In your message dated Sunday 2, July 1995 you wrote :
quoted 41 lines On Sat, 1 Jul 1995, Paul Seymour wrote:>
>
> On Sat, 1 Jul 1995, Paul Seymour wrote:
>
> > A number of months ago I was all enthused because I was going to this
> > LA "rave" that was to be filmed for a James Cameron film. Aphex Twin was
> > on the flyer. I thought, "WOW! I never thought I would get to see him
> > again in the States!" I was worried when I got there because I couldn't
> > see any of his gear. I was horribly disappointed when all he did was spin
> > records.
> >
> > He did play a track that he obviously created, and it was incredible,
> > but it wasn't much of a consolation for not being able to see him actually
> > play! I have never heard that track again, I have no idea where to find
> > it, and probably never will find it. Oh well... Bjork should be good
> > though. She posesses a charm like no other!
>
> Oh gosh, gee whiz...you went to see a Techno Boffin such as RDJ and you
> were "horribly disappointed when all he did was spin records"?!? Let's
> see...my watch says it's 1995...what the FUCK would make you expect a live
> show out of Mr. Aphex, anyway? Hmmm...I can't even remember the last time
> I saw someone play "live". Even rock dinosaurs like U2 are gonna have
> racks of sequencers & samplers churning away backstage to deliver that
> "just like the album" sound that idiots like you expect...buy a vowel, get
> a clue, if you're REALLY into electronic music, such as that created by
> Mr. James, then wanting to hear it performed "live" is not a reasonable
> expectation. He may use a sequencer, he may use a DAT, he may just decide
> to spin records he thinks are cool; it doesn't really matter. Would you
> have been entertained if you hadn't been expecting to see Aphex Twin live?
>
> Expecting Richard D. James to perform "live" is like going to see Eric
> Crapton & being disappointed that he didn't use a sequencer & sampler to
> play all his guitar solos.
>
> Take a word of advice from someone who's been going to musical
> performances for over half their life - expectations should always be
> left at home - they're a sure ticket to disappointment.
>
> Chill
> Che
>
I'm sorry, but I have to strongly disagree with this. The point of going to
see live techno is that you hear stuff written by the performer, which could
only be performed by him/her. Anyone can spin records by other people, but live
techno is unique, and frequently turns out quite different from the recorded
versions. Also, live performances often feature unreleased tracks or
unreleased versions of tracks.
It's completely unreasonable to criticise live performances because not
every single musical part is played by hand. The complexity and depth of
today's music leads to a new kind of performance of the work. Live electronic
music is obviously impossible to 'play' live in the way conventional music is,
and the artists use sequencers as the instruments by jamming the structure and
dropping the loops in and out while tweaking stuff on the synths and mixer. Look
how the likes of Orbital and Prodigy have risen to become some of the most
highly regarded live bands of any sort (in Britain, anyway). The live techno
experience is quite different from just hearing a DJ play, and the atmosphere is
totally different, because people pay more attention to what they are listening
to when they know that the composer is present. Admittedly, playing 'live' in
this way doesn't require a high level of musical talent/ability, but if you want
to see trained musicians then go to a classical concert!
Anyway, I know that I'd be disappointed if I turned up hoping to see a live
set which never happened, especially from someone so excellent as afx.
--
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| Tom Churchill EMail tom@chrchfam.demon.co.uk |
|
| Techno, electronic and ambient DJ, musician and sound sculptor |
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