Music
Blake Baxter
born 1963 · DJ, producer, record-store owner
Detroit-born first-wave techno producer, often called the scene's unsung hero, who bridged Chicago house and Detroit techno.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Also known as
- The Prince of Techno
- Detroit years
- 1963–1990s
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Blake Baxter was born in Detroit and began mixing records in the mid-1980s, developing a style that fused Chicago house with the new machine music of his hometown. His early tracks, first cut for Chicago's DJ International, were remixed and reissued on Kevin Saunderson's KMS label, and his songs appeared on the landmark 1988 Virgin compilation Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit, which introduced the genre in Europe. He played the Music Institute with the Belleville Three and later released the EP The Prince of Techno on Underground Resistance, giving him his nickname. After years working abroad he came home and set up his own labels, Mix Records and Phat Joint, and ran a record store called Save the Vinyl in downtown Detroit from 1992 to 1999; a young Kenny Dixon Jr., later known as Moodymann, worked in one of his shops. AllMusic has called him perhaps the most underrated figure of early Detroit techno.
Highlights
- Featured on Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit (Virgin/10 Records, 1988).
- Released The Prince of Techno EP on Underground Resistance.
- Ran the Save the Vinyl record store in downtown Detroit, 1992–1999.
- Founded the Mix Records and Phat Joint labels.
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Performed here · 1988–1989
The Music Institute
Closed · 1988–1989
The downtown club where he DJed with the Belleville Three and Eddie Fowlkes.
Founded · 1992–1999
Save the Vinyl (record store)
Closed · 1992–1999
His downtown Detroit record store; exact address not documented.