What happens when you take an accomplished
dancer who's musically trained and a Mobile
street dj classically trained and unleash them
in a studio?
Well, if the conditions are right, you might
get Aux 88. But not overnight...
Tommy Hamilton had always been musically inclined.
From the age of 5 he had played with drums,
so the concept of the beat and rhythm were with
him early on. While he was in high school in
the early 80's, influenced by his sister, he
became a dancer.
Tom Tom, as he was to be known, became a member
of a number of different dance groups, from
the Cosmic Swingers, the Motor City Poppers,
to the Devo Dancers. Things were going good,
but Tom was looking for more.
It was through the dance scene that Tom met
up with Keith Tucker, a local dj who was looking
for more. Together, in 1985 accompanied by Anthony
Horton, Tucker and Hamilton formed RX-7.
RX-7 was a live band that performed inspired
cover versions of Cybotron and Model 500 tracks.
It wasn't so much that they were trying to break
new ground by playing live-they knew no other
way. MIDI and sequencers were virtually unheard
of; especially to two east side Detroit boys
who simply had a love for the music.
Tucker, a avid sci-fi fan started to buy older
models of analog gear and pursue sending out
demo tapes to various local Detroit Techno labels.
He received a response from Metroplex Records;
Juan Atkins label, and signed as Frequency.
Under this alias, Tucker recorded such tracks
as, " Television, Frequency Express, and
New Jack House. " On the track " New
Jack House, " Darren Muhammad of Adrenalin
M.O.D. did the vocals and Juan Atkins did the
mixes.
Tucker learned a lot from his experiences with
Metroplex Records In September of 1992, while
working on new tracks for Metroplex Records,
Tucker received a visit from Tommy Hamilton.
They brought their experiences together to
form AUX-88, and found that their music talents
had matured since the early 1980's. Using their
Detroit Techno background, the two quickly accumulated
a mass of new tracks together, as well as individually.
The reunification of Tom Tom and Tucker found
that their time apart had done them both good.
With a renewed sense of purpose, they put together
a fusion of styles and added Anthony Horton
and vocalist Andrea Gilmore to become...Sight
Beyond Sight.
SBS was soon signed to 430 West Records. While
SBS enjoyed a degree of success, Tom Tom and
Tucker made the decision to continue with the
bass heavy techno they had began with some time
earlier.
1993 saw this return to their roots as the
birth of Aux 88. As Aux took off, SBS was put
on hold and the other members went to work on
individual projects. Then, as if to acknowledge
the move, Aux 88 released "My A.U.X. Mind"
which went on to become a Detroit classic.
Putting the icing on the cake, Aux 88 joined
up with Mad Mike Banks to perform with Juan
Atkins as Model 500 on the 10th anniversary
of his label, Metroplex.
However, the evolution of Aux 88 was not over.
In 1995, desiring to do more experimental tracks,
Tucker went solo and created his own label called
Puzzlebox inspired by close friend Anthony Shakir.
Tom didn't miss a beat. Reuniting with BJ (Posatronix)
former dancer, Aux 88 went on to release the
full length CD, "Man or Machine."
Touring both the US and Europe, and with video
airplay on MTV's AMP, Aux 88 began the process
of turning on the planet on to their techno/bass/dance
fusion.
Still, it was not enough. Aux had already made
a name for itself via live performances. As
individuals who had been deep in the scene long
before recording music, they knew they had to
take it to the next level. Acting on a tip from
another recording artist on 430 West, Octave
One, Tom met up with the young DJ Di'jital.
Already established in the Detroit underground
scene, Di'jital joined the Aux 88 live show.
As Aux played live, Di'jital mixed an array
of music. The effect was that of an electrified
old school hip hop show.
It isn't accidental. Aux 88 is one of the few
who remember that techno has its roots in the
hip-hop of pioneers like Afrika Bambaataa, Planet
Patrol and Newcleus. If anyone mistakes their
live show as a scaled down electronic hip hop
oriented Parliament show, well, you're not too
far off the mark.
After the success of "Man or Machine,"
BJ left to explore other musical realms while
Tom Tom went on to record "Xeo-Genetic,"
the last Aux offering on Direct Beat records.
The Album received two Detroit Music awards
for Best Artist and Best Recording. 2002 saw
what seemed to be a return of aux 88 as the
Auxmen to close out the 2002 Detroit Electronic
Music Festival.
Tucker was asked to close out the festival on
the main stage with a history of techno.
Seeing and knowing that the only group to pull
it off was Aux88, Tucker elected to change the
name to the Auxmen and perform with all members
of aux88.
Unfortunately Tom was not available to perform,
but instead sparked some releases that fueled
the now current return of Aux88 to the electro
scene exclusively on Puzzlebox Records.
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