The Detroit techno producer has died aged 64. In July 1997 Mike Shallcross interviewed Atkins for the cover story of The Wire 161. We have now made that article free to read in the magazine's online library.

From Detroit to Deep Space: Juan Atkins interviewed by Mike Shallcross, The Wire 161, July 1997

Alex Maiolo salutes the visionary musician and "The Originator" of techno who died on Saturday night

Juan Atkins was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1962. His parents split when he was a teen. The plan was for him and his father to move to California, but his grandparents made the case for them to take up residence down the street in the Detroit suburb of Belleville. This was only the first time Juan's grandmother, Lily, had a direct effect on the history of electronic music.The second was when she helped the 15-year-old buy a monosynth. Already playing in funk bands, Atkins took note of Bernie Worrell's work in Funkadelic. Apparently Lily could absolutely tear it up on the Hammond B3 she...

The post Remember Them: The Incalculable Legacy of Juan Atkins appeared first on The Quietus.

From avant garde beginnings to ambient endings, Cluster reconfigured rock music as much as Kraftwerk, says Toby Manning.

In the late 70s and early 80s, British music took a distinctly European turn, from Bowie's "Heroes" in 1977 to Ultravox's 'Vienna' in 1981, peaking with Kraftwerk's 'The Model' hitting UK no. 1 during the same year. Whether it was the after-effects of the EEC referendum or a growing anti-Americanism in the wake of Watergate and Vietnam, this new Europeanism temporarily sidelined music's traditional Transatlantic passage for the artier terrain over the Channel. Chart hits like Visage's 'Fade To Grey' in 1980, The Passions' 1981 'I'm In Love With A German Film Star', or The Mobiles' 'Drowning in Berlin' from the same year...

The post A Form of Utopianism: Cluster's Sowiesoso at 50 appeared first on The Quietus.

Pete Paphides reaches for the Gaviscon as he considers national identity, large plates of fried food, and what would be on the playlist were he celebrating British culture on the airwaves

Pete Doherty eating his breakfast at the Dalby Cafe, via Instagram

It's been ten years since, over a Muswell Hill cuppa, my pop-loving compañero Bob Stanley floated a theory that was, on the face of things, a mite fanciful. He suggested that a key factor in the outcome of the 2016 referendum on leaving the EU was the similarity between the words 'Brexit' and 'breakfast'. Bob contended that those of us who wanted Britain to remain in the EU didn't have a comparably snappy word to which we could align our...

The post How Pete Doherty's Mega-Breakfast Predicted GB News Radio appeared first on The Quietus.

Here's everything our Subscribers had last month, including over four hours of listening treasure in the multi-platform playlist

It's that time of the month when we take the heavy lifting from our Subscribers' ears and keep them on top of all that is new and good in tQ's world. Before we give the Subscriber and Subscriber Plus tier members the links to their playlist on the various streaming platforms, here's a bit of a catch-up on what we've sent out to our top two subs tiers in October. In the Low Culture Podcast, John and Luke discussed the original 1954 film that kicked off the Godzilla series, as well as the recent Godzilla Minus One. The Low Culture Essay was on...

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The Last Path

Blunt Synopsis

Formerly known as Bad Amputee, trio from the north-east of England take things slow. Real slow

Blunt Synopsis by The Last Path

When the sort of music The Last Path play really lands, the secret to it doing so is in how it just teeters on the absolute precipice of unsalvageable dourness. Guitars that sound innately metallic, not as in the genre but evocative of a large amount of lead ingots plummeting from the sky onto rural limestone. Vocals that draw out nigh on every vowel sound, not for melismatic or otherwise showy reasons but just to figuratively look you in the eye and say, "I'll finish singing this line when I'm ready, thanks".

Blunt Synopsis is the second album...

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I'll always remember that opening underwater feeling of Joachim's 'You Don't Fool Me' and the bells of Markus' 'Regensburg'… Well, you know we love full circle moments here, especially when they involve artists and records that played such an important part in the inspiration behind ASIP.

