Model 500 : Juan Atkins
JUAN ATKINS: SUNDAY 25TH OCT: DEAF CLOSING PARTY
At the dawn of the 1980s, Juan Atkins began recording what stands as perhaps the most influential body of work in the field of techno. Exploring his vision of a futuristic music which welded the more cosmic side of Parliament funk with rigid computer synth-pop embodied by Kraftwerk and the techno-futurist possibilities described by sociologist Alvin Toffler (author of The Third Wave and Future Shock), Atkins blurred his name behind aliases such as Cybotron, Model 500 and Infiniti — all, except for Cybotron, comprised solely of himself — to release many classics of sublime Detroit techno.
And though it’s often difficult (and misleading) to pick the precise genesis for any style of music, the easiest choice for techno is an Atkins release, the 1982 electro track “Clear,” recorded by Atkins and Rick Davis as Cybotron. He soon left the progressively album-oriented Cybotron to begin working alone, and released his most seminal material from 1985 to 1989 as Model 500 And while fellow Detroit legends Kevin Saunderson and Derrick May were known for their erratic output during the following decade, Atkins recorded much more during the 1990s than he had during the ’80s, soaking up new rhythmic elements from contemporary dance music but keeping his unerring, instantly recognizable sense of melody intact throughout.
As the electronic scene began looking back to the past to find musical innovators, Atkins was a name much-discussed and -anthologized, hailed as the godfather of techno. Born in Detroit in 1962 (the son of a concert promoter), Juan Atkins began playing bass as a teenager and then moved on to keyboards and synthesizers, after being turned on to their use in Parliament records. Two local DJs, Ken Collier and the Electrifyin’ Mojo, first introduced Atkins to a wide range of other synthesizer-driven bands — Kraftwerk, Telex, Gary Numan, Prince, the B-52’s — in the late ’70s.
Atkins then turned on two friends he had met (initially through his younger brother) while attending Belleville Junior High School, Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson. He also bought his first synthesizer, a Korg MS10, and began recording with cassette decks and a mixer for overdubs. Hoping to learn more about the burgeoning field of musical electronics after high-school graduation, Atkins studied at Washtenaw County Community College in nearby Ypsilanti; there he met Rick Davis, a Vietnam War veteran, synthesizer expert and fellow Electrifyin’ Mojo devotee — Davis had even released an experimental record used by Mojo to open his radio show.
The two began recording as Cybotron and released their first single, “Alleys of Your Mind,” in 1981 on their own Deep Space Records. The clever balance of urban groove and synthesizer futurism signaled the new electro wave in black music; though crossover success for electro was quite limited, it went on to become one of the most influential styles for the new electronic music of the next decade. “Alleys of Your Mind” got immediate play from Electrifyin’ Mojo and became a big local hit, even though most listeners had no idea it was recorded in Detroit, or America for that matter. The 1982 single “Cosmic Cars” also did well, and Cybotron recorded their debut album, Enter.
Then the group signed a deal with Fantasy Records to reissue the album. One track, “Clear,” was a quasi-instrumental which set the blueprint for what would later be called techno. Instead of merely reworking elements of Kraftwerk into a hip-hop context (which proved the basis for many electro tracks), “Clear” was a balanced fusion of techno-pop and club music. Unfortunately, competing visions for the future of the group forced him to leave the group by 1983. Davis and new member Jon 5 argued to pursue a musical direction closer to rock & roll, while Atkins wanted to continue in the vein of “Clear.” (Cybotron carried on in the direction proposed by Davis, and was promptly forgotten.)
Juan Atkins had no trouble staying busy during the mid-’80s. He continued working with the music collective Deep Space Soundworks which he, May and Saunderson had founded in 1981 to provide a club-based forum for their music. Later, the Deep Space family founded their own club, the Music Institute, in the heart of downtown Detroit. It soon became the hub of the Motor City’s growing underground family, a place where May, Atkins and Saunderson DJed along with fellow pioneers like Eddie “Flashin” Fowlkes and Blake Baxter. The club invigorated the fractured sense of community in Detroit, and inspired second-wave technocrats like Carl Craig, Stacey Pullen, Kenny Larkin and Richie Hawtin (Plastikman).
