Eric Dulan, aka DJ Bone aka Differ-Ent, has spent the past two decades as a loyal soldier in the trenches of Detroit techno. Though often overlooked (his bio defensively asserts “Think of Detroit Techno and DJ Bone might not be high on your list of luminaries because he is 100% independent and does things on his terms and on his terms only”), he has developed a small-but-rabid following for his flashy, technical and decidedly old-school approach to DJing. His productions—often self-released on his Subject Detroit label—adhere faithfully to the fundamental principles set forth by Underground Resistance and Jeff Mills, with tough, driving drum programming laying a solid foundation for either wide-eyed celestial synth work or teeth-gritting severity, designed to drive dancers into a frenzy. If this suggests a kind of bunker mentality, it’s not without good reason: For many, Detroit’s original strain of techno remains the most potent, with transatlantic exports rarely making good on the Motor City’s exhilarating mix of meditative depth and rushing energy.
On It’s Good To Be Differ-Ent, his debut album as Differ-Ent, Dulan doubles down on his hometown’s legacy, delivering a triple LP that acts as a sort of manifesto, career encapsulation and litmus test for fans. As with many dance music albums, the format itself runs counter to the nature of the music. Simply put, listening to a long stretch of DJ tools can be a tiring affair, with extended intros and outros begging to be blended with something else. It’s an issue that every producer who ventures outside the comfort zone of 12” EPs has to contend with, and Dulan does so in his signature style, by putting his head down and powering through.
The slightly-overwhelming eighty minutes of It’s Good… are meant strictly for DJs and heads, with plenty of bangers and little else. To be fair, this record was likely never meant to be listened to front-to-back. Each side has two songs on it, allowing you to digest each of the three 12”s as a standalone EP. Approached this way, the album clicks, with each third offering a slightly different side of the producer’s work.
Opener “Inhabit Tense” dives right in with some thick pads and pummeling, machine funk toms. This first run of songs blasts out of the gate, with Dulan’s extrovert side in full effect. Exciting as it is, he can lapse into a predictable deference to his elders, particularly Mike Banks. The fidgety lead and blasting strings on “Marvel Less” scratch the Detroit itch well enough, but by same token feel a bit rote. No doubt in the right hands they will come alive on a dance floor, but elsewhere on the album Dulan delivers the goods with more personal aplomb.
The middle of the album offers some of the strangest and strongest work attributed to the Differ-Ent alias so far. “We Have U Surrounded” pares back the sound palette, using a single liquid note and tight percussion to cast a graceful spell. “Motive Hate Shun” chokes out all the air in the room with miasmic subbass and menacing flanger—it’s one of the album’s highlights. Perhaps meant as a counterpoint, “Fasten 8 Shun” returns to Dulan’s beloved string sounds, but here his melodies ambitiously reach beyond the clouds rather than cruise coldly into the abyss. Finally, E-side opener shows “Gem In Eyes” shows Dulan’s emotional side, reminiscent of Hieroglyphic Being’s “So Much Noise 2 Be Heard” if it was recorded in a real studio.
The album’s closing stretch feels a little throwaway, with the obligatory chill-out of “A Calm Bliss.” It’s cool enough, but once it’s over it doesn’t particularly resonate, and “Lazer Eyes” swerves right back to the dense paranoia rather than maintain the mood. “I M Different” closes the album in a more electro style. He may not actually be that different from his Detroit forebears, but It’s Good To Be Differ-Ernt does stand apart from much modern techno. Orthodox but accomplished, it’s an album that exists outside time, sidestepping fashionable tropes staying true to it’s roots. However, it may be more rewarding for the casual fan to catch Bone in one of his virtuosic DJ sets than here.
