Khotin returning to MUTEK for a live cosmic trip through the ethereal.

Khotin Moss
On the 20th August 2019, MUTEK Montreal celebrates its 20th Anniversary. MUTEK represents unrestrained artistic movement, freedom to share contemporary interpretations and provides unique access to the newest musical equipment (so if you love a good Modular synth, the Sonic Circuits showcases are for you). The festival is designed in an original way that grants festival-goers, researchers, speakers and creatives alike, with unlimited permission to enter into 6 days of pure exploration. Attendees are encouraged to discover more about the music, audiovisual works, theatre performances and cutting-edge technological advancements that they may or may not be interested in before arriving.

This year some of our favourites will be performing at the event, expect to catch Project Pablo, D.Tiffany, Blawan, Huerco S, Nkisi and so many more talented artists. We are especially thrilled about the appearance of Edmonton’s own, Khotin.

Khotin is the name of Dylan Khotin-Foote’s musical recording personna. In 2014, we were introduced to his then- deep-houseier, more straightforward, but still original sound, in the cassette release that was ‘Hello World’. With unblemished sequencing, synth loops to make your head spin and sexy grooves found in tracks like ‘Nakhodka, he was most certainly an emerging artist to get excited about. Personal favourite, ‘Infinity Jam’ sends us into a techno daze, with classic claps, glitchy off-beat electronic goodness and heavy hitting breaks made on what could only be a dusty Roland t.r. 707 drum machine. 

For those who were listening, Khotin quickly made a name for himself as a dynamic, enlightened and sophisticated producer. This was a creator that you can hear works on his sound relentlessly, who welcomes new themes and sounds helping create some of the most organic feeling music we have ever had the pleasure of hearing. 

In 2016, Canadian label 1080p gifted us with Khotin-Foote’s ‘Baikal Acid’. When you start to dissect his work on this record, the melodies drift but the beat is main point of action, this was music you could dance to freely, it felt as if the artist was still creating the track, free-forming in a very orderly and enticing way. The EP was a great success and had listeners eagerly awaiting his next move.

Released on Pacific Rhythm in 2017, ‘New Tab’ introduced us to a very different side of Khotin-Foote. Here we were engaged in some of the same melodic sensibilities and shifting moods as his previous sound however, the way in which those aspects were relayed to us were transformed. With tracks entitled ‘Canada Line’, ‘ Wheeler Road’, the Edmonton native was evidently embarking on an expedition and he invited us along to wander through his distinctively ambient tranquility-inducing rich sounds that you can almost touch. 

The tracks on this record are mesmerizingly melancholic yet somehow optimistic and bright. Working between that space of optimism and seductive sadness appears to be his forte .  

The boundless structure within his work and patterning processes, creates unique atmospheres in the deep dark jungle of  ‘Beautiful You’ album, self-released in 2018, then deservedly released on Brooklyn’s Ghostly International in April 2019.

Combing sweet birdsongs, sounds of the great outdoors, twinkling keys and extended synth loops as you transcend into a dreamlike space. The twinkling keys represent the light of parting branches at the top of the trees.

Be sure to catch him on Sunday for Nocturne 6 to Les Studios des 7 Doigts for a 2-room extravaganza meant to land festivalgoers in the sweet spot. Go in the upstairs room and enjoy Desert Bloom, Khotin, Persuasion, Brooklyn’s Beta Librae and our very own Montrealers Priori who plays a live set of his acid-corroded house, tweaky trance loops, and spaced-out breakbeats. More info on the event.


Olivia