The Monday Mix is an occasional roundup of mixes, compilations, podcasts, and more by Washtenaw County-associated artists, DJs, radio stations, and record labels.

For this edition we've highlighted Creative Currents and Arts Engines, two podcasts by University of Michigan music instructors, as well as a Performing Arts Technology showcase piece by Othercast, and dance mixes by Vesface and Duck Trash for MEMCO and Immaculate Conception.

Creative Currents podcast
This new podcast, hosted by U-M music professor Mark Clague, is part of Michigan's Arts Initiative, which aims to make "the arts central to the University’s identity and mission" through a variety of projects, presenters, and opportunities. The first episode of Creative Currents features Clague in conversation with Nike Jonah and Erwin Maas, who work with the Pan-African Creative Exchange and were inaugural members of the Arts Initiative's Visiting Artist Integration Program. The trio discusses how the arts can provide a pathway to global understanding, be an economic tool, and how to highlight the works and voices of a new and diverse group of creatives.

Arts Engines podcast
U-M music professor and former SMTD dean Aaron Dworkin is a violinist, visual artist, filmmaker, author, and self-described "poetjournalist." And because he doesn't have enough titles, he's also a podcaster with Arts Engines, where he talks to movers and shakers within the creative communities, primarily from colleges, universities, and institutions that are looking to uplift a diverse group of artists and community action.

Othercast live @ Performing Arts Technology showcase 2024
Othercast is Kelman Wolfkostin, a U-M student in the Performing Arts Technology school. I've written about the cinematic music heard on his Cult of the Circle Dance and Tales for New Times albums, the latter of which is a compilation of live performances. The video of his performance at this year's Performing Arts Technology Showcase on March 30 captures seven minutes of ambient bliss conjured from a homemade FM synth, Korg Monologue analog synth, and effects.

Vesface, Exposure Mix 070
Duck Trash, Fruits of Our Labor Mix 0023
Just as we caught up with the winter backlog of great mixes from the Michigan Electronic Music Collective (MEMCO) and Immaculate Conception groups, two more entered the universe. Vesface's Exposure Mix is almost exhausting because every jam is hyper; everything seems to be at 160 bpm or more. You listen to this, your cardio will be taken care of for the day. Duck Trash's Fruits of Our Labor mix slows down the BPMs for an hourlong journey into dub techno, lo-fi house, and trance.

Christopher Porter is a library technician and the editor of Pulp.