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Inaugurating the J Hodge Memorial Timbre Thread.

2 messages · 2 participants · spans 1 day · search this subject
◇ merged from 2 subjects: b12 v. au..whatever · inaugurating the j hodge memorial timbre thread.
1995-10-06 05:16JAMIE M. HODGE B12 v. Au..whatever
1995-10-06 14:50Irrational Phenomena Inaugurating the J Hodge Memorial Timbre Thread.
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1995-10-06 05:16JAMIE M. HODGEI've always thought that Autechre would be better off as the kid who does percussion, vers
From:
JAMIE M. HODGE
To:
Date:
Fri, 06 Oct 1995 01:16:21 -0400 (EDT)
Subject:
B12 v. Au..whatever
permalink · <01HW3NSR7MKI00J92S@vaxsar.vassar.edu>
I've always thought that Autechre would be better off as the kid who does percussion, versus two.. I can't stand those schmaltzy synth lines that always sludge up the great drum programming.. I haven't payed attention to them recently, but if Flutter's any indication, I'll stick with B12.. At the same time, I'm a bit wary of ANY string patches as of late.. They're so easy to cull up from gear and they mask many weaknesses in the artist's musicianship.. B12 seemed to be consistantly superior IMHO in terms of melodies and counterpoint.. Also mind you, that alot of there first album was fairly old when it was finally released on Warp.. There were several B12 and B12-related 12"s previous to it.. That entire Likemind/B12 crew seems completely obsessed with the 1989-90 sound ala DX100 basslines and deep grooves. Autechre's sound always seemed less mature v. the old Stasis/Neuron joints.. If anybody feels like heading up a discussion about the future of timbres and sequencing in electronic music, please do.. I've been spending most of my time listening to the stuff non-electronic musicians have been doing with electronics.. I saw Gastr del Sol on Sunday and was suprised to see that those creepy noises they were drawing were coming out of old Farfisas.. Am I the only one who thinks the Gastr track on Red, Hot and Bothered is brilliant? It seems to me that the stuff these guys are doing is superior because the process goes beyond sequencing, often involving tape manipulation, acoustic and synthetics back to back, and a sense of space in relation to time.. I'm sick of hearing jungle tracks trying to come off jazzy.. They always resort to lounge chords rehashed from the cool.. Didn't anybody notice what happened during the late 60s, early 70s? You don't have to be a genius to come up with chord progressions that don't sound like new order meets depeche mode.. Carl Craig hit it on the money with the remix of Crackdown (on buzz).. This reminds me of my frustration over the last Black Dog album: the chords and melodies seemed rooted a period of classical music that I can definitely do without.. no dissonance, none of their older subtley.. Well, as usual, I'm coming off like a jerk, but I really want this music to mature, and the like of Jim O'Rourke are making us look like idiots! Jamie
1995-10-06 14:50Irrational PhenomenaOn Oct 6, 1:16am, JAMIE M. HODGE wrote: > Subject: B12 v. Au..whatever > I've always thoug
From:
Irrational Phenomena
To:
JAMIE M. HODGE ,
Date:
Fri, 6 Oct 1995 09:50:57 -0500
Subject:
Inaugurating the J Hodge Memorial Timbre Thread.
permalink · <9510060951.ZM28283@elvis.cadsi.com>
On Oct 6, 1:16am, JAMIE M. HODGE wrote:
quoted 5 lines Subject: B12 v. Au..whatever> Subject: B12 v. Au..whatever > I've always thought that Autechre would be better off as the kid who does > percussion, versus two.. I can't stand those schmaltzy synth lines that > always sludge up the great drum programming.. I haven't payed attention to > them recently, but if Flutter's any indication, I'll stick with B12..
You're entitled to your opinion of course, and to some extent I'd have to agree that their stuff could use a little more inventiveness in the harmonic department, the Gescom Clear release being a case in point. But, But, But ... B12 always seemed pretty 'safe' to me both rhythmically and harmonically. Maybe it just hasn't caught with me in the proper setting. Set and setting being of course the key with both music and dr*gs ... Eventually (and here's your chance to get in on the ground floor Mr. H!) someone doing electronic music is going to discover harmonic modulation, and pretty soon people will be thinking its every bit as wiggly as filter cutoff modulation.
quoted 3 lines At the same time, I'm a bit wary of ANY string patches as of late..> At the same time, I'm a bit wary of ANY string patches as of late.. > They're so easy to cull up from gear and they mask many weaknesses in the > artist's musicianship.
Patch, Schmatch. A good musician, with the proper attitude, can make a wheezing Bontempi Chord Organ sound like the the gates of heaven opening. With a little judicious reverb of course. I've got friends with gear out to here, who make great music with it. I've got another friend with a casiotone and a couple of guitar pedals who do the same thing. Take a step back and think about what's appealing about pads. They fill up sonic space, and with some interior motion, they have a changing cloudy texture. As with anything else, I'm a big believer in letting the gear speak and selecting the best bits for recombination. Lazy musicians will get their just desserts in the end -- don't blame the 'tricks' they fall back on, blame their lack of discrimination. My favorite Oblique Strategy is "Find the most embarassing aspect of a piece, and magnify it." Which is to say as soon as something is a cliche, and has faded into the sonic wallpaper, it's time to wrench it back into the foreground, take it apart, subvert it, and try and find what it is about it that was so intoxicating that it became a cliche in the first place.
quoted 2 lines If anybody feels like heading up a discussion about the future of> If anybody feels like heading up a discussion about the future of > timbres and sequencing in electronic music, please do.
Things like filter sweeps, 303 squelching, running a drum machine through a fuzz pedal or a Korg MS20 have about had their run. To tell you the truth, I think what mu-ziq does on 'Salsa With Mesquite' points in an interesting direction -- FM synth abuse. Not just DX-100 bass but those groovy bell sounds that you've been avoiding, along with the string patches. That and pitch-bend abuse. And there really isn't any substitute for machines that can can make continuous subtle variations in texture over long periods of time -- modular synths. No one's done a decent digital modular; when they do the world will beat a path to their door.
quoted 2 lines I've been spending most of my time listening to the stuff non-electronic> I've been spending most of my time listening to the stuff non-electronic > musicians have been doing with electronics..
Yes, of course. The most outre example is Jon Spencer Blues Explosion flogging his theramin live. I don't buy his records to listen to, but see the man live. He is the French Deconstructionist of rock and roll. [And actually, his use of the theramin echoes what Thirteenth Floor Elevators were doing 30 years ago ...] Labradford is another sterling example -- recording live to 4track in a basement hallway.
quoted 3 lines This reminds me of my frustration over the last Black Dog album:> This reminds me of my frustration over the last Black Dog album: > the chords and melodies seemed rooted a period of classical music that I > can definitely do without..
Call me a stinking Brahms lover, but I've been known to put 'Chesh' on infinite repeat while I work. And, for any of you IDM'ers out there, Mr. Hodge has some delicious vinyl out these days. Ask for it by name! -- kent.williams@cadsi.com [Kent Williams/CADSI/2651 Crosspark Rd/Coralville IA 52241/(319)626-6700] "It is a good world, generally (and especially when you totally ignore detail)." --Darwin Grosse, who did NOT invent Eckankar.