energy flash #1: Phont Music & Speaker Attack
25-11-2025
Stefan Riesen is a Swiss man of various aliases (perhaps the best known being Box Blaze), member of a few groups, and founder/manager of a few labels. This article covers the music of two of them with a strong techno focus, neither of which lasted as long as they could have, but have some lovely work they've put out. I am speaking of Phont Music and Speaker Attack.
Phont Music
1998
Soul Mate - Sharpshooter EP (PM01)
A1 The Valve
A2 Nickname
B1 Remote Control
B2 Antidote
Today, Sam Geiser is best known as Deetron, but has used the alias Soul Mate both with and without a space, though he's had several other aliases (GSP, Stardust, Starfighterz, The Fiddler Crew, Vamp Circus, Karakter, Procreation) and projects with other producers. First up on this EP is The Valve, the name of which seems quite plausible to read as a nod to one of Robert Hood's great 1994 EPs, The Protein Valve (M-P 301). The song is not bad at all, though it's ironically less suggestive of that earlier Detroit classic than the other three cuts, which I personally prefer. Nonetheless, nothing that wouldn't suit any techno DJ's library in here, I don't think, though.
Sidestepper - The Big K EP (PM02)
A1 Highjack [6:48]
A2 Detector [6:38]
B1 Gunner [5:57]
B2 Drain [6:36]
Sam Geiser teams up here with labelhead Stefan Riesen in one of their few aliases together. This time it's as Sidestepper. Kicking things right off the bat is Highjack and jack it does, around 2:15ish in come some atonal stabs which only occasionally do a little dubby thing. About halfway, the distorted hook of the tune which has been morphing in and out with some filtering and distortion is revealed to mostly be a masterfully effected percussion loop. Around 4 minutes it drops out and we're left with some stabs, kicks, and hats for a bit before it comes back in. Next, Detector The aptly named Gunner is a real weapon as the expression goes and is highly percussive. As a result of the main synth work being so staccato and clicky and its booming (slightly trailing) kicks, it will lead you to thinking more about the percussion hits' own definition in a way you might not otherwise. Closing number Drain is a beautiful proof of concept that one can use a good amount of reverb and delay in a techno track without it exaaaaactly how most people picture dub techno, or if it is dub techno, it's one without long trailing tape delay style echoes with much feedback.
Trans Am - Instinctive Codes (PM03)
A1 Mango
A2 Womb Waters
B1 Eighth
B2 Beind the Club
Diego Hostettler is one of the heavyweights of the great Kanzleramt label though has released for some others and you're likely to know him just by his first name. Opening piece Mango starts with a little snatched sample from who knows where which lasts just about a second, layered with some synth. A little before halfway, an additional synth part is added and some more layers come in, others depart, a little after the halfway mark Womb Waters has a lovely Millsian ostinato undergirding it but the water is evoked by the loop of what sounds like a xylophone or similar, an element which is woven between it and a topline counterpart to the bassline to boot. These two is my picks for the EP. Was Eighth his eighth production or is something cheekier going on in the naming department? Who cares. The song starts decently strong enough but then around 5 minutes comes in an accordion and for me somewhat spoils the whole thing. Closer Behind the Club is another illustration of disco-y techno which I'd like a little more with a different bassline. This isn't a bad bassline but it feels like a bassline and a persistent stab which are from two different songs, though it does gel more once the second stab has come in.
Jana Clemen - Nightshift EP (PM04)
A1 Pulsar
A2 Collaps
B1 Microwave
B2 Balance
Soul Mate - Cutter's Room (PM05)
A1 Playground
A2 Night Work
B1 Playmate
B2 Cut One
These are all a lot more minimal in some regard to his first release for Phont and certainly for the better, at least some of the time. The last two, which are the hardest hitting, have a big sound, and are my favourites though the first two definitely aren't bad by any stretch.
1999
DJ Shufflemaster & Deetron - Double Exposure Vol. 1 (PM06)
A1 Loose Joints
A2 Gate Crasher
B1 Encounters
B2 Reality Fugitives
Two techno greats working together to bring you something beautiful. Tatsuya "DJ Shufflemaster" Kanamori is, according to discogs, "one of the few Japanese producers to attain global prominence within the late-'90s hard techno scene with his productions and remixes" under said alias. You'd think with a name like Gate Crasher that it ought to be first, but it's not so hang on a sec. Opener Loose Joints features a lovely marriage of what sound like some well snatched what sampled loops, some well programmed drums, and some great stabs...beautiful example of something monotonous in the positive sense of the word. Nicely interwoven layering in this cut. Filtersweeping has seldom sounded so tasteful and part of why is that it isn't used to bring down the energy too much, but just enough to then bring it up and help the song move along the way it deserves. Next, Gate Crasher feels sort of the odd one out on here, or it might be more accurate to say that I easily prefer the other three to it. Encounters is clearly named in reference to the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind with its science fictional influence worn on its sleeve. But there is some great use of stereo ping ponging this number and the drum machine programming could scarcely sound better or be better programmed, either. Whatever its problems (a little lighter on tone or texture than I'd like), Reality Fugitives would find some excellent use as a DJ tool, not just a tools-y cut.
Box Blaze & Deetron - Plate Stuntz EP (PM07)
A1 Floor Jocker
A2 Monitor Mask
B1 Jail Breaker
B2 Jail Rebreaker
Psst, it's the same guys as Sidestepper. Floor Jocker is both very techno-y but seemingly based on a line that sounds like it could be from a disco-y West African guitar record but lifted and technofied, all of which makes for one cool tune. The last two are versions of each other and not tooooo dissimilar? My other favourite number here (besides the first) is easily Monitor Mask which is the sort of thing that just sounds like a good time. Stabby, subtle understated filter sweeping and effects.
Sidestepperz - Vapour Stories (PM08)
A1 Highjack (Ben Sims "Timecrash" Mix)
A2 Steal Drummers
B1 Slider
B2 Once Again Back!
This time adding a "z" to their alias are Stefan and Sam. Opening things with a banging remix from Ben Stocker, better known under the alias he uses here, Ben Sims, they launch right into it. Next up is the cheekily titled Steal Drummers which continues the EP's use of a sampled source, a pattern for the whole 12". Truth be told, the track that is least based on something around its sample is my least favoured cut on here, which is the last of the four. As I write this, my favourite on here is the opening of the second side, Slider.
Trans Am - String Theory (PM09)
A1 Target
A2 Super String
B1 Internal Dialogue
B2 Internal Dialogue (Steve O'Sullivan "Green" Mix)
Target hit its target and feels not unlike what you might expect to hear Jeff Mills drop in a set. The almost title cut, Super String makes some serious work of a somewhat silly sound. Internal Dialog makes excellent use of Latin percussion in its programming (maybe some use of the TR-727, which to me still feels overly disdained outside of house music) but without making things feel overly house-y. In its last third there is some delightful use of panning which adds to the motion in this piece's topline, which is one of the EP's highlights. Steve O'Sullivan is normally no slouch as a producer but however much his sounds were there are some cool changes, but the resultant piece has less energy, though some cool feel to it. But the repeated sample of the word "dialogue" being spoken is not as interesting as he was hoping to these ears.
Ben Sims - Battle Beats One (PM10)
A1 Untitled
A2 Untitled
A3 Untitled
B1 Untitled
B2 Untitled
B3 Untitled
Ben Sims doing the Ben Sims thing and in the form of a gift to DJs and producers. What makes me say that? The label text literally includes "a collection of loops and (hard) grooves for DJ's from Theory HQ". Thanks, Ben. Not much to say here, does exactly what it says on the tin and not one jot more. Very useful but