Kenny Larkin
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Biografie van Kenny Larkin
Kenny Larkin is one of the chief innovators of Detroit's so called'second wave' of techno producers from Detroit.He began his music career in 1990. After serving two years in theU.S. Air Force repairing computers, Larkin returned to Detroit topursue stand up comedy. During his pursuit, he, along with otherDetroit club goers, witnessed the birth of a new genre of music atlocal clubs. What came to be called "Detroit Techno," thumped inclubs like; The City Club, The Majestic Theatre, The Shelter, and thelegendary Music Institute. The latter considered home base for thebumping, sultry, emotive, yet almost romantic style of club musicthat rose out of urban plight, desperation, and decay.Larkin mostly frequented The Shelter, were he soon hooked up withRichie Hawtin, who was one of the club's resident dj's, and the twobecame good friends. While driving around the city at night, theystumbled onto a local Detroit radio mix show. The dj creating themind-blowing mixes that changed both of their lives was none otherDerrick May, or "Mayday," his call-name on the radio. May along withothers, inspired both Larkin, and Hawtin to pursue this new form ofmusic.When Hawtin formed +8 with John Acquaviva, Larkin released his firsttwo singles. But, it wasn't until 1992, when he founded his ownlabel, Art of Dance, that he came into his signature sound. Under his"Dark Comedy" moniker, Larkin created 'War of the Worlds,' which wenton to become a seminal dance floor techno classic for Derrick May'sTransmat Records, of which Larkin licensed the project to. Aftercontributing the exquisitely beautiful and sublime tracks 'SerenaX' (under the name Yennek) for the compilation Panic in Detroit and'Tedra' on the hugely innovative Virtual Sex (Buzz) compilation,Kenny was pushed to the forefront of techno's soulful elite.In 1994, Larkin shrewdly carved out his own classic sound when hesigned to Warp Records, and released his first album, entitledAzimuth. The album was hailed by European and U.S. press as one ofthe most original techno albums to date. A few quotes:"Azimuth is one of the most imaginative and original techno albumsyet." MUSIC WEEK"Delightful, pure Detroit-style techno. Melodic, emotive and, like somuch great U.S. techno, almost jazz-like in places. Larkin is a manwith his finger on the fast forward button of music's future." SELECT"A masterpiece. This LP of intelligent Detroit techno is an upcomingclassic." STREETSOUNDSStreet Sound magazine later voted Azimuth as one of the top 50 TechnoCD's of all time.Larkin's music career seemed very bright, but tragedy struck when onNovember 17, 1994, he almost lost his life after being shot in hissuburban Detroit home by two unknown assailants. Luckily, the bulletmissed vital organs, but it sliced through his lower abdomen. After12 hours of surgery, Larkin was in critical condition, but pulledthrough. Hospitalized only for 6 days, Larkin began touring just twoweeks after he was discharged from the hospital to support his newalbum, Metaphor, which was released on R&S Records in February of1995. The release earned him more accolades as a leader in electronicmusic."This is electronic soul music, full of human feeling and warmth" MixMag"A juxtaposition of polished classic Detroit and quirky jazz-inspiredinnovation". At times very minimal and ambient, other times wellinformed by house, Kenny's warm dance beats hit in just the rightplaces at just the right time." I-DMetaphor was nominated for best electronic album of the year inKeyboard Magazine. In his hometown, Metro Times voted Larkin 'BestTechno Artist of The Year' at it's yearly music awards.Since the release of Azimuth, Larkin has traveled over 2 millionmiles around the globe, dj'ing and playing live at the biggestFestivals in Europe, some which had him doing his electronicperformance in front of as many as 25,000 fans.In addition to his own productions, Larkin lent his melodicsensibilities to various artists. He has done remix work for CarlCraig, Inner City, Charm Farm, L.A. Synthesis, and most notably,Sade. Although a bootleg, the remix of 'Surrender' sold 10,000 in 3weeks. Apparently, Sade wasn't amused. Her attorney contacted Larkinand demanded they stop selling the single, or face litigation. Larkinagreed, and stopped distributing the single.Larkin's remix for Charm Farm entitled, 'Superstar', shot up thecharts in France, helping establish the band in Europe in the dancescene.In 1997, Larkin released his first LP under his 'Dark Comedy'moniker. More striped down and minimal than his first two LPofferings, the project showed a darker side to his persona. 