13/04/2020
https://www.mixcloud.com/NiteSchool/nite-school-history-lesson-14-the-origins-of-techno-the-first-wave-of-techno/
Welcome to the fourteenth episode of our History Lesson series. This History Lesson focusses on the origins of Techno and the first wave of Techno to come out of Detroit.
What came first - the chicken or the egg? It’s a question that has been baffling philosophers for centuries. You might well be asking yourself “what on earth does that have to do with Techno?" Well, as it happens Techno-heads have been asking a similar question for quite some time. The question: Which came first – “Alleys Of Your Mind” by Cybotron or “Sharevari” by A Number Of Names? On the face of it, you might not think this to be important; however, those in the know will tell you that the answer to this question determines which of the two was the first true Techno track… ever!
There is strong support for each side of the argument. “Sharevari” is generally considered by some to be the first proper techno record – it’s a sleazy little number (or at least it was way back in 1981) and is based largely on Kraftwerk’s “It’s More Fun To Compute”. It was supposedly inspired when the producer saw a Hip-Hop DJ mixing between two copies of Kano’s “Holly Dolly” to emphasise the break.
Then there is the camp that believes that “Alleys Of Your Mind” is the first proper Techno record. It has the right credentials, to be fair – it’s produced by one of Techno’s founding fathers and a member of the Belleville Three, Juan Atkins (with Richard Davies). “Alleys Of Your Mind” was Atkins’ way of paying homage to Ultravox and Kraftwerk, both of whom he cites as influences. Both “Alleys Of Your Mind” and “Sharevari" were released sometime during 1981, but because both were limited pressings on small (now defunct) labels and there’s no record of production or exact release dates, it’s impossible to know which one came first, and so the debate goes on.
However, Techno’s origins go back a little further than 1981. The story begins in Detroit during the final throes of the 70’s. Across the USA, Disco was big business. The commercial Disco that dominated the airwaves represented affluence, glamour and privilege – not things that you would have associated with Detroit at the time. The once unstoppable motor city and former home of Motown was now a city in decay and suffering from severe, riot-fuelled segregation. Times might have been hard for Detroit, but it was this toxic environment that would be the catalyst in Techno’s genesis, as those who felt left behind would begin a musical protest that would become the backbone of modern club culture.
The poorest of families were still living in Detroit as there wasn’t anywhere else for them to go, and so many were left clinging desperately to the deteriorating automobile industry. The residents of the city watched helplessly as they were slowly replaced by robots on production lines, leading to feelings of paranoia and suspicion of technology. During this time music played a vital role in daily Detroit life, just as it had all over the world during every revolution that had come before it. Detroit radio began dismissing the polished sounds of commercial Disco (and everything it represented) in favour of the nastier side of Funk, Electro and Italo-Disco – mechanical vocals set against twisted rhythms that perfectly captured the spirit of a city trying to hold itself together as it fell apart. One radio show stood out from the rest, as it really captured the imaginations of Detroit’s young people – it was the The Electrifying Mojo.
The Electrifying Mojo showcased a wild blend of Prince’s filthiest Funk with the likes of Parliament and Funkadelic, contrasted with the pioneering sounds of Kraftwerk, Yellow Magic Orchestra and Giorgio Moroder. Kraftwerk had been making waves with their mechanical sounds since the release of “Autobhan” in 1973, and Moroder pushed the envelope further by producing the first totally electronic record ever with “I Feel Love”, (the only organic element of the track being Donna Summer’s voice).
The Electrifying Mojo radio show counted a young Juan Atkins, Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson (the Belleville Three) amongst its listeners. All still at high school, the three friends caught the bug for this new sound and so started to experiment with synthesizers and creating mixtapes using the tracks they’d heard on the radio. Juan Atkins was the first to buy a pair of turntables and, once he'd mastered beat-mixing, went on to teach both May and Saunderson. Atkins was also the first to make the transition from experimentation to producing proper music, his first effort as part of Cybotron with Richard Davies, before later honing his craft as a producer via the Model 500 moniker.
Atkins was influenced by the goings on in the Chicago clubs that led to the formation of House however, whilst Chicago used Disco as its blueprint, Atkins and other early Detroit producers rejected anything that resembled Disco or Detroit’s former export, the uplifting Motown sound. There was no place for that kind of optimism or joy in Detroit. Instead, they wanted to create something that sounded like their crumbling city looked – twisted and bent out of shape by technology.
May and Saunderson, inspired by Atkins, also began to produce and each set up their own record label as a means of allowing them to release music without the need for the greed and corporate focus of a larger record label. For Atkins it was Metroplex, for May it was Transmat, and for Saunderson it was KMS Records, which are all still active labels to this day. A noteworthy point is that Detroit started producing its own original music before Chicago did; it was Derrick May who sold Frankie Knuckles his TR909 drum machine, so you might argue that without Techno, there may not have been House.
