Juno Recommends Minimal / Tech House: Best of 2023

Review: As Soul Capsule, Baby Ford and Thomas Melchior made some of minimal techno's most accomplished records. It has been many years since they stopped turning out new material - sadly - but their archive tracks are still in hot demand and undeniably relevant. While 1999's 'Lady Science' might be their most famous offering, this EP from 2001 on Aspect Music is no less vital and it will currently cost you well over L250 on second-hand markets. It is Ford's Trelik label who reissues it here in all its glory: the entirety of the a-side is taken up with 'Law Of Grace,' a delightfully deep and breezy minimal dub house roller with pensive chords draped over the frictionless drums. 'Meltdown' has a more experimental feel with brushed metal drums beneath a wordless vocal musing. The cult 'Lady Science' (Tek Mix) is also inched with the whole package being remastered by D&M to make this one utterly essential.

Review: Oh how we all miss Andrew Weatherall. Not only was he a masterful DJ who could lock you down for hours on end, but he was a producer who could bring his own brand of sleaze and filth to disco and techno. On top of that, he was always a voice of reason, of humour, of realism. Sad as his passing is, it's nice to hear from him again via this previously unreleased track on DISDAT. 'YW Eleven' is all distorted synths riffs alternated with beautiful chord progressions that make for another standout bit of apoco-disco. On the flip, Rhadoo reworks it into a superb bit of snaking and brain melting minimal tech house.

Review: Frenchman Sebastien Leger is something of a musical drama. He makes escapist sounds with lovely captivating melodies designed to get you to disconnect from the often harsh reality of life and connect with the here and now. Stepping away from his own label he now turns up on Lost & Found with two more such well-designed and mature tracks. 'Extassy' is awash with glorious pads and shimmering synth lines over airy, suggestive drums. Flip-side tune 'In A Distorted Galaxy' has more weighted drums and rubbery baselines, but still the sort of keys that are dimly lit and twinkle in the darkness.

Review: Norm Talley returns to his Upstairs Asylum label alongside fellow US house pioneer Delano Smith for Straight Up No Chaser, an eight-track opus featuring four solo cuts each. Talley's gritty, dubbed-out, low-rolling house style is present and correct throughout with the loopy chords of 'Blak Bottom' getting things going, 'The Flip' getting more cavernous and aqueous and 'ISO Vision' leaning into dub techno. 'Believe It' is a soulful deep house looper, while Smith gets bubbly with 'The Bassline', lays down thumping kicks on 'Travels 23' and his trademark synth smears on 'The Drive' while 'Remembrance' is a heady dub house cut that locks you into a state of perfect hypnosis.

Review: Chris Stussy has become one of the new school underground darlings, and he deserves it. The Dutchman crafts slick electronic house sounds that draw from deep, tech, minimal and breaks and ooze cool. He's a dynamic DJ too and the two no doubt feed into one another to help him really excel on both fronts. Here he is in fine form on his own Up The Stuss label with two more jams. 'All Night Long' is a dark and marching cut for heads-down moments and 'Rose Bay' then spins you out on nice breezy space house grooves. Great work once again.

Review: This rather unique and otherworldly EP from Dan Andrei is a world all unto itself. While this is a mood conveyed by its somewhat Lovecraftian front cover, the three tracks found inside are equally rare in sound. Matter-of-fact and up-front, yet tentacular, the sonics heard on the lead track 'Ultraviolet' and the closer 'I Dream Of Shrimp' put forward a kind of alien honesty, as if our extraterrestrial visitors have absolutely no fear, and come in peace. It's no wonder this music is able to bridge gaps; it's seen the Romanian artist butt heads with the best and brightest in the international breaks and minimal scene, of late.

Review: Here's a massive collaboration from two titans of house music, albeit spanning different generations. Riva Starr and Todd Terry are both legends in their own right, and they team up for this partnership on Hot Creations which is all about no-nonsense, big room pressure for the peak time crowd. 'This Is The Sound' is a whole heap of fun, with classic samples and stabs thrown around the mix on top of a sexy, bass-heavy groove. 'Creators' is clearly a nod to house's Chicago roots as the pair get into a Trax strain of acid that's seriously gnarly, the 303 tweaked to its very limits and then tweaked some more. For those wanting to get freaky in the mix with that same 303, there's also an 'Acidapella' thrown in for good measure.

