musclecars
Native to New York, musclecars is a DJ / Producer duo consisting of Brandon Weems and Craig Handfield. As musicians, they equally share an admiration for the art form. Their desire to blend genres and express their appreciation for music is focused around their community- the end goal is to bring people together. This mission has led them to play some of the biggest clubs in the world, from their residency at Nowadays in New York, to bookings at Panorama Bar in Berlin. They’ve been recognized in publications such as Rolling Stone, Billboard, Mixmag, Vinyl Factory, and most recently their ‘Breaking Through’ feature on Resident Advisor. Through a regular stream of high quality mixes and multiple outstanding releases, they’re constantly turning heads in underground circles.
In 2018 they launched ‘Coloring Lessons’, a party that was aimed to add value to their city’s nightlife culture. While the party and sound is not genre specific, it is heavily focused around house, disco, jazz, and soul, embracing the musical elements of their black and brown ancestors. The monthly party’s intention is to bring New York City’s dance music scene back to what it was during the golden era of NY nightlife, pulling on a lineage of inspirational spaces, such as The Paradise Garage, The Loft, Body and Soul, and 718 Sessions, to name a few. They aim to spread the music and sensibilities that have been influential to them, and share it with a younger generation of their peers.
In 2020 the pair launched the label Coloring Lessons Records. The label, like the party, is intended on building up artists from their city and beyond, with the sound indicative of the Coloring Lessons ethos- which is sharing music created by their peers and inspired by their ancestors of color, and teaching younger generations about the roots of this music.