A pumping techno compilation — laced with breaks, IDM, and dub — is as good a place as any to start learning techno. Luckily, we tracked down the artists to hear how these bangers came to life.
Spandau20, an imprint named after the Western Berlin district and focused on artists from the area, delivers techno in all diverse forms – from warehouse and electronic peak time beats to breaks and IDM, balancing the old and new school sounds flawlessly. With a focus on vinyl releases, for the collectors, Spandau20 has lately also focused on its label nights, with showcases at Fabric, Bassiani and many others.
With their latest release, Spandau20 010, (their 10th release) the Berlin label delivers a welcome dose of atmospheric, offbeat, and modular techno—plus a hint of mailroom grit. It does not disappoint. As always, driven by a desire to better understand the craft of production, we spoke with the artists to get their thoughts on how the tracks came together.
“Come Closer” – (All artists)
For the opening track of Spandau20 010 we wanted something that truly represents our collective: raw, honest, connected. Everyone brought in handcrafted samples with their very own signature that we all combined to build a soundscape that constantly keeps evolving.
While we did most of this remotely – from studio to studio – a common vibe was there from the start. Ideas literally just flowed; everyone found their space in the arrangement too. The mixdown was a team effort as well – we have been refining it a few rounds until everything just clicked.
At the core: a spoken-word poem we wrote together. Whispered by Elli Acula, it pulls you right into the SPANDAU20 void. We recorded the vocals through a strong Neve 1073 preamp with a Neumann TLM 103 mic, the voice carries this almost hypnotic energy, like a distant thought taking shape through sound in the back of your brain.
This track is for sure more than just an intro. And it’s also proof that: no matter how different backgrounds and styles are, they can merge into one shared vision.
“Floating Eyes” – Elli Acula
In the middle of the night, I feel there‘s this special kind of energy on the dancefloor, the way the groove pulls people in, the way voices cut through the music, that hypnotic push and pull between tension and release. That’s what inspired me for this track.
I wanted to combine rolling grooves with pumping energy, so I played around with different low-end percussion layers around the kick, constantly switching up the dynamics.
To shape the tracks depth, I mainly used iZotope Trash 2 for rich, textured distortion, while i like to use glue compressors to keep the mix tight and sidechain compression, triggered by pretty much every element in the track, to add that extra bounce, carving out space for the kick while keeping the groove rolling.
I added my subtle vocal layers to capture that seductive dance floor vibe, processing them with Soundtoys Crystallizer for dreamy, hallucinogenic textures. The granular echoes and reverse pitch-shifting make them feel like they’re floating in and out.
The synths evolve through shifting LFOs, constantly shaping modulation and movement. For the final drop, I worked with a dynamic delay pattern which unfolds over four bars, subtly warping the harmonic space and keeping the energy high and unpredictable.
“Overbridge” – KiNK, FJAAK
Overbridge is a jam between KiNK and us, built around the raw groove of the Roland TR-909 layered with the Elektron Digitakt.
The sound is classic but driving, with that signature 909 swing cutting through. The synth work comes from the Elektron Digitone, adding a futuristic yet warm texture and some shifting micro harmonies if you listen closely. All the Elektron gear was synced via the Overbridge plugin, which is where the track gets its name. The setup allowed for real-time manipulation, making the track feel alive and evolving with every layer.
The setup allowed for real-time manipulation, making the track feel alive and evolving with every layer
“Move” – Dajusch
Move was intended rather for clubs, not the big stages. Therefore, I kept the breaks and drops to a minimum to not disrupt the dancers’ flow. The whole project is basically just 5 tracks: the drums are made of Logic’s own ‘Modern 909’, the bassline and the lead chord progression are from U-he’s ‘Hive 2‘ and the percussion from Logic’s heavily filtered, crunched and side-chained ‘Latin-Drummer.’
To keep things moving, I relied on the ever-evolving minor chord progression, by automating a variety of parameters. An automated send feeding short bursts into Logic’s nearly infinite Ultra Dub Tape Delay, to create a rhythmic but washed texture around the chord. In that bed, the chord itself is constantly shifting through wavetable positions, filters and modulated reverbs and delays. To do that, U-he’s XY-automation control concept came in very handy.
Since I wasn’t going for an oversaturated festival banger this time, I opted for the clean but punchy SSL-Buscompressor and the Bettermaker (a modern Pultec style EQ) on the Mixbus.
“Bloomscroll” – Claus
The samples, sequences, and arrangements of the track Bloomscroll were initially made in Ableton live.
Next low/mid/high bands of the already arranged track were reworked with equalizers and amps. Among them where Vermona E 2010 (stereo-channels connected in series for some extra crunch), Mackie 8-bus channel strips (amp distortion for high end), Rough Rider VST (overall destruction) and the Ableton AMP effect (very pleasant harmonics).
