Bleep

Alongside Jeff Mills and Carl Craig -- the other two rulers of Detroit techno’s vital second wave -- Kenny Larkin’s realms of influence spread far and run deep; the immortal 4/4 forever changed by his impact, the soundtracks of clubs across the States, the UK and countless other European hubs will always owe him a debt. Larkin has always been on a far superior level of techno nobility, and it’s there to see on the cover of his groundbreaking second LP, 1995’s Metaphor. Unlike his royal peers, Larkin has the steely-eyed smoulder of a popstar; sly, cheeky and inviting.

It’s a perfect visual to accompany the music of Metaphor, starting with ‘Intro’. Kraftwerkian phased snares propel themselves along a mounting set of classic house keys, as alien synths wryly observe from above — a masterful ploy to conceal the surprising playfulness heard in the melee of handclaps and twinkling bells on ‘Nocturnal’. The motor-city drum machines we’ve come to recognise as iconic clang and whirr well into the dual parts of ‘Catatonic’; its first iteration heavy on the hardcore sound, the second a blissfully ambient meditation, and both possessing Larkin’s unique knack for instantly memorable grooves and extraordinary sonic flourishes.

Available on coloured triple vinyl exclusively from Bleep, this long-overdue reissue of Larkin’s Detroit techno classic is still peerless over 25 years later.