So I was going through some old zines and stumbled upon this issue of DMR.
It was from june of 91? and reviewed a ton of artists. Most interesting was
a sidebar that was running that had the artists saying what they though the
future of techno would be. Now that we are deep in 94, a lot of these
sounded prophetic and some downright stupid. Pardon the length, but I
thought y'all might enjoy this. It kind of made me think about about how far
we've com in the last few years. The following are some of the more
interesting excerpts. Hope y'all enjoy it - sasha in boston. P.S. new 303
Nation is muy phat.
1992 will see dozens of new acts adding new twists to the techno sound.
Techno funk, techno salsa, dancehall techno, big band techno, techno ska. By
year end, techno pop crossover acts will be breaking the Top 40. reactionary
hardcore enthusiasts will slag them as sellouts and spin/produce only the
fiercest, most uncomprimising tracks. History repeats. - Paul Burgess,
Caroline records
Techno is the punk of the 90's. In the future, it will diversify into
several sub-styles. Most remarkable at the moment is the U.S. market getting
into the real heavy hardcore stuff, while in Europe (after three years of
hardcore), people are ready for more mellow, melodic or minimal tunes - Fred
Berkhout, Go Bang/ESP/Torso Dance
Rave will be dead by the end of the year. Its pop party music for kids now.
Techno will become harder and more elegant. A split has occured in what
Americans call techno-rave and there is only one side that will survive -
David Davies, MixMag
I think techno probably wont stay the same for too much longer. There will
be a definite separation between hardcore and the lighter side of techno.
The harder stuff will keep evolving, changing and progressing, while the
softer stuf will become the new form of house. this is due to the fact that
techno is picking up in the states and by the end of 1992, we will see the
birth of a new type of underground. Now, what could possibly follow techno??
- Joey Beltram
and finally and excerpt from a Richie Hawtin interview in the same article:
- As long as people keep doing what they are doing, we will be around for a
longer time because the Detroit scene has always been full of peole who are
trying to be a bit different - innovators. they are trying to come up with
new ideas instead of putting out the same formula which too many people are
doing now. We dont put out as many records as some, but our records are more
interesting and will last longer.
sasha in boston