Techno music recommendations – week 7

Our arbitrary music recommendations are back once again, featuring fresh releases in various styles of techno.

These informal short pieces, featuring unorganised and personal takes on new releases, have indeed been absent for way too long. As always, there is plenty to pick from, so let’s bust a move and get to it.

Artefakt – Kinship

First up is a debut album from my favourite “emo-acid” techno duo. This time, they focus more on rhythmic drive and less on progressive melodies than before. Definitely an interesting and driving release without any obvious weak spots. Highly recommended.

Orphx – Pitch Black Mirror

In the less compromising corner, I cannot resist mentioning this gem from November last year. The sounds of Orphx are brighter and nastier than ever, and it fits this album very well. If the basement-wrecking, semi-industrial releases of Sonic Groove are your thing, this one will not dissapoint.

Von Grall – Following The Rules

This guy never fails to make outright psychotic sounds with reatively little use of distortion. His fine balance of dissonant pads against a boomy low-end is a rare quality. Be sure to check out his new Seeking Loyalty EP as well.

ASC – Internal Software

A little bit of dub, a little bit of bowly percussion, and a perfect production technique. With a stable output of both ambient and techno releases, ASC always delivers pristine sound with a huge stereophonic image.

Conforce – Kernel of Truth

Being one of Boris Bunnik’s outfits, Conforce is usually the one to watch if you are looking for straight-up techno. This time, however, he also put a clever little fusion piece on the B-side. “Oasis” could easily have been e.g. a Versalife track if it hadn’t been for the missing 606 snare and the mysterious melody.

Concept of Thrill – Diversity Relay

“Breaking” techno beats seems to be the way to go these days, and Concept of Thrill have made it their speciality. Where their recent release “References” sounded a bit too brickwalled and blown up to my ears, “Diversity Relay” packs plenty of punch and sounds just right.