RA.500 Ben UFO

A leader of the scene looks to the future.

It's not often that we'll give a DJ a brief when they record a podcast for us, but in late 2010 we asked Ben UFO to summarise the year that was. He came back to us 48 hours later with a mix that showcased the stream of incredible music that was flowing from the UK bass scene, linking it with the best in contemporary house and techno. This preternatural ability to "connect the dots," as we described it back then, is still very much Ben Thomson's calling card. He's a DJ who's now universally recognised as one of the best we've ever had.



"In contrast to the first mix I recorded for Resident Advisor, in 2010, in which I was asked to attempt a summary of that year, this time around I was given a fairly open brief. The only guidance I was given was that 500 podcasts represented a milestone for the site worth celebrating, and that it might evoke a nostalgic response. As it turned out, in 2010 it felt a lot more challenging playing a set consisting entirely of contemporary records than it does for me now, at a time where my focus as a club DJ is mostly on new music. As a result, when I was thinking about how best to approach this mix it felt right to try and look forward, and focus on mostly new and unreleased music.



A lot of my favourite moments on dance floors this year came via tracks which I felt could be used to open things up and change course—those tracks which can feel like coming up for air after periods of intensity, which can disrupt any sense of linearity and make you feel as a dancer as though anything could come next. These are often the records that keep me feeling excited about the future, and as a result I guess there's a focus on music that I enjoyed playing with this idea in mind. I recorded the mix at David Kennedy's house on my usual setup: two turntables, an Allen & Heath mixer, Serato SL4 and some records."