Music
Alton Miller
born 1966 · house DJ, producer, singer
Detroit house pioneer who co-founded the Music Institute in 1988 and later worked for KMS and Transmat before an international career.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 60- Detroit years
- 1966–present
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Alton Miller was born in Detroit and, in the mid-1980s, shuttled between Detroit and Chicago with Derrick May, soaking up Frankie Knuckles's sets and Ron Hardy's Music Box. He came home wanting to open a club for the new electronic music, and in 1988 he, Anthony Pearson (Chez Damier) and George Baker opened the Music Institute at 1315 Broadway, where Miller and Pearson held the Saturday “Back to Basics” nights. He also worked at KMS for Kevin Saunderson before leaving in the summer of 1989, months before the club closed. After a year hosting radio in Toronto he returned in 1991, producing for KMS and working at Transmat, where he helped sign outside tracks including Joey Beltram's “Energy Flash”. He spent 1996–1998 in Paris, released albums such as Rhythm Exposed (2000) and Stories from Bohemia (2003), lived briefly in South Africa and came back to Detroit in 2012. He reunited with Chez Damier during Movement week in 2016 and later launched a Music Institute label.
Highlights
- Co-founded the Music Institute (1988–1989).
- Worked at KMS and Transmat in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
- Albums include Rhythm Exposed (2000) and Stories from Bohemia (Peacefrog, 2003).
- Revived his InnerMuse Recordings label in 2015.
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Founded · 1988–1989
The Music Institute
Closed · 1988–1989
The club he co-founded and where he was a Saturday resident.