world and the underground music scene led to some of the coolest and most historic moments of styling.”

Goddess among mortals! (We didn’t write this, swear to god! It’s from an Instagram comment)

BDSM record domination

Kristine and Peter Ivers having a moment.

We have a bank of interviews that we’ve been keeping safe for a little while now, but they’re ready, and the time has come to release them out into the big bad world. 

We’re Gonna Treat You Right

This is thanks to our shiny new online campaign. We’re back, and started as we mean to go on – with more frequent updates from yours truly to let you know about things like Dust & Grooves Volume.2 full extended participant interviews, accompanied by some exclusive mixtapes. We know, or at least very much hope, that you’ll love these as much as we do.

The most important thing to keep up with (for the time being) is September 1st – yes that’s right, that’s because that’s when our book presale opens. It’s also not too late to sign up for book drop updates. We like to be in touch and don’t like the thought of anyone missing out.

Mixtape Madness

Our June mixtape is here! Fashionably late, of course. A huge shoutout to good friend Eduardo Gregory for cooking up some truly tasty goodness. It may no longer be June (we’re sorry) but this mix will keep you bopping like summer ain’t never ending. And who could blame you? Makaya McCraven’s “Gnawa” is getting you up with his poly-textural vitality, and Phil Moffa and Photay are keeping you up with “Alma Del Mundo” (Photay Remix). Let the textures take you, and the sweet melodies guide you by the hand. I promise you’ll feel expanded with late 1960s jazz serving as a springboard into this fine mix. 

Introducing: Constantly Revolving

If you feel it in your soul to keep moving and grooving, we got you. We are introducing the masterfully curated Constantly Revolving Mixtape on Spotify! Every month, there will be a mixtape of great tunes that we know you will love. Then we revolve and shake it up for the next month. Super fun and super fresh. If you are ready to commit, you can rely on our archive. It’s the same great curation, but we just keep adding. With over 152 hours in the archive, each time you come back you’re bound to find your old favorites, with some well-deserved new faces.

This is the mother playlist. Songs and tracks we dig. Changes and evolves monthly.

Launch Parties

Dust & Grooves is not only offering tunes for wherever you may stream, but you’ll be pleased to know that book launch parties are happening. Friends in NYC, London, Los Angeles, and São Paulo – get ready to get down. We can’t wait to see your lovely faces. Getting groovy all around the globe is something that we love, so if you’re partying outside of any of these cities for DGv2, please let us know and we’d love to see if we can make something great happen–the more the merrier.

No stress and stay blessed till next time, spinners. 

Fiona, Eilon and the Dust & Grooves team.