hail a ride, turn on the stereo and ease into 2021 with rabbit taxi.

Aussie DJ and The Smoker’s Lounge concierge Ryan Earl, aka Rabbit Taxi, conjures an atmospheric vibe to settle us into the new year.

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Can you tell us a bit about your journey into electronic music and DJing? When did you first discover this kind of music? My journey into electronic music was actually inspired by the mid ‘80s movie Beverley Hills Cop and it’s wicked theme song ‘Axel F’ by Harold Faltermeyer.  I was only eight years old or so, but thinking about it now, that’s one of the first electronic/synthy tracks I really chased because I loved the way it sounded - it was new and different to anything I had heard before. 

Like many kids I loved exploring my parents’ music collection and finding stuff I liked.  And once I was old enough, I would eventually be digging in the CD stores trying to find stuff I had heard on the radio or at school or party or something.  Digging for tunes quickly became a pastime, as did making mix tapes.  At home we had a 5 CD changer, and I learned how to program it to make playlists which I would record on cassette tapes and give out to friends. 

So that combination of digging for tunes, loving the curation of the mix tape, sharing music I found with friends, and then an innate fascination with how music affected people -especially at parties - all provided a foundation for getting into DJing.  The final piece of the puzzle was the challenge of beat-matching and the ability to blend tunes; being able to keep the vibe going or change direction seamlessly with no gaps.  After many years it’s still exhilarating for me, both in real-time on the dance floor and also in the studio as a more drawn-out creative process, a lá The Smoker’s Lounge.  

How did you decide to approach your mix? Was there a concept behind it? For Lazydaze I wanted to dive more into the ambient space which I tend to only dabble in. It’s distinct from my typical Smoker’s Lounge show which is more beat/groove based. This mix is far more atmospheric and features a lot of different environmental sounds which I like to think will create a bit of a exploration/journey vibe for the listener - like they are visiting different places each with its own palette of tones, textures and rhythms, and the occasional melody. 

Are there any particularly special tracks or moments in there for you? There’s a section about three quarters of the way through where the mix transitions from electronic sounds to more organic (ie. live instruments), via a sequence of about three or four tracks, and then kind of meanders its way back to electronica, all while keeping a similar vibe.  I really like productions that draw these two worlds together.  

We’ve been loving your new show on Orbital Radio! For those who are unaware, can you provide a bit of info about the show? It’s called The Smoker’s Lounge, a two-hour show broadcasting on Orbital Radio every other Sunday at 1pm. You can also find past shows on my Soundcloud page. The concept is a sort of metaphorical place where you’re welcome to just kick back and space out to the tunes.  We try not to label or categorise things by genre but unsurprisingly it does tend to feature a lot of downtempo stuff. Generally the idea is to let your mind wander free, wherever you might be, yet still be stimulated and engaged in the tunes, almost as a meditative escape from the grind of life. 

Name your all time favourite ambient/downbeat/electronica/experimental track, album or mix compilation. Impossible question!  Gun-to-head I’d probably go with Air’s Premiers Symptomes EP or Mark Farina’s Mushroom Jazz mix series. Both had a huge influence on me and are very much part of the inspiration for the Smoker’s Lounge series and radio show.