Tags: Acid Techno

Review: Sound Signature are at it again with their dark, driving and jackin' grooves. Every time Theo Parrish decides a tune is worth pressing up nice and loud on vinyl, it's wise to pay attention. And so it proves here, with Chicago native Spekter dropping one-sided 12" "Pipe Bomb", a deadly and pounding excursion into the murkier corners of house music. It's not one for the faint hearted either, as an overwhelming sense of moodiness pushes ever forward, dripping in twisted samples and heavy techno kicks.

Review: The Chemical Brothers are back with their 10th studio album (mixes and soundtracks not withstanding), and they're sounding especially fired up. The widescreen stadium psychedelia they've made their own spills out in abundance across "No Geography", but it's also matched with a feverish energy. The more up-tempo tracks, like "Gravity Drops" and "Eve Of Destruction", spit and snarl with the best of their classic, down and dirty dancefloor material, but there's plenty of space for the starry eyed songwriting they've made their own in more recent times. Just cop "The Universe Sent Me" and be immediately transported to a festival field, where you'll no doubt be catching The Bro's this summer.

Review: Needs' commendable charity drive continues to bring forth the goods, both in terms of good causes and world class club music. Rallying round in support of World Mental Health Day 2020, Shanti Celeste kicks the record off in style with the rapid fire, deep-diving workout 'Fantasma'. OCB keeps the pressure up with the psychotropic techno of 'RS3', while Michelle works up some delightfully freaky synths on playful jacker 'Aesthetic'. Bobby's 'Free Your Mind' is a 90s-tinged, full fat techno production indebted to Detroit, Peder Mannerfelt keeps things stripped and raw on 'Our Levels' and Yu Su weaves a beautiful tapestry of interweaving rhythms on 'Brittney'. Adam Pits' trippy techno sounds resplendent on 'Wind Tunnel' and DJ Sports completes the set with the inventive, dembow slanted funk of 'Needs Dub'.

Review: Dave Clarke's Red Series remains a vital benchmark in the evolution of UK techno. Released between 1993 and 1996, the three-volume run even managed to brush the UK top 40 back in the good old days when anything felt possible. Tracks like 'Wisdom To The Wise' will forever be etched in the make up of techno, and for very good reason. Now the whole series is being given a lavish reissue treatment which takes in all the original releases along with additional discs of rare, archival tracks and remixes, all bundled up in a box with a booklet and autographed by the Baron himself.

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.

Review: PRSPCTV aka XENTRIX is an emerging Belgian techno talent who steps out here with his first release on Musik is Egall. His moody and atmospheric original 'Perspective & Surface' is found on the B-side. It's a hunched-over, stripped-back deep techno and dub fusion with grotty synths and vast incendiary hi-hats hurrying you along. Label co-founder Oliver Hess steps up with his own remix on the A-side and flips the track into something as deep as they come, with dubbed out chords and warm, edgeless but driving kicks and smeared pads all laced up with muffled vocal mutterings and rising synths. It's one for early-evening groove sessions or late-night zone outs.

Review: The Piranha label rolls out its third offering here and it is some high class and heady dub techno excellence from Dub Fu Masters. It is their version of Son of Abe's 'Mr Frosty' that opens up with some psychedelic synths worming their way through rolling beats as acid lines bring texture. Q3's 'NJB' (vs dub Fu Masters) has a filthyTwo Lone Swordsman style bassline underlining snappy drum hits while a sultry sax line also comes in to make for a tight, original sound. Dub Fu Masters then shut down with 'Herb Was Created' which is a menacing and low-slung dub cut with plenty of reverb and another dirty and brilliant bassline.

Review: Following his recent impressive release for Animals On Psychedelics,2 is the second appearance of rising Ukrainian talent Volodymyr Gnatenko on Treviso, Italy's Where We Met. It opens with the moving twilight breaks of 'Een' on the A-side, followed by the evocative slo-mo beats of 'Twee'. Over on the flip, Gnatenko finally ups the tempo on the tranced-out euphoria of 'Drie', with 'Vier' following in equally elevating and psychedelic fashion that will have you reaching for the lasers.

Review: Juan Atkins released some of the funkiest, dreamiest techno of his imperious career as Infiniti. a collaboration with Orlando Voorn,. 'Game One' originally came out on Metroplex in 1994 and it's since become an essential part of the Detroit techno canon. On this release for Kontakt we're treated to some visionary remixes of the track from trusted experts, leading in with Steve Rachmad's pumped up, springy rendition on the A-side. It's a version which upholds the machine soul sensibility of the original, paying all due respect to the blueprint Atkins laid down as a Detroit techno pioneer. On the flip we get treated to two contrasting versions from Santiago Salazar, with his first take heading into interstellar electro territory before casting adrift on the deep house-tinted 'Sci-Fi Xicano Remix'.

Review: Like a Michelin starred chef, Neurotron - an alias you would much more expect to come from the world of drum & bass given its semantics - mixes up just the right amount of serval different ingredients in this classy new EP. There is jazz, deep house, acid, techno, electro, dub and probably more. The opener is a deep one with lovely melodies, 'Alone' is a more club ready sound with smeared pads and acid, 'Hunting' bangs the box in Detroit fashion and 'Woodward' is a blissed out dub house groove that oozes charm.

Review: The party people behind the Sheik N Beik crew kick on with another fine techno exploration here courtesy of The Josh Craig. This is our first brush with this artist but a fine one it is too with classic techno melded with new school ideas to great effect. 'Quantum Infiltration' opens up with thumping kicks and busy synth lines burrowing deep into your brain then 'Ultra Rogue Mission' has a darker and harder vibe with moody pads and ice col hi-hats. There is a sublime deepness to the dubby 'Millenniaapi' and '2099' is like the soundtrack to a post-apocalyptic disaster movie. 'Me Liga' is a mutant techno percolator for the heads.

Review: Ukrainian producer Vakula makes a swift return to the always reliable Phonogramme label from Paris with a superb follow-up to his recent Dinsync collaboration. Deep, nocturnally charged and gorgeously atmospheric, the EP opens with the brooding acid of 'Quantum Voyage', where foggy pads drift over bubbling 303 and jagged machine hits. 'Skys Whisper' blends emotive synth waves with growling bass and crisp drums, with its bittersweet topline gliding over sumptuous harmonics, while 'Sunny Konotop' maintains a similar trajectory, with misty-eyed synth work dancing over low-slung bass and swung beats. Magnificent work.