Biography
Widely recognized as the originator of Dutch techno, Steve Rachmad hails from Amsterdam. As one of the earliest electronic musicians to link his birthplace with Detroit, he has sustained an exceptionally prolific output across multiple decades, delving into assorted strains of techno, house, and electro through upward of a dozen aliases. Breakthrough material such as 1995's Secret Life of Machines, issued under his best-known moniker Sterac, built upon the propulsive, tuneful approach of Detroit techno figures including Derrick May and Carl Craig. Additional explorations encompass electro and tech-house via Tons of Tones, dub-tinged techno as Parallel 9, minimal techno under the name Scorp, and varied techno and acid styles released simply as Steve Rachmad, exemplified by the 2006 album Neo Classica. He has also stayed deeply engaged as a DJ, weaving disco and electro flavors into his techno and house performances.
Born in 1969, Rachmad began amassing records and crafting cut-and-paste works on an open-reel tape deck during his teenage years. At age 15 he started DJing, initially playing the disco and electro then current, among them productions by Jam & Lewis and Arthur Baker. Seeking to replicate those sounds, he obtained his first drum machine, a Roland TR-808, in 1985 and kept accumulating a broad array of chiefly analog gear. Exposure to the Chicago house and Detroit techno currents then gaining traction prompted him to create his own instrumental dance tracks. By 1993 he was issuing music under names such as A Scorpion's Dream, whose "Aqua Dance" came out on May's Fragile Records, along with Rachmad Project and Black Scorpion. Tons of Tones and Sterac both debuted EPs in 1994; the former followed with a self-titled compilation on Urban Sound of Amsterdam the next year, while the latter put out Secret Life of Machines on 100% Pure, later viewed as a techno classic. A full Tons of Tones album, Platinum, surfaced in 1997 and featured the sought-after electro cut "Sheherezade."
Rachmad kept issuing material under further aliases, among them Ignacio and Continuous Cool. His debut mix CD, Emerging, appeared under his own name in 1998, the same year a second Sterac album, Thera, was released. Beginning in 2000 he launched a run of pared-down techno singles as Scorp and simultaneously delivered Tir Na Nog under his own name. Music Man Records issued his second mix album, aptly titled In the Mix, in 2001. The full-length Neo Classica came out on the Hong Kong-based Sino label in 2006. Rounding out the decade were EPs on imprints such as Delsin (Rond Bot) and EC Records (Surdosong).
In 2012, 100% Pure put out a remastered and remixed version of Secret Life of Machines, with several tracks reworked at modestly reduced tempos to improve DJ usability. That year also saw the release of Magnetic Reversal, a full-length under the dub-influenced alias Parallel 9, via Music Man. Token issued a Scorp compilation in 2016. Operating as Sterac Electronics, the project drawing from vintage electro-funk, he released the album Things to Think About on Tom Trago's Voyage Direct label in 2017. Two Sterac EPs followed in 2019: 11 on Kanzleramt and Aeras on Indigo Aera.
Born in 1969, Rachmad began amassing records and crafting cut-and-paste works on an open-reel tape deck during his teenage years. At age 15 he started DJing, initially playing the disco and electro then current, among them productions by Jam & Lewis and Arthur Baker. Seeking to replicate those sounds, he obtained his first drum machine, a Roland TR-808, in 1985 and kept accumulating a broad array of chiefly analog gear. Exposure to the Chicago house and Detroit techno currents then gaining traction prompted him to create his own instrumental dance tracks. By 1993 he was issuing music under names such as A Scorpion's Dream, whose "Aqua Dance" came out on May's Fragile Records, along with Rachmad Project and Black Scorpion. Tons of Tones and Sterac both debuted EPs in 1994; the former followed with a self-titled compilation on Urban Sound of Amsterdam the next year, while the latter put out Secret Life of Machines on 100% Pure, later viewed as a techno classic. A full Tons of Tones album, Platinum, surfaced in 1997 and featured the sought-after electro cut "Sheherezade."
Rachmad kept issuing material under further aliases, among them Ignacio and Continuous Cool. His debut mix CD, Emerging, appeared under his own name in 1998, the same year a second Sterac album, Thera, was released. Beginning in 2000 he launched a run of pared-down techno singles as Scorp and simultaneously delivered Tir Na Nog under his own name. Music Man Records issued his second mix album, aptly titled In the Mix, in 2001. The full-length Neo Classica came out on the Hong Kong-based Sino label in 2006. Rounding out the decade were EPs on imprints such as Delsin (Rond Bot) and EC Records (Surdosong).
In 2012, 100% Pure put out a remastered and remixed version of Secret Life of Machines, with several tracks reworked at modestly reduced tempos to improve DJ usability. That year also saw the release of Magnetic Reversal, a full-length under the dub-influenced alias Parallel 9, via Music Man. Token issued a Scorp compilation in 2016. Operating as Sterac Electronics, the project drawing from vintage electro-funk, he released the album Things to Think About on Tom Trago's Voyage Direct label in 2017. Two Sterac EPs followed in 2019: 11 on Kanzleramt and Aeras on Indigo Aera.
Albums
Singles
