Mixmag Asia Radio: Bangkok-based r.omy takes us on a nostalgic trip back to her home-scene in Antwerp

Making fresh waves in the Bangkok scene, r.omy is a Belgian-born DJ who embraces deep basslines coupled with minimal nuances.

Those slight touches can include anything from micro-breaks to pulsating rhythms that are laced with sultry and soulful string compositions.

She started as a resident of Klub Dramatik Festival in Belgium and had feature sets at Ampere and Club Capital.

After moving to Thailand, r.omy quickly immersed herself in the Bangkok scene, and hosts "Cafe Condense” on Bangkok Community Radio every second Saturday of the month. She's also been invited to perform at Fly Me To The Moon Festival and Kangkao festivals as well as Bangkok's afterhours haunt, Never Normal.

Where are you based and how did you get there?

I am based in Bangkok, Thailand. Exactly one year ago I decided to take the next step in life: leave my hometown Antwerp in Belgium to move to Asia. This was something I have been trying to do for the last couple of years and I got the opportunity to move to Bangkok. So I did.


What’s your favourite thing about the music scene there?

As a newcomer in Bangkok and in the Thai music scene, something that struck me immediately is that people are so open to everyone who tries to express themself musically. There is a lot of talent and passion present and everyone is welcome to try it out. A lot of different styles and genres are going on in the city and what I like about it the most is that no particular genre is being seen as “cooler” or more “in” than the other. Everyone does what he or she feels and there is room for that


In five words, what do your DJ sets sound like?

Break-y, uplifting, minimal, guilty pleasures


And in three words, how would you describe yourself?

Clumsy, sociable, introvert


What recent trends in music have you been paying attention to? Have you caught onto them?

The line between different kinds of music genres is getting more vague. You see this for example a lot in the curation of festivals or other event line-ups but also in the sound DJs and producers bring. And I love this, just to see how good some people are at exquisitely mixing different styles of music genres and getting people to understand and appreciate it instantly. A couple of years ago, if you went to a minimal festival, you could expect pure minimal. Same with techno and house festivals. It’s cool to see how it all gets blended more these days. Also, I like how a lot of peak-time artists seem to be playing unexpected time slots more and more for example early daytime when they're always used to do closings.

Of course, all of this only works if the artist understands the flow and adapts what they bring according to what they think is right.

I think I have been doing this a bit subconsciously because I love it myself so much when other artists do this. The tricky thing is, it can work out amazing but it could also go incredibly wrong especially if you don’t have the right mixing skills yet. So I am very careful in this.


Are there any producers and DJs in Asia that have recently caught your attention? Please name up to 3 and tell us why.

Since I have only been here for 1 year now, my knowledge is still quite limited. But there are some artist here that really drew my attention.

Rom Rom — It only seems logical to start with RomRom, since they were one of the first people I met in Bangkok and also my first musical encounter with the Bangkok scene. Even though it is very opposite of what I usually play, you can not not like these guys. Their selection is always just so precious and vivid and open-minded. Whenever I have a bad day or find myself in one of those meaningless existential crises, I just know it will pass by if I go check them play. From music to vibes, it all just hits right.

Elaheh — A DJ I would recommend all of my friends in Belgium to go see play, if they have the chance, is Elaheh. I feel like in Belgium and surrounding countries we moved quickly from an intense minimal movement to house and techno again. When I heard Elaheh’s set for the first time, it instantly brought me back but there was something very different about it than the minimal I know. It’s hard to describe what exactly (and I have been trying this a lot to my friends in Belgium haha) but she almost has this magical underground touch whenever she starts playing. It was a very unique sound, and I drifted away from beginning to end. A master in putting together a set that keeps you in the game from start to end.

Chani, Kyuchan, Hakim and Minkyu — For the third one, we move a bit out of Bangkok. When I was visiting Seoul in South Korea, I just needed to go check Ring. I arrived pretty late, but this is apparently the perfect time to experience the full Ring glow. Indeed, it was exactly what I was hoping and looking for. It was a resident night, with 4 of the Ring residents playing: Chani, Kyuchan, Hakim and Minkyu. I would like to pick out one name, but for this one, I just can’t. All of them were playing top-quality selection and hitter after hitter. Definitely very much up my alley. Very quickly my plan of just taking a sneak peak turned into closing the club with the first rays of sunshine reflecting through the atmospheric upstairs Ring windows. This was a night and musical experience I will not easily forget and I would like to see more of the four of them in Bangkok.


Describe one prediction you have about dance music in a post-pandemic world that’s being driven by new technologies.

Difficult one... I am not much of a technology person myself but I guess just more and more new ways of producing and creating sounds. I do feel like vinyl and analogue in general will not disappear very easily, but I think new ways of combining digital with vinyl are going to come and new platforms for sharing music. Especially here in Asia, it’s so hard to find and buy vinyl so there should be a more accessible way worldwide to get the music you want.


Tell us about the inspiration behind this mix - what drove your thoughts and emotions, and how did you curate your selection?

My inspiration for this mix came from my mood and the sounds that I have been missing a bit lately. You could say it’s a bit of nostalgia for the music scene in Belgium and Europe. I came up with a straightforward but not too obvious house mix with a couple of subtle surprises that almost lead into techno. You will hear a lot of classics and nostalgic club sounds. Usually, I instantly don’t like my mixes or tracks used anymore (I know of course everyone has this) so I tried to create a more timeless mix. For the listeners, but also for myself.

As usual (and subconsciously following my favourite trend mentioned above hehe) different sounds are put together something I also enjoy doing when playing in front of people. Hence the surprises... And of course, the mix consists of a healthy portion of breaks and progressive deep basslines since I feel this is something I come back to every time.


What equipment did you record this mix on?

Allan & Heath Xone 23 C and 2 Pioneer XDJ’s 1000


What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever seen happening from the DJ booth?

So far no weird stuff. But the cutest thing I ever saw was an older couple dancing together, like, you know, this jive kind of dance. It was the first time playing in Thailand actually, at Fly To The Moon festival on Koh Mak island. It was so heartwarming how that couple was doing a little rock and roll dance listening to minimal music. Definitely life goals.


Where can we hear you playing next?

I am really looking forward to a b2b set with Logisticman at Wonderfruit Festival on the 16th of December. Every second Saturday of the month, you can listen to my radio show “Cafe Condense” on Bangkok Community Radio form 3 - 5 pm, Bangkok time.