Review: Terry Francis is a tech house OG. He's one of the earliest fabric residents and of course was half of Wiggle, a vital party and DJ pairing that helps shape tech house's earliest forms. He has a fine solo catalogue too and it is that which Mint Condition, the fine reissue label, digs into now to serve up his classic Dubtown. It opens up with the watery dub-tech and liquid grooves of 'Hannah's House' then gets a more melodic dub. 'As You Cry' is an irresistible groove with wobbly bass, sharp hi-hats and that kinetic sense of drive that a good tech house always has. Last up is another Rub N Tug classic, 'Reggae's House'.

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: Is there anyone in the game that has been turning out such essential club sounds in so many different styles for such a long and consistent run as Burnski? Whatever he has on his cornflakes, we want some, because he's done it again here, this time with pal Kelper. 'What I Want' takes up the whole of the a-side and is mix of everything from deep house to minimal to Chicago jack. It's a busy, restless tune with a hooky vocal that keeps you locked. 'This' is a more tripped-out 5AM groove with warped deep space sound designs and airy drums that float. 'Lucid State' taps into a dreamy 90s tech house vibe that is utterly compelling.

Review: Fresh from releasing the third and final part of the Oldivibes trilogy of EPs, Mulen Records co-founder Io (real name Aleksandr Voznichenko) offers up some aural 'Ecstasy' to get tech-house dancefloors moving. The EP-opening title track is a retro-futurist delight, with the Ukranian producer peppering a tactile, turn-of-the-90s warehouse groove with raw hip-house stabs, whispered vocal snippets and spacey synth sounds. The old school flavour continues on 'Deep In My Soul', where a 'Bombscare'-inspired lead line combines brilliantly with an organ bassline, smooth beats and swirling electronics, before Voznichenko reaches for psychedelic TB-303 style motifs, rolling drums, funky stabs and glassy-eyed riffs on 'Edge of Infinity'. Finally, 'Air Gap' is an attractive mix of bold, ear-catching bass, heady organ riffs, mind-mangling electronic motifs and loose-limbed peak-time drums.

Review: We're always glad to hear new material from undisputed dub techno don Steve O'Sullivan. This new one on his own Mosiac label finds him facing off with Paul Simmons on a pair of deliciously deep cuts. 'Inner Glow' is given the whole of the A-side to make its mark and it does - with a slightly more soulful sound than you might expect. Rather than pure heads down underwater deepness, it's got a heart warming vocals hook and brighter chord vamps over the signature drum smoothness. 'Still Burnin''is a quicker cut with more radiant chords and a soulful spirit, then a Bluespirit dub of the a-side zones things out nicely.

Review: Following on from his remixes of Robert James' LP Battle Of The Planets, Berlin-based Klix goes in for the kill with four examples of club-friendly grooves that are big on dancefloor dynamics but also boast a delicate sensitivity to melody that's often left behind when it comes to the minimal/tech genre. Check, for instance, the distinctly understated acid undertow to 'Just Tell Me', balanced beautifully with lush, New Order-esque pads, or the almost imperceptible trails of flute left across the landscape of 'Satisfaction'. Best of all is probably 'Squanchy Thoughts' featuring Shibafu No Baga, the vocoders and synth lines rendering it like a post-rave Kraftwerk.

Review: Big hello to new label A Lifetime On The Hips which has a great name and great stamp on this limited edition first 12". It kick off with a various artists affair packed with full flavour cosmic tech. Abdul Raeva opens up with the twinkling melodies and sleek tech drum work of 'Invasive Overdrive Track' then Aldonna's 'Inner Elation' gets more deep with a steamy whispered vocal and shimmering drums. There is more classic sound US house from Demi Riquisimo, lashing of snappy techno from The Vision and bouncy astral house from Donald's House's 'Jam 3'. A great first EP.

