Max Cooper represents the intersection of high-brow science and left-field electronica. With a Ph.D. in Computational Biology and a vested interest in 4D soundscapes, he’s one of the more cerebral producers out there. Last year, Cooper brought his debut full-length offering Human to light: an 11-track concept album that explored consciousness and anthropology. Yesterday morning, he checked another milestone off his career with his debut Essential Mix.

As with everything he does, Max has gone the extra mile to curate something extraordinary. “I wanted to make this mix a fusion of everything that I love most about music. As a result it plays a little like a trip through the inside of my head,” he says.

For his inaugural BBC Radio 1 honors, Cooper has woven a wondrous journey through analog textures and dreamy overlays. In a similar vein to his live performances, the mix spans everything from ambient, to breaks, to techno. With tracks from Burial, Rrose, Nils Frahm and more, the mix is about as eclectic as one can get on the hallowed BBC airwaves. Max has also included a number of exclusives for the debut: “I was lucky enough to receive some amazing unreleased tracks from some of the best out there; Nils Frahm, Lusine, Rob Clouth and Tim Hecker,” he says. “I’ve hidden a couple of new tracks of mine in there too.”

When all is said and done, you’d be hard pressed to find a more unique BBC debut than this. What other Essential Mix traverses territory as vast as Boards of Canada to Rockwell? It’s still early days in 2015, but Max Cooper may have just crafted one of the year’s top Radio 1 offerings.

Listen to the mix here.

Read More:

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Joris Voorn brings unorthodox approach to the Essential Mix

 

 

Tags: essential mix, Max Cooper

Categories: Music