Your guide to this year’s edition of Junction 2 Festival

Ticket holders have the option to see world-class techno stalwarts like Avalon Emerson, Four Tet and DMX Krew. Whilst the more cerebrally-inclined can be immersed in the live shows of Max Cooper and George Fitzgerald.

As long as you’re in Trent Park on the 18th and 19th June, you’re already in a prime position to be enjoying quality music from across the globe, but we’ve put together a list of some of the unmissable acts on this year’s lineup.

Bambounou

The Paris producer is taking some time out of his DJ coaching career (see below) to practice what he preaches. Having launched the third release on his Bambe imprint in March this year – a stripped-back percussive debut from GiGi FM – Bambounou recently accompanied her to London where they played alongside fellow signee Bruce in a label showcase. His loose hips and tight selections will be gracing the city once more as he brings his dynamic, high-energy blends of techno, house and electro to Trent Park. Ticket holders can expect the most danceable extractions from all of the above, and the slickest of dance moves to accompany. See here for a taster. Catch Bambounou in the Dome on Saturday.

 

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Ela Minus

Ela Minus has recently asserted herself as a force to be reckoned with. In 2020 the Colombia-born, Brooklyn-based artist released her debut LP ‘acts of rebellion’, a strictly analogue techno pop album which switches between English and Spanish in its deliverance of a quasi-political narrative. Her musical antecedents as a punk drummer are palpable in the album’s DIY aesthetic and staunch anti-capitalist message: motifs she carries into her hardware-happy live shows. Since that release received an overwhelmingly positive reception from critics, she has been on a steep upward trajectory, with recent performances finding a home on Caribou’s US tour and a stage at Coachella. After COVID put a stop to her last appearance in London, you can catch Minus doing what she does best in the Arches on Saturday.

 

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Dr Rubinstein

Taking to the Observatory on Sunday with her high-energy blends of acid techno, electro, breaks and everything in between is none other than vinyl enthusiast and Berghain regular Dr. Rubinstein. Appearing as part of her Party Don’t Stop tour, her Junction 2 show is the only time you can catch it in the UK so is not one to be missed.  Book in for your acid therapy session now.

 

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Roza Terenzi B2B D. Tiffany

Roza Terenzi and D. Tiffany’s now infamous B2B’s; their joint and respective endeavours in the label management of Planet Euphorique and Step Ball Chain; and their collaborative release as Tapestry of Sound have positioned them firmly at the forefront of the New age Prog-Trance revolution. The longtime collaborators and bestie pals will be taking to the J2 stage to deliver their extraterrestrial blends of floating atmospherics and computer-love acid melodies right off the back of their forthcoming collaborative EP. ‘Edge of Innocence’ promises crisp percussion and propulsive rhythms, much like what you can expect from their DJ set in the Dome on Saturday.

 

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Zenker Brothers

Joining Roza and D.Tiffany in the Dome is the illustrious Zenker duo. This year they celebrate fifteen years of Ilian Tape, and we’re all invited to the party. It’s not always too easy to catch the Bavarian brothers on a bill, and even more difficult to predict the direction their sets will go in. What’s definitely on the cards is a break-neck tour around the many avenues of techno, also dipping assertively into breakbeat, dubstep and trap. Strap in.

 

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Blawan

A DJ who needs little introduction. On Sunday, the XL Recordings mainstay will take to the Tunnel to deliver the pulsating and unrelenting DJ sets he’s been perfecting over a matter of years.

Tasha

You might know Rinse FM resident and Neighbourhood boss Tasha for her deft vinyl blends of fierce jungle cuts. Or perhaps better as a connoisseur of all things 4/4, an expert in weaving together classic-sounding techno with more forward-facing breakbeat mutations. A truly versatile DJ and a figurehead in today’s jungle culture, Tasha is a must-see at this year’s Junction 2 edition.