These juiced up versions of the arranged track were then put together to allow for a dynamic change in overtones and self-oscillations. These added harmonics (and even some more tonal resonances) were tuned to the main synth line of the track to enable a subtle harmonic progression. Additionally, this alternating distortion was allowed to bleed into the low frequencies, which varies the tone of the kick drum. Finally, Bloomscroll has very little stereo signals, which not only prevents phasing, but also signifies its dedication to site-specific club music.
“JACKFRUIT” – FJAAK
Jackfruit is almost a pure hardware jam, loaded with rich textures and heavy grooves. The Analog Rytm and Octatrack lay the foundation, delivering punchy, dynamic percussion, while the MOVE by Ableton adds hypnotic, shifting synth patterns.
All the FXs in the back are done with the MOOG ONE & Korg MS-10. The track captures the raw, unfiltered energy of a spontaneous live jam: driving, and full of movement. It’s a deep, rolling cut guaranteed to work on a big system, while shifting percussive elements and synth pattern changes keeping the tension alive.
Bloomscroll has very little stereo signals, which not only prevents phasing but also signifies its dedication to site-specific club music
“Icy Liq” – Anna Z
Icy Liq is actually a jam session from last year. Normally, before I travel, I record a jam session in the studio using modular gear. This way, I can have fun cutting it on the way and trying out things digitally. So practically, Icy Liq is a kind of tape recording, and the work afterward was more organizing- & mixdown-oriented.
The drums from the modular system were recorded one after another, really sharp and high-quality sound. I used a couple of analoge sound sources: Tyso Daiko, Mysteron, Metaloid Percussion, Ultra Perc and one digital module: Plaits. To create more interesting sound sculptures, I used Juniper, an 8-channel modulation source, to deform different parameters like length, tune, decay, etc. To bring order to the drumscape, I used a mixer Summingfacility from Audio Gear Obsession. What was also fun to use a Aux out sends to have time to time an effects on top of the sounds. The main goal for these recordings was to add more space feeling and color. I used RC-Retro Color and Valhalla Room to achieve this.
I wrote the bassline for this track the night before on the UDO Super 6, using headphones. I thought I was a rockstar, just played it, and recorded only the audio —without MIDI. Later, I struggled with the mixdown of this bassline, but there are a couple of tricks you can use on a resonating recording. In my case, I used FabFilter Q3 to cut frequencies in the bass and high-frequency ranges, keeping it between 29-4000 Hz. Then, I used FabFilter Pro-MB to compress the frequencies that clashed with the kick and snare.
On the next day, before recording the full session, I played spontaneously synths on Digitone, because my vibe was more hopeful and less dark, as bevor when I was going to sleep.
“Down In The Shadows” – Nikk
Down in the Shadows was born during a quiet, introspective time, shaped by the stillness of the pandemic and a period of personal change. Created using the Elektron Analog Rytm and Digitone, and incorporating samples reworked in Ableton Live, the track blends deep, moody rhythms with melodic synth layers to evoke a sense of reflection without descending into darkness.
Though rooted in a melancholic mood, I tried to find light in low moments. It’s a reminder that even in the shadows, there’s movement, growth, and the promise of better days and time.
“Tufted” – J.Manuel
This track came together over several sessions. It began as a studio moment to record a sample library. I started in the Apollo, sending signals into the Make Noise Spectraphon, and eventually sequenced the Intellijel Atlantis — notes from the Metropolix using different restart gates. I added grit with the BXx2.
I enjoyed the dirty FM tones, so I made more, mostly using the Cyclonic Cyclebox and Flurry, shaping the results with the Natural Gate.
Various percussion sounds were made from basic building blocks. Low pass gates were key, shaping raw tones into natural drum sounds — especially using envelopes.
I used the Oberheim Xpander to make pads and funky FM sounds, which I ran through the Zähl AM1 CV channel. The Echo Fix EFX-3 added more than delay — it gave tone and gain I liked.
I later moved to our home-studio in our living room to record modular synth drums. The Intellijel Rubicon provided the kick’s base layer. The clap came from the SSF Ultra-Perc, and I used plenty of Metalloid percussion. The track was mixed in the box — since so much was already processed through analogue gear, it didn’t need further outboard treatment.
The track was mixed in the box — since so much was already processed through analogue gear, it didn’t need further outboard treatment
“Fennec” – J.Manual & Tobi Neumann
The track Fennec began after an intense mixdown session. As often happens, we were patching around and discovered an interesting drum groove on the Make Noise Morphagene, which we sent through the FXDf Fixed Filterbank and RxMx.
We built a kick using the Portal Drum by Rabid Elephant, which sounded promising, so we added more drums. A key element (at 00:57) is a blend of lead synth and percussion. This sound came from two STOs, mixed in the modDemix, with a pitch envelope on the carrier oscillator, run through the Cwejman FSH-1 Frequency Shifter, and shaped with the fast envelope from the Rabid Elephant Natural Gate.
We layered more drums using the Tyso Daiko and Akemie’s Taiko (ALM), further processed in the modular. The MFB SEQ-1, clocked by a 909, sequenced the percussion.
SPANDAU20 010 is out now. Listen on Spotify or Bandcamp. Follow Spandau20 on Instagram.
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