Thinking about Drexicya and new digital music (part one)

Today I was speaking with a colleague about connections among the narratives of enslaved Africans in spirituals and folklore to other black popular musical performances over time that have utilized space metaphors to connect to concepts of freedom. My favorite example to share in my Black Onlne: Cyberspace, Culture and Community course is the resurfacing of "Swing Down Sweet Chariot" from spirituals to Parliament to Dr. Dre. As I perused the web to find fun clips ranging from Sun Ra to Juan Atkins on sites like Youtube, I came across this nice interview with James Stinson:




There is also a tribute mix posted on this blog:

http://my.opera.com/bigloada/blog/2007/09/02/james-stinson-tribute-mix

My students have probably heard me speak often about his work with Drexicya, because he brought these metaphors home. The map of diaspora and use of science fiction narrative to educate about the liberation work still to be done continues to move me. While the masses obsess over Kraftwerk, Daft Punk & now Digitalism, I still can't let go of the effect of art from acts like Drexicya, Cybotron, etc. Don't get me wrong-- I have Kitsune Tabloid on my ipod and I enjoy running to it, but the roots and the reality of these earlier works are not yet fully excavated in my opinion. There is still love & liberation to be uncovered in the analysis of these pieces, and there is also important critique to be executed.

((Btw, I can't wait for Mr. Daniel Zarazua to come lecture on Detroit techno in my course!!!))