Scientific Sound Asia presents ‘Roots’ 4

Event Details

After an unforgettable run as a radio series on Scientific Sound Asia and three successful live editions, Bicycle Corporation and Scientific Sound Asia returned to HAKU Taipei for the fourth edition of Roots. The night continued the established focus on Afrobeat, Nu Disco, Disco and Disco Re-Edits, bringing the warm and groove-led character of the radio programme back onto a Taipei dancefloor.

The fourth edition retained the musical foundations that had defined Roots from the beginning rather than changing direction simply for the sake of another numbered event. Marco Mei and Murphy Kin returned with selections built around rhythm, classic dance music influences and the links between older records and contemporary club production.

The series had originally developed through Scientific Sound Asia Radio, where Bicycle Corporation could explore music beyond the harder House and Techno associated with some of its other work. Afrobeat, Funk, Disco, Soul, Nu Disco and re-edits gave Roots a warmer identity while preserving the dancefloor focus behind the programme.

Bringing that radio concept into HAKU Taipei allowed the selectors to develop the music in a different environment. Instead of programming a broadcast for listeners in different countries, Marco Mei and Murphy Kin could react directly to the room and allow the records to develop naturally across a club session.

Italian DJ and producer Marco Mei returned for the fourth edition with more than three decades of international experience behind the decks. Based in Taipei, he had developed a career stretching across clubs, festivals and underground electronic music communities in Europe, Asia and other parts of the world.

Marco is also one half of Bicycle Corporation alongside Italian producer Stefano Ugliano, also known as 6884. Their work has covered House, Techno and related electronic styles, while Marco’s individual DJ sets extend through Deep House, Disco House, Nu Disco, Tech House and a much wider range of dance music.

That broader musical vocabulary remained especially useful within Roots. The night allowed Marco to step away from a rigid peak-time format and move between Afro-influenced rhythms, Disco, Funk, modern House and contemporary reworks according to groove rather than genre boundaries.

Disco remained one of the central foundations of the event because its influence stretches through several generations of club music. Basslines, percussion, strings, soulful vocals and extended dancefloor arrangements created a musical language that later fed directly into House and many forms of modern electronic production.

Nu Disco provided a contemporary route back into those older influences. Producers working within the style could retain the warmth, melody and instrumentation associated with classic Disco while adapting the records for current club systems and modern DJ sets.

Disco Re-Edits added another important part of the Roots sound by allowing selectors and producers to revisit older material without simply replaying it unchanged. Extended introductions, altered breaks and rearranged instrumental sections could give familiar records new functionality while preserving the musical identity that made the originals effective.

Afrobeat expanded the rhythmic side of the programme beyond the conventional American and European Disco tradition. Layered percussion, repeated grooves and live instrumentation allowed those records to connect naturally with Funk, Disco and House while giving the selectors another route through the night.

Marco’s long experience behind the decks made those transitions feel less like abrupt changes between genres and more like parts of the same musical conversation. Rhythm and mood could guide the selection from an Afrobeat record into Disco or House without the set losing its coherence.

Murphy Kin returned alongside Marco Mei and brought another deeply varied musical background to HAKU. The Taipei-based DJ, music curator and record-label figure had spent years working across House, Disco and alternative club culture in the region.

Originally from Shanghai and later based in Taipei, Murphy became active through bars, clubs, parties and music-curation projects across both cities. His experience allowed him to approach Roots from a wider perspective than a DJ concerned only with one narrow part of electronic music.

Murphy has also been known as DJ Lucy and became associated with disco-focused party activity and music curation across the region. That background made him a natural partner for a series whose identity depended as much on selection and musical knowledge as technical mixing.

His musical interests have stretched through House, Disco, Soul, Jazz, R&B, Hip Hop, Rock and other styles depending on the setting. Within Roots, however, those wider influences could be channelled towards warm dancefloor music with strong rhythmic and melodic foundations.