Of course, Atkins continued recording during this time, and the period from 1985 to 1987 proved to be his most influential period. He founded his own label, Metroplex Records, in 1985 and recorded his first single as Model 500, “No UFO’s.” Derrick May, who was living in Chicago at the time, invited Atkins over and told him to bring his records. The duo sold thousands of copies, and “No UFO’s” soon became a hit with Chicago mix shows like the Hot Mix Five. Later Metroplex singles like “Night Drive,” “Interference” and “The Chase” also sold well and set the template for Detroit techno; moody and sublime machine music, inspired by the drone of automated factories and trips down the I-96 freeway late at night.
By 1988, Britain had caught up with the advanced music coming from Chicago and Detroit; soon Atkins, May and Saunderson made their first trip (of hundreds) across the Atlantic, in Atkins’ case before thousands of people at one of the open-air raves typical of England’s Summer of Love. Acts like 808 State, A Guy Called Gerald, LFO and Black Dog began due in large part to the influence of Atkins, and the man himself was invited to remix current pop acts like Fine Young Cannibals, Seal, Tom Tom Club, the Beloved and the Style Council.
Though dance music in Great Britain shifted its course radically from 1989 to 1991 (to the burgeoning, cartoonish sounds of rave and hardcore), others in Europe were quick to take up the cause of championing Detroit’s techno elite.
First, the Belgian R&S Records began releasing stellar work by a cast of techno inheritors including New Yorker Joey Beltram and Europeans C.J. Bolland and Speedy J. By 1993, Berlin’s Tresor Records had picked up the baton as well, issuing American projects by second-wave Detroit producers Underground Resistance (as X-101), Jeff Mills, Blake Baxter and Eddie Fowlkes.
Atkins visited the label’s studio in 1993 and worked with 3MB, the in-house production team of Thomas Fehlmann and Moritz Von Oswald (both of whom were to go on to better things, in Sun Electric and Basic Channel/Maurizio, respectively). He returned to Berlin several years later to begin recording what was, surprisingly, his first album since the days of Cybotron. Finally, in mid-1995, R&S released the debut Model 500 album, Deep Space; more importantly, the label also released Classics, a crucial compilation of Model 500’s best Metroplex singles output.
Another retrospective, Tresor’s Infiniti Collection, traced Atkins’ work as Infiniti, recorded from 1991 to 1994 for a variety of labels including Metroplex and Chicago’s Radikal Fear. Several years passed before he released any additional material, but it came with a rush during 1998-99. First in September 1998, Tresor released an album of new Infiniti recordings named Skynet. One month later, the American label Wax Trax! released a Juan Atkins mix album. Finally, in early 1999, the second full Model 500 album Mind and Body was released on R&S Records.
