Back catalogue: Techno (All)

Review: Fourth part of the compilation celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Milanese record shop. This collection is entirely composed of previously unreleased music, exclusively produced for the occasion by many artists of great relevance in the worldwide music scene, who supported the store over the last ten years.
This EP features Ellen Allien, Kreggo, Timeslip89, Itinerant Dubs and Heith.

Review: Hauff's highly anticipated debut on Tresor, and it's as strikingly original as you'd expect. The title track, 'Multiplying My Absurdities', opens with a slow build of magnetic synths and acid drops that seem to pulsate with playful skepticism. It's simple yet gripping, pulling you into a dark, hypnotic space where the unexpected becomes beautiful. 'Punks in the Gym' takes the energy up a notch, drawing inspiration from a notorious Australian climbing route. The track climbs relentlessly, each bar steeper than the last, with 303-driven tremors building into a volcanic eruption of sound. It's a relentless ride that doesn't let up, pushing you to the limits. Closing out the release, 'Humanoid Fruit' ventures even deeper into the unknown. Its prehistoric soundscape, full of sharp synth bursts, feels like a chaotic journey through ancient lands where acid rain falls from the sky. Dark, eerie and transporting, this track leaves a lasting impression.

Review: Dub techno don Luke Hess has been a mainstay of Omar S's FXHE label for as long as we, or anyone in fact, can remember. The Motor City talent dropped this particular EP, 'Dubout EP #3.13', back in 2011 but it now resurfaces and has aged to perfection with some extra touches from Smith himself. 'Narrow Road' is strident and direct dub techno with signature FXHE chords. 'Leads To Life' is more liquid and paired back with an undulating bassline and a cosmic feel to the swirling pads. 'Unity Excerpt' closes with more icy beats, hi-hats and skittish synths that snake throughout the mix.

Review: Luke Hess delivered a stunning, dub techno masterclass with this rather unexpected gem on the FXHE label back in 2017 with fellow Motor City great Omar S on production. The superb title track opens with shimmering dub chords and hypnotic rhythms that evolve slowly but powerfully. 'Renewal' offers a more direct approach by channelling the spirit of Brendon Moeller's Beat Pharmacy. On the flip, 'Sacred' strips things back with a staggered groove, airy pads and a one-note bassline circling deep into the night. Closing track 'Motor Dub' nods to Deepchord with its swirling delays and spacious, bass-heavy mix. For fans of Basic Channel and immersive, textured techno, this is irresistible.

Review: Vinicius Honorio returns with Ominous Music, his sophomore release on Blueprint Records following the success of Sem Rumo. With roots in Rio de Janeiro's drum & bass scene and a transition to London's techno community, Honorio's production talent shines through in this dark and dubby offering. Across four tracks, he masterfully crafts a sonic journey filled with trippy textures and foreboding atmospheres, showcasing his signature style that blends energy and passion effortlessly. From pounding beats to intricate soundscapes, Ominous Music fits perfectly into the Blueprint discography. True to form, this EP promises to further establish Honorio's reputation as a strong producer in the underground techno scene.

Review: Detroit's Robert Hood returns to vinyl with a techno triptych that distils his vision into something sharp, agile and impossibly refined. Though long synonymous with minimalism, he hasn't sounded this raw in yearsi'Art Form' arrives like a jolt, all jacking 909s and acidic flickers that feel urgent and alive. It's his first straight techno release since 2024, and it pulses with a kind of stripped-down euphoria, framed by Hood's ear for clean lines and stark rhythmic discipline. 'Art Class' deepens the tone, winding through heavier acid modulations that buzz beneath a more spacious arrangement, less confrontational but just as potent. On the B-side, 'Art School' leans into the cinematic mode, pairing sci-fi synth washes with grinding low-end pressure, rolling somewhere between introspection and propulsion. Though the tracks first landed digitally earlier this year, hearing them sequenced here offers a deeper read into Hood's blueprintiacid as method, groove as design. In his own words, M-Plant is about "only what is essential", and these three cuts prove just how much feeling can be encoded in that minimal frame. It's a statement of intent, executed with absolute clarity from one of techno's true architects.

Review: Kenny Hooper is a Detroit mainstay and formerly a part of Scan7 who now makes his solo debut on Acquit Records. It continues a purple patch of late that includes his remix work on Nate Nubia's 'Dracula and Frankenstein' and his trilogy on Elypsia Records. The title cut 'Neon Skies' opens with lush synths arp shimmering over crispy, punchy electro drum programming. 'Imagination' has a dubbed-out low end and kinetic kicks with smeared synth lines and intimate vocals bringing some seduction to the sounds. 'Binary Dreams' gets more raw and ragged with a reverberating bassline full of texture and more eerie synth designs up top that keep you on edge. 'How Far' brings a cultured EP to a close with more classy rhythms.

Review: Network continue their 30th Anniversary celebrations with an in demand re-issue of the first record they ever put out. Neal Howard was the man behind it and the Chicago artist hit gold with his soulful machine sounds. 'Indulge' (club House mix) sounds like a house version of the iconic Strings of Life, with the deep mix only slightly dials back the bumping beats and joyous chords. Bad Boy Bill then steps up with a mix of 'To Be Or Not To Be' with gurgling bass and computerised melodies that are bright and brilliant. The aforementioned Derrick May then mixes with his slick sense of hi tech soul present and correct.

Review: Four bold sonic statements from Human Safari, debuting for London's EarToGround imprint with a crazed new techno statement, 9:09 In The Morning. Invoking an alternate reality where the UK might actually still be the kind of place that raving till 9AM is possible, this Maltese hardtech falcon commits to four nosedives: '9:09' and 'Galactic Funk' summon uplifting factory percussions and hellish unisons, leaving us to wonder how on earth all these rhythms and impacts were generated. The B-side's 'Intrusive Thoughts' continues this feel, albeit with a more sustained and muted charge, while the closing curveball 'Black Shadow' bemuses by way of an exercise in dryness, thawing-out of the earlier hi-hat-hazes for a discrete discombombulation of wibbly leads and disconcerting syncopations.

Review: Dub techno don Steve O'Sullivan's Mosaic label is back with a new dubs series and vol 1 kicks things off with a real doozy on lovely red wax. The boss himself offers up a Bluetrain special edition dub of Hidden Sequence's 'Synapse' which is all icy lines and liquid rhythms which make you think of some frozen lake on a misty morning. Sub Basics (Temple of Sound, Lion Charge Records) opens up with a fresh dub laden track with rippling chords, tons of echo and rolling drums on 'Quarters.' Both are timeless dub outings, as you would expect from this label.