Murphy’s approach meant an older Disco record could lead naturally into House, while an Afro-influenced groove could sit beside a contemporary re-edit. This freedom prevented Roots from becoming a predictable retro night despite its strong connection with classic dance music.

The partnership with Marco worked because both selectors shared substantial musical territory without approaching it in exactly the same way. Disco and House provided common ground, while their individual collections allowed the night to move into Funk, Afrobeat, Soul, Nu Disco and less obvious selections.

By the fourth edition, that relationship had become central to the identity of the live Roots events. Returning audiences could recognise Marco Mei and Murphy Kin as part of the concept itself rather than viewing each edition as an unrelated guest night.

That continuity also helped distinguish Roots from club events built entirely around changing headline artists. The attraction came from hearing experienced selectors return to the same musical territory and approach it differently each time according to the records available and the response of the room.

HAKU Taipei provided a consistent physical home for that development. Keeping the event at the same venue allowed the series to build a relationship between the selectors, the room and the audience while the radio programme continued reaching listeners outside Taiwan.

The connection between radio and club culture remained one of the defining characteristics of Roots. Listeners could first encounter Marco Mei, Murphy Kin and the broader musical philosophy through Scientific Sound Asia Radio before hearing the same approach translated into a physical dancefloor session.

For Bicycle Corporation, this also provided a useful contrast with projects more closely associated with House and Techno production. Roots revealed the Disco, Funk, Afrobeat and Soul influences sitting behind many later forms of club music and gave those foundations a dedicated space.

The fourth edition therefore did not need to abandon what had worked at the earlier nights. Its development came from the DJs finding new records, creating different combinations and continuing to deepen the musical relationships already established through the first three events.

Afrobeat played an especially useful role because its percussion and repeated instrumental patterns could lead towards several areas of modern dance music. The style added another rhythmic language to the night without weakening the Disco and House foundations at its centre.

Disco itself remained equally capable of sounding contemporary when selected carefully. Records made decades earlier could still command a modern dancefloor, particularly when mixed alongside re-edits and newer productions inspired by the same musical vocabulary.

Nu Disco allowed those connections to become even more direct. Contemporary production techniques could meet live-sounding basslines, strings and vocal arrangements associated with classic Disco, creating music that acknowledged the past without depending entirely on nostalgia.

Re-edits then provided selectors with material designed specifically to bridge older recordings and current DJ practice. They allowed Marco and Murphy to preserve favourite musical passages while extending or restructuring them in ways better suited to a modern club environment.

The invitation to dress cool, dress sassy, dance and feel free continued to summarise the attitude behind Roots. The event was not intended as a serious demonstration of record knowledge, even though both DJs brought extensive collections and experience to the booth.

The priority remained enjoyment and movement on the dancefloor. Musical history was present throughout the selections, but it functioned through basslines, percussion, vocals and groove rather than through lectures or rigid genre categories.

Scientific Sound Asia continues to connect this history through its current events, radio station, DJ agency and music news sections. The Taipei editions of Roots demonstrate how a radio concept could extend into physical events elsewhere in Asia while keeping the same musical identity and core selectors.

Marco Mei’s ongoing relationship with the organisation provides another direct connection between these historical nights and Scientific Sound Asia today. His DJ agency profile documents the international experience behind his work with Bicycle Corporation, radio broadcasting and club events.

Murphy Kin also continued appearing within the wider Roots project rather than being limited to a single HAKU session. His recurring involvement strengthened the connection between the Taipei club scene and the international audience following Bicycle Corporation through Scientific Sound Asia.

By its fourth edition, Roots had become a recognisable live extension of the radio series rather than an occasional experiment. Marco Mei and Murphy Kin again brought Afrobeat, Nu Disco, Disco and Disco Re-Edits together at HAKU Taipei, allowing classic influences and contemporary club music to share the same dancefloor.

Roots 4 ultimately continued the simple philosophy that had carried the series through its previous editions. Dress cool, dress sassy, dance and feel free remained the invitation, while Marco Mei and Murphy Kin supplied the warm rhythms, deep collections and groove needed to make that idea work.