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Mike Parker’s Legacy Playlist

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An insight into the mechanics behind some of Mike Parker’s most influential tracks.

Mike Parker is arguably one of the most definitive and influential in Techno having amassed a career at the forefront of the genre which has spanned several decades. From warehouse raves to major international festivals, he has seen it all and has released music on some of the most prolific and crucial imprints associated with Techno including the likes of Tresor, Spectral Sound, Spazio Disponibile, Token and perhaps most crucially his own Geophone label.

Not one to play things safe, his sound has always dabbled on the fringes drawing upon influences from more experimental realms with a a keen interest in noise, drone music and ambient.

 

In the club his music is hypnotic and dense, fast paced and with a riotous energy for the discerning dancer.

With such a well versed history in the genre and having amassed an expansive back catalogue of material we asked him to dissect some of his records, reflecting on approach and style.

See below:

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Buy the new ‘Dispatches’ release HERE.

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Mike Parker - Drain Hum

In 1999, I wrote “Drain Hum”. The descending pitch of the bass is intended to rattle the walls, or drop like a depth charge. “Drain Hum” is the landscape of a science fiction movie not yet made. Like all the tracks from the album “Dispatches”, it was recorded completely live with sequencers, drum machines, synthesizers and a sampler.

  • Mike Parker - Drain Hum

    In 1999, I wrote “Drain Hum”. The descending pitch of the bass is intended to rattle the walls, or drop like a depth charge. “Drain Hum” is the landscape of a science fiction movie not yet made. Like all the tracks from the album “Dispatches”, it was recorded completely live with sequencers, drum machines, synthesizers and a sampler.

  • Mike Parker - Voice One

    “Voiceprint” contains a wordless vocalization, anchored in a time signature divided by five, not four. I wanted this vocoded sound to be somewhere between a human voice and a synthesized electronic phrase. The time signature in the percussion make it difficult to mix with other tracks. Pro tip: mix it with something ambient.

  • Mike Parker - Hiss

    “Hiss” was my attempt to push the boundaries of the high frequency range. Cutting this to vinyl was a challenge. There were multiple attempts to do so. Dozzy Records released it properly in 2007, years after it was originally recorded. The main drum machine here is the TR-808. I programmed the shaker to sound like a rattlesnake.

  • Mike Parker - Protolanguage

    Before it was released on Spectral Sound, “Protolanguage” got its public debut at The Labyrinth festival in Japan. Donato Dozzy played the demo and that created a buzz. Again, it is the science fictional characteristic that propels it; think flying saucers over Tokyo.

  • Mike Parker - Highway Oil (Hydroplane Mix)

    I’ve played a lot in Upstate New York over the years. One night in the early 2000’s, after a party in Syracuse, I was driving home when I passed a dilapidated, shut down gas station. The only words remaining on the front facade were “Highway Oil”. This one pushes both the extremes of high and low frequencies, sliding and colliding on a mixture of rain water and oil.

  • Mike Parker - Subterranean Liquid

    The Prologue label was kind of a turning point for me. My music was introduced to a whole new audience and my first gig at Berghain was, in fact, a Prologue label showcase. Berghain is the perfect venue for this particular track. Catch me there in June!

  • Mike Parker - Lustration Five

    Probably my favorite track from the album “Lustrations”, “Lustration Five” (息) refers to the rhythmic cycles of breathing.

  • Mike Parker - Reduction

    Returning to “Dispatches”, the album now takes on a whole new life, 23 years after its initial appearance. “Reduction” plays in the space of minimalism. Every element counts. The album itself is structured that way and its title refers to my relative isolation from the larger techno scene during that period. All those years ago, when I was releasing records in the time before Soundcloud and YouTube, I really had almost no idea of who was playing my music. It turns out that after “Dispatches” was quietly released in the turbulent year of 2001, it found an audience that grew over time. Listen again, and perhaps the spaces between the frequencies will find new, subterranean formations.