John Tejada

Ever the innovator, L.A.-based DJ John Tejada throws the dance music world a real curveball, sliding past his critically-acclaimed 203. minimal techno scorcher Fairfax Sake on Playhouse to deliver an all-digital album. "Logic Memory Center is sort of what I call my computer album," says Tejada of his 10th full-length. "One concept behind it was to move away from my synth work and concentrate on sound design."

Somewhere between the funk of Matthew Dear or Luke Vibert and the pragmatic minimalism of Ricardo Villalobos and Richie Hawtin, Logic Memory Center caters to those who like their techno upbeat, modern, and tight. Tejada imbues Logic Memory Center with an air of breaking stylistic ground like Detroit gods Kenny Larkin and Juan Atkins--by shaping elemental electronic sounds and archetypal rhythms into otherworldly, infectious dance music. While Logic Memory Center may be all digital and highly designed, it still slams like everything Tejada has done in the past, such as his noisier moniker Mr. Hazeltine and his guitar-based I'm Not A Gun project with Takeshi Nishimoto. Witness "Unit B1656", a true stormer like no other, where a semi-automatic slap-bass rhythm rattles the floorboards while bulbous noise bullets whiz overhead in an aerial ballet. Or the deconstruction job on "Loose Change," which parses out the long synth vibe of Tejada's house-tinged rumblers with Arian Leviste to create a down tempo pastiche popper. Tejada also takes cues from his successful past vocal experiments, featuring on Logic Memory Center the demure, sophisticated voice of Kimi Recor of The Invisibles on the moody tech missive "Strange Creatures", Jimmy Tamborello (Dntel, The Postal Service) on "Everything Will Be OK", and Carl A. Finlow (Random Factor, Silicon Scally) on "Alone With You."

Verily, Logic Memory Center is a step beyond even the most accomplished techno albums, conveying a thematic wholeness that often gets lost in our modern downloading frenzy. Although Tejada's made a career of dazzling DJs and discriminating clubgoers with impeccable singles and EPs, Logic Memory Center represents an evolution in his journey toward creating meaningful albums. "I now feel more than ever that the albums need a strong concept," says Tejada, "and I feel very good about this album and the way it holds together."