i agree with you, mark...while i personally don't think mixing techno with hip-hop is the way forward, i would keep an open mind if someone came along and did it in an original and engaging manner.

my beef with techno nowadays is that it much of it seems too self-referential and inbred. would LOVE to hear a new underground record that hit me the way "the wipe" or "heavenly" still do, or tore it up like "the bells." and i really wouldn't mind if someone did crossover, as long as it was creative and of high-quality...

maybe the key is for people who love techno to just plain make music, and try to free themselves of the sub-genre boundaries we impose upon ourselves...