Christopher Fahey wrote:
quoted 3 lines I love the way TJ weaves the drums and melodies together. Often the drums *are*> I love the way TJ weaves the drums and melodies together. Often the drums *are*
> the music, and the composition and effects processing on both the melodic and
> percussive aspects blurrs the boundaries between them.
This is what I love about tracks like "Peace Nail" (Dragon Disc 2) and
Luke Vibert's "Cheesy (Amen Mix)" (Plug 2). The manipulation and
filtering of the breaks becomes the melody.
The point about programming vs. sampling is not quite a strict
dichotomy; a fair number of Tom J's tracks have original breaks that
have been sampled and manipulated, or in some cases individual
snare/kick samples are used but step programmed rather than used as part
of a longer, looped phrase. In the case of Aphex, it's sampled drum
machines or non-percussion sounds which are step programmed or sometimes
looped (MIDI rather than audio). To me Luke Vibert does the best at
using sampled breaks (i.e. longer phrases/beats) and giving them a lot
of feeling and subtlety. The man works magic.
On "Hard Normal Daddy" a lot of the tunes are more 'song' oriented - as
Tom J says in interviews he approaches tracks as though a band were
playing their respective parts - which to me is a breath of fresh air.
The arrangements are stronger than on "Feed Me Weird Things" and
melodies more complex. Can't wait for the upcoming Rephlex EP.
GD