'TheBar', which was released as a single, was a favorite among techno'selite dj's, because of it's frenetic beats, and purposely rough, offedits.After the release of this album, Larkin took a break from recordingto keep up with his hectic dj schedule. Unfortunately, months turnedto years. And he found himself losing motivation to releasing technomusic. He explained when interviewed, "there's so much crap out beingcalled techno, that I've lost the desire to be associated with itanymore."For the next few years, Larkin was content with dj'ing, until 2001.That's when he decided to go back to his first love, stand up comedy.As a result of that decision, Larkin gave up the 'state of the art'studio he built in the suburbs of Detroit, and moved to LA to pursuecomedy full time. Although definitely not a seasoned professionalyet, Larkin is performing his comedy in the biggest clubs in LA, theLaugh Factory being his preferred spot, which is paying off. Heregularly showcases his act here, and is very close to securing aprized 'regular' spot at this this top club.In 2002, after getting his comedy career off the ground, Larkin'sdesire to record music returned. With the new change of scenery andinspiration, Larkin began to record two albums at the same time.These would be his first projects in almost 8 years. The firstcompleted album, Narcissist, was picked up by Peacefrog.Released in April, 2004, Larkin did what he always tried to do, whichis go against the established perception of what techno should be.His signature sound still remains after such a long hiatus. Larkinhas put focus more on mood, and melodies, instead of harsh, abrasive,non-melodic material that has defined techno for the last few years.The second album Larkin completed late 2004, was under his DarkComedy alias. This album took a huge departure from what others havecome to expect from him. Instead of the stripped down production ofhis '7 Days' outing, he decided to go in a totally different direction."I felt it was imperative that I take my music in a totally differentdirection. There was nothing else I could do with 'techno' to take mysound to the next level. For inspiration I decided to pay homage tomy musical upbringing. I listened to a lot of blues, jazz, and funk.Once I turned to my past, it took me a split second to decide whattype of album I wanted to do, and what direction I wanted to go withmy Dark Comedy name. I'm all about pushing myself, and tryingdifferent things with this group. In the end, it was very easy for meto record this album, because I stuck very close to my musical roots.My slant in this production is it has an electronic edge to it. It'smy version of an electronic blues/funk/jazz album. For the firsttime, I'm using my voice to weave stories about my life. What I'vebeen through," Larkin states.Upon hearing the album, record companies big and small lined up tosign it. Among the interested parties, Dan Keeling, A&R at Parlaphone/EMI UK, who discovered and signed Coldplay. Larkin decided to signthe album to a smaller label, in order to get as much attention aspossible for this totally different genre-bending album. Poussez, aFrench label headed by Alain Ho (DJ Yellow) from Yellow Productions/France, convinced Larkin that they could provide what Larkin waslooking for. Larkin signed the album, entitled: Dark Comedy: 'MusicSaves My Soul.' The album was released June 2005 to much criticalsuccess. The reviews were pretty much the same. It placed Larkin ina genre of his own. The press applauded him for bending his genre,and pushing himself into a different realm altogether. Quotes:DJ Magazine May/05"File under spoken word and you'd learn something. Stick it withhouse and it sits perfectly. Add to the list of genre-bendingproducers out there and Dark Comedy, aka Kenny Larkin, stands tall.This is a journeyman's album but don't misconceive his meaning.......This is a sparse concept album, if such a thing exists. Larkinleads through the life he's lead courtesy of some honest to the boneslyrics and raps, and a soulful yet techno-tinged groove. It'sDetroit, it's maverick and at times it's close to genius. Gettouched." **** starsUrb Magazine 12/04"...this album under his Dark Comedy moniker, has a lot of newerideas at the fore. Loosely themed around a set of dirty funk vocalsamples, each track has it's own case of machine blues...it's nice tosee Larkin not just maintaining the gold standard for DetroitElectronic music, but actually giving it a little push." ****starsPlug Magazine July/05"Detroit's maverick techno interpreter Kenny Larkin returns as hisalter-self Dark Comedy with his most impressive and experimentalrelease to date. He taps into his soulful side that explores abewildering array of sounds from bluegrass to electro to melodiustechno funk. A nine course meal for the ears." 9/10DMC Update June /05"Kenny Larkin's latest long player uses all manner of aliases, butremains all his own work. Early on there is a strong spirituality inhis blend of house and techno, Larkin providing some deeply feltspoken word commentary, without ever being too pretentious. Later hegoes for even deeper vibes, the