I Was There – LFO and Richie Hawtin make ‘Loop’, 1993

LFO’s Gez Varley opens his photo annual for us

On the ninth of June in 1993, two great forces of techno combined to make one tune. It would turn out to be an anthem of the burgeoning techno scene.

‘Loop’ featured Leeds duo LF0 – then riding high on the success of their Top Five single also named ‘LFO’ and the Frequencies album, after the low frequency oscillator button on their synth that provided the distinctive sub-bass in their sound. Collaborating with them was a fast rising star of the Detroit techno scene called Richie Hawtin, although he actually lived just across the Canadian border from Motor City in Windsor and was born in the UK.

Gez Varley, one half of LFO and better known in more recent times G-Man, recently came across a handful of shots from the session and very generously let us share them with the Juno Daily readership, along with a few brief memories.

“We did the track in Nottingham, at Mark Gamble’s studio. Hawtin, Bell, Varley – writing techno history! The LFO mix was done later, when Mark and I got back to Leeds.

“It took us four days to write, at least two of those were on the break lol. My memories of the session? It was fun, a lot of fun.

“It was first released on Quick One, a Warp sub label, and sold well over 3000 copies in four weeks. Later on it released on (Richie Hawtin’s label) +8 Records.”

• Gez Varley is currently recording a new solo LP for Milligramme expected in 2023, following the release of the ‘Waveform’ EP earlier this year.