JOHN TEJADA – DEAD START PROGRAM – KOMPAKT

John Tejada has a remarkably consistent approach, but he never slips into the comfort zone, as ‘Dead Start Program’ testifies. There is a certain edginess to his writing here, a nervous energy that propels these instrumental tracks towards the dancefloor. That they don’t always arrive there is down to the raw musical material, for Tejada’s loops are a hive of musical activity. They are often syncopated, and often make use of small melodic cells that open the music out to a wider sound. This is in contrast to his previous work for more intimate surrounds, and leads to tracks like ‘Detector’, where the acidic bass sounds cut sharply, the busy ‘Telemetry’ or ‘The Looping Generation’, where a central riff burns its way into your consciousness. Tejada knows his classical music too, with ‘Quipu’ using a lush chord progression from Stravinsky’s ‘Rite of Spring’ as a crafty basis from which to build. Another seamless integration of humans and technology, but with more of an edge this time around.

Ben Hogwood
4 out of 5