''Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit'' is a 1988 compilation of early

Detroit techno 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 Mi ...

tracks released on the

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

UK imprint 10 Records.Sicko 1999:98 The compilation's title helped establish the term "

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

" as the name for

electronic dance music Electronic dance music (EDM), also referred to as dance music or club music, is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs, raves, and List of electronic dance music festivals, festivals. It is generally ...

emerging out of Detroit in the 1980s.Brewster 2006:354Reynolds 1999:71. ''Detroit's music had hitherto reached British ears as a subset of Chicago house;

eil Eil may refer to: Places * Eil (crater), on Mars * Eil, Cologne, a quarter of Cologne, Germany * Eil, Somalia * Eil District, Somalia * Loch Eil, a lake in Scotland Other uses

* Eastern Independent League, an American high school sports c ...

Rushton and the

Belleville Three The Belleville Three are three American musicians, Juan Atkins, Derrick May, and Kevin Saunderson, who are credited with inventing the Detroit techno genre in Belleville, Michigan. Origins Kevin Saunderson was born in Brooklyn, New York. At ...

decided to fasten on the word techno – a term that had been bandied about but never stressed – in order to define Detroit as a distinct genre.''

Background

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.Brewster 2006:354 Previously, the style was characterized as Detroit's interpretation of

Chicago house 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 of DJs and producers from the area, such as Ron Hardy and Phuture History and origins D ...

rather than a genre unto itself. The compilation's working title had been ''The House Sound of Detroit'' until the addition of

Juan Atkins Juan Atkins (born September 12, 1962), 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 Belle ...

' song "Techno Music" prompted reconsideration. Atkins's "Techno Music" contains

speech synthesis Speech synthesis is the artificial production of human speech. A computer system used for this purpose is called a speech synthesizer, and can be implemented in software or hardware products. A text-to-speech (TTS) system converts normal langua ...

, and its title was inspired by

Alvin Toffler Alvin Eugene Toffler (October 4, 1928 – June 27, 2016) was an American writer, futurist, and businessman known for his works discussing modern technologies, including the digital revolution and the communication revolution, with emphasis on th ...

's book '' The Third Wave''. Rushton was later quoted as saying he, Atkins, May, and Saunderson came up with the compilation's final name together, and that the

voted down calling the music some kind of regional brand of house; they instead favored a term they were already using, ''techno''.

Release and legacy

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 Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Music Albums * ''Cross Over'' (album), a 1987 album by Dan Peek, or the title song * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'', an album by Intrigue * ''Crossover'', an album by ...

hit in fall 1988.Sicko 2010:118–120 The record was also responsible for bringing industry attention to May, Atkins and Saunderson, which led to discussions with

ZTT ZTT Records is a British record label founded in 1983 by the record producer Trevor Horn, the businesswoman Jill Sinclair and the ''NME'' journalist Paul Morley. They released music by acts including Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Grace Jones, ...

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 ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

appearances and negotiations collapsed. According to May, ZTT label boss

Trevor Horn Trevor Charles Horn (born 15 July 1949) is an English record producer and musician. His influence on pop and electronic music in the 1980s was such that he has been called "the man who invented the eighties". Horn took up the bass guitar at an ...

had envisaged that the trio would be marketed as a "black

Pet Shop Boys Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music h ...

." '' RBMA'' called the compilation "genre-defining." The compilation was the first introduction to techno for many European listeners, particularly in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. European musicians would subsequently be inspired to develop their own takes on the style.

Track listing

# Rythim Is Rythim - "It Is What It Is" (6:45) #

Blake Baxter Blake Baxter (born 1963) is an American techno musician, associated with the first wave of Detroit techno. AllMusic called him "perhaps the most underrated figure" of the early Detroit techno scene.John Bush, Blake Baxterat AllMusic Baxter wa ...

- "Forever and a Day" (5:39) # Eddie "Flashin'" Fowlkes - "Time to Express" (5:44) # K.S. Experience - "Electronic Dance" (6:40) #Members of the House - "Share This House (Radio Mix)" (4:26) #A Tongue & D Groove - "Feel Surreal" (6:58) #Mia Hesterley - "Spark" (6:12) #

Juan ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of '' John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philip ...

- "Techno Music" (5:45) #

Inner City The term inner city (also called the hood) has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Soc ...

- " Big Fun" (7:42) #Blake Baxter - "Ride Em Boy" (6:28) #

Shakir Shakir is both a surname and a given name originating from Arabic, similar to the surname or name Shakur. The feminine form of Shakir is Shakira. Notable people with the name include: * Ahmad Muhammad Shakir (1892-1958), Egyptian scholar of Hadith ...

- "Sequence 10" (5:22) #Idol Making - "Un, Deux, Trois" (6:06)

Credits

*Compiled By – Neil Rushton *Coordinator etroit Co-ordinator–

Mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiz ...

*Design – Effigy *Photography by – Lawrence Watson *Sleeve Notes – Stuart Cosgrove

Bibliography

* Sicko, D., ''Techno Rebels: The Renegades of Electronic Funk'', Billboard Books, 1999 (). * Sicko, D., ''Techno Rebels: The Renegades of Electronic Funk'', 2nd ed., Wayne State University Press, 2010 ().

References

External links

* Rietveld, Hillegonda C. (2018)
"Dancing in the Technoculture"
at London South Bank University website. {{Authority control 1988 compilation albums Techno compilation albums Regional music compilation albums