If her chosen name means anything—which it surely does—it's not that Ms. Nidam is some sort of misfit. It might be more accurate to say that Maayan shapes sound to fit her own singular sensibilities—a strategy that has resulted in a significant and growing body of recorded work and a reputation as a talented, versatile DJ who unerringly takes listeners to special, unexpected places.
Since she began DJing and producing in 1999, Mayaan has racked up an impressive discography. As Miss Fitz, she has released EPs on Archipel, Sushitech, Raum…musik, Eklo, Kalimari, Freak n' Chic and Contexterrior; she also travels in disguise as Laverne Radix, with one single so far for Oslo's Love Letters from Oslo. March 2009 also marks the release of Maayan's debut release under her own name: "Night Long" (on Japanese label PowerShovel), an intimate album woven together out of recordings of Cuba's best contemporary instrumentalists. It's not the first thing that might come to mind when recalling an artist best known for machine grooves and moody funk—but that's what makes the move so quintessentially Maayan.
Maayan plays Exit fest next weekend and we've got this live podcast from the wonderful Berlin institution club der visionaere... have a little whirl.
The mix happens here: