Juan Atkins- Techno "An Evolution Process Not A Fad" (Interview) DS:- How do you feel about being described as techno's inventor? Juan Atkins:- "It's good to be known for something, y'know? I'm glad that I was able to be one of the first people probably to coin that term ['techno'], and I know, for sure, that I was one of the first people to play with electronic sounds in the USA. So, yeah, it's good to be designated as that, and it's a good position to be in, but...,"
DS:- Do such plaudits add undue extra pressure? Juan Atkins:- "To a certain degree, yes, but I tend to work best under pressure. I tend to be one of those people who needs a bit of a kick in the pants to get going, anyway!" DS:- Since almost all the key Detroit names now live elsewhere, Is there any definitive 'Detroit' sound left? Juan Atkins:- "You can take a guy out of Detroit, but you can't take Detroit out of the guy. I think that no matter where we live, we're always going have within us the things that got us to where we are. It's just like riding a bike or learning to tie your shoelace - you learn a certain way, and you go through life doing it that same particular way. It's the same thing with music. We all learned a certain way of production in Detroit that's always going to stay true." DS:- Do you get irritated by America's slow progress in embracing electronic music? Juan Atkins:- "Yeah, it is somewhat frustrating because it's still at a very young stage - but the scene is progressing a lot faster than I thought, and I'm very impressed with its development and evolution. I'm going to a lot of places now, and I'm getting the same kind of attention that I was in Europe four or five years ago." DS:- Why do you think US interest is finally increasing? Juan Atkins:- "I think a lot of it has to do with the internet - now that the information's flowing through to people a lot quicker, there's more of a tendency to know who I am. I was in Kansas City about a month ago and I was surprised at the number of people coming up to ask for autographs, shaking my hand and congratulating me for the music - in Kansas City!" DS:- How healthy is the worldwide techno scene right now? Juan Atkins:- "I think it's had its ups and downs. You take a city like London, which goes through phases every six months where it swings between techno, house and garage. But in other places, like Germany, it seems to be a little bit steadier and they've embraced it to the point where it's taken on almost pop status - and that's okay. I can live with that. The fact is that we're evolving into a technology-based age, so electronic music is the way things are being done now. It's an evolution process rather than a fad, just as the electric guitar was when it was introduced." - By Andrez Bergen, Inpress Magazine, Australia. http://www.dancesite.com/news6.shtml ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----
