Nina Kraviz talks about evolution in music, her favourite records, and playing in the mountains

One of the first female techno DJs to become a global superstar, Nina Kraviz is also what you don’t expect an ambassador of the genre to be.

She was among the first to bring the non-obvious acid-tinged club sounds of house music’s unsung Chicago heroes to Tomorrowland and included electro oddities from the Dutch West Coast city of The Hague in her sets before anyone else came up with the idea.

Half a decade ago, Nina started incorporating elements of psytrance in her sets, a genre that wasn’t taken seriously until then by the ever-critical and sometimes overly serious techno elite.

Being not only a gifted DJ but also an inspiring selector, she presents all of these sounds and sometimes a blend of them, to the world via her unique трип (Trip) imprint. It is on this very platform that she releases her own productions, alongside the works of Population One, Indira Paganotto and – most prominently – Vladimir Dubyshkin.

For Nina, artistry is limitless and without taboos, and so it is that we will witness her play lots of Latin-influenced electronic music during her CORE set on Wednesday.

What do you see as the most exciting development in electronic music in the past few years?

“In the past couple years it has definitely been Brazilian and Latin American electronic music in general.”

One of the things we have seen is that the pounding basslines of psytrance entered the realms of techno. How do you reflect on that?

“When I first dropped psytrance in one of my festival sets around 2018, it sounded really fresh to me. In the meantime I have mostly been excited about playing a techno kick drum that hasn’t become a thing yet. It’s quite encouraging.” 

What qualities are you looking for when searching for new artists to sign to Trip?

“Musically, it needs to have ‘that special something’: a sound that’s unique, that resonates with me. On a personal level, I really appreciate high-voltage creative people with lots of character.”

Vladimir Dubyshkin seems to be one of the key artists on the label. What is it that you appreciate so much in his work?

“He sounds like nobody else does and never models himself upon others. You always know it when you are listening to a Dubyshkin track.”

You seem to constantly refresh your ‘record bag’ while touring. Is it hard to always find new suitable stuff to play or does it come naturally without much effort?

“I stopped touring with vinyl some time ago and now I cannot resist playing tracks that I downloaded or even made five minutes before my set.”

Are there any records that never leave your ‘bag’? Which records are those and why do you love them so much?

“There is one track that I have been playing for many years that still sounds as nasty as it did when I first played it. It’s by DJ Slugo and the title is ‘Wouldn’t You Like to Be a Hoe Too’?”

Which are your favourite local music styles at the moment?

“Colombian Uwuaracha and Brazilian electronic music. I just collaborated with a funk artist and Rio de Janeiro native called MC Nick and with a Colombian artist, Aleroj. Hopefully I will release that work soon.”

What does a typical Nina Kraviz Tomorrowland Winter set sound like? Can you give your dancers something to look forward to?

“Well, it is only going to be the second time for me to perform at Tomorrowland Winter. Last year I played loads of house in my set. This year it will be a lot more Latin.”

Will you pick up skis or a snowboard yourself during your stay in Alpe d’Huez?

“Most probably!”