Highlights this past month in the techno universe include a couple of prominent packages that help fill up the chart. Including a trio off of the 10th edition of Ellie Acula’s SPANDAU20 that top the list. Plus, all three of the tracks from NINETOZERO’s latest – a limited label series from the techno master himself, Enrico Sangiuliano. Robert Hood is here too with a solo release that he’s made purely out of his passion for minimal techno. Then there’s a collaborative effort on Drumcode that brings a rave classic back to life. Dive in. This chart is lit.
Check out all of the tracks to chart so far this year:
1. “FLOATING EYES” – ELLI ACULA [SPANDAU20]
Kicking off SPANDAU20’s tenth compilation is this frenetic, jackhammer that deservedly gets the opening spot. Turn it up.
2. “JACKFRUIT” – FJAAK [SPANDAU20]
FJAAK‘s second contribution to the latest SPANDAU20 compilation is a no-frills, hard-groove workout that reinforces how straightforward the Berlin duo is about their craft.
3. “ART SCHOOL” – ROBERT HOOD [M-PLANT]
“M-Plant is what I’ve always wanted to hear: the basic stripped down, raw sound. Just drums, basslines and funky grooves and only what’s essential. Only what is essential to make people move. I started to look at it as a science, the art of making people move their butts, speaking to their heart, mind and soul. It’s a heart-felt rhythmic techno sound. M-Plant is just M. minimal.” – Robert Hood
4. “MOVE” – DAJUSCH [SPANDAU20]
Fourteen months after his last appearance on the techno chart with “30 Seconds,” Dajusch is back on Magnetic’s radar with this immersive whirlwind he simply calls, “Move.”
5. “WE BUILD AND RESET” – ZIMMZ [NINETOZERO]
‘Zimmz offers a cool point of reflection about time in general, about how many of us get lost in the past or in the future and about how important it is to live in the present. Every story, every life cycle will finish at some point, wanting it or not. And only then, a new cycle will rise. Ninetozero was born around this idea, with a precise end set in time.’ – Enrico Sangiuliano
6. “YOU KNOW WHAT I WAS THINKING” – SECRET CINEMA, ABOUT SOFIYA [NINETOZERO]
‘Sofiya had the idea to make a track which will make people imagine ‘Purple’. We made the ‘purple’ layers first, then the beats and other sounds came right after. We measured the key scale, then it was D major and B minor which had the meaning in color spectrum Blue and Red, which makes…purple! Then there is a melody which Jeroen made in one go, the melody itself came out green, we balanced the sounds so it gives contrast to the overall color palette of the track. After balancing, the key of the track became E minor and G major.’ – Secret Cinema
7. “YKSI” – BART SKILS & HEERHORST [FACTORY 93 RECORDS]
What seems like the sequel a Bart Skils 2023 festival weapon is actually his new collaboration with Heerhorst on Factory 93 Records that utilizes a similar vocal effect with a a lot more grit for 2025.
8. “FOCUS (LAYTON GIORDANI REMIX)” – JOHN SUMMIT FEAT. CLOVES [EXPERTS ONLY]
Known for a much more aggressive sound in the recent past, Layton Giordani tones it down a bit for this striking remix of John Summit‘s “Focus.”
9. “OPPOSING AMBITIONS” – JOHN YIENGER [CRISIS OF MAN]
Six varied techno slammers fill up John Yienger’s return to CRISIS OF MAN but only “Opposing Ambitions” really stretches out and provides a cerebral experience you can truly wrap your head around.
10. “THE BOUNCER” – SPACE 92 X CHARLES D [DRUMCODE]
Kicks Like A Mule’s ’91 breakbeat anthem, “The Bouncer” gets a frenetic update in 2025 on Drumcode. “Your name’s not down. You’re not coming in.” IYKYK.
11. “THE TECHNO CODE” – ENRICO SANGIULIANO [NINETOZERO]
‘’The Techno Code’ is built around the theme of discipline. I wanted to create a driving, stripped-down techno track with a voiceover that guides you through it—almost like a set of rules’ Enrico says. ‘The voice, with its slightly arrogant and commanding tone, lays out the structure and meaning of the track, but with a touch of self-irony. It knows it’s leading you through a fat, giant, classic techno track—and that’s what makes it fun. This track was born on the dancefloor. The first raw version debuted at Futur Festival in Turin in July 2024. From there, I kept playing it, refining it, and testing it at almost every show. It became the track I played the most before its release, shaped by real-time energy and feedback.’ – Enrico Sangiuliano
12. “DIVINE” – PAVEL PETROV [STIL VOR TALENT]
Boasting jagged curves, heavily-processed textures and straight out bouncy elasticity, ‘Divine’ is a low-slung kind of roller, primed for extensive use at peak time or across the more subtly nuanced layers of pre-after boogie down.
13. “BYE BYE” – LUCIID [TAAPION]
Hold on tight. Luciid‘s 160 BPM banger, “Bye Bye” will knock you on your ass.
14. “THE RABBIT ON THE MOON” – OSCAR ESCAPA [SWAY]
The sound of the jungle takes over on this tribal stomper courtesy of Oscar Escapa on the fourth volume of Ace Trax.
15. “MORSEN” – FLITS [PLANET RHYTHM]
Deep, subterranean techno vibes for your mind to close out the best of April 2025.
