The new label and alias, Pura Danza and ‘Mathami’ respectively, have legendary industry figure DJ T., aka Thomas Koch delving further into the Ecstatic Dance movement. Since its foundation around the millennium, an increasingly popular and musically diverse scene has grown that has its roots in spiritual and cultural practices that have been there since the 70s. The participants come together in ceremonial settings at daytime events to create protected spaces for a more conscious form of dancing. Having lain firmly outside club culture for many years, Ecstatic Dance has seen momentum in recent years, as the electronic music rave scene and the Conscious Dance community meet for the first time at plenty of new festivals around the globe.

The first release on Pura Danza lands throughout September and culminates in Mathami’s ‘Figuras del Bosque EP’. The EP sees Koch combine free-flowing rhythms, Panamanian tribal vocals, acid, eastern violins and more, giving a keen insight into his vision of Ecstatic Dance.“To discover a whole new universe of musical styles through ‘Ecstatic Dance’ was one of the biggest gifts for me as a music lover and DJ. In these spaces we create for the dances, the utilisation of different styles, rhythms and energies of music comes to a whole different level than in the Djing I have known before. Through Ecstatic Dance, I finally incorporated a truth that I had carried with me as a passionate dancer since my childhood: That dance and movement have a great transformational and healing power. With my new label and artist project, I want to illuminate the vast spectrum of styles that happen” Thomas Koch