Underground Resistance is an American Techno music collective and record label based in Detroit. Originally consisting of ‘Mad’ Mike Banks, Jeff Mills and Robert Hood, the latter two left in 2002 to pursue successful solo careers. Underground Resistance was an influential part of the Detroit Techno scene.
Underground Resistance was formed in the late 1980’s by Detroit Techno DJ and producers Jeff Mills and “Mad” Mike Banks. Underground Resistance was intended as a counter balance to the perceived commercialization of Techno. It was formed at a time when the leading lights of Detroit Techno Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson were flirting with the commercial mainstream with production aliases such as Inner City and Rhythim Is Rhythim. Underground Resistance was also created as a response to Reagan-era neo-liberal economics and resultant inner city decay.
Thus Underground Resistance was from the start a highly politicized with strident ideologies at its core. More than just a production alias, it was a music collective including a record label with the same name.
In 1990 fellow Detroit Techno DJ and producer Robert Hood joined the collective and later that year came the first Underground release, the ‘Sonic’ E.P. (Underground Resistance 1990).
After a string of releases Mills and Hood left in 1992 for New York to focus on collaborations on Mills’ newly formed Axis Records. continued the Underground Resistance project, releasing the debut studio album - ‘Revolution For Change’ (Network Records 1992) – and a mix of solo productions and collaborations including the 1993track as Galaxy 2 Galaxy ‘Hi-Tech Jazz’ (Underground Resistance 1993).
In 1998 Underground Resistance released their second album ‘Interstellar Fugitives’ (Underground Resistance 1998) which showcased a deviation from the Hard Techno sound that had characterised earlier Underground Resistance releases.
In its stead was a more diverse collection of sounds incorporating Breakbeat, Electro and Trip-Hop. Banks referred to this new sound as ‘High Tech Funk’.
In more recent years Mills has expanded the membership of the Underground Resistance collective to include acts such as melodic Techno live act Los Hermanos, DJ 3000 and Buzz Goree.
Members of Underground Resistance traditionally hide their faces behind bandanas when performing live and appearing for press shots.