quoted 7 lines On Wed, 1 Oct 1997 Mark Kolmar <mkolmar@xnet.com> wrote:
> On Wed, 1 Oct 1997 Mark Kolmar <mkolmar@xnet.com> wrote:
> They are trying to take music to what they consider the next
> level, and a constant rhythm would be considered primeval rather than
> transcendental. Thus, Stockhausen's comments.<
> While I'd hate to pick a scrap with someone deserving of respect like
> Stockhausen, I'm willing to bet he was never out there on the floor at 4am
> with summat like 'Spastik' rattling his sphincter.
I'm sure you're right.
The camps are just after two different goals. I mean, you listen to the
last 12" on Purpose Maker ("Our Man From Havana" I think it was, by Jeff
Mills, described as "highly experimental techno" on Submerge's sheets) and
it's quite a good, effective record. The 2 tracks on side B especially
put me into a trance of abstract, mechanical grooviness.
Then you listen to "La Legende d'Eer" by Xenakis (tape piece from mid-70s,
still sounds ultra-futuristic) and realize he really was manipulating and
sculpting sound down to the 44,100th of a second. A difficult listen, but
it will certainly take you to a different mental space than Jeff Mills,
and no less vivid.
Earlier in the century, after they'd figured out systematic ways to avoid
the typical pitch relationships, "serious music" moved into what's called
Integral Serialism -- that is, every aspect of the piece would derive from
the same, or highly interrelated numeric systems. That was a way to
ensure a high level of coherence on a formal/mathematical level, while
avoiding the usual patterns of pitch, rhythm, and nuances.
It's obvious that Jeff Mills sometimes uses multiple lines that play
against each other in different ways as each shifts in time relative to
the others. This, too, is an elegant system for avoiding the usual
patterns. But he's walking a thin line: it's gotta groove or the DJs
aren't going to play it.
--Mark
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