Juno Recommends Minimal / Tech House: June 2023

Review: 12",180g, Vinyl Only. Limited copies and no repess!

Review: New label Autochrome kicks off with good intent - not only does this one come on nice heavyweight wax with a cheeky Homer Simpson logo, but the minimal tech beats are fresh indeed. 'Ritmatic' is all bubbly lines and underlapping bass, with gurgling synths making you move. 'Powermood' then gets more funky, with clipped bass vocals smeared into the arrangement to bring soul and dynamism. 'Mucanue' closes out with balmy cosmic pads swirling around clacking drums. A fine debut.

Review: It's still hard to keep up with all of Burnski's many different labels, but we're not complaining. This one, Constant Black, mixes up things with a tech and minimal twist and next to do so is Daniel Akbar. 'What' soon wins you over with its kinetic and infectious drum programming and smart samples - a phased vocal and a twisted synth lead. 'Retreat' gets more physical - the drums bang with an old-school flavour and hint of tribalism. 'Listen' is a big fat tech roller with low slung bass and 'This One' rounds out with some brilliant drum, hits and brain-frying bass sounds. Pow pow, what a record.

Review: Derek Carr has been pretty untouchable in the last couple of years. His work in the fields of deep house and deep techno has been consistently innovative and captivating. He takes care of the eighth EP on the Trident label now with more of his serene sound designs and dynamic grooves. 'Allez' heads off into the cosmos with balmy pads and smooth drums then acid lashes about the mix of 'I Want You' which rides a nice tight, clipped, locked-in drum line. Things get more loose and star gazing on 'Revival' while 'Typhoon' closes with playful synth patterns tumbling down over invitingly warm deep house drums.

Review: Multi-instrumentalist, music-maker, and singer-songwriter Elderbrook shares his second album 'Little Love' for ADA, channelling a mixture of big, bold electronic and more sensitive acoustic pop elements to express the lows, highs and neutrals of becoming a father. Speaking of "glimmers in your eye" and "being there if you need me", this is a promise of unconditional love in album form, with its overarching mood being one of surety.

Review: Many congratulations to Crosstown Rebels, a pioneering tech-house and big room dance music imprint that this year celebrates its 20th birthday. To mark the occasion, founder and creative force Damian Lazarus has dipped into the archives and come up with a collection of rarities and previously unheard remixes. Starting with his own Jem Cooke collaboration 'Into The Sun', an atmospheric, deep tech-house excursion smothered in twinkling pianos and trance-inducing electronics, Lazarus offers up an enticing mix of chunky goodness (Art Department remixing Jamie Jones), percussion-rich after-hours wonkiness (Dennis Cruz reworked Pier Bucci), pulsating neo-trance (Audiojack re-imagined by Michael Mayer), tech-tinged deep house hypnotism (Black Coffee tweaking Made By Pete vs Zoe Kypri) and saucer-eyed Ibiza anthems (Maceo Plex).

Review: German beat maker Fabe has emerged over recent years as one of tech house's most skilled groove smiths. His drums and bass are always seductive no matter their style. Here he links up with Burnski aka Instinct's Constant Sound label for four more irresistible nuggets. 'The Greater Good' is super quick as it glides over rippling bass with silky chords, then 'Newbie Bounce' has a more weighty groove. There is elastic funk and US swing in the shuffling goodness of 'Flow Groover' then 'On Edge' closes out with bulky deep house beats and late-night synth work of the highest order.

Review: Pau Roses and Adria launched Cupula last year with a collaborative 12" which showcased their particular approach to the tech house scene, where acidic and rave influences can slip into sleek beat structures to make for dancefloor magic. That theme continues on this split release, which invites the likes of Hypnofriends, Saverio Celestri and Innershades to lay down their own machine-powered jams for the freakier kind of floor. If you want to have a lot of fun and grease the crowd up good and proper, these tracks have got you covered.

Review: Following the sad passing of UK tech-house pioneer Nathan Coles earlier this year, this Mint Condition reissue has taken on an extra layer of emotional resonance. Co-produced by Coles and long-term creative partner Terry Francis, Discfunktional first surfaced on the pair's Wiggle label 23 years ago. It was their last release as The Delinquents. It remains a terrific record. A-side 'Disc' is a hypnotic, mind-altering and surprisingly tough peak-time delight - all short, sharp TB-303 lines, spacey synth riffs, tight piano stabs and breathless acid bass. The mind mangling early morning vibe continues via the similarly acid fired 'Funktional', whose foreboding sub-bass, winding TB-303 lines and crunchy drums are as infectious as they are addictive.

