Jazz Szu-Ying Chen and Surgeon remind us why craft and art matter

Surgeon’s Shell~Wave easily tops my favorite techno records from 2025, a nice return to form for Tresor Records. But as we’re awash in generated artwork, let’s devote our own brain cycles instead to listening to Surgeon talk to Taiwanese artist Jazz Szu-Ying Chen about the craft of making this album cover by hand.

Here’s Jeff Mills live at Tokyo’s Liquid Room ca 1995-1996, plus driving

Via Jeff Mills’ own account, here’s a perfect Monday soundtrack, maybe made even better by sounding like it was mixed onto a cassette tape.

Peter Kirn - November 10, 2025

You can learn a lot from Surgeon’s live rigs

Our friends at Resident Advisor took a peek at the techno legend’s battle-tested live rigs. And it’s not so much about gear – it says a lot about musical technique.

Peter Kirn - November 12, 2019

14 videos to remind you why it’s fun to play techno live

Peter Kirn - October 28, 2015

Techno Legend Surgeon Breaks Down His Live Modular Set

Peter Kirn - July 8, 2015

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