IDM Mailing Archive

There's enough here for two different replies, so I'm splitting them up. Sasha defends Base 10:

quoted 5 lines Hmmm. Okay. I think I'm the only Base 10'er here on IDM, so I'll respond. I

> Hmmm. Okay. I think I'm the only Base 10'er here on IDM, so I'll respond. I= > just went back and read an old issue of the zine and here's what I think: = > Yes, the reviews sometimes come down to: "its fuckin cool" or "you are an= > idiot if you don't get this". BUT, I can tell you that when Spike and Larry= > write that they actually mean it.

I have absolutely no doubt that this is the case. Note that I didn't say that I don't like Base 10. I do, in fact, and I thank you for giving me the chance to see them. Base 10's reviews are far superior to most of the crappy reviews I read in StreetSound or DJ. But I also think that it has a lot of room for improvement.

quoted 1 line They do that cause they love the music.=

> They do that cause they love the music.=

Again, I have no quibbles with that. Their love for music is what shows most clearly in the reviews.

quoted 2 lines Sometimes the reviews they write are more creative than most of the stuff I=

> Sometimes the reviews they write are more creative than most of the stuff I= > see here on the net.

Except, of course, for the ones that we _have_ seen on the net, of course, right? Such as, say, your own reviews? I would stick a smiley in there, but I'm trying to cut the habit.

quoted 4 lines In any case, I cant speak for them, so I will speak=

> In any case, I cant speak for them, so I will speak= > for myself. I do the writing for nothing. I do it to let other people out= > there know what is good. I don't have the time to waste on writing reviews= > for shit=20tracks.

Here's where I feel that I have a little room to argue with you. I think that negative reviews are just as valuable as positive ones. If I ever lay my hands on any stinkeroos, I'll be sure to let everybody here know about it. In fact, I think that picking out examples of things that fail miserably are just as important as finding the things that are especially good. Both give artists fairly clear pointers as to what direction they should be taking what they're working on. Especially when the failures, like Lassigue Bendthaus' recent album (just to pick one recent example) are so close to being something new and exceptional.

quoted 6 lines I buy everything I review so unless I get it for free,=

> I buy everything I review so unless I get it for free,= > which is _never_, I won't review it. When I do reviews, I sit down and make= > a conscious effort to write exactly what I feel about a track. The size and= > cost of the printing restricts all writers to a paragraph or two. We don't= > have the time, money or energy to write lenghty reviews articulating how= > and why a track sucked or why it moved us to tears.

See, Base 10 seems to be on the "quantity" end of the the "quantity<---->quality" scale. I'd prefer it if Base 10's reviewers slowed down a little bit and went into depth on things, especially things that excite the reviewer and strike him / her as being something innovative. As it is, you all seem so breathless all the time. There's no way you can possibly keep up with _all_ of the new releases, so why not concentrate on the very best of the best?

quoted 14 lines Good reviews should communicate effectively to someone who hasnever heard a=

> >Good reviews should communicate effectively to someone who hasnever heard a= > >given piece of music a little bit of the flavor of the > >work. It helps if you can avoid comparisons to things that your > >"average" listener hasn't heard, although comparisons can be very > >useful. > > Base 10 is aimed at the average "dance" buyer. I don't think it will be= > given away at the nearest highbrow Waldenbooks location. And what wrong= > with buzzwords? Isn't techno a buzzword? How about trance? How about= > Triphop? Buzzwords make writing exciting and give my writing some depth.= > Thats just the way I express myself. Personally, I *hate* reading lengthy= > reviews. After reading so many "this release moved my soul to the point of= > ectasy" reviews, my perspective is to keep it short, simple and sometimes,= > funny.=20

Shit, man, I'm not asking for everybody to write reviews that will be up for next year's Pulitzer. I just would like to see a little more depth and more qualitative discussion of what makes a track / 12" / EP / LP / compilation strong or weak. I agree with you that there's a lot of overwrought reviews that try to convince you that if you buy this or that release you _will_ see God. I don't want that any more than you do. And it's possible to do exactly what I'm talking about in a couple of paragraphs. That's what I strive for in my reviews, at least.

quoted 9 lines They should be concise and avoid buzzwords.

> >They should be concise and avoid buzzwords. > > Concise? > > >From Merriam Websters Dictionary: Con-cise - free from all elaboration and= > superfluous.=20 > > I think "this track sucks" (as Spike or Larry) would say is as concise as it= > gets.

I think that's somewhere beyond concise.

quoted 3 lines True, sometimes that come off as obnoxious, but I respect them for=

> True, sometimes that come off as obnoxious, but I respect them for= > having the honesty and courage to say that a track sucks or that the rave= > scene is shit. I cant say that for all people out here.