Review: For those who value digging deep into the folds of original UK tech house, Mark Ambrose has been a cult favourite for a long time. Now, as the sound continues to enjoy favourable conditions amongst those who like to play long and winding sets stretching out into infinity, Repeat are doing the right thing and combing through Ambrose's considerable back catalogue from the late 90s to piece together some of the most sought after gems. Sharks be damned, now we can get our hands on some of these prized items, like the wall-shaking, dubby as hell 'Zulu Groove' and sumptuously groovy sunriser 'Free Your Mind'. No matter how much tech house gets made these days, they don't make it like they used to.

Review: There is no doubting Jay Tripwire's credentials at this point. The Canadian has been turning out his own left of centre take on tech for many years, and always to a super high standard. Here he serves up more of the good stuff for The Other Side in the form of 'Narcotic Oscillator', firstly as a UG mix. It's dark, grubby and menacing low slung tech that becomes more airy and hypnotic as the WC mix. Ion Ludwig's Narco State mix then strips it back to a silky smooth and deep, dubbed out roller and Jay's 'Solace' closes with rubbery bass and tin pot percussive clatter for those back room after parties.

Review: The Repeat label is doing a great service to the culture of real tech house, nodding to that late 90s sound and carrying work from the likes of Jay Tripwire, Eddie Richards and now Grant Dell. The Dis Chronicles series hits part two with some further obscurities from back in the day which sound as relevant now as they were futuristic back then. 'Disco Hit' was a collaborative effort from Dell and Richie Littler, and it's utterly addictive thanks to those cheeky DX7 organ licks, while Dell's 'Up Yer Strasse Dub' of Len Lewis' 'Illicit' is chunky and dubby in equal measure. Dell's own 'Fari A Come' completes the set with a more overt drop into dub territory, sampling a true Jamaican legend and showing how the tech house sound could transplant onto backroom, head-nodding gear in style.

Review: After their last outing 'Atomic' sold out, Acid Jerks are back on Refuge with more of their 303 fuelled madness. They have a tried and tested sound by now but who will ever grow tired of ragged acid house? 'I Get To Know' has it all - the prickly acid squelch, the splintered and wooden drums and the dark and menacing vocal over the top. It's perfect warehouse music. Dutchman Alden Tyrell then roughs it up a little more with his Chicago-indebted remix and Dick Johnson adds a little bounce to the drums and layers in some slinky hi hats for a more undulating sound.

Review: Italian label Micro Orbit takes its bow here in the form of a various artists' EP across a nice heavyweight 12". Aron opens up with 'Shift' which is a bubbly minimal house cut with aqueous synths and popping drums. Distilled Noise's 'Trenta' then layers up more silky synth sounds with underlapping bass waves lifting you off your feet. Idana ups the ante with more uptempo and quickened drums and bass loops that are detailed with gorgeously wispy melodies on 'Sunday' before Vern closes down with 'Orizont' which is the most sleek and tech-y cut of the lot. As far as first releases go, this is one that bodes well for the future.

Review: Nick Beringer is a man who can program and brilliantly tight and kinetic groove with his drum machines no matter the genre. This new 12" on Abartik finds him doing just that, firstly within a house framework on 'Transatlantic', a nice deep and silky cut with effortlessly cool vibes. 'Cash Call' is a more gritty minimal and tech fusion with bobbling bass and splashy hi hats, then 'Euro Gap' mixes up gurgling acid with neon chords and nice trippy designs that will work the afters. 'Rm90' keeps up that vibe with more deft designs and liquid electronic funk that waves its way deep into your brain.

Review: Stripped back and tripped-out are the immediate adjectives that spring to mind when painting a picture of Pressure Traxx latest edition to their Silver Series output, 'Instruction EP' from Frankfurt-based Kuyateh. On the A side, we enter onto the side-stepping rhythms and distant, spliced vocals of 'Instruction' before we take an airier, dub-infused turn into 'Nothing to Sea'. On the B-side, 'Zuruck Auf Anfang' pulsates with precise, minimal rhythms and a melancholy-tinged melody that reaches out towards distant horizons. The final track, 'I Have To Go' is the star of a strong bunch, its infectious groove dipping below the surface of cool water - aqueous and bubbling. This is the perfect release for outdoor summer settings and cosy dancefloors alike.