Thanks much for the heads-up on this and the other articles, Fred. http://andrewdukeinthemix.com
On Fri, May 22, 2015 at 3:12 PM, Fred Heutte <[email protected]> wrote: > http://www.detroitnews.com/story/entertainment/music/2015/05/20/originator- > kevin-saunderson-movements-past-future/27678797/ > > Originator: Kevin Saunderson on Movement's past, future > > The Detroit techno pioneer (and one-time festival producer) talks > about Movement's history and his own Origins program > > Adam Graham, The Detroit News > > 9:08 a.m. EDT May 21, 2015 > > Kevin Saunderson is, in many ways, the heart of Movement. > > At this weekend's 16th annual event, Saturday through Monday at Hart > Plaza, Saunderson marks his 14th appearance at the festival. In 2005, > when the fest had no producer and its future was in jeopardy, > Saunderson stepped up and acted as organizer (and hired Paxahau to > produce a stage, paving the way for them to take over as producers of > the festival the following year). And without Saunderson's > contributions to techno music in its formative years, there might not > be any Memorial Day weekend techno celebrations in the first place. > > At this year's Movement festival, Saunderson returns with his second > annual Origins showcase, where he'll shine a spotlight on the past, > present and future of techno music. His day of programming, Monday on > the Made In Detroit/ Thump stage, includes Detroiters DJ Minx, D. > Wynn, Dink & TK, Al Ester and Marc Kinchen; Chicago's Phuture and Lee > Foss; Toronto's Greg Gow, and Saunderson's sons Dantiez and DaMarii > Saunderson, who perform as the Saunderson Brothers. Kevin Saunderson > himself will close out the day by teaming up with fellow Detroit > techno pioneer Derrick May for a tandem performance under the banner > of Hi Tech Soul. > > Kevin Saunderson's showcase is part of an adventurous three days of > music that includes performances by sizzling hot English electronic > duo Disclosure, Skrillex and Boys Noize's collaboration Dog Blood. > Also featured are Southfield-bred producer-DJ-sax man GRiZ, Detroit > rapper Danny Brown, Wu-Tang Clan rapper Method Man, Windsor techno > godfather Richie Hawtin and West Coast rap general Snoop Dogg, who > will close out the festival Monday night under his nom-de-DJ, DJ > Snoopadelic. > > Earlier this week, we caught up with Saunderson at Hart Plaza to talk > about Movement, his involvement in the festival and dance music in > general. > > Q: What is the concept behind your Kevin Saunderson Presents: Origins > showcase? > > A: It's bringing new artists together with artists that were > influenced by me or Detroit. We had some great artists last year and > a welcome turnout from the fans. It's important to educate. We have > EDM and all these new divisions of music, so we want people to > understand the history of our music and why it is what it is. We also > like to celebrate it. It gives you a new kind of energy to do it for > another 10 years. > > Q: How have you seen the rise of EDM affect electronic music culture? > > A: At first I think there was a backlash against it, and I didn't > really pay attention to it. I did a show in Australia with Deadmau5, > and I was like, 'Who is Deadmau5? He wears a mouse?' I had no clue. > But he was really popular over there and I was like, 'OK, this is > what they do.' > > But I think what happened is it helped give people more awareness of > the underground. It made them realize that there was more music than > just listening to Deadmau5 or David Guetta or Avicii. It started > opening festivals to experiment more with the techno, more house, > deep house and really giving a broad spectrum. So younger kids, they > might have had no idea about who Kevin Saunderson or Derrick May or > Carl Craig is, but they started finding out slowly. It started > cultivating at festivals and events we were playing, and we started > to get more awareness. > > So it brought that out, and it helped the club scene too. People go > out to clubs more than they used to. And obviously festivals are just > popping up all over the country now. So I think it helps, as much as > people might slag the music. My son, believe it or not, he started > out listening to people like Avicii. > > Q: How have you seen Movement grow and change over the years? > > A: This festival for me is one of the top in the world, and I've been > to many. It's up there at the top. And everybody still wants to come > to Detroit. When I say everybody, I mean every DJ wants to play in > this city, because of what started here and how they've been > influenced. And again, that still connects to Origins, because we > have touched so many people around the world with our sound and our > music that they want to come here and play. > > Also the production has gotten better. The guys from Paxahau care. > I've seen many clubs, many promoters, they keep the same sound > system, they don't upgrade, and they wonder in seven, eight years, > 'What happened?' Paxahau doesn't do that. They put back into the > production, they do things right, they change little things every > year. And they're bringing talent in from all over the world. > > Q: What did you learn from doing the festival yourself? > > A: It was weird for me. I know I had the festival, the city wanted me > to do it, and it was March or something crazy, so just to pull it off > was good. Because I don't think there was going to be a festival if I > didn't take it, to be honest. I don't know who else would have been a > candidate to do it. I had to roll the dice and just make it happen. > > I learned not to do a festival in three months! I learned a little > bit more about politics, because I had not-too-nice things happen to > me there. I'm not going to go into details -- I try to keep it > positive. I think the biggest thing I learned is I had to do it, and > it's still going. So it was the right decision, even though it was > tough for me to not continue. > > Also, I brought Paxahau in to work with me that year, and it helped > them for the next year. They were actually on the grounds, they were > part of it. So it helped them move forward with their planning, and > not maybe make some of the same mistakes that were made. So that was > an important factor. > > Q: What is it like to perform with Derrick May? > > A: We don't play together that much, maybe three or four times a > year. So when we come together, you never know how it's gonna work > out, but it always works out because we are fortunate where we > connect. Maybe it's because of the history of the music that we've > been through, and we feel like we're ambassadors to this music. So we > find a way to make the magic happen. I'm kind of like the pilot. And > Derrick is there, he does some amazing things. But I set the stage > and he works off of me, and then we feed off each other. > > Q: Where do you see this festival headed in the future? > > A: I think it's going to continue. It's love and happiness, and > people want to come here from around the world. And it's a great > location. It's perfect for this, it's perfect for us. I think the > future of the festival is secure. It should keep going. > > We should have new talent. We should start seeing younger kids coming > up making music, producing, because they were influenced by somebody > out here. And they want to go back and they want to get that drum > machine, they want to get that keyboard, and they want to chase the > dream too. > > And you're going to see that happen. You're going to see some more > local heroes come out of this city and cultivate the sound even more. > It's here, it's all connected. > > >
