When Did Techno Music Become Popular?

Developed in Detroit, MI by a young group of middle-class African-Americans during the mid- 1980s, techno music became popular in the 1990s. Known as the Belleville Three, Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson and Derrick May all attended school together and developed the blueprint for the genre.

About Early Techno Music

Techno’s central rhythm flows in common time (4/4), but the tempo will vary between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). Common instruments used include drum machines, synthesizers, sequencers and digital audio workstations. Specific instruments used during the 80s were:

• Roland TR-808 and TR-909: software emulations of retro instruments
• Roland SH-101
• Kawai KC10
• Yamaha DX7
• Yamaha DX100
• MIDI
• Korg SQD1
• Roland MC-50
• Akai S900

Of these instruments, the TR-808 and TR-909 were the most popular. During the 80s, the 808 was considered the staple machine used in hip hop productions while the 909 was used in House music and techno.

Where “Techno” Came From

“Techno” was a term created by Talla 2XLC as a genre name for instrumental electronic dance music (EDM) at Frankfurt’s City Music record store in Germany during the 1980s. He began to put a number of artists into this category, including New Order, Kraftwerk, Heaven 17, Front 242 and Depeche Mode. This collection quickly became popular with DJs and even more so in Germany when he founded the Technoclub dance event at Frankfurt’s No Name Club in 1984, which later moved to the Dorian Gray club in 1987. This location became the hub for the regional electronic music scene and regional EBA, according to Jürgen Laarmann of Frontpage magazine.

Development of Techno

During the growth of techno during the late 1980s and early 1990s, it quickly diversified into distinct styles. These range from pop including Moby and anti-commercial sentiments like Underground Resistance. Derrick May experimented on works including Beyond the Dance (1989) and The Beginning (1990) and were credited with taking techno “in dozens of new directions at once and having the kind of expansive impact John Coltrane had on Jazz”. Network Records, the Birmingham-based label, was known for introducing Detroit techno to the English audience.

Finally in the early 1990s, the original techno gathered a huge following in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. This growth from 1988 to 1992 was primarily due to the growth of the rave scene and a big club culture.

The Growth of Techno in Detroit

Techno was established as a name for a unique type of electronic dance music (EDM) produced in Detroit just after the UK release of the 1988 compilation Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit.

The Belleville Three decided to combine the synthpop from the popular artists Yellow Magic Orchestra, Giorgio Moroder and Kraftwerk with their own Chicago house, funk and electro music.

The American late capitalist society also brought an influence of futuristic and science-fiction themes, specifically from Alvin Toffler’s book The Third Wave. The young group produced the first wave of techno from Detroit during the 1980s, along with Blake Baxter, Eddie Fowlkes and James Pennington.

Juan Known Atkins as The Originator

Of the full group, Juan Atkins is known as the originator as the 1995 American music technology publication Keyboard Magazine honored him as one of the “12 Who Count” in the history of keyboard music. Despite its popularity in Europe, this was a big accomplishment since techno was still relatively unknown in the United States.

During the early 1980s, Atkins banded together with Richard Davis and Jon-5 and formed a group known as Cybotron. They then released various rock and electro-spired songs, the most successful being Clear in 1983 and Techno City in 1984. Juan used the term techno to describe the group’s music as the original source for the words metroplex and cybotron. He also says Cosmic Cars (1982) was unique, synthesized funk, and Germanic. But after hearing Planet Rock (1982) by Africa Bambaataa, he considered it to be one of the best pieces he’s heard. So he continued to experiment and pushed Saunderson and May to do the same.

Atkins then started to produce his own music under the pseudonym Model 500, and he established the record label Metroplex in 1985. He also saw a significant turning point later that year with the release of “No UFO’s”, which was a seminal work that was considered the first techno production.

The Growth of Techno Music in Europe

While the growth of techno music spurred in the states, it made its way over to Europe and became popular in the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany in the 1980s. After quickly evolving, techno subgenres were created, including hardcore, ambient, dub techno and acid. EDM fans and music journalists were also been particular in how the term was used, so the clear distinction was made between the relevant but mostly different styles, like trance and tech house.

In 1987, underground parties were popular of which included Chicago house music. The following year, acid house also started to grow in Germany as it did in England. By 1989, the German DJs Dr. Motte and Westbam established the Ufo Club, which was an illegal party venue as well as co-founded the Love Parade. Free underground techno parties, also known as raves, were also also growing in East Berlin, shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9th, 1989. DJ Paul van Dyk noted that techno music was a major influence in re-uniting social connections during East and West Germany.

Favorite Techno Songs?

What are your favorite techno songs? We’d love to hear them! Please let us know in the comments below.