Big thanks to Selector News’ for the fantastic write-up on hard techno from its 90s origins to the modern day.
Patrick DSP – Cutting In [Interruption Records] (2023)
Pounding, mechanical, percussive vibes live on! While a lot of contemporary hard techno artists are trying to outdo each other with who can make the most distorted pseudo-hardstyle, the likes of Patrick DSP are staying true to the genre’s ethos. “Cutting In” is a relentless, sinister roller that never lets up, adding layers upon layers of rugged percussion as it progresses to create a thick, tightly packed rhythm joined by creepy atmospherics and metallic synth stabs.
Read the full article here: Hot Track Time Machine – Hard Techno from the ’90s to Today
Most retrospective music lists highlight already well-known songs, overlooking the countless gems that didn’t attain anthem status but are nonetheless timeless pieces of excellent music. Hot Track Time Machine brings attention to cuts that largely flew under the radar, but deserve the same kind of love.
This edition focuses on hard techno, a faster, more intense, and sonically heavier evolution of techno that emerged in the ’90s and peaked in popularity at the turn of the millennium thanks to artists such as Miss Djax, Mike Dearborn, and Chris Liebing.
Combining the distorted and crusty sounds of hardcore and industrial with the funk and rhythm of techno, hard techno is a unique hybrid that, although on the surface is considerably more brutal than the genre from which it evolved, is also a lot funkier and groovier than hardcore and its offshoots. While the style has had diehard enthusiasts since its inception, the explosion of minimal in the mid-to-late 2000s and then tech house in the early 2010s saw hard techno’s popularity wane considerably. However, post-pandemic, it has truly returned in a big way.
That being said, much of the newer music being called “hard techno” is closer to hardstyle and hardcore than its namesake. Although it certainly has the aggressive distortion and punishing tempos of those genres, it lacks the all-important funk and groove of techno, often replacing it with the catchy vocals of Eurodance and abrasive synths of hardstyle.
With this in mind, Hot Track Time Machine is here to honor the artists and labels who have stayed true to the ethos and aesthetic of hard techno. Read on for a list of bangers you may not have heard from the earliest days of the genre’s inception to the contemporary tracks staying true to the sound.