Always confused about electronic music genres

March 15, 2018 5:26 PM

I THINK I’m looking for minimal techno, house, and some style of music that probably isn’t as exact as those but closely resembles the Underworld songs Jumbo and Born Slippy.NUXX

I’m REALLY into Khotin, this song by Galcher Lustwerk, this song by Mall Grab, Jock Club, and anything that is similar to those songs. And I mean I am obsessed with this style of music right now.

What kicked this all off is that I found a copy of the promo release of Born Slippy, which has been one of my favorite songs ever since I was a kid and saw Trainspotting and hung out on IRC chat rooms where people commonly listened to stuff like Orbital and Aphex Twin and Autechre and other stuff. But recently people in Phoenix, AZ, my hometown, have been making this style of like, minimal techno I guess it’d be called? So for a few years now I’ve been sitting on the sidelines sort of checking things out as I’ve noticed them or had friends tell me what to check out. Now I need more, because I found a couple of record stores here in Portland that have some of this style of music, and I have a really mean audio setup for listening to it. I really like a lot of Underworld’s songs that are hard hitting, but their relaxing stuff like Jumbo really speaks to me (I’m a big fan of Pearl’s Girl as well). I know that Underworld is probably more direct techno than these newer people, but their stuff like Jumbo feels like a bridge to this sort of stuff as well, which is why I’m mentioning it. I just got an album by somebody named Alonzo that’s really sweet too.

So, can anyone just hit me with a ton of this minimal or lo-fi techno, especially newer stuff? Down the line I’m going to be asking how to make this music as well, because I have it stuck in my head all day at this point.

posted by gucci mane to Media & Arts (10 answers total)

In terms of genres, the Galcher Lustwerk and Mall Grab I think a lot of people would call that "deep house". These do keep on the same groove for a while, but that's kind of what house and techno do - minimal wouldn't be the term I go to to describe them. (though everyone's idea of what is minimal is different, so there's not a lot I'd start out describing that way).

Anyway, if I have time later tonight I'll probably be able to come up with a lot more, but for now, try out these:

The Cyclist
Michael Claus
Karen Gwyer
posted by aubilenon at 6:25 PM on March 15, 2018

This isn't a fit for your preference for newer stuff, but Underworld was featured on about 1/3 of the episodes of MTV's Amp, season one. A few whole episodes are available on Youtube, but here's someone who has recreated a bunch of the show as playlists allowing you to skip around and find just the things that might be a match.
posted by Wobbuffet at 7:39 PM on March 15, 2018

See if Yagya is up your alley... here's their album Rigning on Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYvGXVfwsEY

If you have a really nice stereo, it's worth getting this in a lossless format because it has a gorgeous low end. All their work does, really.
posted by lefty lucky cat at 8:21 PM on March 15, 2018

Sorry no specific recs, but Every Noise At Once is good/fun for putting mostly authoritative labels on the sounds you like.
posted by PaulaSchultz at 9:02 PM on March 15, 2018

Sorry I don't have time to narrow things down, but you should definitely explore the Best of Year lists at Headphone Commute (scroll to bottom of page for links to lists going back to 2007).

Please don't be put off by the whimsical category names - there is an absolute ton of amazing less well known electronic music to be found through these lists. Alongside what you're looking for (minimal / dub techno, ambient techno, deep house), you will find a deal of more purely ambient stuff, plus smatterings of modern classical and more abstract eletronica, some of which might float your boat too.
posted by protorp at 1:36 AM on March 16, 2018

Bicep sound a bit like this -- try Glue, Aura, or the Four Tet remix of Opal that was just released.
posted by rollick at 3:17 AM on March 16, 2018

I think you'd like a lot of the artists mentioned in this recent Ask thread.
posted by parm at 3:45 AM on March 16, 2018

Also, try Animals by Minilogue.
posted by parm at 3:48 AM on March 16, 2018

You might find Every Noise at Once helpful. Try entering the artist in the top right corner.
posted by woodvine at 4:25 AM on March 16, 2018

Thanks for the suggestions everybody! I will be sure to check all of this out when I’m off work this weekend. I recently found a Spotify playlist of music from Redbull with a bunch of music in the style I’m looking for, I guess it’s “lo-fi house”. Here is the playlist, if anybody is interested.
posted by gucci mane at 3:23 PM on March 16, 2018