After a seven-year hiatus from full-length solo releases, German techno stalwart Paul Kalkbrenner has staged a comeback together with his new album: THE ESSENCE, out at the moment October 10, 2025 by way of Sony Music / B1. This long-awaited LP marks not only a comeback, however what Kalkbrenner describes as a rediscovery of what issues most in music: the “important.” His final full studio album earlier than THE ESSENCE was Elements of Life in 2018. Since then, he’s launched a couple of standalone singles. However true to his popularity, he’s been refining, experimenting, accumulating concepts. Hear here.
In accordance with Kalkbrenner, The Essence is a 12-track LP that he constructed over a number of years — no inflexible blueprint from the beginning, however a deliberate return to pure, unforced expression. It’s not about chasing hits, however about coherence, integrity, presence. He’s stated that is the album he “can really stand behind,” claiming that there’s not one filler monitor within the report.
“Most of the songs have been made throughout a time once I wasn’t planning to launch an album in any respect,” says Kalkbrenner. “I had truly completed with album making, however then I spotted how good it’s to have one thing that connects all the pieces once more.” A connection that doesn’t depend on an idea however on an angle. As a result of THE ESSENCE avoids grand gestures and as a substitute is filled with musical precision, sounds with patina, and melodies from previous drafts that have been by no means launched till now. “A number of the stuff on right here, I wouldn’t even give you at the moment as a result of it’s so unfiltered. However that’s precisely what makes it sturdy.”
A lot of it was created within the condominium, which may nearly be referred to as a coauthor of the album. A spot that feels extra like an analog sound lab than a contemporary producer studio. “I didn’t need neon lights, no screens, no tech overload,” says Kalkbrenner. As an alternative: dimmed gentle, classic furnishings, cozy materials, and tons of music historical past within the type of devices, collectibles, and sound sources. “I simply sat there for hours, tinkering, and not using a plan however with a sense.” The environment of the condominium is audibly woven into the tracks: heat, intricate, and idiosyncratic.
Paul Kalkbrenner has been probably the most influential figures in trendy techno for many years. Raised in Leipzig and later Berlin, he emerged within the late Nineties — early 2000s techno scene, signed to BPitch Management, releasing EPs and albums, and ultimately breaking by means of with Berlin Calling (2008). The film not solely cemented his place in digital music however launched him to broader audiences. His anthem ‘Sky and Sand’ stays among the many most streamed German digital tracks ever.
