Back catalogue: Techno (All)

Review: Menacing EBM and dark synth billows from a Netherlands hinterland; our heralds speak of an esoteric encampment by the name of Espectro Oculto, said to be the remote incantators of an unstoppable curse in sound. Six shadowy emissaries have been sent to spread the pestilence; Trenton Chase, Martial Canterel, DJ Nephil, Exhausted Modern, Fragedis and Happy707. Clearly, the faction have recruited only the best, trusted and yet most nefarious of spies from as far-flung regions as Czechia and Argentina in the administering of such a sordid sonic plague. We're left most quivery at the centrifugal doom drones of Exhausted Modern's 'Fear Of Focus', across whose breakdown banshees are heard wailing and snarling, and Fragedis' 'Landing In Reality', a lo-fi techno freakout and sonochemical anomaly, channeling militant two-way radio samples and hellish FM synthesis.

Review: Dashiell has been road testing these two tunes in his sets for a while, and they have always done a job. They finally arrive on wax courtesy of Foul Play and are sure to get dropped all over the place this summer. 'dfuse all the tension' is the right mix of driving tech but wonky minimal. The bassline is drunk and all over the place while the lead synth has a retro video game feel, and some crisp melodies and refracted vocals finish it well. On the flip, 'da nastiest' is faster and more direct with some turbocharged and bass-driven tech house characterised by another sleazy vocal and phased synth lines that bring a playful twist.

Review: Spaniard Eduardo De La Calle is one of those producers who have spent their whole musical life exploring a fairly well-defined techno sound yet always managed to find nuance within it. Here he lands on Key Germany with more of his signature belts of heady synths and physical drums. 'Kardama' is a rather edgy one to start then 'Khatvanga' slips into more smooth techno hypnosis. There are alien in his machines and they want you to know about it on 'Kankas' before 'Kala' closes with a peak time, strobe-lit energy that will send hands in the air.

Review: Drei Vinyl launched back in 2023 and has slowly but surely amassed a respectable catalogue of various artists' releases. This sixth outing is the most straight-up techno offering yet and it opens with one of Spain's finest in Eduardo De La Calle. 'Deva5Vyasa' is heady and otherworld loop techno perfection with synth daubs and conscious vocals peppering the rubbery kicks. DJ Shufflemaster brings more texture to the raw, percussive madness of 'Axiom' and Tensal layers up unsettling and anxious synth murmurs with rising drum tension on 'Thermal Cycler.' Pergo's 'Lume' is a brash, industrial closer full of urgency.

Review: Techno titans Charlotte de Witte and Amelie Lens unite for One Mind, a powerhouse EP that comes hot on the heels of their back-to-back sets at Ghent's 20,000-capacity Flanders Expo. Both Belgian artists have defined the sound of modern techno in the last decade with dark, fast sounds and elements of soft ambient, rave, dance and hard house all folded in. His one opens with the thunderous title track which pairs acid lines with strobe-lit synths, while 'Where Do We Go' delivers trance-infused techno at breakneck speed. To go with the unified concept of the EP, both Amelie and Charlotte's voices are layered into the music in subtle fashion.

Review: Incredibly, it is almost two full decades since Echospace and Rod Modell's legendary Deepchord project dropped the original version of this album. Happily, it has aged to perfection and gets reissued here with the first-ever remix from Gerard Hanson aka Convextio. Next to that are a series of dubs and mixes that result in widescreen dub landscapes, soft synth plumes, delicate melodic curlicues and some of the headiest electronic music you could possibly immersive yourself in.

Review: French techno innovator Laurent Garnier, Berlin's shape-shifting DJ Gigola and German house mainstay Gerd Janson each put their own spin on 'Miss Suave', a cult favourite from Swiss producer Deetron from the early 2000s. Garnier twists it into a deep, acid-tinged Detroit workout, layering hypnotic synth cycles over rolling percussion. DJ Gigola dials up the tension with a stripped-back rave approach, sharpening the groove into something raw and propulsive. Janson, known for his disco-inflected touch, injects a dose of swing and warmth, transforming the track into a fluid, floor-ready mover. Three distinct takes from three essential names, each pushing the original into new territory.

Review: Derral is a young and exciting producer based just outside Barcelona. But if you didn't know that and were to judge purely off his music then you would assume he was some Italian producer from the 90s who had been digging in his archives for some unreleased material. These are lo-fi, dreamy house tracks with a real sense of bang but also quality emotional depth. 'Tree Man' is particularly glorious with its neon details and old school piano chords while 'State of Mind' brings a touch of acid to a jacked up Chicago house beat.

