The Disco Express has always worked best when it feels like a gathering point. The label, parties, tours, and releases all seem to come from the same place: a group of artists, DJs, and producers connected through soulful records, long nights, shared stages, and a clear belief in dance music as a social force.
Residents Special, Vol.1 captures that idea across eight tracks curated by TDE founder Bustin’ Loose. The compilation brings together artists connected to the label across London, New York, Paris, Amsterdam, Mexico City, Norway, Brazil, Italy, and beyond, and each contribution has a personal story behind it.
That context is what gives the project its purpose.
These tracks were not selected to fill space on a release schedule. They come from friendships, residencies, tours, afterparties, studio work, and the kind of creative trust that takes time to build. Bustin’ Loose frames the record as a look inside the Residents Circle, giving listeners a track-by-track view of how the compilation came together and why each artist belongs in the TDE orbit.
The Disco Express Residents Special, Vol.1
Magnolia and Sam Karlson open the project with “Abracadabra,” featuring Relaye, a track Bustin’ Loose describes as the natural starting point for the compilation. Magnolia has become a central TDE figure through releases, touring, and a clear musical identity, and “Abracadabra” brings that personality forward through live instrumentation, a low-passed intro, Relaye’s vocal, and a warm arrangement that eases the listener into the record.
Bustin’ Loose follows with “Soulbound,” a track shaped during late-night production in Queens, NYC, while still carrying his South London roots. The guitars, drums, bassline, vocoder-treated vocal, and live trumpet from Juan Soto’s Mexico City crew give it a gritty, personal feel. The track also has a wider life beyond the compilation, with a Dam Swindle remix and a full Sound Collective production breakdown series built around its construction.
Caio Cenci’s “Under Pressure,” featuring Stella M, brings the voice of TDE’s youngest resident into focus. Originally from Brazil and now based in London, Caio brings jazz, Brazilian music, disco, and house into a track that feels far beyond his years.
Track Stories From The Residents Circle
Sparkling Attitude and Tatiana’s “Soft Launch” marks a key milestone for Tatiana, TDE’s longest-running resident and a fixture across the label’s events. Its Italo disco feel, chopped vocals, and synth work capture her personality well, and the fact that Dombresky played it to thousands adds another useful chapter to its story.
Poppi’s “Imagine,” produced by Caio Cenci, turns her large personality into a bright, vocal-led record with lift and release. Monsieur Van Pratt’s “Funky Phrase,” featuring Estefani Brolo, brings Mexico City into the compilation through raw funk energy and loose rhythm section work.
Roland and Brother Rich represent New York with “Puerto Plata,” a poolside-leaning house cut built around percussion, smooth keys, and island warmth. Crystal Touch closes the compilation with “Your Lovin’,” featuring Venessa Jackson, giving the record a slower, spacious finish that feels earned after the higher-energy material before it.
Taken together, Residents Special, Vol.1 works as a label statement and a relationship map. It shows how The Disco Express is building its sound through people first, with each track carrying a place, memory, and artist connection inside it.
Will Vance is a professional music producer who has been involved in the industry for the better part of a decade and has been the managing editor at Magnetic Magazine since mid-2022. In that time period, he has published thousands of articles on music production, industry think pieces and educational articles about the music industry. Over the last decade as a professional music producer, Will Vance has also ran multiple successful and highly respected record labels in the industry, including Where The Heart Is Records as well as having launched a new label with a focus on community through Magnetic Magazine. When not running these labels or producing his own music, Vance is likely writing for other top industry sites like Waves or the Hyperbits Masterclass or working on his upcoming book on mindfulness in music production. On the rare chance he's not thinking about music production, he's probably running a game of Dungeons and Dragons with his friends which he has been the dungeon master for for many years.
