> From what I've been reading it seems like while > Detroit techno developed its own sound(s) - the > house sound has a hard time crawling out of the shadows > of Chicago (though the music is still great).
Theo was born in D.C. but actually raised in Chicago... so he would have been growing up here in context of the development from deep r&b/disco/boogie to house music, in all it's various and criss-crossing forms. You can really hear that in his mix CDs and sets, very broad. Detroit house DJs, from those I have actually heard firsthand, aren't *quite* as obsessed with it's roots as Chicago house jocks are, though I realize this varies significantly depending on who you listen to. I'm not saying this is a good or bad thing, mind, just a different approach and I appreciate both. I've heard famous [modern] Chicago house DJs just spin surprise sets of mostly disco and freestyle all night. IMHO, you're less likely to hear a DJ play like that in Detroit, by comparison. To me the Detroit house thing is more purposefully schizophrenic, and doesn't usually reach as self-consciously far back into the historic deep-house and disco stuff. Another significant difference: Prince was way more of an influence on young producers dance-music-to-come in Detroit than Chicago, And Mojo had everything to do with that... (Jamie Principal's vocal style and content being a notable exception, and yes that is yet another broad generalization.) ;) I'm not sure when Theo the moved to Detroit - (that's a good question for him, how did it affect his musical influences?) but I think his sound splits the difference of both cities really well. His "house" tracks (for lack of a better word, it's more like abstract deepness) don't stick to any fairly rigid Chicago house formula like most new house coming out of here does. Last time I saw Theo DJ in Chicago a coupe years ago he played at a tiny little wicker park neighborhood bar called Pontiac -- almost an anti-club -- and it was hot and packed in there, probably no more than 70 people and he was wringing everything out of that tiny system, it was on the verge of catching fire (literally!). What an experience, it was on some weird Tuesday night or something, part of one of the different many celebrations of Traxx birthday parties... peace Matt MacQueen (Michigan raised Chicago dweller, living my musical life on various ends of I-94)
