Portable

Alan Abrahams (a.k.a. Portable) is a living link between the indigenous sounds of the southern hemisphere and the future aesthetic of western Europe. The producer and Süd Electronic label boss grew up in South Africa but spent the majority of his life between London and Berlin. During his youth in post-apartheid Cape Town, he listened to the first wave of Chicago house records while simultaneously beginning to hone his own brand of syncopated electronic music. Portable is an artistic project that has allowed him to utilize a lexicon of influences from his African roots in a contemporary electronic context. The result is heady textures and atmospheric washes that make provocative connections between disparate cultural landscapes.

Abrahams founded the label Süd Electronic with his partner Lerato in 2007; the duon released 18 EPs in the ensuing seven years by artists including AM/PM, Mary Boyoi and Caswell James. Abrahams then went on to make his own music as Portable, and later, as Bodycode, a more percussive and techno-focused project that spawned numerous releases on labels like Spectral Sound and Yore Records. As Portable, he has released seven full-length albums and 23 singles and EPs on labels including Karat Records, Perlon, Musik Krause, !K7 and Live At Robert Johnson. He continues to actively tour clubs and festivals on the international stage.