Dinky

Alejandra Iglesias, also known as Dinky, is a representative of the amazing array of electronic musicians from Chile. The techno boom in this Latin American country seemed to be unlikely, yet stars with Chilean roots continue to shine one after another – Ricardo Villalobos, Luciano, Dandy Jack, and now Dinky. Although Dinky, like most of her fellow musicians, has long settled in Europe, she continues to maintain a close connection with her hometown.

Dinky was introduced to dance music even earlier than most of her colleagues, albeit in a slightly different form – in childhood, Alejandra attended a choreographic school and even performed with a dance troupe at a Chilean concert of Peter Gabriel. Electronics entered the life of the young Latina when she went to Berlin to visit her sister. Strong impressions from this city turned out to be the E-Werk and Tresor clubs and sets by Hell, Sven Väth, and Stacey Pullen for future Dinky. A couple of months later, Alejandra was already spinning records in clubs in her hometown of Santiago and befriending Atom Heart, Ricardo Villalobos, Luciano, and Sun Electric, who regularly performed in Chile. Soon Dinky moved to New York, where she continued to perform in clubs with sets and also acquired an inexpensive sampler to start her own compositional experiments.

The first to notice the new star was the German label Traum Schallplatten, which became a springboard for many artists. Dinky released several records there and then her first full-length album. While in vinyl, Alejandra preferred to release exclusively dance music (her interests included tech-house, acid, and warm Chicago vibes with a light touch of soul), on albums she was not shy about quiet indietronica and light pop motifs. For her versatility and inclination to experiment, Dinky was even compared to Aphex Twin by the American magazine Flyer.

In 2003, when Dinky was preparing for an American tour in support of her second album, she unexpectedly had to leave the USA due to bureaucratic problems. Then Alejandra hurriedly moved to Berlin, where she quickly became an integral part of the city's techno scene. The path to success was gradual for the Chilean, yet her breakthrough can be considered the record Acid In My Fridge, released on Sven Väth's label Cocoon. The record received good press, and the track hit the charts of many DJs, including Richie Hawtin, Ricardo Villalobos, and MANDY.

Today, Dinky is preparing to release her third long-play Maybe Later, where both of her musical facets will finally converge. It will undoubtedly be a dance tech-house record, although the bouncy club rhythms will be generously infused with pop elements.