May: 20 techno releases you need to hear this month

Ellen Allien 'Nost' (BPitch Control)

One of Berlin’s longest-serving techno warriors, Ellen Allien maintains several key strings to her bow: DJ, producer, head of the influential BPitch Control label and a fashion designer to boot. ‘Nost’ is her latest solo album, and it takes in plenty of influences from her hometown, whether it’s the dour hues of the city’s parks and streets or the sweaty adult playgrounds where techno resides and evolves. In light of that, the LP includes lots of dance floor-orientated cuts, with gravely atmospherics, mesmerising vocal clips that put you into a trance and acid flecks from her beloved 303. ‘Nost’ is Ellen channelling her past through a contemporary lens and paying homage to her city. Every track holds its own, and there are no fillers – just a lot of killers.

9/10

Laurent Garnier '1-4 Doctor C’est Chouette' (Speicher)

When Laurent Garnier unleashes something new, the world stands up and pays attention. The French master has it all – skills, panache, personality and imagination – and this new EP on Speicher distills all those attributes into one supreme release. All three tracks are unbelievable, but we selected ‘From The Crypt To The Astrofloor’ because of its goosebump-inducing tension and a string section that will send shivers down your spine. Timeless.

10/10

[Photo: Arthur Garnier]

Stefan Vincent 'Join Us In The Waves' (Anagram)

Wonderfully light and floaty acid is the basis of this delightful cut from an EP full of ambience and classical influences. Stefan gently guides us through a soft, warm swathe of aquatic acid and smooth pads glide overhead as the bassline keeps us engaged. The title of the track is very fitting, too – it really does make you feel as though you’re drifting on a sea of liquid 303.

8/10

Anna 'Far Beyond' (Rukus)

As soon as this one gets started, you can sense the slight angst emanating from its core: you feel tense, shoulders hunched, looking around with paranoid gaze. Then eerie pads creep in and things get even more fraught, as gentle snare rolls assist in unleashing the track’s energy. It’s quite subtle yet propulsive, too. Every so often a new layer is added, increasing the depth and tension. And then, after three minutes, the breakdown comes in... bang.

8/10

Sasha feat Poliça 'Out Of Time' (Kompakt)

Sasha touches down on the mighty Kompakt with a breakbeat-heavy roller. The beat is straight out of the mid-90s, while the general feel of the track is totally different from anything else we’ve heard this month. The vocals are wistful, the beats superlative and the way the bassline combines with the organ keys peppering the first part of the track is sublime. Steel yourself for when the vocals come in.

9/10

Lucy 'The High Priestess' (Zehnin)

If there’s one thing Lucy has in abundance, it’s control; he’s seemingly able to temper his creativity just enough to tease out the sombre and cerebral techno he’s renowned for. It’s an impressive ability, and ‘The High Priestess’ exemplifies his knack for measured, shadowy techno. The drums feel ceremonial, and the spine-tingling build is so subtle you hardly even realise it’s happening until the kick really starts to drive things forward.

9/10

Cardao 'Journey To Mars' (!Organism)

The chase is on. This one sounds like the theme to a scene from a movie in which an extra-terrestrial oil slick is cascading through the narrow passageways of a decrepit spacecraft, pursuing a hard-as-nails heroine. There’s a sense of emergency, of claustrophobia and imminent escape. It’s something to do with the muffled kick, which pens you in and induces a feeling of stress; just try to keep on running.

8/10

Cardopusher 'Trouble With Thinking Too Much Acid' (Zone)

Venezuelan producer Cardopusher is a man who loves to play around with genre definitions, doing his own thing outside the rules of whatever style he’s experimenting with. The 303 gets into action here, but the pace is slow. This track would have more impact at a higher bpm, but that’s not to say it isn’t a good production – it’s pretty mean. Pull the brim of your baseball cap down to your eyebrows and pull a screwface to this one.

8/10

Hunter/Game 'Dead Soul' (Joey Anderson remix) (Just This)

Joey Anderson steps in to deliver a stunning remix of Hunter/Game’s melodramatic original. This reinterpretation turns a melancholy journey into a bright, beautiful one with light, twinkling percussion and a dreamlike atmosphere. This is a delicate cut that would work perfectly as an interlude mid-set, or perhaps as a closer – it’s certainly one to get the dance floor feeling emotional.

8/10

Timo Maas 'Creation' (Rejected)

Timo Maas and James Teek recently picked up a Grammy nomination for their rework of Paul McCartney and Wings’ track ‘Nineteen Hundred Eighty-Five’. Of course, here in the electronic music world, we already know how good he is, with further proof now here in the shape of this ultra-groovy cut on Dutch label Rejected. Be careful, because the bassline of ‘Creation’. is a stone-cold killer – it’ll lock you down like a prisoner on death row.

