Juno Recommends Techno May 2021

Review: It's one of the most iconic techno tracks of all time and no matter how many times it gets reissued, there will also be demand for it. This time it is on a clear, one sided vinyl from R&S and even decades after the tune was released it still sounds fresh, new, vital. Those crashing hits, the incendiary hi hats, the endlessly warped bassline - it's the sound of a rave, complete with flashing strobes and dripping sweat. Pressed nice and loud here, complete with a fine re-mastered by the legendary Matt Colton, it's always going to be a vital 12".

Review: Icy dub techno doesn't come classier than the strain you'll find on Iceland's AE Recordings. On their latest 12", they welcome Japanese producer Altone to the fold with four impeccably sculpted immersion chambers. There's a healthy amount of movement within the scenes Altone captures, avoiding the pitfall of dub techno becoming too soporific and instead creating a powerful sense of kinesis in the shimmer and shudder of the Basic Channel-indebted chords. 'Drifting Sand' is especially powerful, using a gorgeous, resonating tone which takes on an organic quality as it gently modulates over the subliminal rhythm section. Watch out though for the squashed, house-leaning funk of 'Uninhabited' if you want a low-key groover for the hypnotic crowd.

Review: Given the recent rise in interest in early-to-mid 1990s ambient techno, IDM and melodic electronica, it was probably only a matter of time before Paul Smith dipped into the archives of his Likemind label and offered up a new collection of period works from Nurmad Jusat under the Nuron and Fugue aliases. The eight tracks scattered across this essential double-pack originally appeared on two separate EPs in 1993 and '94 respectively. The standard is exceptionally high throughout, with Jusat casually joining the dots between deep space electro, B12/Black Dog style IDM and bubbly, acid-flecked ambient techno. We expect this to (righty) sell quickly, so don't hang around if you want to snag a copy.

Review: Matthew Dexter has been waist deep in electronic music, and techno in particular, for years, mainly as the DJ behind a club night called Space Division. Behind the scenes he was also learning the ropes as a producer, with this EP on Eya marking his debut vinyl release. It's a gorgeously retro-futurist affair, with Dexter utilising synthesizer settings and machine drums that recall techno's sci-fi roots, as well as its many mutations over the last 35 years. Check first the faintly foreboding and slightly ghostly 'Desolation of Kind', where flashes of TB-303 and an 'LFO'-esque bass sound catch the ear, before turning your attention to EBM-influenced opener 'AES'. Elsewhere, 'Barlow's Lens' is an undeniably intergalactic affair, while 'Gene's Paranoia' is a gently bleeping roller.

Review: Jeff Mills for Axis Records. Are there any more exciting words for fans of Detroit techno? Here The Wizard assumes his MIllsart alias and once again sets off to explore extra terrestrial soundscapes. The tempo here is slower than under his own name, leaving more space for the sci-fi details and cosmic motifs to really sink in. The beats roll deep, too, with gentle percussive clatter dropped in from above. In the case of 'Breaker Breaker One Nine' the sound is almost Glenn Underground-esque. It is the EP highlight, though the glistening 'The Upside Down' is not far behind.

Review: EYA's Lone Wolf sublabel continues to bring us the goods when it comes to deep, old-skool flavoured techno with a house bump. Aving cropped up on a various artists 12" on Lone Wolf last year, Ukranian producer AC130 makes a welcome return with this killer slab of party ready heat. 'Equation' plays the emotional card with its soaring pads, but up front it's a sprightly, upferrit jacker. 'Broken' has a cheekiness in its step, not least thanks to the wobbly lead chords hovering over the track. 'Planetary Vision' plies more of the bleepy, dreamy vibes without dialling back those crisp 909 drums, and then Muelsa steps up with a suitably blissed out remix of 'Equation' that slots in with the mood of the EP perfectly.

Review: The legendary Mote Evolver welcomes Roog Unit, a vital project from Luke Slater and O Phase. It is straight up head wrecking techno business that is all about designing perfect loops and letting them roll for days. 'Edge 1' is in a hurry to get to the outer fringes of our solar system, where it finds bleeping melodies and pulling sonar sounds. 'Edge 2' is much more textural and coarse, a soundtrack to cosmic industrial warfare while 'Edge 3' is icy and edgy. The cantering drums are funky and chunky and the synths designed to melt your mind.

Review: There are more seismic ruminations from the deepest depths of Iceland's dub techno scene afoot, as Ohm shores back up on X/OZ with more of that densely packed, heavily textured techno tackle. 'Going Back' opens the EP up in a submersible, riding a looming sub bass and pinging out sonar blips into the encroaching gloom. 'As We See It Coming' turns up the intensity with some sharply chiselled percussion and an eerie line in synth tones, while 'Shiva' locks into a truly propulsive, fully balanced techno workout. 'Seidingur' is perhaps the purest dub techno offering on the record, teasing out the rhythms and letting the chords swirl in the mix for a classically rooted, classily executed trip.

