Sounds From The Mountain: Donna Leake
For the latest instalment in our Sounds From The Mountain series, we invited Donna Leake to take the reins — crafting a rich, transportive session that feels at once grounded and otherworldly. Two hours of music that breathes, drifts and roots itself in something deeper.
A true explorer of sound, Donna has been DJing globally and hosting a monthly show on NTS for almost a decade, steadily building a reputation for sets that expand your sense of place and time. You might know her from her long-standing residency at London’s Brilliant Corners, or from her iconic Giant Steps sets — a roving sound system and event series where deep listening, dance and community take centre stage. Alongside Haseeb Iqbal, she also co-hosts The Chessidency — a quietly excellent series soundtracking focused games of chess between friends at The Standard Hotel in King’s Cross.
Her approach is deeply intuitive. Rooted in a love of music, dance and discovery, Donna treats sound as something sacred and social — a way to express, to reflect, to give thanks, to share ideas, and to be moved. Her sets reach across genres, eras and continents: spiritual jazz, psychedelic soul, traditional African music, roots and dub, Latin percussion — all stitched together with an ear for contrast and cohesion. Music that’s high and low, dark and light, simple and complex. A blend of the cerebral and the celebratory. At times meditative. At times ecstatic. Always elemental.
This mix is no different. Loosely centred around the natural world — in title, texture or tone — it drifts between the earthy and the ethereal, like smoke through leaves. Expect gentle psychedelia, sun-warped rhythms and grounding grooves. There are moments of cosmic reflection from Sun Ra and Yusef Lateef, dreamlike narration from Dr. Haki R. Madhubuti and Alfonso Noel Lovo, and deep forest echoes from the likes of Eddie Gale, Eden Ahbez and the African Tribal, Ritual and Love Songs ensemble. From Brainticket’s pulsing Black Sand to the hypnotic lift of The Sun by Alice and John Coltrane, this is music that hums with life.
One for slow days, when all you're craving is the healing glow of the midday sun. Music to think to, float to, fold laundry to. Or just lie still and let it wash over you.
Full Tracklist:
Sun Ra - My Brother The Wind
O.G.C. - Emergency Storm Warning
O.G.C. - Elements Of The Storm
Brainticket - Elements
Francois Cahen - Spirit Of The Wind
Yma Sumac - Birds
Yusef Lateef - Jungle Fantasy
Pasquale And The Lunar-Tiks - Moon Madness
Alan Lorber Orchestra - I heard The Rain And ...
Bonus Track - Flowers Spoken Word
Alfonso Noel Lovo - The Magic Mushroom World
The Fugs - The Garden Is Open
Druid Chase - Take Me In Your Garden
Roger Bunn - Road To The Sun
The John Sangster Quartet - Exploration of the Sun
Dr Haki R. Madhubuti - Rain Forest
African Tribal, Ritual and Love Songs - Invocation To Kabbia (Rain Song)
Eddie Gale - The Rain
Eden Ahbez - La Mar
Franes Fantastic boat Ride - Boatman
Peter Thomas sound Orchester - Lost Paradise
Robert Maxwell His Harp and Orchestra - Nature Boy
Yusef Lateef - Moon Tree
Phil Ranelin - Full Moon
The Natural Yogurt Band - The 13 Moons of Neptune
DJ Krush - Beyond Raging Waves
Alex Puddu - Magic Mountain
The Mothers Of Invention - Help, I'm a Rock
Brainticket - Black Sand
Les Hippies - Soleil Couchant (Setting Sun)
Web Web - Mystic Flowers
Alice and John Coltrane - The Sun
