You've seen the bright effervescent orange cover with a whimsical illustration of a tiger just staring back at you on our display shelves for the last couple of months. That's Ayo Ke Disco: Boogie, Pop & Funk from the South China Sea (1974-88), the brainchild of Alice Whittington a.k.a. Norsicaa. Alice is no stranger to the music industry, and with today's global sound music’s modern-day practitioners, she champions the uniting power of diverse grooves while exploring musical identities. This revered long player was recently released through Soundway Records, and is a testament of the lengths she would go to look deeper into the history of the each track, and witnessing the dots connecting countries, labels, artists and cultures.
For Ayo Ke Disco (meaning ‘Let’s go to the disco’ in Indonesian), it's a selection of 10 tracks of disco-funk, psychedelic funk, synth, city pop, and Hindustani-Arabic rhythms were painstakingly licensed from local labels – forming a snapshot of the vibrant discotheques and live scenes across Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong and the Philippines. The vinyl release is also accompanied by the Ayo Ke Disco zine, with extensive research on the history of music in South-East Asia, archival photos and exclusive interviews with some of the region’s most respected collectors.
We're humbled to have her onboard for our latest artist feature amidst of her gruelling schedule. As they say, "music brings people together" — and on behalf of Alice, we would like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers for your unwavering support of this release.
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The Analog Vault: Alice, thank you once again for taking time out to speak to us. So which part of the world are you at now, and what were you up to prior to this interview? By the way, how's the cat?
Alice Whittington: Thanks Daniel! I'm in East London (reunited with Shellac my cat), having just flown home from New York. I was there for a couple of days to play The Lot Radio, an in-store at Razor-n-Tape, as well as an underground party called Musicland. Though I did have to lug 20kg of vinyl records across the other side of the world, which is a lot for a shorty like me. 
↗ Shellac, Alice's fearless feline vinyl vault guardian. Images courtesy of Alice Whittington
TAV: Gruelling! So could you introduce yourself for the interest of our listeners here.
AW: I'm Alice, an Australian-Malaysian living in London for 18 years now. The last 14 years I've been working in music, from DJing (as Norsicaa), to curation, radio, and managing a record label. I also live with my partner in a vinyl mastering studio that we built together, which he runs.
TAV: I've seen images of the studio, now that's living the dream! Could you share with us your music trajectory over the last couple of years?
AW: 8 years ago I helped my partner renovate an empty warehouse in east London which became not only our home but also his music mastering studio (The Carvery Studio). For nearly that whole time I was running Soundway Records simultaneously (until end of 2024) out of there, while also absorbing the influences of all the music that crossed his desk. From BBE to Strut, Gudu Records to Ninja Tune... it's getting a glimpse in to what the rest of the world is listening to, and that has really expanded my taste beyond my own personal background and that which Soundway was releasing.
So in terms of musical trajectory - with the influence of Soundway, The Carvery Studio, as well as my friends and DJ peers - it's bloomed into many different directions, which is both exciting but also perhaps given me a slight identity crisis, haha!
↗ Ayo Ke Disco: Boogie, Pop & Funk From The South China Sea (1974-88), Compiled By – Alice Whittington, Norsicaa | Artwork: Taehyoung Jeon
Top: Gatefold LP sleeve / Bottom: Spreads from the Ayo Ke Disco Zine, a 44-page full colour zine. Images courtesy of Soundway Records
TAV: I'm sure you get asked this a lot since Ayo Ke Disco was released. Describe the process in three words if you can.
AW: Discovery, Frustration, Connection.
TAV: Aha, good one! But really, what prompted you to put this collection together? I understand you tend to immerse yourself with a melting pot of genres.
AW: Well I had been collecting vinyl from SE Asia for over 10 years when the founder of the label asked me if I'd like to put a compilation together. At first I thought maybe only Malaysia and Singapore, because of my heritage, but as I began to look deeper into the history of the releases, I saw the dots connecting countries, labels, artists and cultures.
And I also realised that not only was my understanding of the region's musical history lacking, so were many other people's understanding. It felt like the right time to present a collection and zine, introducing this zeitgeist and also outlining the region's important contribution to music, which is often overlooked.
↗ Alice at The Analog Vault, just before the gig at Offtrack as part of her Asia tour.
TAV: It's always a good thing to celebrate heritage and peel the layers of our Asian origins. Speaking of which, we have browsers in-store and despite the glaringly obvious title, they assumed it was a 'hard rock' release! Could you elaborate on your first steps as a vinyl collector to DJing? I came across an article on Mixcloud that Dust & Grooves founder, Eilon Paz called you a 'vinyl hobbit'. That's a hilarious moniker!
AW: Hard rock? Because of the tiger? I didn't realise a genre had claimed an animal mascot... Yes, unfortunately the words 'vinyl hobbit' slipped out of my own mouth when describing my living situation, and Eilon made sure to publish it! Lesson learned (maybe). First steps to vinyl collecting - well my family home had turntables when I was a child, and my parents would always play records on the weekends. My brother and I really got into 80s and 90s hiphop as teenagers, and I suppose the love of collecting music started there.
But I didn't really start heavily collecting until my early 30s as I didn't have a turntable in UK for the first decade I was here and was constantly moving house. Whenever friends left London they either donated or sold me their collections and it just snowballed - I've been building my vinyl hobbit hole ever since.
TAV: Any unexpected titles when it comes to your vinyl collection, would I find say, Bananarama for example? I'm saying this because their track with Fun Boy Three was absolutely bonkers when I first heard it and in a positive way. Somehow I am reminded time and time again that maybe, just maybe 'Macarena' probably took liberties with the original track.
