Carl Craig

Carl Craig (born May 22, 1969) is a Detroit-based producer of techno music, and is considered to be one of the most important names in the Detroit second generation of techno producers and DJs. According to an article about Craig, "Of this group, Craig was often recognised as being the most artful and the most willing to engage the rapidly growing shape of techno outside Detroit." Craig has approached techno using inspiration from a wide range of musical genres, including jazz and soul.

Carl Craig was born in Detroit. He attended Detroit's Cooley High School, where he developed an interest in music. He learned to play guitar and later became interested in club music through a cousin who worked lighting for Detroit area parties. After hearing Derrick May's radio show on WJLB, Craig began experimenting with recording on a dual-deck cassette player. He later talked his parents into buying him a synthesizer and sequencer. While taking an electronics course, Craig met someone who knew May and passed along a tape of some of his home studio productions. May was impressed, and in 1989 this resulted in Craig's first professional recording, "Neurotic Behavior."

Since 1989 Craig has released many albums under a large number of aliases, including BFC, Psyche, Paperclip People, 69, Designer Music and Innerzone Orchestra. He also had a hugely successful collaboration album with NYDJ Patrick Picasso. Using one alias, Innerzone Orchestra, in 1992 he released perhaps his best-known track, "Bug in The Bassbin", a track that many regard as being a key influence in the then evolving sound of drum and bass.

Craig has also created his own record label called Planet E Communications, which apart from his own work, has released records by well known techno and house artists like Kevin Saunderson, Alton Miller and Moodymann.

Craig served as co-creator and artistic director for the Detroit Electronic Music Festival in 2000 and 2001. His subsequent dismissal by festival organizers caused substantial controversy within the Detroit techno community, igniting a high-profile campaign in his favor. In 2001, Craig filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against festival producer Pop Culture Media. Craig returned as artistic director for the 2010 festival, teaming up with producer Paxahau. Craig continues to be heavily involved with the festival in recent years.

Regarding the many positions he has held in the music industry (artist, producer, DJ, label boss, and more), Craig has said: "I have a bad habit of getting my hands dirty in every little thing, and I really do enjoy it."

Albums

• Carl Craig: Landcruising, 1995
• 69: The Sound of Music, 1995
• Paperclip People: The Secret Tapes of Doctor Eich, 1996
• Carl Craig: More Songs About Food and Revolutionary Art, 1997. Compare with Talking Heads' 1978 album More Songs About Buildings and Food
• Innerzone Orchestra: Programmed, 1999
• Carl Craig: The Album Formerly Known As…, 2005
• Carl Craig & Moritz von Oswald: ReComposed, 2008

Selected singles and EPs

• "No More Words" (12"), 1991
• 69: 4 Jazz Funk Greats (12" ep), 1991
• Paperclip People: "Throw" (12"), 1994
• "Science Fiction" (12"), 1995
• Paperclip People: "The Climax" (12"), 1995
• Paperclip People: "Floor" (12"), 1996
• "A Wonderful Life" (12"), 2002
• Just Another Day (12" ep), 2004
• "Sparkle / Home Entertainment" (12"), 2005
• "Darkness / Angel" (12"), 2006
• Paris Live (12"), 2007

DJ-mixes and compilations

• Psyche/BFC: Elements 1989-1990, 1996 A compilation of early tracks, recorded by Craig under the monikers of "Psyche" & "BFC"
• DJ-Kicks: Carl Craig, 1996
• House Party 013: A Planet E Mix, 1999
• Designer Music Volume One, 2000. A compilation of remixes
• Abstract Funk Theory, 2001
• Onsumothasheeat, 2001
• The Workout, 2002
• Fabric 25, 2005
• From the Vault: Planet E Classics Collection Vol. 1, 2006
• Sessions, 2008
• BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix, 2011

He also participated in the collaborations The Detroit Experiment (2003) and Sun Ra Dedication: The Myth Lives on (2003)