This Northern summer finds Slovenian techno powerhouse Umek as busy as ever. In addition to his own studio work, the DJ has just launched a new weekly radio show, Behind The Iron Curtain, where he focuses on promising new producers and the best the Eastern European scene has to offer.

Over the coming months, Umek will also be making regular trips to Ibiza for Carl Cox’s ‘The Revolution’ night at Space, where he’s a 2011 resident. With sets in the Discoteca alongside Moby, Green Velvet, Kevin Saunderson and of course Cox himself, he’s sure to win even more converts to his no-nonsense sound.

Umek’s first interview on inthemix dates back to 2000, when he was a 24-year-old grafting hard to be noticed on a world stage. In 2009, he told us that his talented compatriots will have to work just as tirelessly, if not more. “There are many talented artists from Slovenia and the wider region, such as Beltek, Sinisa Lukic, Vladimir Acic, Tomy Declerque and Alex Long, who are facing the same problems I’ve had to work my way through 15 or 10 years ago,” he said.

“Their sound is amazing and I include a lot of their tracks in my sets and support them, to some extent. But if they want to break through to a higher level and establish themselves on the international market, they’ll have work even harder nowadays. The additional challenge they are facing is the need to establish and develop their own brand. Nobody will notice them lying on the sofa or working in the studio all day long.”

As the other side of the world warms up, inthemix secured this exclusive streaming mix from Umek, recorded live recently at Rise in Boston.