I'll give them the respect they're due for that, but I'm also going to push them to take what they're doing to the next level. Nobody engaged in an artistic or critical enterprise should ever be fully comfortable with where they are; they should always want to be somewhere beyond where they are. At least in my little ideal world of discourse.

quoted 6 lines They should be

> >They should be > >information-rich and follow the normal rules of grammar. Look at the > >reviews of books in the NYT Review of Books. > > I'll be sure to buy a New York Times styleguide the next time I do my= > reviews. ; )

Thhbt! I'm merely putting forward one _possible_ model of reviewing here, cheese. Don't you think it would be cool if there were at least one place where you could read techno reviews that were of the same caliber as the book reviews in the NYT Review of Books? Think about it. In conclusion, I'd like to say that I think Base 10 is a cool little zine, and I don't want to trash Spike and Larry's hard work. If any of you have been wondering what the hell Sasha and I have been going on about, you owe it to yourselves to find out more about both Base 10 and Planet X (which is the excellent record store Base 10 originates out of). I'd just like to see somebody raise the bar as far as reviewing goes. I'd do it myself if I wasn't so damn busy. yrz, ozy ozymandias G desiderata AKA Forrest L Norvell AKA DJ AladdinSane GCS/CW/DJ d- H++ s++:-- !g p1 !au a- w+++ v+++ C++(---) U?++++(----)$ P--- L 3 E++ N++ K++ W---(-----) M++ V-- -po+ Y++>+++ t@ 5- jx R-- G'' !tv b+++ D++ B-- e++ u*(**) h-- f++ r++ n++ x+(*)

quoted 4 lines I think "this track sucks" (as Spike or Larry) would say is as concise as it=

>I think "this track sucks" (as Spike or Larry) would say is as concise as it= > gets. True, sometimes that come off as obnoxious, but I respect them for= > having the honesty and courage to say that a track sucks or that the rave= > scene is shit. I cant say that for all people out here.

I thought Base 10 was too cool for me at first...but now I have some of Spike's worst one's stuck in my head - "it's like when your D drops the towel" or "attaches her mouth (tongue et als) to your ear." I think this is good! The writing sticks with me. There is the throuw your hands up and shrug approach of "You have to LISTEN to the music, not read about it." I would say this is 95% true...but part of the enjoyment comes from a MEMORABLE review, like one in PX's Base10. Usually "descriptive" reviews misguide me...this can set up a nice suprise when you actually HEAR the record and its completely different than you had thought. Basically I like reading almost any type of review if it's about something I love. Sasha's review of the As One album was gushy, and I identified with that...if something sounds that powerful, fuck...gush. Exaggeration can be a barometer in some senses...which brings us back to the value of Base 10 style writing...

quoted 3 lines reviews of books in the NYT Review of Books.

>>reviews of books in the NYT Review of Books. >I'll be sure to buy a New York Times styleguide the next time I do my= > reviews. ; )

All I have to say is that if music is analagous to language (which it is, but not necessarily for everyone), techno is NOT standard English. It's anything but that...thank god. Music would suck if there was some style manual for it. I could go off on the music/language thing but I'll protect y'all and won't...

quoted 3 lines Does the constant subliminal link between IDM and drugs (the

>>Does the constant subliminal link between IDM and drugs (the >>assumption that IDM is somehow improved by the consumption of >>psychotropics) bug anybody besides me?

quoted 8 lines I agree with you here. It annoyed me so much I stopped spinning and=

>I agree with you here. It annoyed me so much I stopped spinning and= > supporting the "rave" scene. If you need something else to enhance your=> > appreciation of techno, I think you must be missing something in your life.= > A lot of people at raves "glamorize" drugs and I find that disgusting. BUT,= > It comes down to this: its their body and they have the right to do= > whatever they want with it. If they think dropping some acid gives them a= > richer understanding of "idm", its their right. The music is all I will= > ever need.

Mmm, same here. Same here to the nth degree. But merely my perspective. I would like to see this aspect discussed (ozy?) with some music makers. If I didn't treat it as something funny, Luke Slater's answer to how to get someone into a groove - "Sit 'em down with a rather large spliff!" - would probably piss me off. THis is everywhere. It doesn't have to be combatted, since lotsa music made on/by/for drugs is way up there and everyone should have the choice to do what they want. BUT it's refreshing and reassuring to see there are others out there who think drugs aren't necessary; its the music. I feel like throwing the fuck up when I read about anyone saying techno or electronic music revolves around drugs. I don't know how true it is, but I've read that many of the original techno pioneers don't/didn't use drugs...this is an encouraging thought for me. (BTW, I'm not talking about Kraftwerk ;-) I'm referring to a quote about the Detroit guys in "MAchine Soul" from an old Village Voice)... -morgan geist