AW: No Bananarama (though I can appreciate their songs!) - my taste is very wide-ranging though. I have a lot of hiphop, which people don't know me for, at least in my public sets. I'm a massive Daft Punk fan but perhaps that's not surprising. Some Australian-New Zealand 90s rock (yikes) and even more yikes is a DJ mashup 12" of songs like Khia's 'My Neck My Back' mixed with Bob Marley. It doesn't sound like it would work but it does. Mind you it was a gift, I didn't pay for that one...
↗ Photography: © Hidhir Badaruddin
TAV: Could you take us through a day in your schedule, is there a morning routine for you that takes you through to your work? And how do the music and other aspects of your life feed right back or do you essentially separate them or instead try to make them blend seamlessly?
AW: Well now that I'm freelance, my routine is very different to what it was 6 months ago while I was still running Soundway. These days it's get up and walk the dog, some flexible hours of consulting work, then trying to make time to listen to new music while also prepping sets for upcoming gigs. I think I've done about 50 gigs in the last 6 months all over the world so I'm happy to spend a bit more time working from home at the moment.
Funnily enough, when I was full time at the label I found it really hard to embrace music after working hours because I was obliged to constantly listen to demos, masters, test pressings and more. These days I'm happy to put the radio on in the evening or in the car and weave it back into my personal life.
TAV: 50! You're exactly right. It did take me a while to mentally detach myself from all the records after hours. Speaking of schedules, I'm gonna sidetrack here and talk about food. I know you're an accomplished cook so which personal dish would best represent you? Or you refuse to be defined by that but please feel free to ignore the categorisation.
AW: Ha! Thanks. Well I do run a Malaysian supper club on the side called Eastern Platters, and my signature dish is a Lobster and Prawn Laksa (Nyonya curry style). That always goes down a treat.
↗ Eastern Platters, Lobster and Prawn Laksa. Image courtesy of Alice Whittington
TAV: How did you get this all up and running on this gastronomic journey?
AW: My parents were always into food so they cooked a lot and we ate at a variety of restaurants. Since I was a kid I was travelling to see my family in Malaysia regularly, and that involved a LOT of food, perhaps a little too much...?! I think South-East Asia has some of the best cuisines in the world, and it strongly informed my palette.
When I moved to London in 2007 I have to say the food offering wasn't that great on a daily basis, unless you dined at a fancy restaurant. So I had to cook more for myself than ever before. I also have held a Lunar New Year feast at my house since 2009 where I cook my favourite Asian dishes for my friends... and it just went from there.
TAV: I've read that you buy records for your sets that personally resonate with you and not necessarily out of a passion for collecting. Any future plans to push and built a in-house radio studio to showcase music that's under the radar?
AW: Let me explain that first part further: basically I'm not the kind of person who chases after 'holy grail' records or tries to complete a collection of records for the sake of it. Maybe if I were rich I might indulge in that a bit, but generally I'm very pragmatic in my purchases. If it brings me joy, I'll buy it.
As for a radio studio - Do I really need another musical project?! We just got a Wurlitzer X200 jukebox from the 1970s delivered to our house, so my current project is changing out the 7"s to suit our personal taste. I'm doing guest slots on radio shows here and there, and I'm about to set up my own record label to showcase lesser known music too.
TAV: Speaking of curation, and this is a personal opinion — I do find music curation as an acquired skill and service totally lacking in disregard for a setup such as an F&B establishment. I find the entire process and experience so devalued in the last couple of years but I have witnessed concerted efforts to weave that through for smaller independent brands recently. What's your take on this?
AW: I would say not only is music curation often lacking but also the knowledge of sound design in restaurants and bars. Both need to be carefully managed if the venue wants a sustainable music programme. I can't count the number of times I've been invited to a 'listening bar' (either to play or watch), and been so disappointed with the sound quality. What's the point of playing beautiful records on a terrible sound system? Or have a beautiful sound system but your staff are playing Spotify off their phone on it? There are definitely some efforts being made, and real audiophiles can quickly work out the difference between venues that take their music seriously, and those which are chasing an aesthetic or trend.
TAV: Agreed. I've seen seminal LPs being displayed on shelves where the proprietor has absolutely no clue about them and the floor music's right off Spotify, just bizarre.
TAV: We're curious to find out what would be your Desert Island Disc(s)?
AW: How many am I allowed? Also am I going to the Desert Island to party or relax or am I stuck there indefinitely? Does anyone ever ask these questions! Because it would influence my selection. A couple of records that jump out at me would be:
D'Angelo - Voodoo
Miss Kittin & The Hacker - First Album
Chet Baker - Chet Baker in Tokyo
Supreme Jubilees - It'll All Be Over
Joe Hisaishi - Music from the Studio Ghibli films of Hayao Miyazaki
Ultimate Breaks & Beats collection by Breakbeat Lou and Breakbeat Lenny (ok I know that's kind of cheating as it's 25 albums)
↗ Razor N Tape with JKriv and Norsicaa @TheLotRadio
↗ Norsicaa Boiler Room Live Set
TAV: Well, the scenario is you're going to be stuck there indefinitely! Alice, it's been a pleasure. All the best in your next venture, we'll catch up when you're back in Singapore if schedule permits.
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→ Keep up with Alice's updates
(To our patrons of TAV, we are very grateful that you've read up to this end of our content. And if anything of what we conceived here resonates with you — please purchase the physical releases here if you can. Show support to the creative artists, musicians, selectors and their respective labels, thank you.)
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