| Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Compilation album by various artists | |
| Recorded | 1988 |
| Genre | Detroit techno |
| Length | 73:54 |
| Label | Virgin, 10 Records |
Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit is a 1988 compilation of early Detroit techno tracks released on the Virgin Records UK imprint 10 Records. [1] [2] The compilation's title helped establish the term "techno" as the name for electronic dance music emerging out of Detroit in the 1980s. [3] [4]
Compiled by techno producer Derrick May and Kool Kat Records boss Neil Rushton (at the time an A&R scout for Virgin's "10 Records" UK imprint), the album was an important milestone and marked, in the UK, the introduction of the word techno in reference to a specific genre of music. [3] [4] Previously, the style was characterized as Detroit's interpretation of Chicago house rather than a genre unto itself. [4] [5]
The compilation's working title had been The House Sound of Detroit until the addition of Juan Atkins' song "Techno Music" prompted reconsideration. [1] [6] Atkins's "Techno Music" contains speech synthesis, and its title was inspired by Alvin Toffler's book The Third Wave . [7] [8] Rushton was later quoted as saying he, Atkins, May, and Saunderson came up with the compilation's final name together, and that the Belleville Three voted down calling the music some kind of regional brand of house; they instead favored a term they were already using, techno. [4] [6] [9]
Commercially, the release did not fare as well as expected, and it failed to recoup, however Inner City's production "Big Fun" (1988), a track that was almost not included on the compilation, became a massive crossover hit in fall 1988. [10] The record was also responsible for bringing industry attention to May, Atkins and Saunderson, which led to discussions with ZTT records about forming a techno supergroup called Intellex. But, when the group were on the verge of finalising their contract, May allegedly refused to agree to Top of the Pops appearances and negotiations collapsed. [11] According to May, ZTT label boss Trevor Horn had envisaged that the trio would be marketed as a "black Pet Shop Boys." [12]
RBMA called the compilation "genre-defining." [13] The compilation was the first introduction to techno for many European listeners, particularly in England, Belgium, and Germany. [14] European musicians would subsequently be inspired to develop their own takes on the style. [15]
House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by DJs and music producers from Chicago's underground club culture in the early/mid 1980s, as DJs began altering disco songs to give them a more mechanical beat.
Electronic body music (EBM) is a genre of electronic music that combines elements of industrial music and synth-punk with elements of dance music. It developed in the early 1980s in Western Europe as an outgrowth of both punk and industrial music cultures. It combines sequenced repetitive basslines, programmed dance music rhythms, and mostly undistorted vocals and commandlike shouts with confrontational or provocative themes.
Detroit techno is a type of techno music that generally includes the first techno productions by Detroit-based artists during the 1980s and early 1990s. Prominent Detroit techno artists include Juan Atkins, Eddie Fowlkes, Derrick May, Jeff Mills, Kevin Saunderson, Blake Baxter, Drexciya, Mike Banks, Dakim Sadiq and Robert Hood. Artists like Terrence Parker and his lead vocalist, Nicole Gregory, set the tone for Detroit's piano techno house sound.
Juan Atkins, also known as Model 500 and Infiniti, is an American record producer and DJ from Detroit, Michigan. Mixmag has described him as "the original pioneer of Detroit techno." He has been a member of The Belleville Three, Cybotron, and Borderland.
Chicago house refers to house music produced during the mid to late 1980s within Chicago. The term is generally used to refer to the original house music DJs and producers from the area, such as Ron Hardy and Phuture.
Ambient techno is a subgenre of techno that incorporates the atmospheric textures of ambient music with the rhythmic elements and production of techno. It was pioneered by 1990s electronic artists such as Aphex Twin, Carl Craig, The Orb, The Future Sound of London, the Black Dog, Pete Namlook and Biosphere.
