Ever since its formation earlier this year, Fade to Mind, the Los Angeles-based collective/label founded by Kingdom and Prince William, have been enshrouded  by an extreme tight-lippedness that has made it somewhat difficult to follow, if not outright frustrating. It’s very much a take-what-you-can-get label, considering the scarcity of information about forthcoming releases, events, and developments. Case in point: their recent compilation, The Claw, was released solely as a limited-run CD and featured no tracklist either with the CD or online. It’s rather big news, then, that Fade to Mind has just unveiled an eponymous mix series, kick-started by a fantastic mix from none other than Prince William himself.

The mix itself merges exclusives and tracks that have become essential to DJs and heads alike (Cosmin TRG’s “Isolat,” Bok Bok’s “Reminder,” and Jam City’s “Aquabox” stand out right away). A couple notable exceptions, though, come courtesy of Bok Bok (a mashup with Robert Hood called “Ha Clash” and a bootleg of Grand High Priest & Dajae’s “Mary Mary”) and the elusive MikeQ (“The Master Blaster” and “I Am Legend”). You’ll also notice that the lineup of artists featured in the mix is very Night Slugs- and Fade to Mind-centric, but don’t misinterpret this as any sort of label bias. This inaugural installation, mixed smartly and cleanly by Prince William, serves as an excellent showcase for the diverse and exciting sounds that these two camps continue to peddle, as well as a natural starting point for what we can only assume will grow into a wildly successful mix series. You can stream or download the mix directly from Fade to Mind’s website.