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Galaxy 2 Galaxy - Journey of the Dragons (Galaxy 2 Galaxy, UR, 1993)
“OK, so I’m a sucker for the stargazing, hope-filled, melodic, simultaneously-eulogizing-and-celebrating side of techno. I’m not apologizing—and I’m pretty sure Mike Banks wouldn’t either. This is epic techno—not your giant crowd epic, but just the sort of elevating, heroic epic Detroit needs. When I think of the music and its relation to the city, or even the beauty of human beings creating music during their blip on time’s radar, I go back to Galaxy 2 Galaxy, and everything makes sense.” — Dan Sicko
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The Martian - Sex In Zero Gravity (Red Planet, 1993)
The Red Planet will appear only when your mind is open.
Science ran too far ahead of us too quickly, and the people got lost in a mechanical wilderness, like children making over pretty things, gadgets, helicopters, rockets; emphasizing the wrong items, emphasizing machines instead of how to run the machines. Wars got bigger and bigger and finally killed Earth. That’s what the silent radio means. That’s what we ran away from. We were lucky. There aren’t any more rockets left. It’s time you knew this isn’t a fishing trip at all…. Now I’m going to show you the Martians….
— William Thomas, The Million Year Picnic (Ray Bradbury, 1946)
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Perception - Abandoned Building (In Mono) (Windchime, Underground Resistance, 2004)
Title says it all.
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Underground Resistance - Quadrasonic (Waveform EP, UR, 1991)
In search of peace, love, harmony…
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Friday Mixtape: Underground Resistance on WDET (2004)
Recorded in 2004 as part of a monthly segment called ‘Electronic Focus,’ WDET’s Liz Copeland and guest presenter Clark Warner broadcast a UR special, complete with a lengthy interview with Mike Banks. The Red Planet revealed.
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Underground Resistance - Panic (Riot EP, Underground Resistance, 1991)
Can techno be subversive? UR’s “Mad” Mike Banks explains in this interview in Jockey Slut (1994):
My techno is. I can’t speak for anybody else’s, but mine is designed to be subversive and mind awakening. There are definite messages there through tonal communication and you can’t assess it — that’s why techno is deadlier than rap. With rap you have to vocally communicate your point but with techno you don’t.
I’m a big fan of Public Enemy — to me “Prophets of Rage” and “Burn Hollywood” were all warning signs of what was going to happen. And the “Riot EP” was too. “Riot” is a warning sign of what can happen when people try to dominate other people. The more you oppress someone the harder you make them — it’s like making a diamond. When they put the shit on the Vietnamese and they tried to force them into cheap labour and all that shit they became so hard that they couldn’t beat them. They couldn’t beat the motherfuckers because they’re so hard. They go to any lengths to win.
That’s what the governments are going to create out of the poor, the mismanaged and all that other part of society that they don’t like to deal with — they’ll create hardcore killers. I see it every day in the street, because people out here don’t give a fuck about nothing. You can’t control them.
You’ll wake up in a cold sweat, panic!
(cover art: Riot EP, Interstellar Fugitives 2)
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Robert Hood - The Key To Midnight (Nighttime World Vol. 2, M-Plant, 2000)
Talking about his first projects [1]:
I started to produce a bit more and I started recording some demo tapes - I’d got a drum machine and a Roland TR505 from a pawn shop that I started making beats with. I was going to a studio where I paid $15 an hour to make a demo. I met a guy called Mike Clark through my girlfriend at the time - and he knew everybody! He knew Mike Banks, Jeff Mills, in fact all the DJs and producers in Detroit. He introduced me to Mike Banks and I let him hear a demo tape. I think it was a Public Enemy horn sound that I ripped off and made a beat, and Mike was interested. I think what caught his interest was the drum programming. So he wanted to hear some more…and they happened to be starting work on a compilation. So I came along and did two tracks on the album as an MC! Not a producer, an MC.
You know, I was interested in hip house at the time - I didn’t really want to be an MC but I couldn’t find anyone else that was willing to do it. I wanted to find an MC that was sort of a cross between Chuck D and Q-Tip for some kind of political abstract MCing. But I couldn’t find anybody so I decided to go ahead and do it myself. So yeah, we wrote two tracks with me as an MC and they produced the beats and we went from there. This was happening in about 1991.
When I recorded those tracks, UR wasn’t even up and running yet. It was just an idea, something that was coming alive as a production unit between Mike Banks and Jeff Mills. I just happened to meet them just before it started. Slowly it evolved to the stage where I was a more active member of the group, especially with the live shows and the label Hardwax. They helped me start that and helped me develop as an artist.
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Chaos - Afrogermanic (Crime Report, Underground Resistance, 1996)
A day to celebrate your heritage (in South Africa).
Galactic Bureau Of Investigation Crime Report #UR-021 Attention:
There have been reports of a UR special operations sonic insertion team codenamed I.S.F. (Interstellar Fugitives) in your zone. An imminent “LP” attack is expected any moment. Beware, you have been warned! -
Suburban Knight - Mind Of A Panther (Dark Energy, Underground Resistance, 1994)
Dark Energy is the first in a series of sonic strikes engineered by UR to be carried out during the winter equinox of star year 1994-1995, against programmer strongholds. The primary strike will consist of a series of 6 dark energy waves.
This mission will be carried out by Nitestrike leader James (Suburban Night) Pennington. The Dark Energy Waves will engulf the Earth in a ultraviolet Midnight Sunshine allowing the Suburban Night and other resistance forces worldwide to finally see the truth and pinpoint programmer positions for the now mobile UR divisions moving out of Detroit for the upcoming assault worldwide. To our brothers and sisters of the Underground - stay low, stay strong, stay Underground.
-OUT- The Unknown Writer
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