IDM Mailing Archive

Hi all first of all, I joined this mailing list very recently due to my interest in IDM and related styles - I am a producer myself, even though what I do has only marginally to do with IDM, it's actually clicky housey abstract jazz funk live electronic music. Anyway, I have been listening to a fair amount of IDM including all the 'big names' and when I got the latest Savath&Savalas album, Apropra't (which is very mellow and melodic, particularly when you set it against some of Squarepusher's more ferocious tunes, for instance), I started to think about an interesting question which I'm sure many of you have an answer/opinion for - and that is: How difficult to listen/noise-based/complicated/progressive does IDM have to be? Taking S&S as an example, there is some magnificent and also complex electronic elements in the background, so it's by no means "one-dimensional", and when you compare it to Mira Calix, for instance, it's very "easily" listenable. Mira seems to have a fair amount of abstract, dark elements in her music, and this I sometimes find too much despite the fact that I love complex, challenging music (jazz, m-base stuff, mr. bungle....). Sure, this is all a matter of taste you might say - and you're right -but I would still like to figure out where the Intelligent in the IDM name ends and where 'banal', for lack of a better word, starts. Probably a matter of personal opinion - but I would love to see what you people think about this phenomenon. Because, much as I respect Squarepusher and get inspiration from his music, it really is impossible to listen to sometimes - for me at least - due to the sheer 'stress factor'. OK, looking forward to your messages! Roland --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: idm-unsubscribe@hyperreal.org For additional commands, e-mail: idm-help@hyperreal.org