Jason Campbell’s music first came onto my radar through his release on the NYC experimental hardcore label BANK, home to a roster of emerging talent in the industrial electronic scene — including former AnD member Andrew Bowen (Slave to Society) and ex-COIL member Andrew McDowell.

Collector, the one-man industrial hardware project from Campbell, is inspired by the social and economic decay and deindustrialization of his hometown, Newcastle, Australia — once home to BHP Steelworks and a thriving job market. His music captures a film noir–like quality, reflecting a critical cultural and socio-economic shift in Australia’s history.

Industrial techno typically delivers exactly what its name suggests: abrasive elements of fractured, metallic percussion and sounds that mirror the harsh, mechanical rhythms of sleepless factories — the great machines that grind, pound, and never rest. Campbell’s approach, however, takes on a more cinematic dimension. His contrast between soft, dreamlike pads and cold, slow, breakbeat-inspired percussion introduces a new level of storytelling to the genre. The music feels cold yet alive — dance-inducing at moments, but deeply introspective throughout.

My interest in industrial techno first peaked around 2014 with the rise of labels like Ansome’s South London Analogue Material and the French-based TWB (Toxic Waste Buried). A new form of hardcore music was emerging — not yet accepted by the masses or considered club-friendly. Its analogue hardware focus, slower tempos, and emphasis on sound design signaled something fresh and exciting.

As with most underground movements, though, there was always the risk of rapid overexposure, leading to repetition and stagnation. After several landmark releases — such as Perc’s The Power and the Glory (Perc Trax) and Ansome’s Stowaway (also on Perc Trax) — the genre began to fall into predictability, devolving into formulaic machine music. Over time, as we hear today, industrial techno has become increasingly mainstream — often reduced to sample-pack-driven, high-tempo, cookie-cutter hardcore that leans heavily on clichés rather than innovation in sound design and hardware craftsmanship.

Campbell’s work offers a return to form for the genre. His music prioritizes thematic depth, thought-provoking sound design, and historical context — reconnecting industrial techno with its roots in decay, machinery, and human tension. With a steady stream of EPs and albums over the past five years, including Pacing the Perimeter on Steel City Dance Discs and Mercury Bath on Eternal Solitude, Collector continues to inspire a new generation of producers — artists determined to tell stories of looming industrial fallout and the slow descent into inevitable oblivion through the language of the machines.