- When Terrence Dixon announced his retirement from music in 2014, it looked like one of Detroit techno's most unorthodox talents was withdrawing from the scene. Dixon has made some of the most beautiful and strange music the genre's ever known, his minimal, jazz-inspired creations surely the result of an instinctive and improvisational approach. In the last three years, his music has continued to emerge regularly. He's appeared on compilations for Tresor and Trip. Last month, he released an excellent EP, Like A Thief In The Night. He's put out several albums. The most recent LP, 12,000 Miles Of Twilight, is the most substantial in the 23 years he's been releasing music.
For most techno artists, releasing a 21-track, 80-minute album with a loose space theme would be an unwise move in 2017. Space travel, after all, is a techno cliché. But Dixon has never seemed too concerned about following conventional wisdom, and he's crafted an album that's absorbing from the moment the frantic snares thunder in on the opening track, "Inside The Radio Room." In typical Dixon fashion, some tracks, like "In Orbit (Locked Groove)," finish precisely where they started. "Control Panel," "I Stay Posted Up" and "Mission Incomplete" are classic Dixon, too, full of disorienting swirls, off-time hats and bass tones that seem to do whatever the hell they want.
But not even Dixon's deep well of ideas can prevent the album from sagging. 12,000 Miles Of Twilight is difficult to digest in one sitting, and some tracks slip down the cracks between useful DJ tool and expressive experimental music. But then something unique or startling will emerge—the spooky "Rover," say, which follows two fairly forgettable tunes. Other tracks, like the seductive "The Atlantic," the drum workouts "Lost All Communication" and "Bonus Coverage," the heavily filtered "I Salute" or the memorably bizarre title track, could only have come from the mind of Terrence Dixon. If nothing else, his non-retirement provided us with a jolting reminder of his artistry. We're lucky to have him.
Tracklist01. Inside The Radio Room
02. I Stay Posted Up
03. Mission Incomplete
04. In Orbit (Locked Groove)
05. When At Home
06. The Atlantic
07. Control Panel
08. Lost All Communication
09. New York City
10. Spiral In Control
11. 12,000 Miles Of Twilight
12. Bonus Coverage
13. Unconditional Love
14. Balance
15. Rover
16. I Salute
17. Milky Way
18. On High Alert
19. Landing Unknown
20. Matter Of Time
21. Beams Of Light