El Brujo presents episode 05 of El Brujo and the Wild Bunch on Scientific Sound Asia. Scientific Sound Asia is an Asian electronic music radio station, DJ agency, promoter and music-news platform connecting audiences across Asia and internationally.
El Brujo, whose real name is Robert Milanesi, was born in Italy in 1964 and developed an early interest in music before becoming associated with Bologna’s underground rave scene in 1994. His first official release, Warriors, appeared in 2008 through the Milan-based label Open Legs.
Jambalay Records launched with an opening party at Club Geminis in Ibiza harbour in 2010. The label and El Brujo later gained wider international attention when Maya Jane Coles charted his collaboration with Big Mojo, The Way to Mozambique, in 2011.
That track also became part of his first physical CD release, Nutty Fellas Are Go. The exposure helped introduce his productions to a broader audience beyond the Italian and Spanish underground scenes.
In 2019, Plastic Dreams, originally released on Frame Workxx, reached number 33 in Beatport’s Hard Techno Top 100. El Brujo has also released music through Elektrax, LW Recordings, Subwoofer, Berlin After Dark, Music Is The Drug, Gobekli Tepe, Fortwin Rec, Bunker, Mad Rhythm and SE7ENS.
His productions are characterised by a raw, futuristic approach that moves across the different styles he works with. The material often carries darker Techno influences while leaving room for more experimental electronic elements.
At the time this programme was introduced, the monthly series was planned to feature guests drawn from his Wild Bunch network of Techno producers and artists. This particular edition focuses instead on a selection of El Brujo’s own productions.
Guest DJ (second hour) Makaja Gonzales.
This week’s second-hour guest DJ is Makaja Gonzales, a Dutch Techno producer, composer and founder of Frame Workxx Records. He has also worked as a radio host with Fnoob Radio UK, Stormkraftradio-FM in Switzerland and DJ International Radio.
Makaja began his DJ career in 1983 at Radio Contact in the Netherlands, working alongside Andrew McGabe and Michel van der Linde. He grew up during the 1970s with Disco and Funk forming an important part of his early musical background.
During the early 1980s, his interests shifted towards Electro Funk before expanding into Hip House, early House and Chicago House later in the decade. By the 1990s, Techno had become the main focus of his work.
His DJ style combines Deep, Dark and Industrial Techno with elements of House and Tek. He also incorporates influences from 1980s electronic music, giving his sets a broader stylistic base.
After a long period away from music, Makaja returned to experimentation in 2010. He began developing the Frame Workxx concept in 2012 and secured his first show on Fnoob Radio in 2013.
Frame Workxx radio programmes followed on Stormkraftradio-FM and DJ International Radio in the Netherlands during 2013 and 2014. These broadcasts gave him a regular platform for presenting his preferred strands of underground Techno.
After several years creating mixes and mashups, Makaja released his first album, Redline, through the Italian label Subwoofer Records in 2014. His Beatport catalogue documents his development as a producer alongside his work as a DJ and radio host.
In 2016, he formally established Frame Workxx Records as his own label. The imprint became a dedicated outlet for his productions and for the darker Techno direction associated with his wider project.
His guest mix draws from productions and influences that have shaped his work across several decades. The selection brings together the darker, deeper and industrial elements that define Makaja Gonzales behind the decks.
El Brujo takes control of the first hour with “River Of No Return,” “Muddy Waters” and “Atrapado,” opening with a concentrated run of his own Techno productions. His remix of Ezequiel Landazury’s “Craneo” follows before two U.G.O. tracks extend the darker, machine-led character of the set.
The middle of the hour brings three collaborations, joining El Brujo with Makaja Gonzales, DJ D Redd and Judge Jay in succession. “From Here To Eternity” and “Till The End Of Time” then push further into Peak Time Techno before Paolo Del Prete’s “11:11 Step” closes the hour in another El Brujo remix.
Makaja Gonzales opens the second hour with “Post Mortem,” “Mug Shot” and “Flamethrower,” beginning an almost uninterrupted showcase of his own productions. “Echoes In The Night,” “Game Changer” and “Voodoo Dancer” keep the pressure high as the set moves through hard-edged and Deep Techno territory.
“Crown Of Shadows,” “Encounters At The Frontline” and “Gun Man” deepen the second hour before “Retribution” and “Stiletto” continue Makaja Gonzales’ tightly focused approach. His Frame Workxx material has long moved between peak-time, hard and hypnotic techno, giving this section a much more single-minded character than El Brujo’s collaborative first hour.
The closing stretch shifts into remix work as Makaja Gonzales reworks Pablo Pitch!, David Serrano DJ and Alessandro Zingrillo. “Sufficiency” and “After Math” then return to his own productions, closing an hour built almost entirely around his catalogue and a heavier Hard Techno edge.
Across both hours, the programme stays firmly rooted in underground techno while giving each DJ a distinct identity. El Brujo mixes solo tracks, collaborations and remixes in the first hour, while Makaja Gonzales uses the second as a sustained showcase of his harder and deeper productions.
El Brujo and The Wild Bunch 2nd July 2020
El Brujo (first hour)
El Brujo - River Of No Return (Promo) [Ubeatcode Rec]
El Brujo - Muddy Waters (Promo) [Ubeatcode Rec]
El Brujo - Atrapado (Promo) [Ubeatcode Rec]
Ezequiel Landazury - Craneo (El Brujo Remix) [Promo Ubeatcode Rec]
U.G.O. - Across The 9th Dimension Reloaded (El Brujo Remix) [Toxic Rec]
U.G.O. - Detroit 1980 (El Brujo Remix) [Promo]
El Brujo & Makaja Gonzales - Sunrise (Promo) [Jambalay Rec]
El Brujo & Dj D Redd - Jerkin (Promo) [Jambalay Rec]
El Brujo & Judge Jay - Razzmatazz (Promo) [Jambalay Rec]
El Brujo - From Here To Eternity (Promo) [Techno Parade]
El Brujo - Till The End Of Time (Promo) [Techno Parade]
Paolo Del Prete - 11:11 Step (El Brujo Remix) [Jambalay Rec]
Makaja Gonzales (second hour)
Makaja Gonzales - Post Mortem (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Mug Shot (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Flamethrower (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Echoes In The Night (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Game Changer (Original Mix)
Makaja Gonzales - Voodoo Dancer (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Crown Of Shadows (Original Mix) [Trench Digital]
Makaja Gonzales - Encounters At The Frontline (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Gun Man (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Retribution (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Makaja Gonzales - Stiletto (Original Mix) [Frame Workxx Records]
Pablo Pitch! - Shout (Makaja Gonzales Remix)
David Serrano DJ - Destroy & Enjoy (Makaja Gonzales Remix)
Alessandro Zingrillo - Trust (Makaja Gonzales Remix)
Makaja Gonzales - Sufficiency (Original Mix)
Makaja Gonzales - After Math (Original Mix) [Trench Digital]
Listen on Mixcloud here.