Music / Business & brands
Richie Hawtin
born 1970 · DJ, electronic musician, label founder
Windsor-raised techno producer who crossed the river into Detroit's clubs, co-founded Plus 8 and became a leading figure of minimal techno as Plastikman.
- Born
Banbury, Oxfordshire, England
age 56- Birth name
- Richard Hawtin
- Also known as
- Plastikman · F.U.S.E.
- Detroit years
- late 1980s–2000s
- Field
- Music, Business & brands
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Richie Hawtin was born in England and moved at nine with his family to LaSalle, Ontario, a suburb of Windsor directly across the river from Detroit. As a teenager he crossed the border to hear Detroit techno and learned to DJ at The Shelter under Saint Andrew's Hall, mentored by resident Scott “Go-Go” Gordon; there he also met John Acquaviva. In May 1990 the two founded Plus 8 Records, named after the pitch control on a turntable, and released Detroit's Kenny Larkin as well as Hawtin's own work as F.U.S.E. and, with Daniel Bell, Cybersonik. In the early 1990s his Spastik parties turned the abandoned Packard Plant into one of the city's most notorious rave venues. As Plastikman he helped define minimal techno, founded the M_nus label in 1998 and later moved to Berlin, but he kept returning to Detroit: he headlined the Movement festival's tenth anniversary in 2010 and played Paxahau's 25th-anniversary party.
Highlights
- Co-founded Plus 8 Records with John Acquaviva in May 1990.
- Released Dimension Intrusion (1993) as F.U.S.E. in Warp's Artificial Intelligence series.
- His Plastikman project is a cornerstone of minimal techno.
- Launched the M_nus label in 1998.
- Performed as Plastikman at Movement 2010 in Hart Plaza.
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 3
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 · late 1980s
Saint Andrew’s Hall
The basement club where Scott “Go-Go” Gordon mentored him and where he met John Acquaviva.
Performed here · early 1990s
Packard Automotive Plant
Demolished · 1903–1958
The derelict car factory hosted underground raves in the 1990s, including Hawtin's Spastik party; much of it was demolished in 2017–2023.
Performed here · 2010
African World Festival
He appeared as Plastikman at the festival's 10th anniversary edition in 2010.