Review: Developer is a core part of the LA underground not just known for his work as a DJ and producer, but also his vital events which have breathed fresh inspiration into the scene. He also heads up the Modularz label and returns to it here with four more future-facing sounds that take techno into new realms. 'Ethnicanz' is rife with eerie synths that have an impish spirit. 'Modetrex' marries firmly rooted and ice-cold drum loops with more evocative synth motifs that lure you in for the chase. 'Viamont' is dense, like being trapped in the midst of a swarm of squawking birds, then 'Panotronix' completes this chilly retro-future offering with more stark synth loops that are unresolved and keep you on edge.

Review: Named after the classic Czech sci-fi animated film of the same name, veteran producer DIN returns as the nextmost focus of the Coming From Returning To label, who offer up a fresh reissue of his 1992 techno classic. Then five good years into the alias (DIN was formed in 1987), producer Pupka Frey began making his distinct brand of electro-disko as a personal exploration of futuristic and analog dance textures. This EP is an 'artificial' alt soundtrack to the movie, which was otherwise histrionic and over-funky for the tastes of most techno enjoyers. Highlights here have got to be the glassy 'B-Minis' and the opening 'Travesty' (the tune's ironically anything but).

Review: Mutual Rytm deals in proper techno that does the basics well and doesn't worry about modern fads. 'Surface' is the standout here - it has brilliantly bubbly synths rippling in sync with the hunched drums and bold bass notes. It works perfectly on both head and body and so does 'Blush' though with a more sleek, straight-ahead groove and minimal percussion over the echoing claps. 'Grainy' shuts down with another stylish techno bent and confirms Dold to be a vital voice in the current underground.

Review: Brazilian Jesse "Dreams" Pimenta has been roaming around underground circles for a decade plus. He has a stylish sound that is about heady excursions into deep rhythms. 'Losing Control' opens up with a warped and flabby baseline over buoyant drums for peak time deployment. 'Dangerous When Wet' is a tightly programmed and kinetic cut with flappy drums and snares, aliens in the machines and psychedelic vocal swirls. 'XTC Messenger' then hits hard with thudding kicks and hints of 90s tribal techno. Last of all, 'Pressure Points' flips out with broke beats and dubby undercurrents.

Review: Detroit Assembly Line kicks off with a powerful statement of intent, delivering four tracks of raw, intense techno from two key figures in the Detroit underground scene. A-side, Drivetrain opens with 'People!'ia relentless track that drives forward with uncompromising energy, followed by 'Notech,' which layers intricate rhythms with a futuristic edge. Over on the B-side, Antwon Faulkner brings the deep, dubby feel of 'The Dub,' before turning up the heat with 'Cyber War,' a hard-hitting track that packs all the urgency of Detroit's signature sound. This is the first release in the Detroit Assembly Line seriesia collection built to showcase the unfiltered, authentic noise of Detroit's techno legacy. It's a no-nonsense manifesto, made to remind the world of the city's continuing influence on the global underground.

Review: Dynamic Forces are indeed on show in this slamming new slab from Arts. There is a real sense of control to the opener 'Lyra' despite its forward motion and punchy kicks, while 'Vaulting' gets much wilder and looser with its manic synth lead and raw onset of percussive pressure. Switching up things once more, 'Parallel' is a dubby techno tool and 'Shimmer' reverts to the careful tweaking of a deft lead synth over incendiary beats. 'Radiant' and 'Meraki' bring more raved-up and bouncy peak-time techno fun. This is a very useful and varied 12".

Review: Shout out to Greek powerhouse Kinesthetik Recordings for making it all the way to a half a century of releases there. They celebrate in the best way they know - with more tranced-out sounds from artists in their orbit. Giorgio & Andreas open things up with 'Nice One' and its thudding tech drums and cosmic synth lines. Diskinesia gets much more raw and moody with the edgy drums of 'Back & Forth' and Interphase then drops a pair of industrial tech thumpers. Giorgio & Andreas reappear with a raw, roughshod and deep groove and Marcelino Sanchez's 'Motive One' offers dub techno to close.

Review: Fierce electronic mavericks LNS & DJ Sotofett deliver a thrilling two-tracker that's built for serious warehouse action. The A-side is a teeth-clenching, bassline-driven beast that is raw, gritty and euphoric with static rhythms, stabbing synths and a halftime arpeggio breakdown that erupts into dreamy pads. On the flip, DJ Sotofett's 'Buzzy Breaker' starts minimal with just kicks, stabs and dubs, then morphs into a breakbeat monster with polyrhythmic tension and soaring pads underpinned with jungle-inflected drops. Both tracks harness deep, hypnotic repetition while sounding bold and system-ready so make for techno with real weight but also edge and purpose that results in high class DJ and dancer tackle.

