Theory Therapy 62: Mari & Ani DJ

Delicate ambient from France’s Soleil Rouge.

“[The mix] was recorded as usual, under the comforter, in our bed, in the warmth. We wanted to compose a long, collage-like ballad, where several pieces fit together and overlap, where you get lost, where the notion of time becomes blurred.” — Mari and Ani DJ

Hey Marie and Antoine. How are you both today?

Oui ça va!!

We've just come back from a week's holiday in the Ecrins, near Grenoble. We've been in a mountain mood, in the fresh air. We helped one of our best friends to refurbish her new restaurant, due to open soon. It's called Le Gargas, and it's really cute. To round off our stay, Chloé invited us to a carnival in a little village in the Allier called "La Chabanne", organized by some of her friends. We all wore great costumes, and the atmosphere was crazy. 

We really cherished the time we spent with our friend Chloé, as we don't get to see her very often.

We're also in the middle of organizing the next edition of Paturia, our festival. We're really excited about all this movement, getting in touch with artists and seeing the festival take shape little by little. Good things are yet to come.

What was the last song you listened to?

Adrianne Lenker - Anything

Where’s your favourite place to listen to music?

There are many places where we love to listen to music, depending on our mood. On a daily basis, we mainly listen to music in bed, and we're lucky enough to have great speakers in every room of our house, so the music can really follow us everywhere. We also love listening to music on the move, whether on public transport or in the car. Strangely enough, it's during these times that we discover the most, and they're pretty special moments for us.

Otherwise, when we go out to see concerts, our favorite places in Paris are the Bourse de Commerce and the Maison de la Radio.

And last but not least, we love sharing our latest discoveries with our friends at dinners, parties and other social occasions.

Is there an artist or album you listen to a lot we might not expect based on your mixes? 

• Alain Souchon - c’est déjà ça

• All Nebuchadnezzar discography

• French Rap

What inspired you to start Soleil Rouge?

Soleil Rouge is the association we created to support our Paturia festival. It was only later that the project evolved into a label and a wider distribution project than a one-off annual event.

You could say that music is at the heart of our relationship. Right from the start, it was music that brought us together, this desire to discover new things, new artists, new ways of approaching festive moments. We also both share this joy of entertaining, of looking after people, welcoming them, taking care of them, which comes from our family heritage. 

There's one festival that really convinced us that we were capable of organizing one too. It's called Illusio, and it's organized by Groovedge, a collective based in Lyon. The first edition really made an impression on us, both musically and in human terms, and it was a very special experience for us that really pushed us to organize Paturia. We realized at the time that we wanted to organize small-scale, intimate events with small audiences. To be able to offer a cutting-edge program, to have the time to take care of the artists, the audience and our volunteers.

We're also very demanding when it comes to the soundsystem we offer our festival-goers. We wanted to offer a high-quality soundsystem within our means. We were lucky enough to find Purple Acoustics. It's a company run by Simon, who has now become a kind of patron for the festival. The work he produces is just crazy, it's one of the best sound systems we've ever had.

Can you tell us a little about your Theory Therapy mix? What were you feeling when you made it? Where did you record it?

This mix was produced with the aim of clearing the mind, when words are no longer enough, and music helps us to express ourselves in a different way. It was recorded as usual, under the comforter, in our bed, in the warmth. We wanted to compose a long, collage-like ballad, where several pieces fit together and overlap, where you get lost, where the notion of time becomes blurred.

Where would you recommend listening to it?

In bed under the comforter <3

Theory Therapy mixes are about sharing the music that you personally find therapeutic, cathartic or restorative. What does that mean for you?

When we compose our mixes, we show our vulnerability, we want to share this music that makes us feel good, in the hope that maybe it will make other people feel good.

Is there a particular album or piece of music that you find yourself returning to for similar reasons? 

Chuquimamani Condori - DJ E / Adrianne Lenker - songs / Gyda Valtysdottir - Ox / Ben Bondy - Mi bebe

Tell us something exciting that's coming up in your life, music or otherwise.

As mentioned above, we're thrilled to be relaunching our festival this year. We're also looking forward to going to Rewire, a festival that has had a profound effect on us over the past two years. We've also adopted a little cat, who fills us with happiness, and we take him everywhere with us, his name is Bleu. And finally, our friend Félix has bought an old mill, which will host the festival. We can't wait to help him build it.

Theory Therapy · Theory Therapy 62: Mari & Ani DJ

Tracklist:

1. Gyda Valtysdottir - Prism

2. Bruno Duplant & Massimo Magee - sans titre n°1

3. Chantal Michelle feat Brian Allen Simon – Celestia

4. Natural Wonder Beauty Concept - Fallen Angel

5. Soolee - Spacewalk

6. Raft of Trash - Sans Sherif at the Painted Oasis

7. Organ of Corti - Usher / Trauma

8. Setting - We Center

9. Ena - 20 Division

10. Slowfoam - Phantom Memories, Iambic Limbs

11. Charlie Butler - Twelve Apostles

12. Setting - A Sun Harp

13. more eaze - says the girl who's been broken up with four times in the last year

14. Rat Heart Ensemble - The Relevant Elephant

15. J and the woolen stars - like lace on my chest