JUAN ATKINS SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY
1987 Beat Track (12”), Red Parrot 228
1991 The Future Sound EP (12”, EP, Underground Level Recordings
1992 Industrial Metal / Kiss The Sky (12”, Promo, W/Lbl), Lower East Side Records
Is This Real? (2×12”, Promo) - Flying Records (UK)
1993 3MB Feat. Magic Juan Atkins (2×12”, Album, Tresor
Coming Home (12”), Flying Records
Future Sound EP (12”), Buzz
Is This Real? (12”), TRIBAL America
Magic Tracks – Deep Detroit Volume Two (CD), Pow Wow Records
1996 Clear (CD, Maxi), ZYX Music
1998 Never Tempt Me (2×12”), Tresor
Wax Trax! MasterMix – Volume 1 (CD), Wax Trax! Records
1999 MM (3×12”), Kickin Records
Wax Trax! MasterMix – Volume 1 (2×12”), Wax Trax! Records, TVT Record
2000 Piece Of Cake / In My Moment (12”), Jellybean Recordings
2001 Legends: Volume 1 (CD), OM Records
2002 Timeless (CD), Metroplex
2004 Back To Basics (Part 1) (12”), New Religion
Back To Basics (Part 2) (12”), New Religion
Fast Forward (12”), New Religion
Futurepast EP (12”, EP) – Subject Detroit
The Berlin Sessions (CD, Promo), Tresor
2005 20 Years Metroplex: 1985–2005 (2xCD), Tresor
Coke DJ-Culture (12”, Pro), Not On Label
The Berlin Sessions (2xLP, Tresor
REMIXES
Beyond The Sun (3xLP) Spice (Lo Power Mix), Dance Arena Productions (DAP)
Illusion / R-Theme (12”, RP) Illusion (Juan Mix), Transmat
Innovator (2xCD) Wiggin (Juan’s Mix), PIAS France
Paradise Remixed (Cass) - Big Fun, Thames Original
1987 Let’s Go (Remixes) (12”) Let’s Go (Freak Mix), Fantasy
Time To Party (12”) Time To Party (Magic Mix), Express Records
1988 Acid House Fever Vol.1 (CD) Good Life, EMI Electrola
Ain’t Nobody Better (12”, Promo) Ain’t Nobody Better, Virgin Records America, Inc.
Big Fun (12”) – Big Fun (Magic Juan Mix), Virgin Records America, Inc.
Dancin’ Forward (CD) – You’re The One, BMG Ariola München GmbH
Fine Time (CD, Mini) - Dream (Remix), GmbH
Good Life (12”) - Good Life, Virgin Records America, Inc.
Good Life (7”) - Good Life, Virgin Records America, Inc.
House Sensation - Magic Juan’s Remix (12”) - House Sensation (Magic…, Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
Your Love Takes Me Higher - The ‘Magic Juan’ Mixes (12”, Promo) Luke Vibert gig, WEA International Inc. 1989
Acid House Fever (2xLP) - Good Life., EMI Electrola
Ain’t Nobody Better (12”) - Ain’t Nobody Better, Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
Choice? (12”) Choice?, RCA
Deep Heat 3 - The Third Degree (2xLP), Telstar
Definition Of Love (12”), Kool Kat Music
Do You Love What You Feel (12”), Virgin Records America, Inc.
Fine Time (12”) - Fine Time (MC Mix), Big Life
House 89 (2xLP) - Good Life, Virgin France S.A.
Illusion / R-Theme (12”) - Illusion (Techno-1 Mix), Transmat
Maxi Hit Sensation - Das Maxi Power Doppelalbum (2xLP, Comp), Good Life- Ariola
Paradise Remixed (LP), Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
People Hold On (12”) - People Hold On, Ahead Of Our Time
Promised Land (7”) - Promised Land, Polydor (UK)
Searching / Psychedelic (12”) Searching, R & S Records
Searching / Psychedelic (2×12”, Promo), Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
Something Special (12”) Something Special, Polydor (UK)
Strings Of Life ’99 (12”) Strings Of Life, ZYX Records
Suboceana (12”) - Suboceana, Sire Records Company
Techno 1 (LP) - Illusion (Magic Juan Mix), KMS
The Sound Of C (Remixes) (12”), Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
This Is Your Life (12”) - Wait (Long), RCA
Wait (12”) Wait (Long), RCA
You’re My Type (Make Your Body Move) (12”) You’re My Typ, Virgin
You’re The One (12”) You’re The One (Remix), RCA
Your Love Takes Me Higher (12”), WEA Music of Canada
1990 Best Of House Music Vol. 3 - House Music All Night Long (CD) Good Life, Profile Records
Deep Heat (2xCD) Ocean To Ocean, Eurostar
Here’s Your Chance Now Dance (12”), Metroplex
I Believe (12”) I Believe, Transmat
Ocean To Ocean (12”, S/Sided, Promo) Ocean To Ocean, Kool Kat Music
Other Side Of Life / Touch Me (12”) Other Side Of Life, Interface Records
Paradise Remixed (CD) Big Fun, Virgin
Techno 2 - The Next Generation (12”, Promo, Smplr) Aftermath, Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
1991 Somewhere In A Field (12”), Polydor (UK)
The Remix Pack (12”) Unity (Magic Juan Mix), Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
1992 Frontpage - Forcing The Future Compilation Vol. 1 (CD) Industrial Metal, Polydor
Illusion / R-Theme (12”, RP) Illusion, Transmat
1992 Remixes Anonymous Vol. #1 (12”), DJ Essentials Inc.
The Colour Of Love (12”) The Colour Of Love, Network Records
What Is Music / Spice (CD, Maxi) Spice (Low Power Mix), Columbia
1993 A Great Man Once Said… (CD) You Better Take This, Lower East Side Records
Welcome To The Future (2xLP) Spice, One Little Indian
1994 Classic House Mastercuts Volume 1 (2xLP) Big Fun, Mastercuts
1995 A Retrospective Of House ’91–’95 Volume 2 (3xCD) Good Life, Sound Dimension Recordings
A Retrospective Of House ’91–’95 Volume 2 (3xCass) Good Life, Sound Dimension Recordings
I Believe (12”) I Believe, 430 West
The Flow (12”) The Flow M14 (G-Funk Mix), R & S Records
1996 1996 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras - The Party Anthems 2 (2xCD, Comp) Big Fun (Magic Juan Mix), Dance Pool
1996 Amuk (12”) Amuk (Juan’s Remix), Metroplex
DJ Connection 4 (CD, Comp, Mixed) Instant, N.E.W.S.
Hoodrum 01 (12”) Alfred (Juan Atkins Mix), Sony Music Entertainment (Japan)
Innovator (2xCD) “Wiggin”, Sony Music Entertainment (Japan)
Instant (12”) Instant, Tresor
Someone (12”) Someone, End Recordings
Wanna Ride (12”) Wanna Ride (Remix), Interface Records
1997 Innovator (2xCD) Wiggin (Juan Atkins Mix), Transmat
Tresor IV - Solid (CD + CD) Instant (Juan Atkins R…, Tresor
1998 Heavenly (3xLP, Album) Heavenly Play It Again Sam [PIAS]
Innovator (5xLP + Box) Wiggin (Juan’s Mix) - Transmat, R & S Records
Re-Edit (12”, W/Lbl) Alfred Untitled Records
1999 Pete Tong’s Essential Selection: Spring 1999 (Special Edition) (3xCD) Big Fun, FFRR
Placid (2xCD) Instant, Made In Frankfurt
1999 Sunnyview EP (2×12”) E.T. Boogie, Regal Recordings
2000 Back To Mine (CD) The Flow, DMC Publishing
Dance Train Classics Platform 1 (2xCD) Big Fun, EVA Belgium
It Sounds Different - Deep Techno (CD) Heavenly, Different
Past Lessons / Future Theories (3xLP) Heavenly, Distinct’ive Breaks Records
2001 Back To Mine (3xLP) The Flow, DMC Publishing
2002 Maxim’s De Paris (2xCD) Flow, Wagram
2003 Big Fun (Remixes) (CD, Maxi) Big Fun - PIAS UK
End 050: End Recordings 1995–2002 (2xCD) Someone (Juan Atkins Mix, End Recordings
The House Of Colette - Dancefloor Diversions (CD) Big Fun (Juan’s Magic …, Colette
2004 Trax Hors Série #7 : 20 Ans De Révolution Electronique (CD, Smplr, Car) Big Fun (The Classic M…,
Trax Sampler
2005 In Order To Remember (Redefined) (12”) Untitled, Cosmic Records
Renaissance: The Classics (3xCD, Mixed, Comp) Good Life, Sony BMG Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd.
2006 Frequencies From A Distant Planet (File, MP3) Amuk (Juan Remix 2), Detroit Digital Vinyl
High Tech Soul - The Creation Of Techno Music (DVD) Big Fun (Magic Juan Re…, Plexi Limited
History Of Dance - 9 - The Techno Edition (5xCD) Instant, Sony BMG Music Entertainment (Netherlands)
2007 High Tech Soul - Stvorení Techno Sveta (DVD) Big Fun, XMAG
2007 Original Techno Selection (2xCD) Strings Of Life Original Selection Records
2008 Innovator (2xCD, Comp, RM, RE) Wiggin (Juan’s Mix) - Transmat, R & S Records
PRODUCTION
Clear (12”, RE), Fantasy
Let’s Go (12”, RP), Transmat
Technicolor (12”, RP), Metroplex
1982 Cosmic Cars (7”), Deep Space Records
1983 Clear (12”), Fantasy
Cosmic Cars (12”), Fantasy
1984 Essential Electro - The Business (9xLP, Mixed, Comp, Ltd + Box) Clear, Street Sounds
1986 Let’s Go (12”), Transmat
1986 Technicolor (12”), Metroplex
Triangle Of Love (12”), Metroplex
1987 I’m Your Audio Tech (12”), Express Records
Jack Trax - The Third Album (2xLP, Comp, Album) Off To Battle, Jack Trax
Let’s Go (Remixes) (12”), Fantasy
Party Race (12”), Metroplex
Sound Of Stereo / Off To Battle (12”), Metroplex
The Bedroom Scene (12”), Express Records
Triangle Of Love (12”), KMS
Upfront 9 - A Sign Of The Times (2xLP, Comp) Off To Battle (Revamp), Serious Records (2)
1988 Cosmic Cars (12”), Fantasy
House X-Ter-C (2xLP, Comp) O.K. Coral, Low Fat Vinyl
Interference / Electronic (12”), Metroplex
Mad On House Vol. 1 (LP, Comp) The Bedroom Scene (Str…, Needle Records
Techno - The New Dance Sound Of Detroit (2xLP) Techno Music, Virgin Schallplatten GmbH
1989 Big Fun (Cass, Album) And I Do, Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
Deep Heat 3 - The Third Degree (2xCD) Rock To The Beat, Telstar
Deep Heat 4 - Play With Fire (2xCD) The Chase, Telstar
Freaks / Paper Chasing (12”), Silo Records
Jive Presents Acid House (LP), Rock To The Beat (Shor…, Jive
Other Side Of Life (Acetate, 12”, S/Sided, Promo), Not On Label
Paradise (LP, Album) And I Do, Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
Strings Of Life / Off To Battle / KAOS (12”, Ltd) Off To Battle, Jack Trax
You’re My Type (Make Your Body Move) (Juan Atkins Mix) (12”), Virgin Music (Canada)
1990 Aftermath (Remix) (12”), Ten Records Ltd. (10 Record)
By Your Side (12”, W/Lbl), Metroplex
Ocean To Ocean (12”), Kool Kat Music
Other Side Of Life / Touch Me (12”), Interface Records
Techno 2: The Next Generation (LP) Aftermath, Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
The Original Dancefloor Hits 1990 - Vol. 1 (LP) You’re My Type, Virgin Schallplatten GmbH
1991 By Your Side (12”, Promo), Slamm Records
Retro Techno / Detroit Definitive - Emotions Electric (CD, Comp) Let’s Go (Dub Mix),
Network Records
1992 Is This Real? (2×12”), Flying Records
Praise (CD) One Nation Virgin Records America, Inc., Ten Records Ltd. (10 Records)
Reset / Technozone (12”), Kinetix Recordings
1993 Apollo (CD) The Passage, Apollo
Faith, Hope & Clarity - Remixed (2xCD) Free At Last, Control
Forever My Sunset (12”), Flying Records
Free At Last / Miracle Of Life (CD, Maxi) Free At Last, Control
Quarknosis (2xLP) Technozone, Kinetix Recordings
1994 Best Of Techno (4xCD + Box) Off To Battle, Low Price Music
Magic Tracks - Compiled By Juan Atkins (CD) Hardrive, Flash Flood, BMG
Quarknosis (CD, Comp) Technozone, Kinetix Recordings
1995 Jacob’s Optical Stairway (2xLP, Album) The Fusion Formula, R & S Records