In Conversation With WRONG'UNS co-founder Mehlor...

A rising talent on our radar in recent years goes by the name of, Mehlor. The UK producer has been churning out some serious dance floor heat in recent years, and most recently co-founded the Wrong’uns label. A space for headsy, raw and gritty UK flavours and their latest VA lives up to exactly that. Four cuts, one of them coming from Mehlor himself titled “Bunda”. Join us as we catch up with the label boss discussing his latest antics and what’s to come in the next months as they pick up the pace even more. 

‍Hi Mehlor, welcome to Nightclubber. How has 2024 been for you?

Thanks for having me! 2024 has been an exciting year. It’s been a mix of learning new skills and finding new opportunities. Wrong'uns has been picked up nicely by some of my favourite DJs, I’ve had some memorable gigs, and it’s been amazing to see the community around the label and our events grow.

Can you describe your sound to our readers in 3 words?

Bad Boy Sounds - sums it perfectly.

Your Wrong'uns label has just released another stellar VA. How did the release come about? Are you typically reaching out to artists, or do artists send you demos that they think could fit?

The VA  is something we’re really proud of. It’s a blend of artists who have nailed the Wrong'uns “sound” - raw, wobbley sounds with attitude. We keep it pretty balanced between reaching out and receiving demos. Some of the tracks on this VA came from artists we’ve had on our radar for a while, and others were happy surprises that landed in our inbox. The common thread is that every track has that hint of degeneracy.

Your label has a strong UK influence, which artists in particular have inspired this over the years? Any artists you think our readers should look out for at the moment?
Definitely. Moving to Leeds for university meant I was immersed in UK club culture. In my younger years it was more DnB/dubstep sounds that had me moving every weekend, and as I grew older I found DJs like Sonja Moonear, Craig Richards etc would be important dates on the party calendar.

More recently, people like Oldboy, Joejoemojo and Oward who are crafting some incredible stuff that fits right in with the Wrong'uns ethos.

Growing up in the UK as well, how do you think the scene is evolving in recent times, for better and worse?

The UK scene is changing so fast all the time. I think it is in a great place creatively but event wise we are losing some very important clubs. For example, in Leeds we already lost clubs like The Wire and Sheaf Street.  I think people see the value in more community based institutions like The Imaginarium, who’ve built a sick little club under the train tracks which provides us with a very special vibe. It’s getting harder for grassroots promoters and artists to carve out their space, but the resilience of the community is what keeps it going.

How does your personal studio set up look at the moment? Any studio gear you would love to get your hands on?

I’ve kept things relatively simple over the years by just relying on my laptop and some Beyerdynamic headphones. I always seem to revert back to this set-up even if I decide to buy hardware.

‍Do you have any plans for 2025 which you can share with our readers already?

2025 should be exciting. For Wrong'uns, we’re planning on scaling up our release schedule, with more curated VAs and our first artist-focused EPs. We’re also expanding our parties into other cities like Manchester and London. Personally, I’ll be releasing more solo music and some collaborations but will have more info on those later.

Last of all, leave us with one track for the afterparty?  

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It’s got to be “The Walk” by Tim Wright. My friend Phil Warner (from the Imaginarium) showed me this one at an after party once and it blew my head off. It’s got a nicely skippy minimal beat, but then a square bass from hell comes in and causes some damage - perfect the moment when you need to pick the energy back up at the afters.

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Buy/listen to the release here

Keep up with Mehlor on Soundcloud, Instagram and Spotify‍