The popularity of distressing, disintegrating sound.

[TomChimera]

Also interesting to consider what might be a parallel in other creative concerns like film, photography or painting. What is the equivelent of lo-fi 8-bit glitching in the world of fiction (writing)?

I thought about this since I read it, very interesting.

Here's a parallel of glitching in... I don't really know what art this is

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxdlYFCp5Ic

[awjoe]

Martin, if Stars Of The Lid ever tour again, you have to see them, I’m not going to even begin to describe how incredible they are live, if you think the "music" is good and you haven’t even seen them yet
In terms of live shows, they aren’t on the cutting edge, they’ve gone way beyond it and fallen right over.

Att'n: Arpangel

Tony, I found a number of Stars of the Lid CDs at my local stockist's. Any particular recommendations?

[awjoe]

Oh, and the duo Boards Of Canada are probably the best introduction to the whole genre in the musical sense

I got Geogaddi on a whim. It's really good. It gives me hope when I stumble into something I've never heard before and it's really good. Their stuff makes me feel they were no strangers to Portishead. On the other hand, they sound really unique, but that's not very deep of me because I've heard so little stuff like that.

[Arpangel]

Oh, and the duo Boards Of Canada are probably the best introduction to the whole genre in the musical sense

I got Geogaddi on a whim. It's really good. It gives me hope when I stumble into something I've never heard before and it's really good. Their stuff makes me feel they were no strangers to Portishead. On the other hand, they sound really unique, but that's not very deep of me because I've heard so little stuff like that.

You must get Tomorrows Harvest, very powerful.

[Arpangel]

IMO in music "LoFi" only really becomes a thing once "HiFi" is easily available to anyone who wants it.

Right up until the mid 90s almost everything I did could be termed "LoFi" because that was simply all the technology I could afford a the time for creating, playing and recording music could achieve. On the few occasions that we went into a "proper" recording studio, financial constraints meant that either it was only a slight step up in quality or we simply couldn't afford the time to really do the songs(s) recorded justice. A lot of the time a "good" take was one in which all of the band got all the way through the song without producing any glaring errors. And then of course the results were released to the pubic on compact cassette or budget vinyl pressings.

I think it is unsurprising that once "perfect" sound reproduction is the norm, that people look to add some "dirt" back into the proceedings. However it is very much select dirt and while it might not sound like it to most listeners you can bet that the artist producing it has carefully tweaked the dirt to exactly their requirements. It's very rarely uncontrollable dirt produced because the instruments or recording process are incapable of anything else.

Interesting, I’m still using my Tascam cassette Portastudio, and if you use it "normally" it’s quite hi-fi, to make it sound really dirty you have to abuse it in certain ways. use bad tape, don’t clean the heads, mess about with the noise reduction, turn the speeds right down, overload it.
There is no such thing as a broken piece of equipment for me, I have various tape machines, that have quite major faults, but they are then like pedals, or effects units, they do something unique, it’s uncontrollable sometimes, but you either want it, or not.

[tea for two]

Forms of Paper by Steve Roden released 2011.
Termed lowercase music as it isn't meant to draw attention to itself, it is from a place of humbleness.
Made from the sounds of paper being handled
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oO8HrG2h9pA

[awjoe]

You must get Tomorrows Harvest, very powerful.

Okeydoke. What about a Stars of the Lid recommendation?

[Arpangel]

You must get Tomorrows Harvest, very powerful.

Okeydoke. What about a Stars of the Lid recommendation?

If you asked me, I couldn’t name one of their albums, listening to their music at home without the visuals is like listening to a recording of Niagara Falls, you really need the live experience or it doesn’t work, it’s a whole package, inseparable. Going to one of their concerts is the eighth wonder of the world, they make any other bands live show look like home fairy lights.

[awjoe]

I shall resort, therefore, to the apparent randomness of chance.

[Martin Walker]

I shall resort, therefore, to the apparent randomness of chance.

This is apparently the double album that got them many of their rave reviews:

https://starsofthelid.bandcamp.com/albu ... he-decline

ADDENDUM: I started playing the above again when I posted, thought it was quite good, but then (exactly the same as last time I listened) I found myself still listening and totally sucked in ages later.

Martin

[awjoe]

Good work, Martin - thanks.

[Folderol]

Thanks for the link Martin. never heard of these people before - lead a sheltered life
Listening now (currently track 5)

[tea for two]

I don't want to be a Debbie Downer as the World is large enough for any type of music.
There's music to float someone's boat.
I dig the 1960s Electronica of Iannis Xenakis such as Bohor, whereas some others would say its just noise.

