Detroit Techno Forever

Writer: Jordan Buzzy Photographers: Jordan Buzzy & Leonard Beck

With Electronic Dance Music (EDM) growing in popularity in American culture, I wanted to know what effects were being felt by the Detroit Techno community. Who better to ask than The Detroit Techno Militia, a collective of DJ’s and Producers who support, share, and create Detroit Techno music. Despite the change and growth of EDM in America, the Detroit Techno community sticks to it’s roots, as a group of close-knit friends who love music.

“It’s about playing Records. It’s about doing this forever,” says Bill Stacy (DJ Seoul) of DTM, when asked about the mission of the group. If you’ve ever witnessed a DTM set, you would know this to be true. These DJ’s are by and large having the most fun at Movement: Detroit, be it rifling through crates of records on stage, dancing to each others’ sets, or taking group pictures with fans (many of whom are sporting the bold black and white “DETROIT TECHNO MILITIA” shirts). For them, the motivation is the same whether hauling a crate to a friends’ basement, or dropping records on-stage at a large festival.

This year DTM held two slots at Movement, featuring three of their members: DJ Psycho played a grab-bag of music ranging from soulful Motown to banging Detroit Techno, and T.Linder & DJ Seoul performing a “DTM 2×4”, each DJ playing simultaneously with two turntables and a mixer, in a high-energy volley of some of the most exciting Techno around. If you have not had the pleasure of watching, listening to, or meeting this amazing family of techno lovers, you are truly missing out.