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Author: Tripnik on November 25 2006 Viewed 4793 times. 15 people liked this blog. You can rate it below if you haven't already.
People who enjoyed reading this: room, monty, astroid, Zanf, reehc, implexgrace, papergoose, ignatius, license, cbit, Taxis, 11t1, nagrom, Artsigreg, jbones
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This seems to be a common thing to talk about on here, but for the first time I personally feel like I'm confronting it full on. I've spent so much time trying to learn everything I can about anything sound related, and yet, I feel like somewhere along the lines I've lost sight of what the original "goal" was. I'm not talking about a goal as some sort of end, but more like that unattainable carrot you dangle in front of yourself to keep you moving. I know this goal has nothing to do with technical cock-rockery (which, unfortunately, is easy to get caught up in), but what do you do when you feel like you might have buried that other indescribable 'x' factor?
I need to strip away the layers until I'm completely vulnerable, forget about any sort of measurement of success, and put on the white belt. Easier said than done. Apologies for the somewhat directionless ramblings, but I guess my question is this:
How do you stop analyzing and deconstructing everything you hear?
How do you stop worrying about trying to "get things out there (to share with interesting people more so than any bullshit glamor)" and playing more shows, etc, without giving up on your dreams of getting your music out there and playing more shows?
And not to dredge up a tired binary, but how do you reconcile the intellectual with the emotional without giving complete preference to either side?
I know there are artists who do all of these things and more (or at least we think they do), and for all you philosophical wankers, I know that everything is everything which is nothing and there is no division between emotional/intellectual blah blah blah... I'm more or less looking for things you do when you're trying to rediscover your roots, but you've forgotten where those roots are. | |
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11/26/06
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Taxis
I know even before I had ever made a song, I had many ideas. None of them worked, but they all focused around unique uses of samples. One song I had in mind made when I used to walk around the city for hours with a walking stick, was a 4/4 clomp with the sound of traffic rhythmically pulsing around it. Then I started playing with tape edits. Eventually I got a computer, and loaded it with fruityloops, and a friend showed me how to make sound files out of executables. My social life was toast from then on. For me, its always about mucking around with music. For a while I had delusions about getting picked up by a record label. Nowadays, I am content layering drones and samples, and just making walls of sound pretty much.
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11/26/06
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Taxis
I think human beings always go about things with a goal in mind. At least humans that are brought up in relatively wealthy cultures. It has something to do with being conditioned to go to school, with the understanding that it will eventually end, and you will have your diploma. Most start school at 4, and go all the way untill 18, and that covers the three most important points in human social development insofar as relationships and life direction are concerned. 5, 12 and 15. So feeling the proverbial carrot dangling in front of you is a normal part of it all. It shows self awareness that you notice it as such. That carrot almost killed me when I was 24, because I never learned to see it for what it was, and lived my life waiting for things to happen.
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11/26/06
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11t1
Socrates said: "The unexamined (mid-)life (crisis) is not worth living."
Sometimes it's a good thing to just stop everything and spend a while trying to figure out your place in the universe. I, myself, have been doing that a lot lately, as well I should since I passed the mid-life point a couple of years ago.
My problem was that I kept on trying to do everything. If I had an interest in electronic music, I gave it a whirl & threw myself into it whole-hog just to get distracted by the idea that I wanted to compose for film, so I went off on another tangent. My life has been one meandering path from playing punk, classic rock, funk, metal, jazz, indie pop, grunge and what-have-you up to this point. The thing that got me was that I looked back and compared all I had tried to do with all that I actually accomplished and found the scales seriously out of balance.
It took me a few months, but I started wondering about what really made me happy as a musician. I started a new playlist in iTunes, and I started dragging in tracks that really inspired me, tracks that I would've been proud to call my own (and I got really picky about it). Then I realized, no offence to anyone here, that the music that really made me happy fell primarily into the 'live' music category with real musicians and singers and very few electronic influences at all. I knew what I had to do...
You see, I've got this notebook that I keep writing putting pop song ideas into. I've been doing it for years, but very rarely have I actually done anything about it. I got out the guitar, cranked out a few of the tunes and realized this is my happy place. Once I was in my happy place, the whole world sort of fell into perspective. I wrote up a plan of attack for getting my songs recorded (still going to work electronically in my home studio by myself, have no fear), and one of the most important points in it is "resist all temptation to do 11t1 project or film scores - focus on the songbook for Pete's sake."
Maybe it'll lead me to a place where I feel fulfilled as a musician. Maybe it won't. I think the important thing is just to figure out what it is that really makes you happy, and it doesn't even have to have anything to do with music, and then dedicate as much of your time as possible to it.
