For me, being into electro is more of a regression (though not at all an
unpleasant one!). I was into hip-hop at the time it first appeared and on
the radio shows I listened to they played a lot of electro too, which I
actually preferred in retrospect although I wasn't so clear about the
distinction at the time.
As for UR being electro, I sometimes wonder if making this retrospective
distinction between techno and electro is a good thing. UR did much to
define what techno is for me and I find it hard to suddenly consider it to
be some other kind of music. UR has always been always futurist in it's
outlook and the current interest in electro is essentially retro in nature.
(And I strongly suggest going out and buying every UR release you can get!)
Ross.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Nuutti-Iivari Meriläinen" <gordon@populo.vip.fi>
To: <idm@hyperreal.org>
Sent: Friday, November 17, 2000 11:29 AM
Subject: [idm] Electro As IDM
Hullo All,
for the past years I've been starting to lean more and more towards
electro than the artists commonly discussed on the list. I am quite
certain that this is a natural progression for me, from the early
A.R.T./GPR/New Electronica/Likemind et al. sound through the harsher
Warp (Autechre, Phoenecia)/Skam/Markant etc. phase (where some rhythm
elements are definitely electro - just listen to ``Basscadet'') to what I
am buying more and more nowadays: Yunx, Jega, Phoenecia, Datathief and so
on. I have also been compelled to buy some pure electro-plays, like SCSI
and other similar labels.
Someone else besides me has to have noticed the recent uprising of
neo-disco in the form of labels like Gigolo and artists like Zombie Nation
with their roots deeply in the sewers of Hague and ears on the wall of
Moroder and disco - and that labels like RePHLeX jumped on that bandwagon
well before the genre was brought into mainstream attention (just listen
to DMX Krew and Cylob's ``Rewind'' and ``Sex Machine''). Speaking of
RePHLeX, there are some really, _really_ good (yet somewhat
disturbing) electro tracks on their back catalogue, mostly Cylob and Mike
Dred (and of course Drexciya and Dynamix II)).
I think this has been a fluid transition from the almost too abstract
rhythm programming on recent Autechre releases to the crisp (and
sometimes even melodic) yet not straightforward electro on records like
Jega's ``Geometry'', Yunx/Datathief split EP on Pitchcadet, more
experimental sound on Elektrolux (one of my current absolute favourite
labels), Phoenecia's ``Odd Jobs'' and ``Randa Roomet'', Team Doyobi's
``Pushchairs For Grown Ups'' - and the harsher, noisier chapter of Speedy
J's ``IEEE Mitten Menu'' and ``Pannik''. I'm still quite reserved in my
foray into electro - I have not run to buy every UR record there is, but
Carl Finlow and some others really have grabbed my attention with their
nonstandard electro sound. I still have mixed feelings towards the
neo-disco movement for a reason I'm unable to grasp, though. It is fun yet
I wouldn't listen to it at home.
A second point is the rise of the lo-bit electro movement - people using
C-64's and other 4-8-bit equipment to produce (mostly) electro. There was
a whiff of that on RePHLeX with the release on Bodenstandig 2000's ``Maxi
German Rave Blast Hits 3'' and Lektrogirl's ``I Love My Computer'' and the
more recent releases like Tero's ``First Blood'' on Rikos Records (I have
seen this guy perform _live_ with two C-64's - absolutely fabulous -
go get his first release (RIKOS003) _now_) and 8-bit Rockers (I don't
know if it's out yet). I'm not too keen on the lo-bit circuit (with the
exception of Tero), but it really is gaining momentum (or I'm just late to
observe).
(Rikos Records will release a Lackluster 7" soon.)
So what am I aiming at? Probably to claim that electro in its new forms
should be regarded as IDM (the concept, not a genre). Any takers? Ideas?
Am I totally off the mark here?
Cheers,
--
nuutti-iivari meriläinen gordon at diversion dot org
http colon slash slash www dot diversion dot org slash
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