Agreed. This guy's dis of squarepusher as being "not part of a scene"
undermines his other arguments, as does his glowing reviews of Prodigy
and chems elsewhere on his site. I don't want to be part of some kind of
life-stance, and that's what I like about plug/squarepusher/even aphex.
I would rarely dance to this stuff, but it is great listening. This guy
likes being part of a mass party event with music as the manipulator, a
non-cerebral surrender to a "vibe". This is sometimes cool, but not
always.
His writing technique is quite good, and his points about most things
are generally on the mark. I think he just has a taste problem with
"drill-and-bass", which probably has to do with his urgent need to
party. Hey, I respect that. It's much better review writing than most
stuff I read, and that alone makes it a valuable site, even if I
disagree with him a bit about his tastes.
-CF
quoted 88 lines -----Original Message-----> -----Original Message-----
> From: idm-owner@hyperreal.com [SMTP:idm-owner@hyperreal.com] On Behalf
> Of Styrolene vaT
> Sent: Monday, March 31, 1997 10:31 PM
> To: idm@hyperreal.com
> Cc: jpress@cis.compuserve.com
> Subject: (idm) most overated artists of 1996?
>
> Yeah Generally Simons got the right idea IMO, Bukem FSOL and Mo Wax
> undeniably
> suck these days, I kinda respect his prose, i also think its fairly
> tongue
> in cheek which is cool... we all enjoy net antagonism. However his
> list
> of favourites is also pretty embarrasing, however id still rather have
> to listen
> to Mokum than those wankers/old men FSOL.
>
> However im pretty uncertain about this bit:
>
> > It is only Squarepusher/Plug etc's distance from the scene that
> allows them to
> > convolute the breakbeats beyond any use-value to DJ or dancer; the
> wilful
> > incongruity of the samples is all well and good, but if junglists
> use the same
> > old gangsta/cyberpunk soundbites and apocalyptic textures, it's
> because they're
> > trying to create and sustain a vibe, a feeling-full and meaningful
> mood that
> > crystallises a certain kind of worldview and life-stance.
>
> huh? i think hes missing the point here a little, i dont really think
> Tom J or
> Luke V are generally thinking of 'the dancer' when they compose
> tracks! unlike the
> 'junglists' i think they are writing the music for themselves, not to
> propagate
> some 'scene'. I really dont understand how you can condone artists who
> simply use the
> same samples over and over again just because theyve managed to cobble
> together some
> sort of tired identity?! I think more and more every day that London
> is a place to visit
> often but not to live in, these comments do nothing to dissuade me
> from this.
>
> > By comparison, drill
> > and bass is vibe-less non-sense. The drill and bass/"fungle" concept
> seems to exist
> > to make a certain sort of "margin-walker" feel okay about not really
> having engaged
> > with jungle as a subculture.
>
> Engaged with Jungle as a subculture? oh dear... what about people like
> myself who
> bought some DJ Krust, photek, Metalheads and Reinforced three years
> ago because it
> sounded pretty interesting and a bit more radical from the
> Techno/electronica that was
> around at the time... i tried to 'engage with Jungle as a subculture'
> if you like ;)
> however all these artists are producing records which sound identical
> to the ones
> i already own, theres zero Progression there.
>
> > And of course, as with most soi disant progressive
> > iniatives, drill and bass is utterly parasitic on its populist
> counterpart--do you
> > really think the idea of chopping up breakbeats would have
> independently occurred
> > to the weirdy-beardy technoids in a million years?
>
> Yep... i reckon that the interest in breaks in most of the 'drill and
> bass'
> artists stems just as much from an early interest in Hip Hop rather
> than
> Jungle. Theres no denying that the way they use say the Amen Break is
> Influenced
> by Junglists, but i think the way in which theyve taken it shows that
> theyve
> had a much broader set of Influences/references than yer average
> Junglist...
> oops ive Stereotyped again...
>
> kF
>
> can i stop using the phrase 'drill and bass' now pleeeeasee...