Hey night owls and underground lovers, buckle up. If you’ve been craving melodic techno that actually feels something instead of just looping the same three commercial chords, I’ve got the perfect late-night discovery for you: The Oryx just unleashed his debut EP Guess What, and it’s the kind of release that reminds you why we fell in love with the genre in the first place.
Two words: dark and beautiful.
Across the four tracks (yes, I listened to the whole thing twice already), The Oryx builds a world after world of heavy low-end pressure, cinematic synth layers, and that rarest of things in 2025 techno — genuine emotion. This isn’t background festival fodder. This is headphones-at-3am, eyes-closed, heart-rate-syncing music. The kind you play when you want the dancefloor to feel like therapy.
Title track “Guess What” kicks the door down with a brooding bassline that feels like it’s crawling up your spine, while swirling melodic fragments flicker in and out like distant city lights through rain-streaked glass. Then there’s “Restless Mind”, which takes everything a shade deeper — rolling percussion, haunting pads, and a breakdown that gave me actual goosebumps. Every element is placed with surgical precision, yet nothing feels over-polished or sterile. It’s raw, human, and unapologetically non-commercial — exactly what the artist promised.
The Oryx has clearly spent years honing his craft quietly in the shadows, and now he’s stepping into the light on his own terms. In an era where half the Beatport Top 100 sounds like it was A/B tested for maximum streaming safety, hearing something this fearless and individualistic is straight-up refreshing. This EP doesn’t chase trends — it starts its own.
If you’re into the deeper, moodier side of melodic techno — think labels like Afterlife, Diynamic, or Steyoyoke, artists like Innellea, Massano, or Colyn — then Guess What EP is going to slide perfectly into your rotation. It’s music for people who treat the club like church and the kick drum like a heartbeat.
Honestly? I haven’t stopped playing it since it landed in my inbox. Do yourself a favor and dive in.
Stream “Guess What EP” by The Oryx everywhere now → [Spotify, Apple Music, Beatport links coming — trust me, you want this one]
And hey, if you’re an artist reading this and you’ve got something equally bold brewing, get it out into the world! DistroKid makes distribution dead simple and keeps more money in your pocket. Grab 7% off your membership forever with this link: https://distrokid.com/vip/seven/2058328 — because real art deserves to be heard.
What do you think — too dark, just right, or not dark enough? Drop your thoughts below, I’m dying to know who else is feeling this one.
