UK recording artist El Búho provides a calming organic ambiance juxtaposed with concern about climate change on his new electronic album Strata. Out now, is the second single by El Búho & Nita – Cenizas De Agua and sets out the stall for the forthcoming LP on Wonderwheel Recordings.

El Búho’s (AKA Robin Perkins) fifth album channels inspirations from Latin America and the world of house and electronica. It features guest appearances from Colombian and five times Grammy nominated group Bomba Estereo; Nita from Spanish group, Fuel Fandango; and Minuk, the husband and wife duo from Sweden and Colombia.

Robin self-describes his sound as ‘natural electronica’ and he has been an integral part of the Latin American alternative electronic music scene, regularly collaborating and performing with Chancha Via Circuito, Nicola Cruz, Barrio Lindo and Dengue Dengue Dengue. Robin’s early education in electronic and club music was channelled through the sweatboxes/dancefloors in Glasgow, whilst studying Latin American studies.

“I use a lot of samples, probably more than synths and plug-ins,” Robin says. “I love the texturing or kind of patchwork approach to making music. Sampled sound, be it music, nature, water, vocals or just a little voice note from your phone, capture something unique and have this special timbre to them you can’t replicate. I also love then just playing around with them, reversing, pitching up or down, cutting into pieces or even using as the basis of a new instrument to make melodies.”

Robin runs the global pointing record label called Shika Shika and is co-founder of DJs for Climate Change.

On previous single, El Búho collaborates with Bomba (Estereo), which came about having known their singer Li Saumet, online through mutual friends. They met in Mexico for the first time in 2023, when at the Tecate Pal Norte festival and both hung out with Toy Selectah, another one of Robin’s early inspirations.

Strata is perhaps El Búho’s most personal album yet, addressing the environmental issues that trouble the artist so much.

Owl by night (El Búho translates to ‘owl’ in Spanish) and climate activist and environmentalist by day (he has worked at Greenpeace for more than ten years years and is the co-founder of DJ for Climate Action.

He has been an active environmental campaigner for much of his life, pushing brands like H&M to phase out toxic chemicals from their clothes and convincing electronics giant Samsung to commit to 100% renewable energy. As well as working for Greenpeace International and Greenpeace East Asia, he spent two years with Greenpeace Mexico where he led the Toxics and Water Pollution campaign. He currently works for Mindworks, Greenpeace’s first cognitive and social science lab.

Robin’s Tulum x Comunite Boiler Room set has amassed over 3.5 million hits and he also runs his own record label, Shika Shika. As a successful artist, negotiating and navigating the trappings of success weigh heavily.

“One thing I realised is that we don’t all have to be incredible activists, we can’t all be 100% perfect all the time and we all live with contradictions,” he says. “Living in anxiety or denial is not healthy and it doesn’t help. Embrace the beautiful things in your life, find power in the collective and contribute what you are good at or passionate about”

Robin is currently based in Toulouse, France, where he lives with his wife, two children and their Mexican Jack Russel dog. In 2024, he will be launching a new approach to touring, focusing on building a network of cities that are connected by train and playing there regularly – reducing flight time. Although there will still be some flights, the DJ and producer will no longer accept “random dates” and has just became a member of Earth Percent – started by Brian Eno, it aims to get artists to donate 1% of their income, which is invested into impactful climate projects.

“I am really excited about trying this new approach to touring and seeing what happens. I know it means there are hundreds of cities I will probably never be able to play in, and that’s a pity, but these are the sacrifices we have to make to roll-back the excessive lifestyle we have all gotten so used to, DJs as well”

Also, check out Robin’s pioneering project A Guide to the Birdsong project, which marries electronic music producers and the song of endangered birds, raising awareness and funds for their survival.

Strata  is out on November 3rd on Wonderwheel Recordings.