Stars of the Lid yeah I used to listen to this ten years earlier. Similar stuff as well.
A female chum said why do you listen to this wrist slitting music.
I replied it's not wrist slitting music, you don't get it.
Looking back, I get what she was saying.
(Music I made at that time ended up sounding "wrist slitting" I've still got them on an external drive. Nowadays my music isn't as this thank heavens).

StoL is woe be me look how broken in misery I am music.
Why would I want to self flaggelate anymore by listening to them or even attending their concerts.

SotL is reminiscent of a genre of books which is about misery termed misery lit, they are well sellers.

SotL reminds me of Mr Bean's Holiday, Willem Defoe's character's oh so worthy filum lol
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uNg13Ju5HN8

Then Mr Bean interjects life into it
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BgjJ00HhyCQ

It's a genre of music.
There's similar musician such as Floating Points.
Floating Points released an album this year with London Sympony Orchestra and Pharoah Sanders.
Whereas Floating Points and LSO were "wrist slitting", Pharoah Saxophone was soaring spiritual uplifting.
(Who am I to say anything with my own cr*ppy sh*t music, when a musician as legendary profound as Pharoah Sanders wanted to make music with Floating Points).

If we listen to the classic Black musicians singing Blues, it's amazing, it doesn't drag us down, it's uplifting even when singing about sorrows.

If we think of slaves in american plantations they didn't sing misery songs, they sang songs to give themselves hope, courage, uplift themselves.

Even a song as Suicide is Painless by Johnny Mandel 14 when he wrote it, Hurt as sung by Johnny Cash, is somehow life affriming. Songs Ian Curtis wrote painful as they are, are not woe be me.

Van Gogh my favourite painter.
Even amongst his depth of suffering Van Gogh's paintings are so full of life, profound, uplifting.

[Drew Stephenson]

I've been listening to the SotL album Martin linked to this morning and I find it quite uplifting actually.

[awjoe]

Yeah, that one's really good. I tend to favor 'percussive' over 'drifty' (in my own music, my guitar playing's getting more percussive all the time, without even trying). But I found that Stars of the Lid recording to be like a drug, creating a state of mind rather than in-your-face elements of lyric, solos, percussiveness. If I focussed on it, it was meditative. If I did other work with it as background, it was supportive.

Plus, it just s-o-u-n-d-s good.

[Martin Walker]

I've been listening to the SotL album Martin linked to this morning and I find it quite uplifting actually.

My sentiments entirely - it never once occurred to me to consider it 'wrist-slitting' music

Martin

[Arpangel]

I've been listening to the SotL album Martin linked to this morning and I find it quite uplifting actually.

My sentiments entirely - it never once occurred to me to consider it 'wrist-slitting' music

Martin

I’ve never listened to a SOTL album, not interested, wrist slitting? what?
Their live concerts are life changing, and make me want to stay alive forever, just being in the experience, it’s as far from suicidal, nihilistic, and doom laden confirmation as I can possibly imagine, in any way, whatsoever, exactly the opposite.
There were peooe freaking out in the aisles, people got up, and moved around, the whole place seemed like it was changing shape, the walls were disappearing, turning into the sky, seats were moving, vibrating, I started to kiss my partner, I almost made love to her on the spot, others saw us and started kissing.
This sounds like a description of a 60’s "happening" and it was, of sorts, that was the impression, and affect, it had on us at the time, this is not "just music" it’s a whole magical experience, literally, it was life affirming.

[awjoe]

Amazon promise me that 'Stars of the Lid and Their Refinement of the Decline' arrives on my doorstep this Thursday. My lips can't wait!

[Arpangel]

Amazon promise me that 'Stars of the Lid and Their Refinement of the Decline' arrives on my doorstep this Thursday. My lips can't wait!

My decline is extremely refined, I’ve no need for any help with that.



Check-out William Basinski The Disintegration Tapes, he’s an interesting guy, in every way, his lifestyle, and how he got started, he’s also very concerned with presentation, which I like, it ads a whole new dimension, to alternative music, not just a nerdy guy in a room in pub, if you get what I mean, there’s more to things than just the music.

[Airfix]

Artists are a reflection of time - even if they do not intend to be.
We are part of 'now' . Now is flux - it is reflected.
We might have said -- break it down -- rip it up --
Reality is rough - Francis Bacon paintings are priceless now -- Truth is ugly too