I met Jasmine a.k.a. DJ Mistral in Denpasar on a wonderful evening at Tukad Abu. For those unfamiliar with Tukad Abu, it is a somewhat underground artist residence in Bali, organized and lead by my beloved friend and a unique artist whose name I am not going to mention here since this article is about the very talented DJ Mistral.

As a person born in late seventies, I am not a big fan of DJ music. Music for me consists of live music and instruments. However, there's no point in denying the success of many in the DJ world. Those that use sounds of nature and utilize every day sounds that are familiar to all of us, DJs who funk up ethnic music, DJs who play along African drums or live saxophone… I do like those.

When I first listened to Mistral’s mixes, she played a mind blowing set at Tukad Abu so I went to her to say thank you. Her music I respect and listen to excitedly.

Fun and playful- these are the two words that describe this lady DJ best. She loves to coax and tease the crowd as she experiments with them on the dance floor. Much of Mistral’s musical influence has come from Funk, Jazz, and Soul, and you are no doubt going to hear these classic elements in her sound; combined with the new school, you could say these are the key spices to her very tasty sets. Loved and revered in equal measure for her ability to play across a wide spectrum of credible genres.

 Known by day as a surfer, by night Jasmine Haskell (aka Mistral), she began to pursue her passion for DJing at the age of 17. Her ‘spin growth’ began under the teachings at Liquid Bar, a local hot spot whereby Jasmine was able to absorb the vibe and knowledge of the resident DJ and sound engineer. Soon enough, Jasmine debuted at the bar playing house and then evolved to many other forms of underground sounds playing out in numerous venues in Bali and across Southeast Asia; 66 Club, Junkyard, Woo Bar at The W Hotel, Jenja, Home Cafe, Koh, Disko Afrika, Maggie Choo in Bangkok, Bassavengers at Nagaba and Calavera in KL, Mojo club in Yangon. She has also played out in a few music festivals on the island; Paradise in Bali, Dimension Playground and also Sunblast festival. Currently she is one of the three residents for Sundaze event at Manarai.

Beyond her abilities behind the decks Jasmine has also produced a much adored community camping festival called Banjar Campout providing a platform for local talents in electronic and experimental music as well as bringing education in sustainability to share across many different groups.

I do doubt the Bali expats (most of which are actually immigrants who call themselves expats) can understand her talent and the different breeze she brings into the party and festival scene. I still want to see her mixing gamelan and keroncong and dangdut into her sets, it’ll sure be a great way to educate the party-goer foreigners about the culture of the wonderful colorful country they live in.

With all respect, do listen to Mistral’s music, it’ll make you happy! Some of her sets can be found on YouTube and Soundcloud.

You go, girl!