subtle bass line funk driving trackslike 'Tellin' Lie' towards the dance floor. The daring cover givesthis one away-Larkin naked as the day he was born (steady girls!) Thesame thing happens mentally on the album though-stripped bare, it's acompelling, personal record." *****starsABC 5 stars (The arts, books & culture magazine from the Independenton Sunday) 6/05"Kenny Larkin's new album as Dark Comedy isn't quite like anythingelse he's produced. Nor is it much like the music anyone else ismaking, though it has precedents in albums by his fellow Detroittechno legend Moodymann or St. Germain. it also extrapolates from thehistory of Black American music up to Rock'n'Roll, and amazingly,show how makes gospel, soul, funk, jazz, and particularly the blues,all sound like they were invented to be played on a computer andyoked to a 4/4 house beat. He reveals his previously unsuspectedvocal talents and sense of humor, and it's a mildly irreverent butstill wholly soulful revision of past black American musical forms."*****starsMojo Magazine Aug/05"An alias of second-generation Detroit techno producer Kenny Larkin,Dark Comedy attempts to escape digital orthodoxy by searching forinspiration in a very different place: the blues. The result may bepeculiar, but it's certainly original. Scratchy electric guitars andtestifying preacher men are hacked, processed and amalgamated withlow-down house rhythms amid joyous irreverence and a real sense ofpassion." ***starsBlowBack Magazine June/05"America is a funny old place isn't it? Idiots who use to be in theMickey Mouse Club get elevated to the level of pop star whilst realtrendsetters proper founding fathers, get sidelined. In suchisolation-past drugs, post fame-paranoia kicks in. Add the fact thatKenny Larkin was shot on his door step for no reason and you get thefull picture. There is a creeping sense of anger and insanity in thisalbum. also an attempt to reconnect to the blues via his own dancemedium. Larkin falls back on music for comfort and brings up otherghosts too whilst the nightmares have twisted his sound. It's notfunny, it's traveled. Musical catharsis at it's most poignant."M8 Magazine June/05"The ever inventive Kenny Larkin returns in his dark comedy guisewith an album that does it's very best to blur the lines betweentechno, house and soul. The Detroit-based producer has been creatingand playing music since 1992, drawing on countless influences to pushgenre boundaries as far as they'll go. And it's business as usual on'Funk Faker' with Kenny putting his multitude of talents to good use.His rich vocals, warm grooves and cheeky tweaks combine to perfectionon the likes of album opener 'House Music', the blues-infused 'In myHome' and and twangy guitar-laden 'Music Saves My Soul'. Far morestylish than your average electronic outing, 'Funk Faker' is unlikelyto fill many floors, but it'll sit happily in the CD drawer of yourstereo for months to come." 7 out of 8E-DJ (website)"Dark Comedy is the incisive, opinionated alter ego of mavericktechno personality, Kenny Larkin, and 'Funk Faker: Music Saves MySoul' is only its second outing after 2004's 'The Narcissist'.Within, Larkin explores not only his musicality, but also his lifeexperiences and his beliefs, making for a truly poignant narrativeand diverse mixture of sounds. Undoubtedly, its rudiments arethoroughly electronic, but Larkin builds upon this common style in acaptivatingly unique, natural, almost crude way; cracking off thatover refined electronic gloss in favor of a more wholesome glow.Furthermore, whilst the foundation of most tracks are a stiff, yetlazy, hypnotic 4/4 kick drum, the overall vibe is deep-rooted insoulful, African-American music, spanning bluegrass-infused beats,and bluesy, mournful, dubby house - each narrated colorfully byLarkin's smooth timbre. With its carefree organs, John Lee-Hookerguitars and James Brown horn stabs, this really is contemporary,black electronic music, which is not confined or shaped by a genrethat can often be somewhat restrictive. Truly charming and coollymesmerizing." *** ½ starsThe beginning of 2007, Larkin started focusing on re-releasing hisback catalog. Classics that were long out of print were available again on Dutch label's, Rush Hour. In 2008, Larkin is due to release another albumunder his Kenny Larkin monikier on Carl Craig's, Planet e. This time he returns to hiselectronic dance roots, which will no question be hailed as his bestdance floor album. Entitled, "Keys, Strings, Tambourines", it onceagain showcases Larkin's affinity for melodic structure, yet stillkeeping his heavy rhythmic beats close by to help educate the youngergeneration about why Detroit is still the place to turn forbeautiful Techno.Video's van Kenny Larkin
Kenny Larkin @kennylark op Twitter
Lovely day for a wedding! Kelvin Larkin and Adia Joelle....Let's do this!!!
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