Review: This delectable new minimal techno release from Boulderhead features 'Bread Butter Noodles Spice' as its star track. Fittingly featuring a vocalist called Overnite Oates, this track hears the artist reel off many members of the dairy, meat, pulse and carbohydrate food groups - chicken, rice, jam, etc. - while being underlaid by an infectious analog groove. If the purpose is to whet our appetites for the economic consumption of the remaining three tracks, then let's hear them out: 'Moonstone Energy System' is a clangy one, 'Ultra' is a springy acid swing tune, and 'Framework' sounds like the minimal tech ideal of the garden of Eden.

Review: Four new tracks from EB Flow mark the latest release from the ever prolific Constant Sound label, as ever providing solid and dependable dancefloor gear that boasts a myriad of different flavours. 'Sunshine' wastes no time setting up a strutting, Van Helden-esque groove and lets it roll, adding a few vaguely nostalgic samples on top. 'Running' has more of a breaks feel, harking back to the days of rave's roots when breaks and acid could sit together naturally rather than in different genre pigeonholes. 'Before' is the most minimal of the four, peppered with frisky garage snares and a subtle but ultimately devastating filter breakdown, while a feelgood gospel-style vocal gives the closer, 'Searching', a lovely optimistic tint. Constant Sound continue to deliver.

Review: It's been a long time since we heard from Pangaea, one of the three famous faces who made up the original Leeds label come ubiquitous DJ's DJ's DJ imprint - Hessle Audio. Though perhaps less appreciated than his contemporaries Ben UFO and Pearson Sound, now's his time to shine again: Changing Channels is his second ever album, following up 2016's In Drum Play (which for all its quality, rough, juddering techno experiments, will always line the shelves of many a budding selector). Like its predecessor, oddball bassy techno is here Pangaea's preferred mode, whether reflected in the sassy femme vocal cutups of 'Installation' or the spitting basses of 'Squid'. This is one of two vinyl 12"s over which the album is spread; an effort to enhance its playability for DJs.

Review: Three nicely varied offerings from the Constant Sound label's co-owner James 'Burnski' Burnham, headed by the ridiculously catchy and unashamedly party-stoking 'Where Are You?', where hyperactive, clipped vocals add a new dimension to the sturdy, garage influenced house grooves that have become one of his trademarks. 'Stop' is cooler and calmer, jazzy vibraphone tinkling making way for nudging keyboard stabs, and delay-heavy reggae vocals and brass flavouring the irresistible shuffle of closer 'The Way''.

Review: For a few years a while ago, Robert James was one of the hottest names in house. He ushered in the post-minimal era with colourful, accessible sounds that brought some much needed life and charm back to the scene. After disappearing for a time he returned with his debut album in May and now some of it gets some top remixes. Slapfunk's Anil Aras pumps a nice cosmic house vibe, Kepler does his tight, high tempo work and Thoma Bulwer & Anna Wall combine their skills once more on a clipped, punchy tech house version of 'Planet 90.' Laidlaw lays out some electronic drum funk with a fine version of 'Infinity' to close.

Review: Truly Madly's Mindhelmet label has been working on overdrive this last year or so. It has put out no fewer than seven EPs, all of them with their own style, but all of them tapping into the overall signature sound the label is fast honing in on. There have been solo artists' EPs as well as VAs, like this one, which is packed with talent. There is real kaleidoscopic funk to the smeared synth work and crispy tech beats of Jhobei's 'GFC', then Jomni brings squelchy acid lines and rugged bass to 'Hozukyo Ravine.' On the flip side are the punch physical drums of T Jacques and Sam Hudson's trippy late-night kicker 'Mr Purdy's Sweet Shop'.

