Hypnotic techno: music you disappear into

A journey instead of a drop

Most dance music builds tension and releases it in a climax. Hypnotic techno does something else: it pulls you in. Loops are long, changes barely noticeable, and sounds circle, overlap and blur. After a quarter of an hour you stop thinking about what comes next and stay in what is happening now. It is the child of minimal techno and dub techno, covered in earlier lessons.

Donato Dozzy: the Roman hypnotist

Donato Dozzy from Rome is called the master of this style. His sets can last many hours and flow without a single abrupt transition. He became especially famous for his performances at Japan's Labyrinth festival, known for its outstanding sound system in the mountains and a place of pilgrimage for deep techno fans.

Voices From The Lake

Dozzy joined forces with another Italian producer, Neel. As Voices From The Lake they released their debut album in 2012 on the Munich label Prologue. Resident Advisor named it the best album of the year. Listen to "Iyo": the bass ripples like water while small, organic sounds splash around it.

Labels and people

Prologue ran from 2008 to 2015 and released artists such as Cio D'Or and Giorgio Gigli. In Madrid, Semantica Records has been run by producer Svreca since 2006. American Rrose, Seth Horvitz, made "Waterfall" in 2012, a track that builds slowly like the roar of a waterfall. Dozzy and Neel also run their own label, Spazio Disponibile, which releases Mike Parker among others.

How to listen

Hypnotic techno works best in full, on headphones or a very good sound system. Don't skip tracks. Give them a few minutes and you will hear small changes add up to a journey.