Terminal 11

Tempe, Arizona's Mike Castaneda produces a highly unique form of glitch/IDM as Terminal 11. His tracks typically contain complex rhythmic shards arranged at an extremely rapid, dizzying tempo, yet their lack of a driving low-end causes them to feel suspended in midair. Following his earliest releases during the early 2000s, he became a fixture of the North American breakcore/IDM scene, regularly playing shows with the likes of Dev/Null and Duran Duran Duran, and providing graphic design for event flyers. By the early 2010s, his chaotic sound had become a bit more smoothed-out, yet still highly complex, and more recognizable elements of electro and acid techno began to seep into his work. In addition to his original productions, he has also remixed tracks by a variety of artists, including Japanese/Hawaiian singer Coppé, former Sneaker Pimps frontwoman Kelli Ali, and noise-rap group clipping.

Terminal 11 debuted in 2001 with Speed Modified, released by Phthalocyanine's Phthalo imprint. The label also issued the 2003 follow-up Don Maximo/Postmod Premax. The 7" single "Bistro" appeared on the short-lived Philadelphia label Advanced Idea Mechanics in 2004. Castaneda's third album, Illegal Nervous Habits, arrived via Jason Forrest's Cock Rock Disco label in 2005. A third Phthalo CD, Additions to Arsenal, appeared in 2006, and included an entire live set recorded in Slovenia. Terminal 11 then moved to Germany's Hymen Records for 2007's Fractured Sunshine. Kaleidoscope Eyes was released as a free download by CRD in 2009. Around this time, Castaneda co-founded a label called Sunwarped Records. Terminal 11's second Hymen Records full-length, Self Exorcism, appeared in 2012. He also returned to Phthalo for the EP Skyscraper on a Megayacht. The digital album With My Mind was released by Miami label Schematic in 2014, followed by another CRD freebie, 2015's Tracing Structures. The full-length Harmless Chaos was issued by Love Love Records in 2018. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi