TROVE 014 | Marli

Moving across the world is no small feat, especially solo.

In early 2024, Australian producer Marli (Marli Grosskopf) decided to throw caution to the wind and make Paris her new home.

Marli’s music is rooted in a deep love of Detroit Techno and Chicago House, with a peppering of UKG for good measure. Over the last 12 months, Marli has flexed these aforementioned genres across two EPs: Mood Independent (initially vinyl-only released in 2022) and Change of Seasons. Both bodies of work are defined by luscious and pulsating club rhythms, where instruments rule the roost.

Before heading to Europe, Marli graced the stages of some of Australia’s top-tier festivals, including Pitch Music & Arts, Let Them Eat Cake, Strawberry Fields, and Beyond The Valley. Since relocating to the Northern Hemisphere, she has performed extensively across Berlin, Amsterdam, Paris, and the UK.

Funnily enough, Marli has just returned to the French capital after spending time in Australia, linking with friends and family and gigging a bunch too. “The time back was so sweet and special and gave me the rest and recovery I’d been craving. Plus, it really reaffirmed my love for Paris and how happy I am to be living here.”

Channeling this optimism, Marli has been on a writing spree lately, putting the final touches on not one, but two new EPs. The first of these is set to drop on the prestigious Parisian label, Skylax. Like any savvy expat, Marli has timed her return to Paris as spring begins to bloom. “Everything in the city is feeling very magical and beautiful right now”.

With Marli’s creativity bubbling over, this is an opportune time to unpack five tracks she has on solid rotation.

TROVE 014 starts now.

1. Tomson, Eddie Leader & Chez Damier | “I Am With You (Dub Mix)”

2. Eli Escobar | “N.Y. So Hi”

A 2014 release from New York house legend Eli Escobar. I have been playing this one for years – every so often, I’ll try to shelf it because I’ve been thrashing it too much, but it’s such an undeniable mood lifter that I can’t stay away from. The main riff is sampled from an old Sylvester track, ‘I Need Somebody To Love Tonight’, but this version is much beefier and bassier. A great go-to if the dance floor is dying.

3. MoMa Ready | “That Kind Of Night”

Another New York legend here, MoMa Ready – the cofounder behind my favourite label Haus of Altr. No doubt he is my favourite producer at the moment. MoMa has this insane ability to create these tracks that are equally tasteful and so eloquently constructed but also have filthy feral bass face vibes. From a production point, I also love trying to deconstruct what he does with his work. Like what the fuck is going on with this main synth here? Like is it a randomizer, or just an arpeggiator on a chord trigger? How does he come up with this? Anyway, this one is very good for the club, tried and tested.

4. Mandar | “String Theory”

A stunning build in this one! The drop doesn’t arrive until more than 4 minutes into the track, but the instrumentation is so lush and beautifully balanced that it doesn’t get boring, and it sounds very full at every point. A dear friend DJ Peteza showed it to me years ago, and I remember at the time thinking like “What the hell is this??”. It can sometimes be hard to include orchestral string samples that are so clear & crisp & unfiltered, and to have them sit at the forefront of the track like this is stunning – the production is very tight.

5. Robert Glasper Experiment | “No One Like You” (Kaytranada Remix) ft. Alex Isley

Kaytranada & Robert Glasper! Iconic collab! I feel that this album they did is so underrated – this beautiful jungle-esque track with these floating soul vocals in particular, is so timeless. It doesn’t get too many spins in the club from me, but it’s a beautiful one to listen to in calmer contexts, no doubt. Kaytra is more or less the reason I started producing music, and Robert Glasper is such an incredible talent in the modern world of jazz, so this collab feels like such a very dreamy crossover.