pitchforkmedia's oral history on the origins of chicago house and detroit techno

good article...wonder when all those interviews were conducted...the story of Derrick May selling his 909 (programmed w/ Juan Atkins beats) to Frankie Knuckles to pay his rent is a classic...

it's interesting to be reminded of the links between the Detroit and Chicago sounds, and to wonder if such geographical cross-pollination is still possible, what with the internet and all...I mean, driving 4 hours just to hear a radio station!...for all the rhetoric about Detroit techno being inspired by Henry Ford, assembly lines, Kraftwerk, etc., it probably derived its "landcruising" aesthetic simply because its progenitors spent so much time in cars...

I was actually thinking about some of the same stuff Henry after reading the article last night. Some of the sense of discovery and wonder is hard to conjure when you're downloading tracks of soulseek and playing them by yourself on your PC.

I think it's possible, but just different. We're goign to be exposed to so many influences that the purist of influence is dialuted.

Thanks for the link, that's a very interesting collection of quotes. Funnily enough I'm planning a little Chicago/Detroit MP3 post this week, so will have to incorporate this too.