P. Brtschitsch

Not only does he have the most unpronouncable surname in the history of mankind, but Paul Brtschitsch is also one of the most interesting producers in the techno genre nowadays. He is by all accounts an old school techno fanatic (I remember an interview in the German techno zine De:Bug where he said that the early-to-mid-90's techno sound was his main inspiration), and it shows in the music, which updates that magic sound of old for today's dancefloors. By composing pieces of music with a beginning, middle and end rather than just laying down straight four-to-the-floor beats with little else on top, this guy brings melody and atmosphere back into techno, and reminds us that "trancy" (i.e. hypnotic) electronic dance music can still have balls. Some of his output is admittedly a little bland, but when he's good, he's brilliant: The "Venex" album is class, and his own remix of "Clamber" is a masterpiece and one of my favourite tunes of 2002. Check his collaborations with André Galluzzi too (particularly their Taksi material), which lean a little more towards the harder/repetitive side of techno.