John Tejada

The press release for this latest John Tejada album describes his aspiration to make a serious techno album for the home listening crowd, and for the most part that’s exactly what he’s achieved. As a world-renowned DJ, remixer and producer, Tejada already has a long career spanning back over a decade. His singles have made the charts in Europe and Asia, so his take on bedroom techno never really aspires to sound like any current movement: John Tejada is typically comfortable doing his own thing. As a result, Cleaning Sounds has very retro quality to it, borrowing as abundantly from the early ’90s Warp catalogue (LFO certainly comes to mind) as it does from techno’s bedroom explosion later that decade. And yet, due in large part to Tejada’s ingenuity, this is an album that sounds nostalgic without ever using the past as a crutch. Tracks like "Whatever Happened to Manners?” and "The End of it All” retain their strong sense of rhythm even if they don’t compel you toward a dance floor. It may not beg you to lie down with the headphones either, but you’d be hard pressed to find a more suitable album this month for late-night driving.