Raxon HHV Records 8 Items

We’re kicking off the new year in style with a fantastic new double header by Raxon. This Egypt-born, barcelonese powerhouse has left his scent marks all over the place in recent years. He has developed an instantly recognizable sound and that’s no small feat in these times shaped by so much formulaic dullness. “Your Fault” sees our Catalan hot shot in an exuberant disco mood. Mind bending chord progressions foiled with Raxon’s trademark vocal stutters guarantee for wonderfully twisted hands in the air moments. With “Beskar” we’re entering Star Wars nerd territory. Jedipedia says, Beskar is a uniquely resistant iron that develops a wide range of properties—and colors—in the hands of skilled metalsmiths. Alright. Musically speaking, we’re dealing with a stealthy, funky as hell trance-not-trance juggernaut. 2024 is off to a good start:)

Egypt-born Barcelona resident Ahmed Raxon has proven himself to be one of the most consistent DJ producers of his generation. His ability to make big room techno Funky and highly entertaining has landed him releases on some of techno's finest powerhouses like Cocoon, Drumcode or Ellum. His new double header for Speicher again ticks all the right boxes. "Slipmode" is a robotic workout with that trademark irresistible Raxon drive. "Nu Waze" is more of a cheeky affair, combining an arab quarter tone hook with an ultra funky back beat that would make "Phunk Phenomena"-era Armand Van Helden proud.

Ellum Audio welcomes back Raxon for another of his cosmically minded techno EPs. Egypt-born but Barcelona-based, Raxon is at the forefront of the melodic techno scene thanks to always well-designed sounds on Diynamic, Kompakt, Cocoon and more. As a DJ, too, he explores an interplanetary sound that has seen him on the billing at influential festivals and clubs worldwide, from Dgtl to Resistance Ibiza at Privilege. He opens this one with the superb 'Mantis,' a terrifically twitchy and astral track. Robot vocals are stitched into the mix with turbo-charged synths and a looping bassline over heavy drums. It's the sound of intergalactic warfare with a real sense of electronic funk and cinematic design. Then comes 'Input Robot,' a jostling broken techno groove laced up with sleek cosmic chords. Alien life forms live between the beats, and the elastic bass keeps you moving as the track rolls on through a turbulent night sky. The ‘Mantis EP’ is another innovative techno exploration from Raxon.

Raxon comes strong with his first Truesoul release in 5 years, ‘Cosmic Cure’.

The Egyptian-born, Barcelona-based artist is a favourite of Adam Beyer’s, his sound dexterous enough to fit on both Truesoul and Drumcode over the years. Following a cracking DC debut in 2020 with ‘Orbit Connection’, he returns to the groovier little brother imprint with an exciting two tracker.

‘Cosmic Cure’ is a super interesting cut the moves from delicate sunset-vibe synths into a crunchy percussive section flanked by trippy sound effects.

A cool groover that went down a treat when Raxon played it at Printworks in late 2021.

‘Conscious Technologies’ is a gritty psy-laced gem that’s set to add plenty of spice to the dancefloor.

Over the past decade, Egyptian-born, Barcelona-based DJ and techno producer Raxon, known to friends and family as Ahmed Raxon, has popped out a steady stream of twelve-inch singles, precision-tooled, for labels like Cocoon, Drumcode, Diynamic, Truesoul, and Ellum Audio. An alumni of Kompakt’s Speicher series – check the insistent, vibrating pulses of “The Ancient” and “Dark Light” on 2019’s Speicher 107 – with Sound Of Mind, Raxon has produced a long-awaited debut album that’s ready and aching both for the dancefloor and the boudoir, traversing the heat of the club and the warmth of the home.

“The idea of an album has always floated around in my head for the past few years,” Raxon confirms, “but it was never the right moment in my mind.” Instead, he’s been insistently pursuing his vision of deep, elegant techno, taking him from early DJ gigs in Dubai, including the legendary audio tonic night, then relocating to Europe on the recommendation of Herman Cattaneo, all the while allowing his experiences to inform and transmute his producer’s thumbprint. He’s an architect by training (though he gave architecture up for electronic music), which might explain why Raxon productions are so sturdy and well-designed; but remember also that architecture is a field filled with brave experimentation, something Raxon definitely draws on throughout Sound Of Mind.

Like many albums from the past twelve months, Raxon’s debut developed partly thanks to the unique social situation the planet has found itself caught within. “In the beginning of 2020 I started working on a few tracks with the album in mind,” he recalls, “with no idea of what’s to come in the next few months. As catastrophic as the situation was/is, I found myself in the studio; in a way the lockdown gave me that creative freedom in the studio, [to] try to tell my story through sound.” And indeed, there is something in the way of ‘life writing’ about Sound Of Mind, particularly in the way Raxon’s productions pay subtle homage, perhaps, to his formative listening experiences in the late nineties.

It’s no retro trip, but there’s plenty of variety here, and a few moments that’ll tickle the collective memory – see the prowling pulsations of the opening “Majestic”, the alien breakbeat action of “Vice” and “Journey Mode”, where the interstellar tones feel like Foul Play or Steve Gurley, the leaking gas and woozy keys that make “Droid Solo” so subtly destabilising, or the strobelight drones that sputter and flare throughout “El Multiverse”, where dappled organ tones fight it out with interdimensional transmissions, all sucked into the vortex of a late-night techno mantra. Beautifully sculpted, Sound Of Mind feels consummate, an elegant set that pulls Raxon’s vision into its sharpest focus. Alive with possibilities, it’s a fever dream of creativity.

Raxon lands his first richly-deserved Drumcode EP. There’s something distinctive about the Egyptian-born artist’s productions that provoke a special response. His debut outing on Drumcode, ‘Dream Space’ soundtracked our favourite takeaway moment from Awakenings Festival in 2019, as Adam Beyer and his three daughters danced along to their mum Ida Engberg’s set, wearing smiles the size of watermelons. More recently, when Beyer played ‘Connection’ during the ‘Drumcode Indoors II’ stream from his Ibiza home, once more, his daughters sprang into dance mode, their fists striking the sky. Raxon’s music just touches you, it’s unavoidable.

Born in Egypt, bred in Dubai and now situated in the electronic music hub of Barcelona, Raxon makes his Speicher debut with this double header that falls into line just past his breakthrough “Destiny EP” on Diynamic.