When I mention that I don't really like techno/electronica, people always assume I'm just being a music snob. I tried to explain to my roommate exactly what my problem was with dance music and she seemed weirded out, so I'm beginning to wonder if my take is a unique one and I feel the need to clear things up.
It's not a question of snobbery; I AM a music snob, but not that much of one. I'm not about to claim it isn't music just because its entire evolution has taken place in the last few decades. As with art, music doesn't have to go back centuries in order to be good. The reason there are so many masterpieces that date back centuries is because time weeds out the shit. The things that get remembered over time are the ones worth remembering. Techno hasn't had the chance to endure that test, so who's to say what will last?
What I do have to respect is the use of new technology to do things that have never been done before. Each generation is able to do something musically that wasn't possible even a few years before, and I happen to think that it is their obligation to test the waters and see what they can do. Simon and Garfunkel got their break when a bored DJ remixed the all-acoustic 'The Sound of Silence' and added a bass line.
It does kind of unnerve me in the same way that human cloning does: it's the musical equivalent of something from nothing. Music that exists only in hard copy seems weird to me because I've always felt that recordings are just a semi-unnatural way of preserving something that would otherwise have evaporated instantly. Music isn't something that 'is', it's something that 'happens'. It can be preserved like a photograph, but that's all it is. When you take a picture at your birthday party and look back on it, it doesn't mean that as long as you're staring at it, it's still your birthday. You had a birthday, it happened, and now it's over. But since you took a photo, you can remember it a little longer. In light of that, music that exists only in a studio is a little hard to conceive of, but the concept fascinates me.
So what is my problem with it? Techno makes me hate my messy apartment. It's that simple. I have this theory that in order to enjoy it, you have to believe at that moment that you are devastatingly hip. To me, it conjures up that Neil Stephenson quote (which I'm paraphrasing here): "Until a man is twenty-five he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world." It always sounds so pristine and streamlined and conjures up Matrix-esque images of sleek, black clad figures with high cheekbones, of driving too fast all night and watching everything blur till it doesn't seem real anymore and you feel more alive than you ever thought possible. And then it dawns on me that I'm shaped less like a stylized silhouette and more like a hobbit. I can't dance and I don't own a car. (Ferris Bueller flashback:; "...of course, he was the walrus. I could be the walrus; I'd still have to bum rides off people") I don't usually dwell on this. I have more than come to terms with the fact that I will never be 5'8'' and that no one with a rack the size of mine will ever look sleek. Techno is supposed to make you feel sexy, but 9 times out of 10, techno makes me feel like a big fuckin' dork. And let's face it: life is too short to partake of anything that makes you feel dorky.
Now, all of this said, I'm actually starting to like electronic music. It seems to be directly proportional to how I feel about my life. It's not the kind of music to listen to when you've had a shitty day and you want empathy. (At least half of the time when I listen to Ani Difranco or Tom Waits, it's for the sheer schadenfreude of it: see, they had a shittier day/break-up/job than I do!) When I lived in the old apartment, I hated the way it looked but didn't have the money to do anything about it. I could ignore it most of the time, but anytime someone put on electronica, my first thought was always, "I fuckin' HATE that sofa!" Seriously. Now that I have an awesome sofa, it doesn't bother me anymore.
So there you have it. Maybe I should have stuck to being thought of as a music snob.
It's not a question of snobbery; I AM a music snob, but not that much of one. I'm not about to claim it isn't music just because its entire evolution has taken place in the last few decades. As with art, music doesn't have to go back centuries in order to be good. The reason there are so many masterpieces that date back centuries is because time weeds out the shit. The things that get remembered over time are the ones worth remembering. Techno hasn't had the chance to endure that test, so who's to say what will last?
What I do have to respect is the use of new technology to do things that have never been done before. Each generation is able to do something musically that wasn't possible even a few years before, and I happen to think that it is their obligation to test the waters and see what they can do. Simon and Garfunkel got their break when a bored DJ remixed the all-acoustic 'The Sound of Silence' and added a bass line.
It does kind of unnerve me in the same way that human cloning does: it's the musical equivalent of something from nothing. Music that exists only in hard copy seems weird to me because I've always felt that recordings are just a semi-unnatural way of preserving something that would otherwise have evaporated instantly. Music isn't something that 'is', it's something that 'happens'. It can be preserved like a photograph, but that's all it is. When you take a picture at your birthday party and look back on it, it doesn't mean that as long as you're staring at it, it's still your birthday. You had a birthday, it happened, and now it's over. But since you took a photo, you can remember it a little longer. In light of that, music that exists only in a studio is a little hard to conceive of, but the concept fascinates me.
So what is my problem with it? Techno makes me hate my messy apartment. It's that simple. I have this theory that in order to enjoy it, you have to believe at that moment that you are devastatingly hip. To me, it conjures up that Neil Stephenson quote (which I'm paraphrasing here): "Until a man is twenty-five he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world." It always sounds so pristine and streamlined and conjures up Matrix-esque images of sleek, black clad figures with high cheekbones, of driving too fast all night and watching everything blur till it doesn't seem real anymore and you feel more alive than you ever thought possible. And then it dawns on me that I'm shaped less like a stylized silhouette and more like a hobbit. I can't dance and I don't own a car. (Ferris Bueller flashback:; "...of course, he was the walrus. I could be the walrus; I'd still have to bum rides off people") I don't usually dwell on this. I have more than come to terms with the fact that I will never be 5'8'' and that no one with a rack the size of mine will ever look sleek. Techno is supposed to make you feel sexy, but 9 times out of 10, techno makes me feel like a big fuckin' dork. And let's face it: life is too short to partake of anything that makes you feel dorky.
Now, all of this said, I'm actually starting to like electronic music. It seems to be directly proportional to how I feel about my life. It's not the kind of music to listen to when you've had a shitty day and you want empathy. (At least half of the time when I listen to Ani Difranco or Tom Waits, it's for the sheer schadenfreude of it: see, they had a shittier day/break-up/job than I do!) When I lived in the old apartment, I hated the way it looked but didn't have the money to do anything about it. I could ignore it most of the time, but anytime someone put on electronica, my first thought was always, "I fuckin' HATE that sofa!" Seriously. Now that I have an awesome sofa, it doesn't bother me anymore.
So there you have it. Maybe I should have stuck to being thought of as a music snob.
VIEW 4 of 4 COMMENTS
lynnailove:
I'm a dork and proud of it. Crazy music theories! But it is nice to hear a very interesting view. O_o!
Crazy music theories! But it is nice to hear a very interesting view. O_o!
cilantro:
Hey stranger! We absolutely have to get together before saturday afternoon- I have something for you!