11/26/06
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disturb
I think the source of all our troubles regarding this kind of matters, is over thinking, clearly.
Like lately i've been meaning to get into dancefloor type stuff. The tracks i dig the most are ghettohouse/tech, old school house type of stuff, and some rather mainstream pumping house. Most of my favorite tracks must have been done on utterly cheap/limited gear and are actually pretty simple (in every sense you can think of ;) ). And getting into that kinda stuff with the same ''ve had before is definitely NOT working.
I just wish i could stop trying to look cool and smart (even to myself) and have fun more easiely.
Might seem pretty different from what most ppl talked about here, but i think in the end the same process is involved.
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11/26/06
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dach
I like the drones and the ambient sounds, but I find it hard to just listen these days cos I am studying the music at the same time. So now, I'm off to the church to listen to Mozarts Requiem. My attempts to study it just get washed away, that's nice, and a process worth paying attention to.
Perhaps sitting in a bird-filled forest does the same. Who knows. Not me, cos all I hear are cars outside. I listen to them too, not much to study, yet lots to listen to anyway.
11/26/06
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n9
i like my last record too much. it is in as many ways as I can figure the record I'd wanted to make since I was 18 (which was a long time ago.) Since my partner and I mixed it and had it mastered, since the very day that jdg sent it to us I've had no desire to make music and when I do make music I just make a long think drone that pisses my bandmate off. It's like the jar is empty, if you know what I mean.
But on the upside I can cue up my record and I like it as much as anything that I've ever heard. It's weird.
11/26/06
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jdg
its a good album tho.
i'd rather create one great thing, then a lot of OK things.
11/26/06
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nagrom
Hah, I feel silly saying this, but since I've started throwing small raves for my friends, my perception of music has changed a lot. I don't analyze it so much anymore, but focus on how it affects people and myself.
Technical mastery is one thing, but the emotional and intellectual provocation is the reason we listen to and make music. Analyzing music from this direction - picking out what it is about a piece that moves you or inspires you - has been my listening mode as of late. Consequently, I've been listening to a lot of trance, acoustic-guitar/piano music and noise/drone.
11/26/06
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implexgrace
jdg said: "its a good album tho.
i'd rather create one great thing, then a lot of OK things."
you have to create a lot of OK things before you can create a great thing. it is also best not to have the "masterpiece syndrome" as it were.
11/26/06
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Tripnik
The overthinking bit is well put. Why is it that we feel guilty about wanting to make or listen to trance or pop rock or whatever it might be? When someone releases a house track here, they either do it because they're new, or there's some sort of disclaimer. "My friend dared me to...I wanted to prove a point...I was bored so I slapped this together" etc etc.
This kind of incorporates a previous discussion started by j_chot. While I don't personally think it's problematic that people are releasing a lot of droney clicky shit (I love the hell out of ambient/slowly developing music) I also don't think it should be problematic to release a four to the floor trance banger. Admittedly, I would probably be among the assholes who would groan a little when I heard it. Perhaps those who are most critical of stuff like that are trying to deny their impulse to indulge in something equally if not more poptastic. And maybe that's my problem? I've tried to do some candy-pop stuff with 8bit bEtty, but maybe I need to confront that side of myself more overtly? Lookout BT!!!! You and I have the same initials, and my hair is prettier!
11/26/06
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nagrom
I may like trance, but BT sucks. Know that.
11/26/06
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Tripnik
I know I know. He has somehow managed to put together an impressive lineup for his binary universe dvd, though. I'm tempted to buy it. Scott Pagano is DISGUSTING!!! but on the other hand, BT is disgusting. Also, I think I've derailed my own blog. crap.
11/26/06
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papergoose
daniel johnston = music from the most pure place
If you haven't seen 'The Devil and Daniel Johnston' by all means, go and do it now. NOW.
Such an amazing movie. I related to it on SO many levels. Such an amazing character.
It's good grounding point for what this whole 'being a musician' thing really means...
11/26/06
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nagrom
Tripnik said: "I know I know. He has somehow managed to put together an impressive lineup for his binary universe dvd, though. I'm tempted to buy it. Scott Pagano is DISGUSTING!!! but on the other hand, BT is disgusting. Also, I think I've derailed my own blog. crap."
That album is odd... my dad bought it. It's ok.
11/27/06
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xik
nagrom said: "I may like trance, but BT sucks. Know that."
There was a time when he didn't, he r0kd at cyberfest live, many moons ago.
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