John Tejada

If you don't know John Tejada yet, this is a solid entry point. Year of the Living Dead marks his fifth album for Kompakt, and it's a masterclass in minimal and electro hybrids that sit somewhere between sparse techno and tech house. Tejada's approach here is restrained but intelligent - tracks breathe with negative space while maintaining relentless forward momentum.

Tejada has always worked best in the margins, avoiding the obvious drop or the predictable build. On this record he leans into that sensibility even harder: layered synths emerge from near-silence, drum machines lock into hypnotic patterns, and the arrangements reward close listening. There's a clinical precision to the production that never feels cold, just focused.

Kompakt's lineage speaks for itself - this is the label that built its reputation on exactly this kind of material: thinking person's techno that works equally well in headphones or on a proper soundsystem. At 12" album length, Year of the Living Dead gives Tejada room to develop ideas without filler.