AVA MIX 023: Sophie

Sophie is a Belfast-based DJ, promoter, and curator whose sound is rooted in bass-driven rhythms and a genre-fluid approach that spans techno, house, electro, dub, IDM, and leftfield club music. Her forward-thinking selections, instinctive read of dance floors, and blend of obscure finds with new releases have shaped a recognisable and evolving style.

She holds a monthly residency on Subtle Radio, where she champions deeper corners of club music. In 2024, she founded Social Sounds, a Belfast event series that has become a vital space for fresh bookings and emerging artists, hosting guests such as Deetron, Tasha, and Stenny. With appearances across Belfast, London, and Manchester, Sophie continues to shape new spaces for connection, discovery, and underground culture.

Read more in the Q&A below. 

AVA MIX 023: Sophie

1. What feeling or mood guided you when you started building this AVA Mix?

House and techno music are what I started listening to and discovering most when I just started DJing. I incorporate different variations of them into every set and mix I curate. I just love all of the different ways they can make a room move and how it can make people feel. House and techno together are the perfect combo. I wanted to include elements of both in this mix, of course with some curve balls and all the adjacent sounds that I love thrown in there too.

2. Is there a track or transition in the mix that captures where your sound is heading right now?

Going to have to go with the blend of two new releases from artists called MJK from London, and 1morning from the USA. The tracks are titled ‘MJ’s Groove’ and ‘I Know What You Do When You’re Alone’. I love both their approaches to DJing and producing, they have a unique twist on techno that really intrigues me and I always feel really inspired after I listen to their stuff. Definitely planning to bring them both to Belfast for a party at some point. Shout out to my friend who showed me both of these artists (you know who you are lol).

Another honourable mention has to be ‘Shall Not Fade – He Who Has The Chicken Foot (All The Time)’. I’m playing this track out every chance I get at the minute.

3. Your sets move through many styles and tempos. How do you decide what threads to bring together when you build a mix or a club set?

It really depends on what type of sounds I’m discovering each week. I am constantly digging music so if something really grabs me or if I’m loving a particular sound at a certain time, I’ll tend to build a gig or a mix around the base of that, and this changes week to week haha. It might sound a bit chaotic but I love switching things up and sort of keeping people guessing what they’re going to hear. It also matters where you are placed on a gig or what a recorded mix will be for. Sometimes I’m on the warm up set where I get to set the tone, sometimes I’m on high energy peak time, sometimes I’m doing radio, and they are all completely different approaches but I honestly enjoy them all the same. 

4. How has Belfast shaped your sound and the way you approach DJing?

The people in Belfast have been a big part of this. I’ve been super lucky to be around friends and DJs from here who have shown or introduced me to different types of music, artists and labels over the years. My sound has changed/shifted a lot from before I started DJing to now, and I think a lot of that is due to the nights that I grew up going to. OCD, Plain Sailing, Twitch, to name a few have been staples for me when I was growing up here in Belfast, and of course AVA Festival which is what introduced me to all of this in the first place back when I was just 16. It opened my ears to all of the new things. Starting to promote my own night added a whole other layer to all of this. 

5. You run Social Sounds, which has become an important space for local and emerging artists. How does curation influence the way you play and the music you choose?

Running parties and DJing go hand in hand for me, they both come from wanting to share music and ideas that I’m passionate about. Curating nights opens my mind to lots of new things, and although it’s a whole other perspective than that of a dj, when you’re booking people whose music you genuinely enjoy and can get with, it’s sort of a cycle that feeds back into my own DJ sets. It makes me think about the bigger picture of a night and how different styles can all blend and fit together, and therefore how I can align myself with this. Social Sounds has definitely made me more curious and open as a person, and willing to take more risks as a DJ.

6. What does AVA represent to you as part of Belfast’s wider scene?

To me AVA is a big special bubble. Even though it has grown massively, it still feels as though it has this sense that the people, the events and festivals are all one big thing. It brings so many different people together and everyone’s contributing the same energy, whether you’re a dj, a raver, part of the crew or something else – it’s just one of those spaces in Belfast where it just feels really special, and I think it’s always going to be that way.

7. Are there moments on dance floors that have stayed with you recently, either in Belfast or while playing in other cities?

I played an all night long gig with Uncle Moe + Conor Schmtz at an intimate spot (Runda) here in Belfast back in August. Only around 50 people there and it ran on to the silly hours of the morning. That gig really sticks with me as it was 6 hours that I was able to go through the majority of my music collection and probably all of the sounds I love in just one gig. It’s not often I get to do this, so I really loved that one. If I’m thinking about gigs I’ve gone to dance at myself, I’d have to mention Club Raum in Amsterdam. I caught Mad Miran, Call Super, CCL and Roza Terenzi’s sets. The whole club had a massive vibe, loads of smoke, a great sound system and minimal lighting. That clubbing experience just sticks in my head and I already can’t wait to go back. 

8. What keeps you inspired right now, both inside and outside club music?

Chatting with other DJs and hearing what they’re excited about, listening to my favourite DJ’s streams and mixes (new and old), digging and finding new music. There’s honestly nothing better than coming across a new track that makes you want to run straight to the decks to play it lol, also having mixes on my own in my free time. I kind of just zone out for a while in the best way possible. 

Outside club music would be the support and love I get from everyone around me, family, friends and even strangers. All of it just keeps me doing what I do.

9. When you think about the future of Belfast’s scene, what would you love to see more of?

More people sticking to what they love and being themselves. Don’t follow trends, back your own taste and be proud of it. Belfast has had some of its best moments when people are being authentically themselves. If you like something then speak up about it, use your socials, share it with friends and with stranger too, that’s how the scene will grow. Just do you and the city can only move upwards from there.

Tracklist

Malin Genie – Hedonic Setpoint 9
Rother vs Telekraft – Green Star Drifts 
Dorisburg – Untitled
Arkajo – Sagan
John Selway – Solas
ItaloJohnson – 14B1
Sweatshop Boys – Wide World (Mosca Ghetto Dub)
Samuel L Session – The Stick Up (SLS Remix 2)
Shoal – Temporal Blend
Drumheller – Barracuda
Identified Patient – Internal Pace
Shall Not Fade – He Who Has The Chicken Foot (All The Time)
Malin Genie – Hedonic Setpoint 94
Olav Basoki – Water
1morning – I Know What You Do When You’re Alone
MJK – MJ’s Groove
Slam – Life Between Life
Braga Circuit – Filter Feed (Leod Remix)
Harrison Morris – Wuluwaid