Sunset Drifters honcho Fio Fa rolls through with nearly 2 hours of wobbly tech grooves and bouncy club cuts. 

Letting his music do most of the talking, few artists get our blood pumping quite like Fio Fa does. The Dublin-based DJ and producer has created a sick little microcosm with his studio work, producing timeless, modern-day club sounds while taking hints from hard house, trance, progressive house and tech house from the late 90s/early 2000s. Further expanding his cosmos with the recent debut release of his new record label, titled Sunset Drifters, Fionn gives us yet another reason to keep the hype going. 

Diving straight into a minimalistic tech groove, the Irish artist skilfully builds in momentum and intensity throughout the 117-minute trip with a dope selection of rolling dance floor gems. In addition, we caught up to discuss his latest projects and more.

Hi Fionn, so good to have you with us today! I see you’re fresh from playing Love International festival, doing a solo set there on Thursday, followed by a b2b with Peach on Saturday. How did it all go down this year? Can you give us some insight as to your personal experience at this annual gathering in Tisno?

It was my first time in Tisno. I really enjoyed it. The boat party was my fave, it was actually a b3b with me, Peach and Gabrielle Kwarteng. I loved playing with them.

I saw you recently paired up with KLS Bookings to handle your DJ bookings. They’re repping a rather sick roster, including two recent platform contributions Roza Terenzi and Fais Le Beau. Can you tell us a little about this move, how you first linked-up with them and the importance of a good relationship with an agency for you as an artist?

Nevan, who’s one of my best friends, started working with KLS a few months ago so I pretty much asked him straight away to get me on board. It’s quite a new thing for the both of us but I’m happy to start that journey with someone I trust.

I had the pleasure of meeting your sister Caìt in Amsterdam recently, who’s also doing bits at the moment. As equal forces behind the brilliantly curated Soulseeker Allowance mix series, I’m curious to hear how you influenced each other growing up in terms of music.. were you always digging the same styles, genres and scene, did you go to the same parties, etc.?

Yeah well she’s my older sister and she was already DJing and playing parties when I was first getting into dance music so I was into whatever she was into. I would go to her parties/ go see her DJing whenever that was happening. Before I was into dance music she introduced me to a lot of hip hop too so she’s been influencing me musically since I can remember.

Tell us a bit about Sunset Drifters, the new record label that you launched in solid fashion last year. I believe I heard “Turquoise Kingdom” in one of Paramida’s shows on Rinse FM a couple of months before its release and it completely blew my mind. Super bouncy, functional and fun club tune, same goes for the other 3 tracks featured on the record. From writing and selecting the tracks for the EP, to the initial idea of starting the label and the coming together of it all, how have you experienced the ride?

Thanks very much! Yeah I was very excited to put that record out. I loved the process of putting that record together. I’m only one release in so hopefully the ones to follow can keep that same buzz going.

You told me that your next EP is ready and will be released on Sunset Drifters. How did you approach working on this new record and what can we expect to find on the label’s second outing?

It’s a 4 tracker from me. I approached this record the same as the last one really, just 4 tracks I thought were good enough for a release accompanied by artwork by Carl Hickey.

What’s your vision for the label moving forward – will it be reserved exclusively for your own music or will we see other people involved as well (if so, who would you like to work with), what kind of sonic footprint can be expected, etc.?

Right now I’m just thinking of Sunset Drifters as a home for my own music but I’d happily put out anyones music if I was into it.

What can you tell us about this mix you’ve put together for us? How did you approach the mix, what kind of energy can we expect and are there any tracks or artists you would like to give a shout-out to in particular?

Doof doof and boom boom + one I’ve played every time I’ve played since I heard it from Elissa Suckdog.

Finally, what else might you have in the works for 2023?

Very very buzzed to play Nowadays at the end of august. And more music!