Archive for the detroit tag

Cybotron: Cosmic Cars + Model 500: Night Drive / Movement Detroit May 29-31

Movement 2009 photo by donte

If you go back far enough in electronic music, it all sort of starts to sound like one genre–and in the very early ’80s, it sort of was. Before Justice and The Presets, THIS was the original electro. Cybotron was the first moniker of Richard Davis and none other than Juan Atkins, a name I can only hope you recognize as, you know, one of those Detroit guys who created a type of Kraftwerk-sampling futuristic electronic robot music that he called “techno”. After founding the label Metroplex in 1985, he started using the name Model 500. In these tracks, you can hear both a European new wave influence and the infancy of the titan that came to be known as Detroit techno.

Movement, more commonly known as the Detroit Electronic Music Festival [or DEMF], comprises of five stages with almost 100 performers as an annual celebration of both the city’s influence on and the future of electronic music. Acts range from legendary producers such as Atkins to up and coming musicians and DJs, turning downtown Detroit into a massive party as 80,000 people from all walks of life listen to music and dance for three days. It’s an amazing experience I’d recommend to anyone who isn’t put off by the sound of a drum machine.

Juan Atkins will be performing live as Model 500 at Movement on May 31. See the Paxahau website more information.

Buy Juan Atkins’ music on Amazon.com
Juan Atkins on MySpace

Note: Whether you’ve never been to Detroit or a seasoned DEMF-goer, if you’re planning on attending, I highly recommend reading this article from our friends at JustQualityMusic: JQM Guide To Getting Down At Movement 2010, with festival tips and a list of must-see Movement sets, outside events, and Detroit attractions.

Give thanks for Nitzer Ebb!

Ok, so… it’s a bit hypocritical for me to post this, I’ll admit it. I mostly make fun of Nitzer Ebb; I have food related parody vocals for most of their songs. I hardly need to put much effort into it with stuff like this on their Wikipedia page: “Nitzer Ebb began when Bon Harris and David Gooday asked Douglas McCarthy to sing in their band. They shared an interest in witchcraft, talking to trees, and collecting runestones in Chelmsford and Little Baddow”

Talking to trees?

But I can’t deny their influence, which is rampant everywhere from synthpop to Detroit techno and, of course, the industrial and EBM scenes that they had a hand in founding. Their style sounded very dated to me 10 years ago, but now the minimalism sounds fresh–all things come back again, of course.

I choose to post “Let Your Body Learn” from 1987′s That Total Age release because to me, it relates well to new wave [and I'm sure the influence goes both ways]. I’m also including a new track from Neon Electronics vs The Hacker that I’ve been playing alongside various Nitzer Ebb tracks the last few weeks; it’s a fantastic modern example of their continuing impact on electronic music and instantly got a warm reception on the dance floor.

We’re thrilled to be giving away tickets to their upcoming concert on Thanksgiving night. Though lacking in trees, Nitzer Ebb put on a great live show, and I’m sure they won’t disappoint. Opening for them is my absolute favorite local-Chicago-via-way-of-Detroit band Kill Memory Crash, and if you haven’t seen them, get there early–you will be blown away. I’ve posted their song “Demento”, also wearing a bit of Nitzer Ebb inspiration, from their 2004 album American Automatic. They have new stuff and it’s amazing, but still unreleased so you’ll have to listen to my radio show if you want to hear it.

See you on Thanksgiving night, and see you at the Nitzer Ebb show!

Amazon’s Nitzer Ebb Store
Neon Electronics vs The Hacker
Kill Memory Crash on Amazon