Review: Legendary minimal - and acid house before that - pioneer Baby Ford very much set the blueprint for the genre back in the late 90s, both solo and with The Ifach Collective, who featured Ian Loveday, Mark Broom and Thomas Melchior (amongst others). Now they are reminding us of the greatness of that work with the first in a series of reissues coming in 2023. These tunes were originally put out back on the legendary Klang Elektronik in 2000. First up is 'Tea Party' by Eon, M-Core, and Baby Ford, an ice-cold rolling dub. 'On The Floor' with Mark Broom gets more percussive and then comes a solo cut from Baby Ford, 'The Healing' which is as heady as can be and finally 'Word For Word' featuring Cheru Amadi layers up slithers of silvery percussion and cuddly bass into dubbed-out tech heaven.

Review: Ray Mono started out as a resident in Leeds at the cult mono_cult party and has since gone on to emerge as a top talent in the studio. He has a fresh blend of minimal, house and tech that has taken him to labels like Moxy Music but now it is that OG home of mono_cult that welcomes him for a first release on the new label. True to form this is silky and irresistible tech with liquid grooves and smart samples, seductive synth lines and plenty of emotion as well as dancefloor clout. Mihai Pol and Sota remixes completely Ray's standout originals to make for a fine first outing from this label.

Review: Tech house is an unfairly maligned genre. While criticisms of the blandness of the sound might hold weight for much of the stuff released today, the same simply can't be said for the work of Terry Francis, who helped pioneer its sound. All & All is a new series, this one documenting Francis' contributions to the underground, with many of the tracks appearing on it made during the period in which he was a resident DJ at London's Fabric. As you can hear, 'tech house' at the origin point, as propagated by Francis, was much dreamier - closer to its cousin, deep house. And on cuts like 'How Can Something', you can really hear where the received 'dreaminess' of house and the uptempo, industrial pulse of techno, converged.

Review: The Only Music Matters label is slowly but surely building up a fine head of steam as it now offers up a sixth EP in just a couple of years. As always it is an unknown artist behind these stripped-back and direct-to-dancefloor beats and each one goes long for over eight minutes. That playtime is well warranted, too, as 'AAA001A' is the sort of groove you never want to end: dry drums and hits and paddy bass that are tightly woven together into a hypnotic sonic tapestry. 'BBB001B' is a little more gritty and twitchy to fire those sleep-deprived after-party synapses while 'BBB002B' shuts down with some underlapping tech-house funk and tripped-out designs.

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: Public Posession's Big Beat Manifesto hits a seventh volume here with the prophet Eden Burns bringing more of those direct-to-dancefloor sounds that he is so well known for. Molten acid defines the deep atmospheres of 'Free Your Mind' and then more textural synths and raw, live-sounding drums provide the foundation for 'Around N Around.' 'House Non Stop' picks up with some prickly acid squelch and bouncing house drums while 'Multitool' closes out with a flailing percussive workout and tribal energy. Another fine volume in the series.

Review: Manchester-based producer Pach, who you may remember from his much loved 'Pull Up & Dance' anthem on Darius Syrossian's popular Moxy Muzik label last year, produces a generously proportioned four track EP for the Aesthetic stable. Take note of the title, as it dictates the contents, with the A-side's two tracks, the title track and '21 Bump Street', proving to be the definite uppers, both adding a delirious feel of disco euphoria to a sturdy tech-house framework. The flip side features the slightly darker and more mysterious cuts 'Sticky Fingers' and closer 'Six N Switch', the latter featuring the sound of some rather decadent X-rated activities in full swing. Nice work if you can get it.

Review: Yoruba has always done tech house with a difference - a genuine sense of spiritually and Afro groove permeates the music it put out. A prime example of that is this new collaboration between Oveous and Don Kamares. The former lays down spoke-sung lyrics that muse son legacy and being true to yourself. They're stream of conscious and never stop as the production from Kamares shines. It's a deep house cut with lithe drums and shiny synths that move about the mix and grow in stature. If you prefer to keep it more striped back, a flip-side instrumental will do the trick.

Review: Josh Baker has made himself one of the most prominent names in the house scene over recent years. He got some serious production chops and shows that off again here with a new EP for You & Me. 'Work It Out' is a slick and compelling mix of woodpecker-like bass rumbles, smooth-cruising snares and electronic drums with subtle vocals up top. 'Pardy Hardy' is more wonky, with acid flashes and sci-fi motifs over a more grinding groove. 'Counter House' shuts down with another fat house sound that cannot fail to get the floor going off.

