Unmissable Festival Acts

Breakthrough Bristol selector

One of the most exciting and in-demand breakthrough DJs around right now, it's no wonder Shanti Celeste is a little tired. When Mixmag speaks to the 25-year-old, she's still recovering from playing Bloc alongside DJ Funk, Egyptian Lover and Ron Morelli. In fact, when we call, she's having an "accidental nap".

Born in Chile, Shanti Cotapos Maass moved with her family to the Lake District in the UK at the age of 12 when her dad got a new job. She quickly learned English and spent her teens going to massive raves in quarries. "I lived in a village, so there was nothing else to do!", Shanti recalls. Neither of her parents were musical, her mum is a yoga teacher and her dad makes tofu for a living. Shanti moved to Falmouth before her 18th birthday to study art and design, where she'd hand out flyers in her spare time at Just Jack in Bristol. After she was encouraged by her mum to quit uni, Shanti relocated to Bristol and fell in love with clubbing and DJing.

She's now only three releases deep into her career, but each one has been captivating. 'Need Your Lovin' (Baby)/Result' was released on BRSTL, the label she co-runs with Idle Hands founder Chris Farrell, and contains two on-point club pumpers. 'Days Like This/On My Own' on Idle Hands is a woozy lesson in house music, her phased vocals slowly creeping to the fore. Shanti isn't just a talented producer, she's also an effortlessly soulful vocalist and has sung on tracks for Behling & Simpson that have been released via 2020Vision and Exploited.

Her 'Universal Glow' EP was released on Julio Bashmore's Broadwalk Records, where Shanti turns her hand to fast-paced, dynamic electro. She's an integral part of Bristol imprint Idle Hands, co-runs her own night Housework and has a monthly show on London's NTS Radio. To top that off she's just delivered a cracking mix for Ninja Tune's Solid Steel series.

Just as enthusiastic and smiley in conversation as she is behind the decks, Shanti can't remember the name of the first festival she played. "It was a friend of a friend organising, and it was one of those festivals that consisted of a tent with some hay bales next to it!" She does have a festival tip though: "Get some sleep, even if it's just a couple of hours."

Catch Shanti Celeste at: Love Saves The Day (UK, May 23), Field Day (UK, June 6), Freerotation (UK, July 10-11), Farr Festival (UK, July 16-18)

[Words: Patrick Swift/ Photo: Shona Graham]