One of the true, undisputed pioneers of Dutch techno, Steve Rachmad appears on Dekmantel for an EP of peerless machine music. On the 3-6-9 EP, the artist also known as Sterac, Parallel 9 and many other names plies a powerful trade in funked up, gritty and soulful techno made the proper way.

The connection between Rachmad and Dekmantel reaches back many years via his frequent appearances at the Dekmantel Festival — he has two performances at the 2026 edition as well as sets at Dekmantel Selectors lined up later in the summer. The 3-6-9 EP lands ahead of an album and world tour that marks 45 years in service to electronic music, nodding to Rachmad's earliest roots in electro funk through to his day-one embrace of house and techno as it made its way across the Atlantic from Chicago and Detroit.

There's a rowdy, rave-spirited energy to the synth hook bucking its way through the centre of '3 Creation Energy', coming on in brassy tones laced with artful distortion while the drums dutifully jack the way they ought to. There's a more linear, pressure cooker quality to the tidal filter work guiding '6 Physical Manifestation' to its own energetic peaks, while '9 Completion and Delivery' surfs on coursing waves of arpeggiated lead lines before breaking through to the oceanic calm of grandiose pad tones.

There's no mystery to unpick here — this is quite simply techno perfection made with the instinct and experience of a master of the form, whose life is synonymous with every inch of the culture.

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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
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UTTU hits the 200 mark (officially) with DJ Haus in the command module navigating wild meteor showers, solar flares and of course WORMHOLES - along for the ride are fellow cosmonauts Legowelt (under his amazing new ZORLOK COMPRESSOR alias), Berlin legend SHED & Tokyo's 'modular dub enthusiast' YASSOKIIBA - each reworking EneGiZer into unique outer reaches of the sonic cosmos - absorbing DUBSTEP, REGGAE, TEKNO, BREAKZ and HOUZ!"

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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
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Allen Jovonn Armstrong, active for over 35 years and still amazes. Fresh 4 tracker of stomping NY breed house with a small nod to our hometown...

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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
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DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
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Tracklisting
A1 Damon Wild - Intimicy
A2 Damon Wild - Rogue Wanderer
A3 Damon Wild - Human Lineage
B1 Damon Wild - Switch Box
B2 Damon Wild - When Love Dies
B3 Damon Wild - Mass of a Million Suns

Sales Note
Techno architect Damon Wild returns to Sonic Groove with a masterclass in deep-space hypnotism. The Synewave founder bridges classic 90s grit with sharp, modern production across six tracks of driving, futuristic acid and mental, dubbed-out atmospheres. From broken beats to haunting vocal snippets, this is deep, spontaneous music from a true pioneer of the hypnotic sound.

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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
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DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
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An overdue repress of this essential release from Jimpster, on Freerange Records circa 2024. Beautiful deepness from an architect of the sound. AtJazz remix to boot!

A1 - Jimpster - You're My Ecstasy
A2 - Jimpster - The Passion ft. King Crowney
A3 - Jimpster - The Passion ft. King Crowney (AtJazz Remix)

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Tracklisting
A1 Cirkle - Skyland
A2 Cirkle - Infinity Drift
B1 Cirkle - Stimulus
B2 Cirkle - Impulse

Sales Note
Fuse leans further into its proposed aesthetic of biting club tracks with a brand new release by Cirkle. ‘Infinity Drift’ balances powerful sound system sound design with lush ambiance, creating standout moments on a dancefloor with a taste of nostalgia. These tracks explore the richness in themes that techno can have when made by someone who’s spent years meticulously crafting it. ‘Skyland’ asserts itself first with impressive pace. Swift chord stabs open and close to create waves of excitement and craze in the track while percussion shuffles along to add impact; Cirkle is an artist of all rooms and dimensions. Shrill sound design cuts through the stereo field creating a wormhole in the middle of rhythmic determination. Tension balance and anticipation are his specialty and every transition whips his dispersed elements into singularity in the EP, specifically the title track. A truly musical piece that embraces the crowd with vintage warmth, ‘Infinity Drift’ tones down the dissonance in exchange for something closer to astral exploration. These larger than life themes are never lost on dancers and serve to unify the dancefloor into an organism instead of pushing sound system violence. This is a theme that is omnipresent in Cirkle’s music and carried through into ‘Stimulus’. Here, the Greek producer dips into the hypnotic bordering on psychotic, stretching arpeggios and delays across drum transitions and time. The dimension of ‘Stimulus’ matches the preceding tracks with ease, but stands out in its effect, rolling a powerful synth through reliably tuned percussion. For the final track, ‘Impulse’ sees Cirkle prioritizing the importance of drums. Pressing hard on the drive of the kick, rides and filtered claps squeeze their way out of the low end to create an infectious groove. Stabs of ethereal pads envelope the rest of the EP, leaving space for the rest to breathe. Bumping along the way, Cirkle lands the EP with class, cementing himself further as an artist whose knowledge of the dancefloor creates a singular experience.

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2LP Gatefold EcoRecord
Listening link: https://listen.k7.com/6785299e-07e2-474f-8a2f-f64c579a1117

LP & CD TRACKLIST
A1/01 Emergence
A2/02 Spiral
B1/03 Drift
B2/04 Off Axis
C1/05 Swarm
C2/06 Flicker
D1/07 Exhale
D2/08 Bloom

TEXT
Bridging the sound of two distinctive auteurs within modern electronic music, Exhale is the natural convergence of Batu and Donato Dozzy's revered, distinctive sonic signatures. With techno in the broadest sense as a framework, the pair have created an immersive listening experience that celebrates the flashpoint of inspiration and thrives on experimentation.

As Batu, Omar McCutcheon has made a huge impression on modern club music by channeling the soundsystem-rooted principles of dubstep into inventive mutations that defy easy categorisation. Donato Dozzy has been a leading figure in European techno since the mid 00s, helping pioneer a culture of deeply immersive, subtle dance music charged with ambient atmospheres. The pair first connected in Japan in 2019, discovering a mutual appreciation for each others' work and a curiosity about how their distinct sounds might intersect.

In February 2025 Batu visited Dozzy's studio in Rome. Within that Aladdin's cave of hardware, the pair mapped out a continuous, instinctive flow of sketches that became the bedrock of Exhale.

Between Dozzy's gear-focused practice and Batu's detailed software manipulations a dialogue emerged between the duo's distinct styles, making space for each other and learning along the path to a record both unique and innately connected to their respective musical legacies.

The eight fully-formed pieces that make up Exhale bear the hallmarks of both creators in equal measure. True to their musical mission, there are no one-dimensional approaches taken throughout Exhale. Transcendental sequences are laser-guided by kinetic drum science, and even the most bruising moments are balanced with a delicacy that leads straight to the heart of both producers' profound appeal. The album that has emerged feels like an honest, instinctive celebration of Batu and Dozzy's respective strengths, made all the sharper in unison.

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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More