Markus Guentner and Joachim Spieth both appeared on the original Kompakt Pop Ambient compilation in 2001, a series that heavily influenced ASIP and remains a personal favorite to this day. So, 25 years later, it's rather special to welcome them both together as one for an isolatedmix.

Both artists have followed their own paths since those early Kompakt days, but their shared history eventually led to a series of collaborations, including Overlay, Conversion, and contributions to Markus' own Kontrapunkt album here on ASIP. Both have also contributed to the isolatedmix series individually too, as despite all these years passing, it's refreshing to hear such a consistent style and depth to their productions to this day - a signature sound that many artists would strive for.

For this isolatedmix, Markus and Joachim revisit their collaborative work, bringing together tracks and remixes that connect the different projects. It's a fitting opportunity to look back at where it all began, how their musical relationship has developed, and what might come next.

We caught up with them both to discuss their early Pop Ambient days, working together, and making music 25 years on.

~

It's now been three years since your collaborative album Overlay was released. Looking back at that record from where you are today, what do you hear in it that perhaps wasn't obvious to you when you were making it? 

J: I actually find *Overlay* to be relatively timeless; it could just as easily be released today. That may be partly because, for this project, we settled on a few cornerstones of our musical upbringing without making them a major topic of discussion during the actual creative process. After all, the starting point—or premise—of this collaboration was our shared passion for sound and the desire to finally try making music together after knowing each other for so long. And I think the results reflect that. 

M: Yes, right … somehow "Overlay" is kinda timeless … but on the other side, we talked a lot about what and how we can do things together, where do we wanna go when we make music together. And we had this idea really quickly of bringing our musical background together … what we always loved … but not making a copy of it, just translating that influences our way of making things. And I'd say that "plan" really worked. You can hear a lot of influences on that album. Now, after three years (or better, 4-5 years with all the conversations, composing, producing) it's still something i'd do the same way. 

Markus, you've been part of ASIP for a long time now. You both arrive at this collaboration with your own histories and approaches — where did you first recognize something in each other's music that felt compatible? Was it always the Pop Ambient connection? As that feels a million miles away from where your music is now. 

Well, ok, of course the first touching-point is our shared history on Kompakt. But, in the beginning of Pop Ambient or "The early Kompakt Years" we didn't know each other in person. Sure, I listened to Joachim's stuff (and really loved it) … but it was never an obvious connection. And after a few years (when Joachim started AFFIN) we finally got in contact. So, Joachim asked me about an album (which i made … Crystal Castle) … and still (back then) it wasn't a thing (or even an option) to do stuff together … but somehow we connected more and more over the years. We had some conversations on the phone, email etc … but a few years ago we made regular appointments with videocalls … and I think that changed a lot !!! Because we talked about so much stuff (not just music) for hours and hours. The connection became much more personal … and we realised during these chats, that our history, our taste in music, our understanding in certain things is very close. And then, everything became obvious !!! Of course we should work together, of course we should do some music together. And yes, it's absolutely so far away from the early Pop Ambient stuff … but, we grew … we had our experiences … We've seen a lot of things. Not together, everyone had his own experience … but somehow it was the same experience … and that is what the collaboration and the work together makes it weirdly special. 

When you're working together, are you conscious of who is bringing what to a piece, or is the aim to reach a point where that distinction disappears?

J:The exact percentage of input each person contributes to a given track—or what is actually audible in the finished piece—is really a secondary matter; the process itself is what's truly compelling. Moreover, we've established a relationship built on trust; beyond the Guentner/Spieth project, we make a great many decisions together—not just musical ones, but also those regarding Affin's visual identity. We constantly bounce ideas off each other—asking things like "What do you think? Does that sound good? Does it look good?" Since we've been holding regular video calls for several years now, there is a high level of ongoing dialogue across a wide range of topics, and through that, you naturally develop a feel for what works—for that shared vision and sense of cohesion. 