Electro is a genre of electronic music and early hip hop directly influenced by the use of the Roland TR-808 drum machines, and funk. Records in the genre typically feature drum machines and heavy electronic sounds, usually without vocals, although if vocals are present they are delivered in a deadpan manner, often through electronic distortion such as vocoding and talkboxing. This is the main distinction between electro and previously prominent genres such as disco, in which the electronic sound was only part of the instrumentation. It also palpably deviates from its predecessor boogie by being less vocal-oriented and more focused on electronic beats produced by drum machines.
Derrick May, also known as Mayday and Rhythim Is Rhythim, is an American electronic musician from Belleville, Michigan, United States. May is credited with pioneering techno music in the 1980s along with collaborators Juan Atkins and Kevin Saunderson, commonly known as The Belleville Three.
Kevin Maurice Saunderson is an American electronic dance music DJ and record producer. He is famous for being a member of a trio, along with Juan Atkins and Derrick May, who came to be known as the Belleville Three, who is often credited to being among the pioneers and originators of techno: in particular this act helped define Detroit techno, the earliest style of this music genre. Born in New York, at the age of nine he moved to Belleville, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, where at Belleville High School he befriended the other members of the trio.
Minimal techno is a subgenre of techno music. It is characterized by a stripped-down aesthetic that exploits the use of repetition and understated development. Minimal techno is thought to have been originally developed in the early 1990s by Detroit-based producers Robert Hood and Daniel Bell. By the early 2000s the term 'minimal' generally described a style of techno that was popularized in Germany by labels such as Kompakt, Perlon, and Richie Hawtin's M-nus, among others.
Paradise is the debut album by Detroit-based electronic music duo Inner City, released in 1989. The album was a great success in the UK and in US clubs, and was one of the first techno albums to cross over to the mainstream charts, particularly in Europe. Group member Kevin Saunderson is renowned as one of the originators the Detroit techno sound. The vocals on Paradise were performed by the group's other member, Paris Grey.
Network Records was an independent record label founded in Birmingham, England, in 1988 by Neil Rushton and Dave Barker.
The Belleville Three are three American musicians, Juan Atkins, Derrick May, and Kevin Saunderson, who are credited with inventing the Detroit techno genre.
Eddie Fowlkes is an American techno DJ. He was influential to the early Detroit techno scene.
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often characterized by a repetitive four on the floor beat. Artists may use electronic instruments such as drum machines, sequencers, and synthesizers, as well as digital audio workstations. Drum machines from the 1980s such as Roland's TR-808 and TR-909 are highly prized, and software emulations of such retro instruments are popular.
Neil Rushton is a British journalist, DJ, record dealer, record label entrepreneur, event promoter and author who is closely associated with the Northern soul scene.
New beat is a Belgian electronic dance music genre that fuses elements of new wave, hi-NRG, EBM and hip hop. It flourished in Western Europe during the late-1980s.
Dennis White, also known as Latroit and Static Revenger, is an American electronic dance music producer, songwriter and DJ. In 2018 he won the Grammy award for 'Best Remixed Recording' for 'You Move', originally by Depeche Mode.
"No UFO's" is a 1985 techno song by Juan Atkins under the alias of Model 500. It was released on Atkins own label Metroplex. The song was the first track released after the split of Atkins' previous group Cybotron. The music followed similar themes of the previous group with science fiction and alienation but featured less of a song structure than Cybotron's music leading the track to be often identified as one of the earliest techno songs.
Belgian hardcore techno is an early style of hardcore techno that emerged from new beat as EBM and techno influences became more prevalent in this genre. This particular style has been described as an "apocalyptic, almost Wagnerian, bombastic techno", due to its use of dramatic orchestral stabs and menacing synth tones that set it apart from earlier forms of electronic dance music. It flourished in Belgium and influenced the sound of early hardcore from Netherlands, Germany, Italy, UK and North America during the early-1990s, as a part of the rave movement during that period.
... Derrick, Kevin, and Juan kept on using the word techno. They had it in their heads without articulating it; it was already part of their language.
