After a lifetime of making music, Jon Gaiser is always leading from the front of his own world. With his signature sound, he has created a shift in the direction of underground electronic music, starting a movement of atmospheric bass-line driven techno that is entirely unique and unmistakable. It has come almost exclusively on Richie Hawtin’s Minus, and with that label he has been an influential part of the modern day techno landscape, both on stage and in the studio. From pioneering Minus projects like Contakt and CNTRL, to being a key resident of ENTER via his always inventive live sets and mind bending visual accompaniments, Gaiser has always harnessed the power of electronic music and nurtured its most evocative and cinematic possibilities.
Coming up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Gaiser’s musical life ranged from the formal, where he studied percussion with the symphony, to the informal, where he played drums in punk rock bands. Later experiencing the golden years of Detroit, it was the infinite possibilities and futuristic darkness of techno that really captured him, and since his early teens he has been on an endless mission to create sounds that have never been heard before.
He has accomplished this on many occasions now, thanks to his exquisite sense of sound design. Pair that with his ability to evoke otherworldly feelings and knit drums together into the most compelling grooves, and you have something entirely immersive. Someone who is inspired by the odd and peculiar sound tools, from the latest digital technology to extremely rare analog pieces, what matters most to Gaiser is the end result. Across countless releases and nonstop touring around the world, he has proven that time and time again.
Further proof of his artistry comes on his four studio albums. From the abstract minimal of “Blank Fade” (2008) to the spaced out and industrial ambiance under the name VOID “No Sudden Movements” (2011) to the slick- and sci-fi percussions of “False Light“ (2014), Gaiser has very much explored techno’s outer edges in his own cerebral ways.
2017 will see the light of Gaiser’s next studio album. “III” is an album of evocative and fluid techno that paints colourful pictures in your mind, while your pants are dancing on their own. Each track lives in its own unique world, and together create a dynamic storyline from start to finish. From dark grooves to choppy house, warm atmospheres to curious sci-fi landscapes, it is another complete experience and one that proves Gaiser is unafraid of experimentation, of pushing boundaries and searching out new paths.