Maxmillion Dunbar (a.k.a. Andrew Field-Pickering) wears a lot of hats. Aside from his primary production moniker, he also releases tracks as Dolo Percussion and Max D, and serves as one half of both Beautiful Swimmers (with Ari Goldman) and Zsa Gang (with Jordan Czamanski of Juju & Jordash). On top of that, the Washington, DC-based artist heads up the Future Times imprint, which has spent the past few years becoming one of the most intriguing dance labels in the US. Though he’s perhaps best known for his talents both selecting and producing left-of-center house and disco, Dunbar is someone whose musical scope goes well beyond dance music standards. Anxious to see his expansive vision in action once again, we’ve tapped Dunbar for the latest edition of the XLR8R podcast series.

The mix arrived in our inbox with the title Unwind Flex, and the 57-minute session showcases an artist who’s not afraid to get weird from time to time. Make no mistake, the podcast has plenty of dancefloor moments, but there are also detours into delicate ambience, freeform composition, and sensitive pop. Even better, Dunbar has also been kind enough to include several pieces of unreleased music, including tracks from the Future Times stable and a few productions that he himself had a hand in putting together. (Trainspotters may want to take note that Lifted is a new collaborative project that features Dunbar and will soon be releasing music via PAN.) Basically, there’s a lot happening here, but true to its name, Unwind Flex has a relaxed, exploratory, and highly satisfying vibe that is very much in the spirit of Dunbar’s body of work to date.

01 Terekke “Atba” (L.I.E.S.)
02 Autechre “Second Scout” (Warp)
03 Unknown “Untitled”
04 Dolo Percussion “Dolo 8” (Future Times)
05 Lee Gamble “Jove Layup” (PAN)
06 The Other People Place “Sunrays Acapella” (Warp)
07 Steve Summers “DX Jam” (Russian Torrent Versions)
08 Maxmillion Dunbar “Immunity” (Off Minor)
09 Protect-U “(Live Extract)”
10 Hashman Deejay “Sandfish” (Future Times)
11 Terekke “Atba” (L.I.E.S.)
12 Unknown “Untitled”
13 Lifted “Bell Slide” (PAN)
14 Maxmillion Dunbar “She” (Off Minor)
15 Mario Paint Original Soundtrack “BGM 3” (Nintendo)
16 Ethiopian Records “Qen Sew (for My Father)” (1432 R)
17 Gas “Pop 2” (Kompakt)
18 Talk Talk “Happiness Is Easy” (EMI)
19 Lifted “Mint” (PAN)

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