As Molly, Emeline Ginestet has become one of the brightest talents to emerge from the rich Paris music scene in recent years. Her love affair with house and techno began when she experienced club music first-hand during a trip to London, attending local club The End, leading her to delve deeper into electronic music to discover a whole new world of artists, labels, and records.

With a friend, she bought some turntables, just to “see how it works,” and no sooner was she performing in local bars, playing some rock, disco, and some electronic music stuff. After finishing her Masters in Communication, she picked up a permanent role at Rex Club in Paris, where she was head of the venue’s communications, before she left to do her own thing in 2017.

Molly’s growth since then has been steady, driven by a natural curiosity for music; her sets are distinguishable for their stylistic diversity and emotional depth, comprised of the sort of soothing house and techno that makes you move and reflect at the same time. Besides Rex, where she’s now an established resident, Molly is now a regular across Europe, performing at Concrete, Panorama Bar, Robert Johnson, and also further afield in Japan Canada, USA, Australia, Russia, and Chile.

These sultry aesthetics extend to her productions, which caught the attention of Giegling, who snapped her up for Waves, four tracks of the sort of slick, elegant micro-house that has underpinned the Weimar label’s success. Her earliest work landed on French label AKU, a sub-label of Yoyaku, before she signed to Groovement in Lisbon, Portugal, and she’s also featured on RDV Music, her label, launched in 2017.

At just over an hour in length, Molly’s XLR8R podcast ranges from delicate and downtempo to dark and more driving, but at all times it feels considered and intelligently constructed. You’ll hear tracks from Burial, new RDV signees Orion, Ateq, Eliphino, plus some unreleased Ateq and many more. Tune is below.

What have you been up to recently?

I’m in Asia at the moment, in Bali. It could be worse! I have been touring this part of the globe since the end of December, combining holidays and gigs. The tour has taken me to many fabulous places and events: Epizode in Vietnam, DGTL in India, a tour of Australia, and now Bali. Next stop will be Thailand, then China and back to Europe.

You discovered electronic music through a trip to London. Can you describe this experience, and what it was that you enjoyed about this music?

Yes, indeed. I was really into indie pop and rock music at the time, going to lots of concerts, and eventually I found some clubs where I could dance to this music, too. These clubs were also playing electronic music—The End, for example. I fell in love with the beats and the structure, and we could really dance to it. I didn’t know that this music existed at that time. For me, nightclubs were just places where you could hear commercial dance music or cheesy ’80s music.

How did you connect with the Giegling crew for Waves?

I met Konstantin at a festival in Amsterdam, it was for a LET stage. We kept in touch afterward, he played for my residency in Paris at Rex Club and he invited me to play with the crew at Panorama Bar. I met the crew there actually and I really loved their energy. One day, I asked Konstantin if I could send him some music I was working on, just to get some feedback and advice. He really loved the tracks and offered to release them on Giegling. To be honest, it was my dream label but I would never have expected to have my music released with them.

When and where did you record this mix for XLR8R?

I recorded the mix in late November at home in Barcelona. I moved there a year ago, I don’t live in Paris anymore. I have to say that I really enjoy living in this city, it’s a lot calmer than Paris.

What’s the concept behind it?

I tried to present a global view of what I can play. It can be deep house, house, deep techno, some breaks stuff; it goes with my mood. It’s not about genre categories but how I feel the track, what it is in it, a feeling. I can’t restrict myself to only one genre. That’s the reason my sets are quite eclectic.

How did you go about selecting the records that you included?

I chose tracks I’d been enjoying in the months before it was recorded and some exclusive music. There are bits from Ateq, then the next release on my label from Orion, an Italian duo that I’m very happy to have signed—and an unreleased track from me.

Where do you dig for records more generally?

Everywhere! Actually I love to dig when I travel, and I’m always asking around for the local record stores. I also dig in Barcelona a lot, it’s a great place for that, because the city has many very good record shops. Of course, anytime I stop by Paris, I dig there, too. I still have my old habits there!

What are your plans for 2020?

To keep enjoying what I do is the main plan! Of course, I have a “to-do” list, especially because we are in January. The start of the year is always the time for future planning. My list goes something like this: (i) focusing on my live set and improving it. I did it once already but I’d like to do it more often. It’s a new exercise that is very different but so challenging; (ii) I have to finish my album, which I’m working on at the moment; (iii) focus more on my imprint, RDV Music, where I have some really nice releases planned from talented people; (iv) I really want to develop the project I have with Ateq; (v) and I also have some plans for another project, unrelated to music. Fingers crossed that it works and I’ll be able to tell you more soon.

XLR8R has now joined Mixcloud Select, meaning that to download the podcast you will need to subscribe to our Select channel. The move to Mixcloud Select will ensure that all the producers with music featured in our mixes get paid. You can read more about it here.

Tracklisting

01. Burial “State Forest” [Hyperdub]
02. DARREN Nye “unknown” [Polarity]
03. Fred P “Come This Far” (Original Mix) [Soul People Music]
04. ATEQ “#23” [Unreleased]
05. Zoo Look “Next Time” [Lost Palms]
06. Eliphino “Dusty” [Secretsundaze]
07. Orion “Samui” [RDV Music]
08. Hadar “Flying Saucer” [Hadar]
09. Mystic version 03 “V.A” [Mystic Versions]
10. Alex Cortex “Kihon 1” (Original Mix) [Pomelo]
11. PeteBlas “Higher Soul” (Original Mix) [Soul People Music]
12. Jeff Blank “Click” [Omega Capricorni]
13. Human Space Machine “Places” [Indigo Area]
14. Molly “Sweet Afternoon” [Unreleased]
15. Dance Company “Berzerkerz” (Hardcore Young Team) [Turbo Recordings]
16. Cofaxx “Mauve Tracksuit” [Exotic Robotics]