Koyuki is Indonesia’s answer to bass music! Not one to go bandwagon-jumping with the last genre in vogue she has stuck to her guns and now the dedication to her craft and sound is paying dividends. From chilled out beachside affairs to peak time beach rave sets she does it all on a nightly basis and there is no signs of her slowing down. Armed with a music collection most DJs could only dream about sourcing and the skills to match – Koyuki is the real deal and coming to rinse a dancefloor near you.
Koyuki’s current top 5 beach tunes that had been rocking all the epic venues we have across Bali like Cafe Del Mar, Finns and Manarai in recent weeks before we went into lockdown are:
Ultimate warlord -the immortals
Manicured Noise – Metronome (Cousin Cole remix 5-2)
Armand Van Helden – I Want Your Soul
Alisha – All night passion
The Hasbeens – Keep Fooling Yourself
https://soundcloud.com/armandvanhelden/i-want-your-soul
Where do you see DJ Technology heading to in the next 5 years?
I don’t really think so much ahead when it comes to new DJ technology. I’ve seen amazing changes in the last 12years already. The dj scene is so much bigger and there’s a lot of bad DJ’s that are able to DJ because of the technology. I hope real talent still can be found within the next 5 years.
You have seen some amazing changes happen in Bali in the last few years what have been some of the most positive things that have happened for you in your career?
Over the last years, a lot of beach clubs and small beach bars have opened in Bali. This created a lot of sunset gigs for me. Back in the days Bali was more nightlife focussed. Working at night and raising my son, was a difficult combination. So the explosion of daytime and sunset parties in Bali was a huge benefit for me. I do still like to play in the nightlife. My residence at Shishi gives me the opportunity to do so and I can go for a bit of party myself as well.
How about the industry as a whole? What has really been great to see from your perspective??
The Bali scene grows massively over the last years with new venues but also with good new festivals and a lot of great international bookings. I have been sharing the stage with Fat boy slim, Roni Size, Diplo and Roger Sanchez and I finally got to see Job Jobse and Ben Ufo in the Patatohead, Octo Octa & Eris Drew in La Brisa playing together with local talents from Tantra and PNNY. A lot of local djs are rising and playing/producing good music and hosting parties in some great venues.
Unfortunately, the drum&bass scene is still small in Bali, but we had a good run last year with international names like The Prototypes and Tantrum Desire. I hope to see that scene growing one day!
With the tuff times ahead in the next few weeks, what are the positives you see out of all this?
It might be a shit time economically for the world these coming weeks or months, but we finally have a bit more time for our family. With no upcoming gigs, I also have some time to work on my Ableton skills and produce some tracks. I hope I ever going to finish one 😉
How will Bali as a tourist island become a better place to visit?
And the clubs what do you see as some great things that will change for the better ahead?
I think Bali should work on 2 important things to become a better place. Garbage management, because no tourist would like to sit on a dirty beach or see piles of garbage next to the rice fields. The second thing they should work on is there infrastructure. Over the last years traffic jams have become a problem everywhere in south Bali. Even as a resident it demotivates to go somewhere by car. I can imagine tourists that are here for 10 days and spend half their holiday in traffic jam aren’t to happy about it. I think the clubs had a big boost over the years in Bali. Make sure there is no overkill on venues/same music genres etc. Dare to be experimental as well!
What are some tips from your household to everyone else at home right now to stay safe?
Wash your hands with hand sanitizer, eat healthy and most important Stay at home. Don’t go out unnecessary. Not only because you’re not afraid of the virus, but mainly for the spreading of the virus. It can affect other people like the elderly in a harder way then it affects you. If we want things to get back to normal as soon as possible we got to act as unity and stop the spreading of covid-19 .
How about some activities and ideas to share for people to do while staying at home?
NetFlix, cook some great food, and have a few cocktails! (Not too much, be careful about your immune system ;-)) and put up a cloud meeting with your friends with the ZOOM app 🙂
Who are some DJs that you have discovered in the past 12 months performing around Bali that could really do with some extra exposure during their own downtime and we can try and find some mixes of online videos of their production or performances?
As I said earlier that there is a lot of locals doing great things at the moment. So I name a few locals that in my opinion deserve some extra exposure. Some of them I might know a little longer than 12 months.
Tantrà collective. They are doing great things in Potato head, 40 thieves and other venues. Inspiring sets and unique tracks. And besides music, they expend their collective with visual and photographic artists. All at all a nice collaboration of different artists.
Latex. I discovered Latex on a night partying in Hatch and was amazed by his sound. A sound a little different then the usual we get to hear in Bali. Some of his live performances are amazing.
Kasimyn, his new act with Ican Harem (gabber modus operandi) Its not a sound that particularly fits with my dj style. But they created a unique sound between Indonesian gamelan, gabber/hardcore, experimental electronic and punk. The uniqueness of the songs they produce and the extravagant shows they give makes them unique artists from Indonesia and giving them international fame at the moment.
DBRA. My female DJ colleague that goes in her own direction and produced some amazing tracks already
Besides DJing what else have you been doing in Bali as some side hustle or projects?
Besides DJing I’m building a villa together with a friend. The villa is made and modified from very old limasan houses that we found in Java last year. It takes a few more months before its ready, especially in the hard times now 😉
Any exciting music news you can share with us that is going to happen hopefully soon in the future after we start operations in Bali again?
Im trying to expand my vinyl collection in the upcoming months and prepare for some vinyl only sets. Rather its at home or in the club ;-). And I hope to make some progress on producing my first track.
If Koyuki wasn’t DJing 7 days a week in Bali at the island’s best poolside venues and clubs looking back on your days at school what did you want to do ?
Since a young age, my life was filled with music. I was the singer of a band we made together with my school friends. So actually I knew I wanted to be in the music since the early days.
The one track that sticks in your mind that is your most treasured song that will never leave your DJ sets?
Hard to say, because there are so many, but in finns im doing a lot of live sets together with a singer. One of my favorite songs to play with live singer is. Sylvester – You make me feel (mighty real) (michael gray remix) As well as I like to play the original version in my normal dj-sets
https://soundcloud.com/sylvesterofficial/you-make-me-feel-mighty-real-9
Drum and Bass – we know you’re an amazing D&B DJ and that really is your passion.
Tell us some more about the local drum and bass scene and your favorite party in the past 12 months.
Yes, drum & bass really is my passion. When George started to organize scorched, the scene came back together. Unfortunately, its a small scene and they couldn’t continue with international bookings. But we had great parties in Orchard and in Jenja. It’s sad it kind of fainted away after that. I hope that forces soon will gather again to create some epic drum&bass nights. I think all we need is some little underground venue that wants to work with us for the love of drum&bass and we will have some great parties again.
Koyuki’s favorite cocktail is? Caipiroska
Koyuki’s favorite local warung is? Warung Keisa in jl nakula. Very spicy!!!