Review: Coorreente Belgium delivers a compelling slice of modern techno with 'Interlink', a four-track compilation that dives deep into rhythmic exploration and sci-fi atmospheres. Each cut offers a unique perspective, yet together they create an excellent and cohesive experience. Orbe's 'Jaxa' kicks things off with a spacey, melodic groove. The track's sci-fi techno aesthetic is underscored by rhythmic intricacies, creating a sense of forward momentum through the cosmos. It sets the tone with a blend of dreamlike melodies and pulsing beats. 'Refraction' by PTTRNRCRRNT follows, venturing into tribal territory with creative, off-kilter rhythms. Alien-esque warning sounds weave through the mix, adding a sense of unease and mystery that keeps listeners on edge. On Side-2, Deluka's 'Axis' plunges into subterranean techno with a deep, hypnotic vibe. Elements of trance filter through crisp production, guiding the listener on a spacey, introspective journey that feels both grounded and ethereal. Jorge Flukso's 'Synaptic' closes the EP with a nod to classic underground techno. Its dynamic, brooding build recalls the raw energy of Surgeon's warehouse bangers. The track's evolving layers and relentless drive create a late-night atmosphere perfect for dark, crowded dance floors. 'Interlink' is a well-curated snapshot of techno's diverse spectrum, balancing the cerebral and the physical with finesse. If you are one that thinks techno has been over-saturated the last decade and that there is no good techno coming out anymore then I would check this EP out.

Review: Eindhoven underground acidcore distributor and label Flatlife generate yet another mind-melter for the nitty masses, supercolliding tracks by four of the foremost DJs come sound-summoners on the subterranean scene. Flatlife have dispatched rapid-response rave Apaches since 2009, and A-siders 'Septic' and 'Lord Of Darkness' bring a fittingly mid-noughts feel to things, during which time the roughage of hard dance fused with the encroaching gloss and finesse that came with digital sound tech that defined the decade. The mood is horrific, with 'Saure' climaxing to apocalyptic, territorial levels through waspish yamps and kick crushings, while the aggro is not lost on the ensuing 'Out Of Order', somehow the most relaxed of the four.

Review: Los Angeles mainstay and famed techno practitioner Truncate has joined forces with Chicago legend DJ Hyperactive for a first-ever collaborative EP. The results are fascinating from the first beat: 'Universal Function' is an anxiety-riddled deep techno pumper, 'Trust The Process' is laced with cosmic synths and an eerie sense of the unknown and 'Space Shuffle' is more jacked, with raw drums and punchy kicks topped by manic synth squiggles. Last of all is a heady soundscape in 'Matter Of Time' with its dusty hi-hats and frictionless drums.

Review: DJ Sotofett is one of those producers who operates on his own plane. His sounds are like no other, his ideas are weird and wonderful and his execution is always exceptional. He is a producer who does things in his own playful way and that bears out on this new 12-track album. It's couched in electro with 80s Nintendo console vibes and a fusion of analogue and digital synthesis that makes for a jubilant celebration. Along the way, things shift from acid-infected beats and catchy electronic pop to avant-garde electro cuts. Vital stuff.

Review: DJ Sotofett returns with a double 12" packed with eight hard-hitting, underground techno tracks. Featuring frequent collaborators LNS, L.A. 2000, Ronny Nyheim, and Zarate_Fix, this release is a direct nod to the no-nonsense techno nights at Berlin's iconic Tresor club, where Sotofett holds residency. Each track is crafted with pure dancefloor energy in mind, moving through dub-driven techno, acidic overtones, and percussive basslines, all delivered with a raw, uncompromising edge. WANIA mk1 is a masterclass in DJ-ready versatility, perfect for those who love their techno stripped back and potent. Standout cuts include the bombastic, percussion-heavy Preparation and the 909-vocoder-fuelled My Spirit Is In Techno Music, both of which exemplify the release's dedication to the underground essence of the genre. With alternative mixes from WANIA mk2 making an appearance, the album offers both continuity and innovation, keeping true techno fans hooked from start to finish. Sotofett's attention to detail in programming, mixing, and mastering is evident throughout, making this a must-have for DJs and clubbers who live and breathe the core of real, unfiltered techno music. WANIA mk1 isn't just an album; it's a statement for those who value authenticity in their club experience.