June 16 is a landmark day for John Tejada and his label Palette recordings, thanks to the release of Where, the 11th album from John, and the 50th release for Palette. The album sees John moving away from many of his trademark sounds, experimenting with a warmer vibe and vocals. The track Desire, for example, features a first-time collaboration with Nicolette who found fame in the early 90s with her hit No Government, as well as collaborations with Massive Attack and Plaid.
Normally associated with his peers in techno from Detroit, Europe and elsewhere, John is known for crafting a brand of subtle, musical techno, with releases on European labels such as A13, Multiplex, and Generations R&S. In the autumn of 1996 he set up Palette Recordings as an outlet for his own productions without having anyone tell him how to do it. The demand for his music continued to grow and labels such as Ferox, Sino, Mosaic, Immigrant, Plug Research, Pokerflat and 7th City all released Tejada 12”s. In the summer of 2004, John dropped the two songs that would catapult his techno career. The classic Sweat On The Walls and Mono On Mono were released almost at the same time, and together sold more than 23,000 copies on vinyl.
Where looks set to continue that success. Says John: “This album came out of experimentation and starting fresh without knowingly making a new album. After a few ideas came together and songs were recorded, the realisation set in that I was on my way towards a new full length. The place these tracks came from within me is hard to put into words. But as the collection of songs started to grow a bigger picture came into focus. Where is a moment in time, a place, a realisation.”
Where is out on July 16 on Palette Recordings. Visit www.paletterecordings.com
