Boom Boom Satellites.

I was at a party last night and my friend Jimmy had his iPod playing on random. All of a sudden, this jam came on and it sounded familiar. It was a glitched-out, trip-hop beat with cinematic strings on top. I asked Jimmy who that was, and he came back, "Boom Boom Satellites. This album," as he showed me the jewel case to "Out Loud." I was like, "Damn, I've got this CD!" It had been a couple of years at least since I'd listened to it.

The next day, I dug out my Boom Boom Satellites CDs. My copy of "Out Loud" was autographed by the band. I met them in 1999 when they were on tour with Moby. They were being pushed at the time as the "Japanese Chemical Brothers." I had a friend at the time who worked for Sony Japan and on their Detroit stop, she arranged for the band to have a Japanese dinner with a few Detroit people, myself included.

I was really into "Out Loud" at the time. It was like nothing else out back then. It was like neurons firing in your brain, it was wild. Digital, analog, jazz, punk rock, drum-and-bass, film music, everything at once. It was creative, futuristic, and fucked-up. It sounded like Tokyo, basically.

Later that night, they played at St. Andrews Hall and we hung out in their tour bus. I gave them some of my CDs and 12-inches, which they liked because I used Japanese lettering on all the Pure Sonik stuff. I was then asked to introduce the band from the stage. I don't know why they asked me to do that.

I also saw Moby that night. I've known him personally since 1990, when I used to play his early music on my show. It was funny, he still remembered me, and even asked if I still drew. Of course, he's a pop star now.

I introduced the band and they went on. They did a great show as I recall.

A few days later, a Fedex package came to my apartment. It was from Sony Japan. It had two Boom Boom Satellites t-shirts, both signed by the band, and a copy of the second album, "Umbra." Unlike "Out Loud," it had never been released in the States. There was also a thank you note inside, thanking me for introducing the band and hanging out with them.

My friend who worked for Sony, Nancy, went on to give parties herself in Tokyo. She invited me to play the Womb in 2001.

This kind of stuff was a matter of course back in the '90s. Cool shit like that happened all the time back then. Artists would come into town, wanting to hang out with the real techno guys from Detroit. Plus, I was DJing every weekend, putting out records full stop, kicking ass all over the place.

Now, of course, it's 2005, and I've left Detroit. You'll have to wait for my book to find out what I think of the current state of affairs. Or lack thereof.

(Yes, my book's finished, it's just on hold.)

As I sat down to do some artwork, I put on my copy of "Out Loud." Still good shit. It reminded me of better times.