Review: Rex The Dog has been a Kompakt artist seemingly forever but this is actually his first new music on the Cologne powerhouse in three years. He heads off on a slow-burning disco stomper that has him tweaking as much magnificence as possible out of his modular synth setup. 'Change This Pain For Ecstasy' is stripped back and pulses with energy as chords sweep through the skies and a delirious voice pleads for you to "take away my sorrow and this pain". On the flip is 'Moto' which builds from subtle vibrations to become a hefty techno cut with wild and erupting tones and crackling, corroding sounds all filling the airwaves.

Review: Dimmish is one of those names making himself ever more a part of the tech house firmament and he deserves the acclaim as this new EP on Easternderz proves. It is high grade tackle with several different stylistic nuances. 'Orbit' is a warm pumper with funky bass rotations and well designed drums under balmy pads. 'Lemon Life' ups thence with more high speed, high power but always funky grooves and lithe synths, and 'Singularity' rides on a wave of subtle melody that takes you ever higher. The closer 'Dissolve' with its more colourful and playful melodies might be the best of a great lot.

Review: Mint Condition is relentless in its mission to serve up carefully chosen reissues of house and tech classics from days gone by. It is now fast approaching a 60th EP as its strides into 2023 with UK tech house pioneers Terry Francis and Nathan Coles aka The Delinquents next up. This one came on their own Wiggle label back in 1998 and is perfectly indicative of their sound. 'Break & Enter' has warm liquid rubber bass, crispy snares and kinetic drum funk that makes you bump. 'TDA (To Dance Alot)' has chunky clicks and heavy drums that make you march and 'GBH (Groovy Bouncy House)' has a more far-sighted cosmic vibe.

Review: For their latest deep dive into house history, the dusty-fingered sonic archelogists behind the Mint Condition imprint have delved into the mid-90s catalogue of San Francisco producer turned sound designer Safar Bake. 'Tangerine Train' first appeared on the tiny Aqua Boogie Records imprint in 1996 and in recent years has become something of an in-demand collectible. This reissue boasts all four mixes from the original 12": the hypnotic, acid-flecked deep house/early deep house fusion of the 'Absolute Runaway Train Mix', the densely layered, pots-and-pans percussion of the 'Runaway Train Beats' version (an insanely good mixing tool), the smooth, organ-based powered deepness of the 'Lost In a Tunnel of Dub Mix', and the pleasingly wild, roughneck, mind-mangling hedonism of the brilliant 'Last Acid Train To Euphoria Mix'.

Review: Pangaea's latest album Changing Channels comes a notable seven years after his debut, In Drum Play, and again hears the Hessle brain lay down a whopping demo in dance histrionics. Made in a period of oscillation - between international DJ sets and holidays of downtime and r&r - we get the impression of a remarkably clear-headed album, with the production crisp, and the choice and placement of samples neat. On this 12", we hear the LP's first part, with the no-fuss garagey 'Hole Away' and the stabby 'Changing Channels' piquing particular interest.

Review: For the whopping 12th instalment of their eponymous V/A series, the label known as Mindhelmet spews forth four new ones from Sweely, Nathan Pinder, Paradise City Breaker, Bobby O'Donnell and Reeshy. Rambunctious future dance cuts spanning everything from alarmist electroclash ('Space Bong') to minimal tech sputterings ('Via Lincoln Green').

Review: Ascendant London talent Joshwa returns with the latest release on the ever reliable Hot Creations for this very limited vinyl release. Following those amazing edits and remixes of Florence & The Machine and Aussie funky house duo Madison Avenue recently, he delivers his next dancefloor bomb for 2023 in the form of 'Bass Go Boom'. Wait for the drop of course, and then that massive b-line underpinned by a swing-fuelled rhythm and a stuttered vocal for maximum dancefloor potential. Over on the flip, another similarly minded surefire tech house jam optimsed for the peak time exists in the form of the infectious 'Supersonic'.

