In the darkest hours of the night, two sisters once tucked themselves away in their childhood bedroom, playing songs for one another. Now, the hours remain as dark as ever, but the sisters are no longer buried under the duvet. Instead, Sana and Sehrish Malik, known together as Malix, have gone from bedroom sessions to playing for fashion houses like Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Nike, performing at venues like Printworks and holding down a residency at Rinse FM, steadily carving out their place in the music sphere.

They grew up in London, where their home was filled with Middle Eastern and South Asian music, which shaped their affinity for percussive drums and their love for music before they even hit the dance floor: “You just realize that you always want to be in control of the aux,” Sehrish smiles. Their growing curiosity eventually led them to start attending parties. “Our own love for partying definitely helped shape our taste in music, and definitely rave culture,” she adds.

Growing up in a city that cultivated much of today’s modern electronic music, the girls were exposed to London’s long-standing house scene in adolescence, the pipeline from raver to DJ coming naturally to them. Sana first hopped behind the decks in 2018 and Sehrish, who was at university in Manchester at the time, followed suit only a year later. After only a few back-to-back gigs, bookers became insistent on having them play together. The pair officially formed Malix in 2022. They knew they had to explore the natural creative harmony forming between them. Sana reflects, “It’s been a journey for us to get to a point where you trust each other, where you’re in sync, and there’s some sort of synergy there.” Sehrish adds that it’s also about “having the ear to understand each other’s taste as well. It’s almost like a tennis game.”

Their sets are built on spontaneity, allowing them to feed off of each other’s energy and create soundscapes driven by heavy and percussive low ends. They blend genres like House, Afro Tech, Baile Funk, and Latin House, and include tablas, bongos, and congas, which are complemented with minimal vocals. Their sets are inclusive of the classics: see “aprtment life” mix, which samples Brandy & Monica’s “The Boy is Mine” with a warm and rhythmic house track. Their ambition to tap into a wide range of genres while still keeping their technical skills tight has expanded their reach far beyond their hometown of London.

They source their music when travelling, in record shops, or digitally. Sana explains, “We usually dig for music separately, and after we’re done, we will come together.” Sehrish feels that traveling gives them a unique way to discover music, reflecting on their mini-tour in South Africa during the turn of the New Year: “Just listening to and [getting] inspired by other people helps create our catalog. I think being amongst people who love music and are pioneers of their own sound really brings the best out of you. When you’re amongst [the crowd] you feel this pressure to do better and for them to really enjoy and I think the crowd was very reciprocal. They were understanding, and took the journey with us.” They’ve played in Brazil, Dubai, France, Spain, and more, just shortly after forming their duo. This allowed them to establish a connection with electronic music communities outside of London. After all, DJing is a collaborative art, not just because the girls are playing together, but because they are in conversation with the crowd.

In 2024 they shifted their focus to nurturing community in London, as traveling in the early portion of their career motivated them to reconnect with the city that sparked their passion. Sehrish emphasizes, “I think that was a stepping stone, in a way that we hadn’t had up until that point. We can see ourselves now on the lineups we dreamed to be on.” Their club night “faem e li” brings music from all the diasporas to their home. Despite parties and artists like Malix continuing to champion diversity and inclusivity, navigating a patriarchal industry can be difficult, so when asked about the importance of creating club nights like this, the girls were steadfast in their answer: the music comes first.

“In the electronic scene you would not find people who look like us when we started DJing,” Sehrish says. “Maybe in different scenes, but over here there was no one that would look like us. Our night isn’t primarily about us, it’s about the music, and it’s about showcasing DJs who play music similar to the genres that we like. It’s more giving back to people. I feel like we wanted this and I know we found a community that also wants that.” Sana adds that it’s important for them to preserve the essence of rave history. “The way people are listening to music has also changed,” she says, “so I think what’s important for us is to keep that rave culture embedded in our parties, whether that means the venue will be very warehouse-like, the music is always at the forefront.”  

When they were touring, they immersed themselves in production, collaborating with friends and dedicating three to five days at a time to create what Sehrish describes as a “mini camp.” She reflects: “It’s a really fun journey to expand your knowledge, we’re learning so much, it feels like going back to school again or going back to the drawing board and it’s like, ‘Okay what is this sound? How do I get this sound? What kind of drum is this?’” Sana adds that, “It takes years and years of mastery to get to a level where people discover or hear a sound [and can identify it right away.]” They’re largely inspired by DJs and musicians that have established that signature sound, like House music duo ANOTR and Afro electronic DJ Hagen. So for now, they’re in the motion of experimenting in order to reach that musical identity as producers.

“Our sources of inspiration come from all forms of art,” Sehrish says, “then it’s just the nice process of being able to share that with each other and see what that leads to.” Sana sees their production going beyond dance music: “Just because I’m a DJ doesn’t necessarily mean I have to produce music for the dance floor. We’re very open to the kind of avenues that we want to go down.”

In the midst of all of this discovery, they’re also traveling back in time to the origins of the music. “Going back, looking at documentaries, understanding where the kind of music you like derives from, and what kind of struggle, community, it comes from, I think that was really important to us as well,” says Sehrish. With this mindset, they’ve been able to create mixes that connect with crowds all over the world. They understand and honor the history of the music that captures the ethos of why these spaces were created in the first place. Preserving the importance of community and the shared love for music has, since its conception, provided a groundwork for resistance and joy.

Photographed by Jaime Cano

Styled by Beanie Stolper

Written by Kayla Hardy

Hair: Nicola Harrowell at Premier Hair and Makeup

Makeup: Marisol Steward

Styling Assistant: Aine Sweeney Byrne

Location: Como Metropolitan London