The Stunner Movement

If you ever decide to visit Detroit, you may want to consider going during Memorial Day Weekend.  Every year since the beginning of the 3rd Millennium, The Detroit Electronic Music Festival (DEMF) features performances by musicians and DJs emphasizing the progressive qualities of the culture surrounding electronic music.  This year over a 100,000 people filtered into Hart Plaza, a concrete open structure located in Downtown Detroit, the birthplace of techno.  StunMo was there to join in the celebration.

At the edge of Hart Plaza the Detroit River creates a border between the U.S. and Canada.  We imagined Canadians standing just across the river awed at the site on the other side.  Movement is full of people Stunnin Hella Hard: People wear amazing costumes, and decorate themselves in florescent body paint, and of course come out with their Stunner Shades on.

We came out to Detroit to continue touring with our good friends at DirtyBird Records–they threw a killer after party at the Underground City Club.  Detroit also happens to be the home of Claude Von Stroke, label boss at Dirtybird.  We were fortunate to have Von stroke give us a quick tour of his city, part of an interview with VICE’s new music channel, Noisey.  He told us stories behind the statues of Joe Louis’ fist and the spirit of Detroit, and showed us some of his favorite spots to eat and where he used to live when he first began making music.  We wouldn’t be surprised if there is a little segment featuring the Dirtybird Stunna shades, which were a big hit in Motown.

While we were out there we also enjoyed catching sets by Tiger & Woods, DJ GodFather, Dillon Francis, Kevin Saunderson, DJ Psycho, Two Fresh, The Martinez Brothers, Nadastram and headliners Major Lazer and Claude Von Stroke.  We also caught many sets in conjunction with Liaison Artists that included Soul Clap, Wolf + Lamb, Tanner Ross, ThugFucker, and Pillow Talk.  We discovered that weekend, Michael Tello of Pillow Talk, is a member of Stunner of the Month. Stunna!

We look forward to making the trip back to Detroit next year with hopes of making a Stunner Shade that captures the spirit of this amazing festival.  We have some really good ideas for a limited run shade.  Plus, we found some amazing spots to go grub that are worth the trip back.  Go check out Slow’s Bar BQ, Lafayette Coney Island and eat breakfast over at the Hudson Café, make sure you order the Southern.

StunMo