Review: A couple of years back, the revitalised Hooj Choons label released an album of orchestra-sporting covers of classic dance cuts of the 1990s under the HEO: Hooj Ensemble Orchestra tag, then got rave revivalists Borai and Denham Audio to remix their new version of trance classic 'Cafe Del Mar'. Here those mixes - a frankly filthy, bass-propelled 'Rave Booty' mix and a more acid-flecked, grandiose breakdown-sporting 'Pluck Dub' - finally make it onto wax, alongside the Club Glow duo's similarly previously digital-only reworks of Transformer 2's early 90s 'Hooj' classic 'Fruit of Love'. More tactile and loved up, with tactile bass, pleasing pianos and glassy-eyed vocal snippets, the pair's 'Redux' mix is simply sublime, while Borai's solo dub is a deliciously dreamy, rush-inducing affair that sounds like a future rave classic.

Review: Originally formed in 2014 as a trio dedicated to blurring the boundaries, the Waves now exists as a solo project of one of the members: Berlin-based Maayan Nidam. Here she presents her long-promised debut album, 'Motorikherz', an atmospheric and off-kilter affair that confidently joins the dots between eyes-closed experimentalism, wonky post-punk-pop, minimal house, opioid electronica and stylish new wave pop. It's opaque and atmospheric in the extreme, with Nidam's evocative vocals rising above (or sometimes being buried beneath) sparse but warming analogue electronics, stripped-back rhythms, heavily processed instrumentation and inventive production trickery. As you can see, it's hard to describe, but it's adventurous, entertaining and - for the most part - surprisingly soothing.

Review: Dana Ruh has made a lot of great music over the years, much of it in a trademark personal style that's deep, dubby and tailor-made for bleary-eyed early morning dancefloors. Even so, the first lady of Berlin deep house has gone even deeper on 'Different Places Different Favourites', her first outing on Smallville. Check first 'The Spirit', where echoing synth stabs and gentle acid lines ride a weighty, dub house style bassline and locked-in drums, before admiring the spacey, Move D-esque brilliance of 'TJ Mornings'. Elsewhere, 'L.A Nights' is dreamy, deep, hazy and soulful - U.S deep house viewed through a cloud of jazz cigarette smoke - and 'Reach Out For Me' pairs the wonky, stripped-back sonics of bleep with Ruh's trademark deep, dubby house crackle. Impeccable.

Review: A keystone label in the minimal and tech house world, Butter Side Up are yet to disappoint, adding another dazzling release to their collection, welcoming back Liquid Earth for 'Deputy Dog' - his second EP on the label. Exploring a sublime and spaced-out club sound, the LA-based artist is a new school mainstay, having previously appeared on the likes of renowned label Kalahari Oyster Cult and his own label project, Liquid Earth Physical. Tight punchy drums and swirling, interplanetary pads veer into view with the opening track '2 Tha Dance Floor'. Next up, the title track 'Deputy Dog' arrives as a wonky counterpart with bleeping and squeaking modulated beats dancing over a full-bodied bassline. On the flip side, 'Rim City' touches on a West Coast house sound with funk-infused chords and energetic, driving drums. Closing things up, 'Feels So Good (As It Should)' loosens things up, flowing between shimmering cymbals and a delicate, vapour-like synth melody, punctuating the track at points and then swerving out of view at other moments. A wonderfully varied release from a do-no-wrong label and an up-and-coming producer to get excited about.

Review: The highly politicised Los Angeles collective Ultra Red re-released their superb A16/A17 12" last year. Both tunes were produced entirely from field recordings made during street protests against the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington April 16 and 17, 2000 and became secret weapons of DJs like Ricardo Villalobos & Craig Richards. Now, 'A16' gets remixed by underground titans Losoul and The Mole into two club-ready groovers. Losoul goes first with a dry and minimal take that is textured and deep with plenty of absorbing atmosphere. Next up, The Mole goes for a more propulsive sound with glistening tech house drums and icy pads. Both are artful reworks that take you on a mental trip.