FRIDAY 3/22

BERLIN TECHNO STAR JEFF SAMUEL RETURNS TO SEATTLE (ONE NIGHT ONLY)

Jeff Samuel moved from Seattle to Berlin about seven years ago, because that's what 97 percent of all smart, talented American techno artists do. You can make a damn fine living there while playing and spinning tracks that would draw only fringe crowds in the United States. Samuel's productions acutely balance subtly warped textures, smooth, funky rhythms, and suspenseful melodies. He's a master of understatement with an incredibly high hit-to-miss ratio. Pitchfork recently named Samuel's remix of Rhye's "Open" as track of the week, so if you've been wavering about going, now you have no excuse. Seattle electronic-music-scene mainstay Nora Posch (aka DJ/producer Aron Schoppert) runs the excellent Peloton Musique label and possesses two of the keenest ears for left-field techno in the region. Right-field techno? Not so much. With Centrikal and Manos. Electric Tea Garden, 9 pm, free before 11 pm/$10 after, 21+.

DARSHAN JESRANI'S TWISTED DISCO ECLECTICISM

You know Darshan Jesrani as half of Metro Area, the brainy and body-moving dons of East Coast disco and house with partner with Morgan Geist, right? Together they did a fabulously fun and diverse DJ mix for the renowned Fabric label in 2008 in which cuts by Heaven 17, Ministry, Jean-Luc Ponty, and Devo thrived amid several twisted disco classics (I have utmost respect for anyone who introduces me to Disco Four's "Move to the Groove [Instrumental]"). Let's hope Jesrani—who's also a deft remixer, revamping tracks by Tracey Thorn, Mock & Toof, and others—conjures similar eclectic magic tonight at Q. (This is a joint Flash and Trouble production.) With Nordic Soul, Recess, and DJ Trouble. Q Nightclub, 8 pm, $7 adv/$10 DOS, 21+.

SATURDAY 3/23

MAGMA FEST'S "ELECTRONIC(ISH)" SHOWCASE

The gutsy DIY music fest known as Magma reaches out to the electronic-music community with open arms and ears this year thanks to the savvy efforts of Christopher Bradbury, Domenica Clark, and Garrett Kelly. He's assembled a strong bill headed by Oakland violinst Marielle V. Jakobsons (of the sublime raga-drone savants Date Palms) and Rafael Anton Irisarri (aka techno minimalist the Sight Below and a deft creator of impressionist ambient music under his own name). Jakobsons's Glass Canyon album on Students of Decay was one of 2012's most enveloping and engrossing drone-based works. The rest of the lineup—featuring Logic Probe, XUA, and Chrisman/Svenson—encompasses granular abstract techno à la Autechre, fascinating musique concrète, and expansive drone tapestries, respectively. Hollow Earth Radio, 7 pm, $10–$20 donation, all ages.

This article has been updated since its original publication.