Whilst House music found itself a spiritual home (and took its name) from The Warehouse in Chicago, Techno (still without a name at this point in time) didn’t find itself a home in the clubs, partly since there were very few places in Detroit due to the state the city was in. Instead, in the same way that Hip-Hop was blossoming in New York, young people were gathering anywhere they could to dance to this exciting new music that was made in their home town. High school auditoriums, local churches, vacant warehouses and offices, and YMCAs were the early locations for Techno's development. Some of these locations were legal and above board, but many weren't. The success of these events would vary significantly – whilst some would go off without a hitch, many of the illegal events would be brought to a premature end because of violence or shootings. But this new club scene, just like its hometown, was resilient and determined to survive, meaning that the parties continued to happen and word of Detroit’s musical experiments started to spread.
The first wave of Detroit Techno had arrived. “No UFOs” by Model 500 (produced by Atkins) blew up in 1985 becoming a massive hit in Chicago, inspiring them to start producing their own music too. Marshall Jefferson, DJ Pierre and Earl Spanky (under the name Phuture) created "Acid Tracks", which was destined to become both a House and Techno staple (as well as creating a whole sub-genre of its own). This was followed by a string of other successful tracks from Detroit such as “N**e Photo” by Rhythim Is Rhythim (produced by May), and “Triangle Of Love” by Kreem (produced by Atkins and Saunderson), both released in 1986. In 1987, May unleashed “Strings Of Life” by Rhythim is Rhythim, and it became an instant club favourite across the US and Europe, as well as becoming the first big Ibiza anthem. The rest of the world was starting to catch up with Detroit.
It was around this time that Atkins, May and Saunderson were approached by British label ZTT. The label had pioneered the concept of the remix and boasted an impressive roster of electronic acts which included Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and would later go on to sign 808 State and Shades Of Rhythm. During negotiations to create and sign a supergroup consisting of Atkins, May and Saunderson that would have been called Intellex, it became clear that the label intended to market them as a black version of the Pet Shop Boys. May was disgusted by this and by the suggestion that the group would be expected to mime a performance on Top Of The Pops and other commercial TV shows, and so the negotiations collapsed.
Undeterred, May began negotiations with 10 Records (a subsidiary of Virgin) with the concept for a compilation of material that would showcase the sound Detroit had created in order to distinguish it from Chicago House, which by now was enjoying mainstream success thanks to Steve 'Silk' Hurley's "Jack Your Body” reaching number one in the UK. The release of the compilation would mark a pivotal point for Techno, as up to now it had just been considered Detroit’s interpretation of Chicago’s House sound. Indeed, the working title of the compilation was “The House Sound Of Detroit”, but it was the last-minute addition of Atkins’ “Techno Music” that triggered a reconsideration of the title. Atkins, May and Saunderson deliberated and, with input from music journalist Neil Rushton, agreed that they would formalise a term that they were already using to describe their sound. “Techno! The New Dance Sound Of Detroit” was released by Virgin Records in the summer of 1988, giving Techno a name befitting of how it sounded.
Although it is now regarded as a House classic rather than being Techno, Saunderson’s project Inner City gave Techno the first of a few big crossover hits with “Big Fun”, due to its inclusion as an exclusive track on the “Techno!” compilation. Though Techno would become famously anti-establishment and resiliently underground, the success of “Big Fun” (and “Good Life” a few months later”) served as a gateway for everyone outside of Detroit to the real Techno sound. This was the peak of Techno’s first wave, and whilst Techno never forgot about its hometown, it was now ready to set up a second home in Europe. The second wave was coming.
Tracklist:
1. I Feel Love - Donna Summer
2. Numbers- Kraftwerk
3. Mr X - Ultravox
4. Technopolis - Yellow Magic Orchestra
5. Methane Sea - Richard Davis
6. Love Bandit Vocoder - Otis Clay
7. Man Machine - Sound Of Mind
8. Alleys Of Your Mind - Cybotron
9. Sharevari - A Number Of Names
10. Wheel Me Out - Was (Not Was)
11. Go Bananas - Superlife
12. Planet Rock - Afrika Bambaata
13. No UFOs - Model 500
14. N**e Photo - Rhythim Is Rhythim
15. Triangle Of Love - Kreem
16. Strings Of Love - Rhythim Is Rhythim
17. Acid Tracks - Phuture
18. Big Fun - Inner City
19. Spark - Mia Hesterley
20. Electronic Dance - KS Experience
21. Rock To The Beat - Reese
22. Share This House - Members Of The House
23. Sequence 10 - Anthony Shakir
24. It Is What It Is - Rhythim Is Rhythim
25. Forever And A Day - Blake Baxter
26. Time To Express - Eddie Fowlkes
27. Feel Surreal - A Tongue & D Groove
28. Techno Music - Juan Atkins
29. Un, Deux, Trois - Idol Making
30. Ride 'Em Boy - Blake Baxter
Welcome to the fourteenth episode of our History Lesson series. This History Lesson focusses on the origins of Techno and the first wave of Techno to come out of Detroit.
