This has turned into a really interesting thread, so I thought I'd add what I
knew that was relevant.
The first techno that I ever heard was Cybotron "Cosmic Cars" and I was sure
that they were English. Didn't find out that they were from Detroit until
years later.
I read this interview with Juan Atkins in _Wired_ this summer where he said
that one of the guys in Kraftwerk once told him that they (Kraftwerk) were
heavily influenced by James Brown. That is definitely one of the cool things
about this music--that it has resulted from so many different artists working
in so many different places. In this sense it really does seem to transcend
race.
However, to say that race plays no part in the music is of course ridiculous.
One of the most interesting ways it plays a part is in the whole issue of
"exoticism" in the music--the way white people often find music that
they consider "black" more interesting, more emotional, more soulful,
etc. Chris expressed this well when he said:
Why, despite its origins, is today's "techno" consumed by
a largely white and middle class audience? is a relevant
question. So is: Why do so many techno/ambient artists
like to sample black female vocals or "world" music
(because this is aesthetically pleasing to the
aforementioned?)?
However this is not a phenomenon that belongs only to techno. It's
been a major issue in most Western music since the middle of the 19th
century. One of the best discussions I've read about the issue was a
book about blackface minstrels (the title and author escape me, but if
anyone is interested, let me know and I'll find them) and there the
author pointed out that there was a real ambivalent relationship
between the white minstrels and the black culture they were supposedly
imitating. Such borrowings are generally based on the racist
assumption that non-whites are more emotional and passionate than
whites, at the same time as the borrowers admire the non-western music
for its supposedly natural emotional power. One of the things I
appreciate about a lot of techno is that because of its minimalism
it's often really blurred the issue of race. The images that I get
listening to IDM are generally free of any kind of racial content
(compared to listening to rap music say, where race is foregrounded).
I would say that in creating a musical landscape that is free of the
racist oppressive bullshit that they've had to deal with, the
originators of techno have been really successful. And in doing so,
they created a type of music that is good for helping a lot of other
people escape oppressive bullshit, racist and otherwise.
David