M: Exactly, most times we're like: ok, let's start with something … what's your opinion on trying this and that … but hey, just try !!! and sometimes someone is sending an idea … and the other one is working with that out of nowhere. And it's so wild to see and realise that most times (i'd say around 95%) we're on the same level. Getting something from the other to work with just feels natural … not really thinking about: uhm, is that something Joachim could like? It's way more: ok, nice, i can work with that, bring my "voice" into this. And in the end, there's always an agreement on what we did with the material. 

How has the way you work together changed since Overlay? Has familiarity made the process easier, or does a good collaboration still need a certain amount of friction or uncertainty to produce something worthwhile? 

In recent years, we've also produced albums as a trio with artists like Pepo Galán and zakè; furthermore, we released the *Conversion* album last year as our second Guentner/Spieth collaboration. I'd say that, overall, the process has increasingly taken on a life of its own. 

We sometimes surprise each other when one of us shows up with something finished, but we've never reached a point where our ideas were completely at odds... It's as if there's a kind of antenna transmitting signals in both directions—and it transmits reliably. 

M: Nothing more to say about … absolutely right !!! 

Have you found yourselves taking anything from the collaboration back into your respective solo work? 

J: I think this happens subconsciously—almost certainly. With every collaboration, you learn something new and discover aspects you might not have found on your own; this expands the realm of possibilities, both musically and—surely—technically. Beyond that, we're constantly exchanging ideas about solo projects and each other's new remixes; things are always in flux, both within specific projects and on a broader level. From my perspective, a very productive connection has solidified over time—one whose foundation was originally laid with Kompakt and our first releases, as that was the path through which we learned about each other and eventually established direct contact.

M: Well, I absolutely think it happens … There is always something you hear and work in the back of your mind when you do a collaboration. But as Joachim said, it's more subconscious. Not like: oh, i need to take that idea … or, he made it this or that way, i need to do the same. But something is always happening and you take that with you. 

What can this mix communicate about the relationship between two artists that an original collaboration perhaps can't? 

J: The mix serves as a review of what has been achieved so far—an overview, a snapshot, a sort of bird's-eye view—that came together after a period of quiet. The project is currently on hiatus; we haven't been working on new material continuously for the past three years—rather, there are active phases and periods of rest. 

Furthermore, the mix broadens the scope to include our wider circle and other formats—such as the track we contributed to the *Kontrapunkt* album on ASIP, as well as remixes where friends interpreted the project from their own perspectives. This made the process of creating the mix an interesting one, and we feel the result flows beautifully. It's a lovely way to wrap up this chapter. 

M: Exactly … At first, this mix shows our collaborative musical work (besides from remixes, the work for AFFIN, etc.). But it also shows the connection between the collabs and the different albums way better, than just listening to the one or the other album. You get a better understanding of all the connections that happen between these. 

Markus is celebrating 25 years since his debut album, In Moll, recently. You've both been making and releasing music for long enough to have watched ambient and deeper electronic music move through several different periods of attention and interpretation. Do you feel differently about making this kind of music now than you did ten or twenty years ago? 

M: In the end, not that much. The way I want to make music is still the same. I never chased any trend or thought that I should sound like something or someone else. Of course, over all this time you grow, get inspired by other things, learn something new, get rid of old stuff or behaviours. But the freedom to do what you want to do is stll present. 

J: I think the technical toolkit has changed fundamentally—which is, after all, a natural process or form of progress over such a long period. As for one's attitude toward music—or love for it—nothing has changed. However, the ways of making oneself heard in the market have changed radically, forcing you to constantly re-evaluate and find new paths to gain an audience. Not everything that has happened alongside the digitalization of the music industry has been positive. Yet, the drive to make emotions audible remains. 

Your two tracks on Pop Ambient "You Don't Fool Me" and "Regensburg" were so definitive for that compilation series, and similarly, it's 25 years since that compilation was released. Wolfgang had his own interpretation of Pop Ambient back then, but I'm

curious what it represented to you. Was it simply a home for these pieces at the time, or did being part of that series begin to shape how you thought about your own music? Do you think "Pop Ambient" exists in the same way today? 

