The First Floor

In an unnamed country, in an unnamed year sometime in the future, Chief Inspector Jensen of the Sixteenth Division is called in after the publishers controlling the entire country's newspapers and magazines receive a threat to blow up their building, in retaliation for a murder they are accused of committing. The building is evacuated, but the bomb fails to explode and Jensen is given seven days in which to track down the letter writer. Jensen has never had a case he could not solve before, but as his investigation into the identity of the letter writer begins it soon becomes clear that the directors of the publishers have their own secrets, not least the identity of the 'Special Department' on the thirty first floor; the only department not permitted to be evacuated after the bomb threat.

First Floor started small. At first it was just a newsletter, an outlet where veteran electronic music journalist Shawn Reynaldo could write and share his ideas without having to contend with outside editors or cater to social media algorithms. It was a blank canvas, and Reynaldo began to fill it with his extended thoughts on not just electronic music, but the culture and industry that surrounded it. Just a few years later, First Floor now stands as one of electronic music’s most influential platforms, particularly as Reynaldo continues to put many of the genre’s thorniest issues under the microscope. First Floor Volume 1 collects his most thought-provoking pieces and provides a nuanced, wide-ranging look at contemporary electronic music culture as it comes to grips with systemic challenges during a time of profound transformation. Whether he’s taking a hard look at the genre’s futurist ethos, questioning the practices of the modern music press or mapping out what motivates dance music’s newest generation, Reynaldo applies an undeniably critical lens, but his words are informed by decades of experience, a genuine passion for the subject matter and an open-minded outlook toward whatever changes lie ahead.