Juan Atkins, Detroit Techno Pioneer, Dies at 64

Juan Atkins, a pioneering figure in Detroit techno and a founding member of Cybotron, has died at 64, his management confirmed. Reports said he was found unresponsive in a Mexico City hotel room before a scheduled performance and was later pronounced dead at a hospital. No cause of death was given. Atkins was due to perform at YuYu Cine Club in Mexico City on the night of October 31. The reported discovery preceded the appearance. The circumstances surrounding his death have not been publicly explained in the reports. Born in Detroit and raised in nearby Belleville, Michigan, Atkins became part of the Belleville Three with school friends Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson. The trio is widely credited with helping establish Detroit techno in the 1980s, combining electronic sounds with influences from other musical traditions. Atkins formed Cybotron with college classmate Rik Davis in 1980. The group released the album Enter in 1983, including tracks that helped shape the emerging sound. After the pair split in 1985, Atkins founded the Metroplex record label and began releasing music as Model 500. His 1985 Model 500 single No UFOs became one of his best-known works and helped...