J: That's an interesting question. It's clear that we were pleasantly surprised back then by the wave of momentum that built up after the first *Pop Ambient* release came out. You could sense a real spirit of new beginnings on many levels. At the same time, we were very young, and everything had a fresh, exciting dynamic—we had no prior experience, nothing to compare it to... we simply approached our favorite label, they liked our music, and then it all just happened... 

It certainly wasn't just a matter of having our music released by a particular label. Looking back at that time, comparing it to the present doesn't really make sense. The reason is simple: a quarter of a century lies between then and now, and just as we have evolved as artists during that period, the environment surrounding Kompakt has also developed and changed... 

If you think about ASIP, a direct comparison from the label's inception to the present day would be hard to imagine. The same applies to Affin… 

M: I remember sitting in Wolfgang's office when he mentioned the idea of doing the Pop Ambient series because of our (and of course, dettinger, lohmann, etc.) tracks. So it was not just a home, it was the beginning of something … something we've been actively a part of. So that was very very special at that time. I'm not that sure, if Pop Ambient still exists in the same way, well, thb, i can't just because of the long time … music changed, people changed. And for me (because i'm not an "active member" anymore) i can't really tell if it's still the same. But in the end i think it's not better or worse … it's just different. 

If Overlay documented the beginning of something between you, where do you feel that collaboration sits now? Is there a sense of a continuing body of work taking shape, or is it more interesting to leave each encounter open-ended and see what happens next? 

M: A lot of chats and talkings happen about the collab. But we try not to put any pressure on ourselves. The fun thing is, that we somehow always know in which direction we're heading. So in the end we're completing each other unspokenly. 

J: In principle, the outcome is still open, but I think the parameters—the coordinate system, so to speak—have already been defined to a certain extent... We'll see where the next phase of work takes us, and see when that happens :-)

Download

Listen on Soundcloud, the ASIP Podcast or the 9128.live iOS and Android app.

Tracklist: 

1. Vanish
2. Prologue
3. Nukleus
4. Morphia
5. Mutuus
6. Apastron
7. Kari
8. Scope (Abul Mogard Rework)
9. Valenz (Galán / Vogt Rework)
10. Veil
11. Cipher
12. Overlay Variation 1
13. Genesis
14. Chrysalis
15. Nukleus (Rafael Anton Irisarri Rework edit)
16. Vortex
17. Overlay Variation 2
18. Praeludium

https://affinmusic.de/booking-guennter-spieth/
https://guentnerspieth.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/guentnerspieth

Where do you go, what do you do, after you have created a riff for the ages? For Keith Kahn-Harris, that's the question that Boris & Sunn O)))'s Altar seems to ask

By any objective standard, the riff that dominates 'Etna', the opener to the Boris / Sunn O))) collaboration Altar, should be as celebrated as 'Walk', 'Whole Lotta Love' or 'Symptom Of The Universe'. As a song, there is little else to it but the riff - an extended intro that builds and locks into an audaciously simple chord sequence, eventually giving way to a lavishly elongated breakdown into a squall of guitar noise. It's 9 minutes and 50 seconds of metallic perfection, the apotheosis of focused guitar power, without...

The post Sacrificial Riffology: Reconsidering Altar by Boris & Sunn O))) appeared first on The Quietus.

Repressed for the first time in nearly thirty years, Derek Jarman's book Kicking the Pricks, including the director's notes and diaries from the making of his seminal film The Last of England, offers a portal into a rotting UK that feels all too familiar

The Last of England (Derek Jarman, 1987). All images courtesy: British Film Institute

In Kicking The Pricks Derek Jarman poses the question: what use is a film, book or artwork that presents a nostalgic future warning for an unloved and thwarted isle? A companion piece to Jarman's most overtly political film, The Last Of England, the book is part memoir, part production diary, and a scattering of interviews. Taken together, the two works show Jarman drawn into a...