7/10

Objekt 'Needle & Thread' (Objekt)

Is this techno or is it breakbeat? Who knows! Objekt is one of those cats whose music is often unclassifiable, which is why we like it. ‘Needle & Thread’ definitely has some of that techno flavour stitched into its make up (just listen to that hypnotic bassline). It’s only after three minutes that we get the beats, which sound more like slowed down d’n’b’. From then on, he tells us a story with impeccable skill. Just listen.

9/10

Dave Clarke 'Way Of Life' (Octave One remix) (Skint)

Now, here’s an absolute romp from Octave One. This has big- room appeal, but not in a commercial way – more of a big massive warehouse space with lasers going off and ravers on their mates’ shoulders. Think of locations such as Warehouse Project or Printworks: it’s just big and ravey from start to finish. That main riff is a delight, with Octave One’s decision to keep it repetitive making it even more deadly.

9/10

Lauren Lo Sung 'Tresor' (Gettraum)

Lauren gets busy with one of those groovy basslines that engulfs you, penetrates your cranium and gets lodged deep inside your brain, sending your body into an involuntary dancing episode. Then the analogue stabs come in and it just rolls out, turning into a deep techno roller that’s perfect for those hazy late-night parties where everyone’s loose and open to the lascivious rhythm.

8/10

Wilhelm 'Doldrums' (Rimshot mix) (Oscilla Sound)

This is a virtually beatless, serene and introspective soundscape that’s a pleasure to listen to; it’s one of those pieces of music you can put on first thing in the morning to get the day off to a peaceful start. This Rimshot mix is soft, warm and full of beauty – though all the sounds are clearly electronic, it has an organic feel, as though the sounds of nature are being channelled through his equipment. Stunning.

9/10

P Leone 'Tears' (E-MISSIONS)

Heavy drums get this one off to a rambunctious start. As it progresses things start to get a bit lighter, though, with a repeated vocal stab and analogue licks adding to its engaging appeal. Soon, P Leone introduces soft pads which add depth and create a neat juxtaposition next to the potent kick drum. There’s not a whole lot of progression, but it does its job well.

7/10

Honorée 'Pearls' (Evigt Morker mix) (Rekids)

Some solemn, immersive business now, courtesy of this stunner of a remix from Evigt Morker. This rework goes deep and trippy: the drums have a tribal lilt and the background is teeming with the sounds of the rainforest, with its natural effects supported by a deeply engrossing bassline. The percussion is precise and gives us a steady rhythmic flow that complements all the other elements of the track perfectly, esulting in a superb piece of techno.

8/10

DJ Spider 'Space Jungle' (Green Village)

DJ Spider’s new EP on Green Village is decidedly weird and trippy in places. There are no discerning genre boundaries, which is great; it all feels quite techno-y, although some may want to place it in other pigeonholes. Whatever it is, ‘Space Jungle’ is a great, solid piece of music with an intergalactic feel. It’s journey music, whether you’re on the dancefloor losing yourself or on a long train ride to a distant destination. Whatever the circumstances, it’ll tempt you away from reality.

8/10

Adam Beyer vs Pig&Dan 'We Are E' (Drumcode)

These guys are masters when it comes to bringing the dancefloor to its knees, so when we saw they were teaming up, we put on our hard hats and prepared for the demolition. Good job we did, as all four tracks on this EP are bound to crush. ‘We Are E’ samples one of the original tracks that created jungle back in the 90s, paying homage with a big ravey riff that sets things off nicely before deploying a bassline that wouldn’t sound out of place in the same era.

9/10

M Parent 'The Practice Of Pseudoscience' (Chem Club)

Anyone who likes it deep and driving should snap this track up immediately. M Parent turns seven minutes into seven hours with this cut, which is ridiculously engrossing and sure to have you utterly captivated for its entire duration. It’s moody and grey, with piston-esque percussive effects that create images of a factory at work. But when you check the tune’s title, you know exactly what’s going on.

8/10

Chuckie 'The Watcher' (Desolat)

Desolat reissue this old 90s jam from Chuckie, which is a total slammer. As soon as the filtered breakdown gets things moving, it’s non-stop action all the way for the rest of the track. Loco has been spinning this ‘lost’ gem for years, and eventually decided it was deserving of a full re-release after witnessing the strength of its timeless appeal on dancefloors around the world. Wait for the electro-fied breakdown after the four-minute mark: you’ll nod your head until your eyeballs start popping out of their sockets.

8/10

Marcus Barnes is Mixmag's Techno Editor, follow him on Twitter