!K7 has announced that the 49th edition of its venerable DJ-Kicks mix series will come from revered UK artist Darren Cunningham (a.k.a. Actress). Though XLR8R did manage to enlist Cunningham for a rare podcast a year ago, the producer’s DJ-Kicks outing will serve as the London artist’s first official commercially available mix.

Set to feature cuts from the likes of Autechre, John Beltran, and Gherkin Jerks, Cunningham has this to say about the hour-long offering: “When I’m selecting music I’m not always thinking about the music alone. I’m thinking about the names of the artists, tracks, and labels, and what they mean to me. I often base my tracklisting purely on how well the track titles work together in a poetic sense. I’ve tried to keep space between tracks, allowing them to speak. I tried not to force BPM shifts and to let the programming remain choppy and quick.”

Actress’ DJ Kicks mix will be available in both digital and CD format, while nine of the mix’s tracks will also be available in unmixed form on a vinyl release. As is traditional with DJ-Kicks mixes, Actress’ installment will also feature an unreleased track by the artist himself; entitled “Bird Matrix,” the production was apparently recorded just after the completion of Cunningham’s fourth album, Ghettoville. The artwork and tracklists for both the mix and the companion vinyl can be found below ahead of their May 1 release date.

1. Breaker 1 2 – 2
2. Lorenzo Senni – Elegant, and Never Tiring
3. Reel by Real – Look At Me
4. Autechre – Pen Expers
5. Chameleon – Thought 2
6. Beneath – Stress 1
7. Simbiosi – Impari
8. Zennor – Tin
9. John Beltran – Anticipation
10. Moon B – Those Moments
11. STL – Psychelicious
12. Snakepiss – Toil
13. Shit and Shine – Pearl Drop
14. Chez n Trent – Windy City Club
15. Mark Fell – Section 1-7
16. GNESIS – Pear
17. Shxcxchcxsh – LDWGWTT
18. Hank Jackson – Track 3
19. Actress – Bird Matrix (DJ-Kicks)
20. Gherkin Jerks – Red Planet

Vinyl Tracklist:
A1. Lorenzo Senni – Elegant, and Never Tiring
A2. Reel by Real – Look At Me
A3. Simbiosi – Impari
B1. John Beltran – Anticipation
B2. Shit and Shine – Pearl Drop
C1. Chez n Trent – Windy City Club
C2. Mark Fell – Section 1-7
D1. Actress – Bird Matrix (DJ-Kicks)
D2. Gherkin Jerks – Red Planet