April came with that classic spring duality: pollen and bloom, clarity and haze. The soundtrack? Just as layered. Across the board, artists dialed into that liminal space between groove and abstraction, a zone where techno, broken rhythms, and ambient pressure overlap in beautifully unpredictable ways. This month’s picks lean into that tension. 

Aneelhi Rec’s Fluid Horizon compilation lays the foundation, fluid, spacious, and tightly curated. Catalan label Obtuse Swamp keeps the momentum with its second release, where Kontinum delivers deep-focus textures that hum beneath the surface. Mantis stays undefeated; this round, we spotlight Konsudd, whose stripped-down, low-slung rhythms feel like hypnosis with intent. Priori’s Pareidolia gets a killer remix refresh from Forest Drive West, Maara, upsammy, and Notte Infinita, each adding a distinct contour. Carrier’s Tender Spirits EP hits that rare middle ground: heady but grounded, abstract but emotional. 

On the full-length front, Barker returns with Stochastic Drift on Smalltown Supersound, pushing his melodic language even further. SPCLNCH-BLACK launches with Toki Fuko’s deep, cerebral four-tracker. Mattia Onori’s Tra Vento e Oscurità gets reinterpreted with care and tension by Katatonic Silentio and Planatia. And we’re not done - Floid and Woody92 (from Omen Wapta) join forces on Dookuzot, a full-length that feels like a guided disintegration of the ego. Italian label Sense Code drops SENSE003, delivering the kind of spiral techno that’s less rave and more ritual.

If you like your rhythms broken, your textures layered, and your grooves a little left of center, April delivered.