Jeff Mills as The Wizard – Seven Rare WJLB Detroit Radio-Tapes 1986 – 1989

In the 1980s, Mills was an influential radio DJ on WJLB under the pseudonym “The Wizard.” Mills’ sets were a highlight of the nightly show from “The Electrifying Mojo”, Jennifer Owens. Complementing Mojo’s eclectic playlists, Mills would do advanced DJ tricks like beat juggling and scratching while mixing obscure Detroit Techno, Miami Bass, Chicago House and classic New Wave tracks both live and using a multi track when pre-recorded.
In going on to create his own music Jeff Mills is credited with laying the foundations for the highly influential Detroit Techno collective, Underground Resistance, alongside ‘Mad’ Mike Banks, a former Parliament bass player. Just like Public Enemy did some years before in hip hop, these men confronted the mainstream music industry with revolutionary rhetoric. Dressed in uniforms with skimasks and black combat suits, they were ‘men on a mission’, aiming at giving techno more content and meaning.

via nerdcore