New releases today: Minimal/Tech House

Review: German techno DJ and producer Tim Engelhardt takes a bold steps toward ascendant progressive techno with 'My Joy', his latest for Habitat. Nodding to the many sun-drenched euphorias personally experienced in Ibiza, this is a true live-it-up house record. Panned organs and subtle vocals take centre stage on the A1, while the B 'Love Triangle' complicates things with a beachside love involution. Midway moment 'Take Control', meanwhile, marks the record's pivotal shift from organ-led emotion to a percussive lock-in.

Review: Sometime Trauma Tribe and Spy vs Spy member Christian "Chris" Lloris is now two decades into his production career, though remarkably it has been 12 years since he last released a solo EP on vinyl. 'Echo Ridge', which also marks his debut on Lisbon label Satya, is therefore a long-awaited return to wax. He begins in confident mood with 'Ministrone', a fine fusion of lolloping tech-house grooves, spacey electronics and deep house flourishes, before delivering a chunkier and more bass-heavy slab of trippy tech-house with oddball samples aplenty ('Echo Ridge'). Over on side B, 'Mod Squad' is smooth, squelchy, quietly funky and delightfully off-kilter, while 'Snares Don't Care' is a more hypnotic, spaced-out and bass-heavy affair that's perfect for those "locked in" early morning moments.

Review: With more than two decades of output behind him, French producer Okain continues to carve his own path through the deeper ends of dance music. On this latest EP, he folds elements of acid, sci-fi and Goa trance into a rich and forward-moving four-tracker. The experience leans much more toward interstellar techno exploration. 'Acid Spin' kicks things off with propulsion. It's not overly fast, but the drive is undeniable. Electric squiggles and sharp synth lines dart across a steady rhythm, giving the track an urgent yet sleek atmosphere. 'EPR Paradox' is just as tightly produced, letting its groove build gradually with layers of texture and restraint. On the 2nd side, 'Wavefunction' drops into a swirling, cosmic descent. It feels like tumbling through a wormhole, where the lines between gravity and sound begin to blur. 'Computing Force' rounds off the journey with a deft hybrid of Goa trance energy and techno structure. The melodies shimmer with a nostalgic rave glow, yet everything remains clean, spacious, and functional. Altogether, the EP is a bold statement from a veteran still pushing boundaries. It's deep, physical, and built for futuristic dancefloors. This EP could change minds when it comes to what psy-trance is...

Review: Following fine early outings on House Puff, Tessellate and Dansu Discs, T Jacques co-founded the Nuances De Nuit label. While that outlet has been his main home for the last few years, he still occasionally guests on other imprints. It's what the rising star is doing here, making his first appearance on Gene On Earth's popular tech-house/deep house fusion imprint Limousine Dream. He begins with the warm and woozy 'Houze Control', a thickset slab of loose-limbed deep house excellent peppered with spacey synth sounds, before combining intergalactic tech-house sounds with chunky grooves on title track 'Fingertips'. Over on the reverse, 'Inside Out' is a slightly tougher - but no less bass-heavy or intergalactic-sounding - workout, while '2 Hi' is deep, dubby gear for very late nights and early mornings.