The heat was assertive even before noon. A light rain fell as I checked in. Grandma Techno was in line on her phone—I didn’t want to interrupt. By the time I walked into the festival, Clark Warner had already initiated the steady pulse of music that would persist until Tuesday morning (at least). Hart Plaza, just recently a skeleton of stages and concrete, was teeming with life.   The first set I saw in earnest was Black Noi$e at the Red Bull stage, who ended a house/techno/trap mix with shout out to his parents in the form of a Luther Vandross song. His set was followed by ..read more

  Memorial day weekend in Detroit is a special time for lovers of techno. The city hosts thousands of festival goers from around the world as they converge on Hart Plaza for a weekend long celebration of electronic music. For those of us who call Motor City home, it’s affirmation that our city is thriving. For those who are visiting, it’s their chance to see once-in-a-lifetime sets and revel in our greatest musical export since Motown.   Movement not only brings together iconic local artists and high-caliber international acts at this premiere North American electronic music festiva ..read more

  In partnership with local non-profit Detroit Bureau of Sound, the Detroit Institute of Arts will host Matthew Dear (as Audion) as part of its Friday Night Live! music series on Friday, March 30.   DBS — which is supported by Michigan ArtShare, through grants from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts — announced that the free performance will take place at the DIA’s famed Rivera Court, promising “music that’s minimal, hypnotic, and all made by living composers.” In addition to Dear, the event will feature performances ..read more

  Adding to their lackadaisical mystique, Bonny Doon’s new video features idyllic countryside and band members lolling about. The song is “Long Wave,” taken from the band’s brand new LP of the same name. The video is an apt visual accompaniment, elevating the most contemplative qualities of the band’s music and this song in particular. “You are who you’re supposed to be / You are who you’re supposed to be,” singers Bill Lennox and Bobby Colombo chant repeatedly, a free meditation session for aimless individuals. You can watch the whole thing below.   Bonny Doon also just released th ..read more

  Detroit experimental pop act Baron Crooks Tangle Parade is gearing up to drop its first project From Anybody, For Everybody. But first, the one-man show is gracing listeners (and viewers) with a video for “Belly Ache” – one of the upcoming project’s singles.   Baron Crooks (born Joshua Cook) is the music scholar and skilled percussionist behind the madness. His interest in alternative pop was born from the lack of visibility for experimental music in the city, after he explored Detroit’s underground percussion community firsthand. Baron Crooks Tangle Parade represents a ..read more

    Mark you calendars for July 28th and 29th, because you’re not going to want to miss the stacked lineup of artists heading to Detroit’s West Riverfront Park for this year’s Mo Pop Festival.   Mo Pop comes in harder than ever this year, with a strong and diverse line-up including Bon Iver, The National, Portugal. The Man, St. Vincent, Vince Staples, Brockhampton and more; with local support from Detroit’s own Empty Houses, Shortly, Curtis Roach, and Michigan’s own Joe Hertler and the Rainbow Seekers.   Other attractions include the Craft Bazar’s wide assortment of local ..read more

  Ahead of the group’s debut EP Four Shadows the Past and release party on February 9, percussionist duo Asklepius is teasing the first of four new tracks titled “Circulation.”   The Detroit-based partnership of Justin Groppuso-Cook and Matt Smiley highlights the city’s mostly-untapped percussionist community, which strays from dependence of drum kits, in an attempt to add more adventurous instrumentation. On a previous release by Groppuso-Cook, A Life Forever Once, listeners were exposed to the sounds of the vibraphone and the upper register of the German-rooted ..read more

  With their self-titled debut (DMM’s seventh favorite album of 2017), Bonny Doon introduced listeners to their penchant for wandering melodies and poetic lyricism. Now the band have announced a follow-up album, Longwave, to be released March 23 via their new label home Woodsist (Real Estate, Kevin Morby, Woods). Given Bonny Doon’s steadfast guitar lines and devil-may-care attitude, the title seems apt.   “I Am Here (I Am Alive)” is the first preview they’ve shared, a meditative track about time’s imminent passage, that takes inspiration from a week spent in the middle of Michigan n ..read more

One word comes to mind when looking back at Detroit’s music projects of 2017: variety. Unlike other cities celebrated for their musical specialities, Detroit is home to countless genres, sounds, and communities — all distinct, yet part of the same ecosystem. This year, full-length albums, mixtapes, and EPs demonstrated the capacity to which artists are still innovating. While experimentation remains a specialty of the Motor City, so do collaboration, rule-bending, and ceiling-smashing. As Detroit continues to grapple with its own identity and experience change, we can only hope that music will ..read more

It didn’t seem possible, but 2017 was plenty worse than 2016 for most people. But if there was one area that remained consistently great, it was the quality of Detroit’s musical output. This year saw a bevy of tracks that pushed the envelope, connected traditions and styles, or just made us get on our feet and dance. And no matter how 2018 turns out, we have a feeling the songs are gonna be bangin’. Let’s take one last listen to our favorite tunes from the year that was. —Khalid   10 Karriem Riggins [ft. Jessica Care Moore] “Suite Poetry” With Headnod Suite, Karriem Riggins has given his ..read more