Medlar, the London-born producer and DJ who recently turned 40, has released his new Celestial Bodies EP, a project rooted in his relocation from London to Grand Cayman in the Caribbean. All tracks on the EP were made within a month of the move, with the new environment directly shaping the sound — deeper, more spacious, and built for outdoor dance floors in hot weather.
Speaking to When We Dip, Medlar traced his path from DJing at illegal raves in the Southwest of England as a teenager to his current position as a producer, mix engineer, and collaborator. He credits that early excitement and curiosity as something that still drives his work today, describing the pursuit of those highs as the reason he remains addicted to music-making at 40.
The EP spans deep house, leftfield disco, broken rhythms, and jazz-inflected electronics. Lead track “Solar” features vocalist Portia mtsjungles, a collaboration nearly 20 years in the making. Medlar notes the track was a two-chord loop before her vocal transformed it into a full song. JKriv contributes a remix that Medlar praises for capturing the light, positive energy of classic Italian house — something he describes as harder to achieve than it appears. “Destino” features spoken word from For Mankind, a track inspired by outdoor dance floors including Plaza Mayor at Pikes in Ibiza, where the two have performed together. Closing track “Rigel” takes its name from the star Medlar now sees nightly from the Caribbean, drawing on the ethereal quality he associates with classic Italian Balearic dance music.
Medlar also discussed his recent ADHD diagnosis, which he links to his long-standing resistance to committing to a single musical lane. He acknowledged this approach may have complicated his career trajectory but said he finds more enjoyment working across styles. He also reflected on a period roughly a decade ago when he lost the desire to create original music alone, turning instead to collaboration and music education — experiences he credits with deepening his appreciation for workshopping ideas early in the creative process.
On the production side, Medlar revealed he has returned to an entirely in-the-box setup following his move to a different continent. Reviewing his output, he found that the work which connected most with listeners was made this way, and while he misses his hardware, he acknowledges it has sometimes functioned as a distraction rather than a tool.
Looking ahead, Medlar is developing a new live hardware show using a minimal setup — a MacBook and a couple of synthesisers. He describes the ability to immediately impact a room’s energy through live performance as something DJing cannot replicate, and notes he has missed it since his regular live collaborations with Dele Sosimi came to an end.
Source: When We Dip