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Sydney duo Two Another deliver a mix that pulls from soulful deep house and balearic-tinged groove influences, bringing big club drums and tightly controlled basslines from names like Rooleh, Dennis Cruz, Alan Fitzpatrick, and Nandu. Their 2026 run of studio releases for Sweat It Out! and Boogie Angst, alongside the September release of 'Elation', is […]

MIX421: Two Another

Sunday 15th November 2026
The Abbey Stadium
Birmingham Road
Redditch
Worcestershire B97 6EJ
Doors Open 9am
Doors Close 1pm
Entry only £5
Free car parking. Wheelchair Access. Cafe.
Sponsored by Angling Auctions.

The National Vintage Fishing Tackle Fair returns on 15th November for its much anticipated autumn 2026 edition which takes place at The Abbey Stadium on Birmingham Road in Redditch (B97 6EJ). Established in 1995 and running twice a year since the fair has grown to become the largest and most celebrated gathering of antique and vintage fishing tackle dealers, collectors and enthusiasts in the country with many visitors also in attendance from Europe.

Yet again it is sold out in terms of stalls with a full complement of stallholders weeks ahead of the fair itself. In addition to stalls selling antique and vintage fishing tackle Garry Mills from the Mill Tackle Company in Studley will have a stall offering on the spot reel repairs and advice as well as taking orders for his bespoke range of reels and Andrew Davis the master split cane rod builder will be exhibiting examples of his finest work and taking orders for individual rods from his range. Representatives of the fair's sponsor Angling Auctions will also be on hand to value and take in items of tackle for forthcoming sales.

Fair organiser John Andrews who has been running the event for the last twenty-one years is proud of its links and associations with Redditch and its history of fishing tackle making and is always keen to meet Redditch residents who may have worked or had family members who worked at any of the Redditch tackle firms be they big or small. He is on the door at each fair and looks forward to welcoming regulars and new visitors on 15th November.

Keith Kahn-Harris looks back at a landmark release full of surprises and possibilities

To push back a genre label is, all too often, a reliably generic move by artists desperately seeking to differentiate themselves from other artists who sound much the same. Occasionally though, pushing back against genre label is a more subversive move, the mark of an artist pushing against anything that would close off their creative development.

Such is the case with Carcass. It didn't take them long at the start of their career to reject the grindcore label, they are currently rebelling against the extreme metal label, and on Necroticism: Descanting The Insalubrious they were reluctant to be labelled as death metal, preferring 'progressive'. And however much one might...

The post Gutted, Hashed and Deboned: Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious By Carcass At 35 appeared first on The Quietus.

As we hurtle through the final months of 2026, tQ's staffers select another round-up of everything we've loved over the last few weeks

We are only a few weeks away from end-of-year chartmageddon, the point at which we will be forced, whether we like it or not, to put on the record what defined our 2026. Given that a person's relationship with music is constantly-shifting - I find that the side of bed I've woken up on can determine whether a song makes me feel ecstatic or annoyed - I've always found the idea of making a permanent declaration of what's 'best' slightly daunting.

I have a soft spot, by contrast, for the simplicity these more casual roundups, presented unranked and ad...

The post Music of the Month: The Best Albums and Tracks of October 2026 appeared first on The Quietus.

Andy Stott

Late Loop

The British electronic music producer proves himself, once again, a consummate perfectionist - but it's the subtle imperfections that make his music really sing

It didn't take Andy Stott long to find himself drawn towards the frayed edges, to wear and imperfections. Less concerned with gleaming dancefloor patterns than the accumulation of hiss and grit, he made his name with slower tempos, tracks that went a little wonky, marked by age and rust. A sound in love with the 'stuff' of sound, the sense it had a physical surface that got under your fingernails, that carried the marks of time. On Late Loop it settles to a stillness, a richly emotive minimalism under the slow shroud of attic dust.

It's...

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'Pigeon Harp' by Bibio & Dorian Concept.

Taken from the beautiful collaborative album Answers, newly released on Warp Records — and a much-needed, gentle balm for whatever the hell is going on out there.