via Pea Hicks of
http://optigan.com/
"i stumbled across this old cassette i picked up somewhere, thought you might like to post it on the blog. it goes along with the first issue of a very obscure music tech rag from the mid-80s called "Music & Electronics" magazine. it was published by the same folks that brought you "99'er" and "Home Computer" magazines. It may not have survived past its first issue, as I've never actually seen a copy and a google search brings up nothing.
anyway, i only have the tape, which features musical examples to go along with the magazine articles. synths include Casio CZ-101, Yamaha DX7, Roland TR-707, etc. note that the first couple minutes of side b were recorded over by the previous owner, so i just faded in after the missing bit.
would be great to hear if anyone out there has a copy of the magazine itself!"
Update: Note the reference to "Techno Bach" at 32:15. According to
wikipedia, "The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988." Yes, this is not Techno techno, but interesting. I wonder when the term "Techno" was first used in reference to any music.
If anyone out there has more info feel free to comment or send me an email and I'll updated the post.
Update:
via pea in the comments:
"YMO, "Technopolis," 1979
Kraftwerk, "Techno-Pop," 1986
the terms "techno-pop" and "techno-rock" were definitely in use before Kraftwerk's usage, though."
via electric454 in the comments:
"the b side of the Buggles single Clean, Clean from 1980 was a song called Technopop"
via Jim W on AH:
"In 1978 I co-founded Tekno Tunes indie label, Tekno Town Studio (Northampton, MA), and Tekno Tours booking. We booked acts as diverse as Buddy Rich, DNA, The Slits, Pere Ubu, & WKGB among others. The music I wrote & played from 77 - 83 as The Scientific Americans was described as " techno punk" by several major publications.
So far I haven't found an earlier instance, so for now I claim naming rights for techno as a musical genre. Actually, my music partner, Craig O'Donnell (author of Cool MAC Sounds) came up with it. We used it constantly for 5 years."
via C.R. in the comments: "The song "Techno City" is from 1984.
I think that's the first use of "techno" in the sense of techno music."