Review: Techno producers and DJ's first and foremost, Subradeon find Soul at the heart of their work, be it via their productions on labels like Rekids, Motech, and Hardgroove.Subradeon are the Neapolitan new school techno producers who carry on in the fine tradition of the likes of Rino Cerrone and Gaetano Parisio. Their sound is soulful, with bouncy drums and vocals to embellish the grooves and really make sure they strike hard. 'The Last Trumpet' is a sleek and clean banger, an early Detroit-styled anthem for the peak of the night that still has its foot in the underground. 'We Don't' is lit up with silvery synths and chatte-ring percussion, again a la Motor City sound of Underground Resistance. The closing two tracks bring yet more high energy, stirring laced sounds that are epic and excellent in equal measure.

Review: RAW France doesn't muck about with this tasty new various artists transparent green 12".
Welt In Scherben one up with the peak time, tripped out delights of 'Faust Im Nacken,' which is an old school teeth grinder. Danilo Incorvaia keeps up the white knuckle ride with 'Seventeen,' with its coarse pads and cantering drums, then Clouds bring rough industrial textures and tortured synths to 'AKW Strange.' Endlec's 'No Mercy' rounds out a high octane EP with a white knuckle ride through strobe lit and rave techno.

Review: For the latest volume in his ongoing retrospective series "The Director's Cut", Jeff Mills has decided to offer us another chance to own his most iconic and celebrated track, "The Bells". All techno heads should know the 1996 original version that kicks off the EP, but if you don't, it's a stomping, heavily percussive romp rich in looped synth stabs and chiming melodies. Here it comes accompanied by the stunning version found on the "Blue Potential" DVD, in which Mills performed live with Montpellier Philharmonic Orchestra), and bonus cut "The Homosapien Sapiens", which appears to be a previously unreleased cut. While of interest, it's the version of "The Bells" that make the EP an essential purchase.

Review: Detroit OG James Pennington returns with a killer limited 7".

Review: As you probably know, Kenny Larkin was an early Detroit techno pioneer who then got out of the game and head off to be a standout comedian. It is that fact which influent the title of this EP, which was first put out back in 1992. The reissue label Mint Condition now polish it up and push it on us once again, and we couldn't be more receptive. This is proper timeless techno. The tracks are raw by design, but have sublime synth work that looks to an optimistic future. There is both banging stuff such as 'Without A Sound' but also perfect dreamy and spacious tackle like 'Corbomite Manuever,' making this a hugely useful EP.

Review: Spanish techno titan Oscar Mulero is in blistering form here on Polegroup. Theer is real drama and intensity in his tracks that comes from not only the heavy kicks and all-consuming bass, but twisted, turbulent synths that are stretched in all directions. Industrial textures help fry your brain cells, too, all while the grooves drag you onwards into an ever darker night. For our money, 'Gradiente Voltaje' is the standout here with is catering kicks, coarse open hi hats and barrelling dark wave bass. As soon as clubs return, this is the sort of heavy techno tackle we all want to be hearing.

Review: 'Intelligent techno' is not really a term that we should be using in this day and age, but it would certainly have been used to describe Darren Nye's music had it been released in the 1990s. Forgotten Technology, his latest EP, genuinely sounds like a long-lost relic from the period when the likes of B12, Kirk Degiorgio and the Black Dog were re-inventing techno. Full of deep, spacey chords, even more intergalactic melodies and musical arrangements that will genuinely make your heart sing, this is electronic listening music of the highest order. Our picks of a very strong bunch are the deep space drift of 'Behind The Smile' and the more upbeat, Motor City style sci-fi techno of 'Dream Sequencer', though every single track is superb.

Review: Club Night Club is a new Brooklyn label born out of an event series, and they're positioning themselves squarely in the leftfield of the contemporary techno scene with a wild EP from the lesser-spotted Herron. The Manchester-based artist has slipped out a few scattered releases over the past six years, from EPs on the meandyou label he helps run, and one big drop for Peder Mannerfelt's label. This fierce return to the fray shows the producer pushing a tough yet supple strain of mutant, stepped techno with soundsystem blood pumping in its veins. It's ludicrously high-end, swimming in needlepoint sound design and yet still rough as hell, and it comes very highly recommended.

Review: Kalahari Oyster Cult serve up a three-way split here, but all of the different alases are the same artists. That man is Dominic Glynn aka Syzygy (a duo with Justin McKay) who is also Fluid and Luke Warmwater. He has been hiding in the shadows for a few years until now but makes a welcome return with two unreleased tracks and another two enhanced re-edits. Each one shows his knack for hi speed, glistening techno that is riddled with acid lines, bright chords and a sense of machine soul normally associated with the Motor City.