From eluna@coil.com
Date: Thu, 9 May 1996 03:29:52 -0400 (EDT)
From: eluna
To: mwraves
Subject: MONKEE MADNESS: don't pass it up.

well, someone wanted to be convinced about which event to attend this saturday: chicago vs. indianapolis, but i'd have to say that there's no better option than indy.

let me explain why. i dont expect everyone to agree with me (especially anyone who's promoting for any other event that day...sorry, i have to take the high ground on this one), but i do hope you read this to get an idea why i take this shit so seriously.

first of all, this lineup has been carefully selected to reflect the best of detroit techno. take it from me, this lineup is among the best you'll ever see, anywhere, any time. and it's not going to be a huge, all-out bash, but rather a more modest 2-room affair with the most amazing music ever produced. and as far as i know the ticket price will be less than $20, so it's damn worth it.

but why am i so into detroit? well, let me explain that detroit techno is not about all of this flash and lite-brite colors that the rave scene is all about (which i love in some ways). no, the music of detroit is about LIFE...about SURVIVAL, not just a game or a "party" for fun. altho it _is_ "party" music, it's also a necessary form of _escape_ for anyone who lives in detroit, especially within the city limits. the ravages of capitalism and racism have torn this city in two, and left a dying hulk of a metropolis in the middle. factories lie empty and falling to pieces...entire neighborhoods are barren...once-proud houses are left to the rats...roads are left in perpetual disrepair...and no one goes downtown, because there is virtually nowhere to go. meanwhile, the predominantly-white suburbs glisten with their wealth and power.

music has always been one of the few things to turn to, to try to escape the decay and the "humiliation of history"...and the mostly-black culture that got left behind in the city began to attach to the electronic sounds of early techno and electro in the early 80s...stuff like HUMAN LEAGUE, LIASONS DANGEREUSE, KRAFTWERK, AFRIKA BAAMBAATA, and so on...probably because these mechanical, driving, darker sounds made sense in this, the ultimate industrial city, but also because the best of this electronic music still had that crucial element called SOUL. the eerie combination of electronics and soul was to become the main force behind the music which was to come next (and it still is)...

several visionaly young people like juan atkins and derrick may soaked this all up and reacted to their decaying surroundings by deciding to do music for themselves. these guys, along with several others, shaped the sound of "techno" throughout the 80s and well into the 90s, and have now come back bigtime to get the respect they deserve.

the suburban knight, carl craig, and blake baxter (who are all in the lineup) were an important part of this: they represent the second wave of detroit innovators who came along in the late 80s, and are among the few who have received the international attention and exposure they are due.

but despite the acclaim of some detroit artists, many of the true originators cannot even get gigs in their own hometown or the midwest in general. acceptance and support in europe does not translate to anything when they return to their own home turf. meanwhile, the city itself continues to place obstacles in the way of real progress, by "re-urbanizing" (whitening) certain downtown areas without addressing the real problems of low-income housing, health care, and so on. the people of detroit must buckle under the constant pressure to relocate or put up with the delapidation...and many of them are barely able to survive at all, leading them to succumb to desperation, cynicism, and the loss of hope.

in the midst of this, there are a few bright spots: such as dan bell's 7th city distribution company, and especially the submerge collective, which was established several years ago by mike banks and a close group of friends which began as underground resistance. submerge--whose artists include many of those on the event lineup such as rolando, gigi galaxy, and the suburban knight--stands as a beacon for all techno producers who are struggling to make ends meet, doing whatever it takes to get their music heard...while staying true to themselves. but even submerge is threatened. their building is being torn down to make way for a _baseball stadium_ this spring, and the city has not provided them with a new base of operations. all the hard work of blacks and whites and latinos working together for themselves and for the music...will be wiped away.

but i'm not writing this post to evoke sympathy for a "sad, empty city," nor to lament the loss of the submerge building; they will live on in some form or another, as they always have. but i _am_ writing this to say that even in the middle of these harsh realities, detroit STANDS for something which affects us all. detroit shows us that, in its own meager ways, music can bring life back to people who at one point were very close to giving up hope. this is the lesson which we can all carry. so a lot has been accomplished by the music of detroit, and its influence can be felt all over the world, in most of the techno you listen to at raves or elsewhere. if it's bleepy, minimal, melancholy, sweet, or dark, chances are it was influenced by the music of this remnant of a city. but it's more than just tones that make the music, it's a certain feeling...an awareness of the universals that makes detroit techno, and in fact all techno, an undeniable, irrepressible, and unifying pulse.

and the innovations continue, spearheaded by most of the people who make up the rest of the event lineup: rolando, greg collier, twonz, gigi galaxy, and other more recent additions to the detroit sound. these artists are the ones who will continue to carry the torch of self-reliance and the true underground ideal.

so i'll be at MONKEE MADNESS because i know that it will be more than just a rockin party (which it ought to be); it will a celebration of LIFE. as i said, detroit techno aint just party music, it's music about life itself...music which seeks to tear down the walls of discrimination and prejudice through the rhythm of the drums...music which needs to be heard and loved and respected. mad props to tony in indianapolis for recognizing this and making an event happen to bring these artists, and what they represent, to light.

again, i intend no disrespect to any other event occurring on the same evening as MONKEE MADNESS. but for me, i know where the true SOUL of techno will be on may 11.

(sorry for the passion)
++
e d

now that you've read some of my words, please go back to who, or back to
.