detroit techno | Musicosity

detroit techno

Kenny Larkin

Profile: With the deluge of techno artists from all over the world making headlines, it's easy (although very wrong) to forget that techno was created in Detroit, Michigan by African-American visionaries like Kevin Saunderson, Juan Atkins and Derrick May. From there Kenny Larkin began his music career in 1990 after serving two years in the U.S. Air Force, where he was repairing computers. Hanging out at local Detroit clubs like The Music Institute and The Shelter, he soon hooked up with Richie Hawtin and John Acquaviva records under a variety of monikers, including Dark Comedy, Pod and Yennek.

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Underground Resistance

Underground Resistance is the most militantly political outcropping of modern urban American techno. Combining a grubby, four-track aesthetic, an almost strictly DIY business philosophy, and an oppositional, militaristic ethos similar to Public Enemy without the drama (or the familiarity; the members refuse to be photographed without bandanas obscuring their identities), UR have redirected their portion of the Detroit techno legacy to social activist ends, trading mainstream popularity and financial success for independence and self-determination.