“Absolutely nothing and everything at the same time” says Carista when asked what to expect from her set at Sónar. On SonarMix 025 she delivers a distillation of that same philosophy, 45 minutes of high energy dance music that goes from deep Chicago style house to driving techno, finding room for air horns, pummelling kick drums and even soulful UK garage. 

Recorded in the heat of the night during a set at Club Basis in her hometown of Utrecht, it's relentless yet never predictable, functional yet soulful, and 100% focused on the dancefloor. It was a special occasion, the city’s 900th anniversary: “The whole city was on fire with music lovers and musicians creating this event and making the best out of it, so I wanted to keep the energy at the venue high,” she remembers. She’s long been active in Utrecht both inside and outside of the booth: as well as a DJing and producing, she heads up her own label and event promoter United Identities, which gives her a platform to support local Dutch artists.

At Sónar 2023 she’ll get another chance to play in a special setting, with a peak-time set on Saturday at Sónar by Night as the 30th anniversary celebrations reach a crescendo. “This will be my very first time at Sonar and I'm pretty stoked about that,” she tells us, before dropping a pair of tips for that same night: Anz, a UK DJ whose high intensity, genre-diverse style echoes her own, and magnetic rapper Little Simz, who she’ll watch from the stage just before she plays. “Words cannot describe how honoured I am to be on this year's line up!,” she gushes over email. Based on SonarMix 25, the honour will be ours.