Kenny Larkin — Detroit Techno DJ & Producer

Kenny Larkin is a Detroit-born techno producer and DJ, also known under the alias Dark Comedy, whose work AllMusic has described as massively influential on American, British and German techno. Born in 1968 and raised in Detroit, he did not take part in the earliest wave of Detroit techno because he was serving in the military, joining the scene's so-called second wave alongside pioneers who followed Juan Atkins and Derrick May. He released his first records through Richie Hawtin and John Aquaviva's Plus 8 label, later expanding to Warp, Buzz, R&S, Rush Hour and Planet E, becoming a fixture of clubs like The Shelter and the Music Institute in Detroit's formative techno years. He stepped away from music around 2000 to pursue stand-up comedy before returning to production and DJing, and has since finished remix work with Argentine artist Guti for Cutting Headz. Larkin continues to tour and perform sets rooted in Detroit's foundational techno sound, and remains regarded within the scene as an artist whose influence is felt widely despite lower mainstream visibility, often described by peers as a DJ's DJ whose catalogue helped shape the genre's second generation.