squarepusher So whats next?

the next step is to make music which cannot be classified as "electronic"

Styles/genres/movements will continue to happen as they have always done in electronic music, but it will only happen when u least expect it and i dont mean anything with name 'core or 'step after it. We all know that the tools availible have infinite possibilities so there is no reason why there wont be infinite original materials.

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

  hahathhat said:

VSnares is more what I meant by "flooring the accelerator" music, not as good in slo-mo but really gets my adrenaline going.

excellent way to put it

hmm i don't give a shit, i still enjoy his releases

Aphex and pusher will always be live performers to me.... they're studio shit automatically looses something .. a staticness trapped by production

If i want banging aphex i reach for his dj-sets. If i want hardcore pusher .. any live set from 1996->present will do me.

whats next?

More gigs!

  qnio said:

hmm i don't give a shit, i still enjoy his releases

so do i. it's just not for the same listening mood as drukqs... it's great, i love vsnares, detrimentalist was like this crazy anime video game circus with aaron funk as the ringleader. drukqs is just heavy though, it's richard's millenium falcon vs. vsnares parade float. the parade float is probably on fire

edit: shit, we're on the squarepusher forum, aren't we?? GO VENUS No. 17 GO!!! GOOD ALBUM sit

  hahathhat said:

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

I really mean, its like these albums are already at level 80 on wow, and the worst thing is we don't have not even level 70's around them, so I see myself playing the same two records when im the mood of complex-crazy-beats sort of sound. There are may be alternatives like VS with Detrimental as you mentioned which are "OK", but is just nothing compared to them.

I guess we have Wisp as the up and coming star for a safe legacy of Aphexy/SP quality music in the future in case "the masters" fail to deliver anymore.

  pissflaps said:

  hahathhat said:

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

 

I really mean, its like these albums are already at level 80 on wow, and the worst thing is we don't have not even level 70's around them, so I see myself playing the same two records when im the mood of complex-crazy-beats sort of sound. There are may be alternatives like VS with Detrimental as you mentioned which are "OK", but is just nothing compared to them.

 

I guess we have Wisp as the up and coming star for a safe legacy of Aphexy/SP quality music in the future in case "the masters" fail to deliver anymore.

No offence to wisp, but neither he or vsnares even come close.

  pissflaps said:

  hahathhat said:

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

 

I really mean, its like these albums are already at level 80 on wow, and the worst thing is we don't have not even level 70's around them, so I see myself playing the same two records when im the mood of complex-crazy-beats sort of sound. There are may be alternatives like VS with Detrimental as you mentioned which are "OK", but is just nothing compared to them.

 

I guess we have Wisp as the up and coming star for a safe legacy of Aphexy/SP quality music in the future in case "the masters" fail to deliver anymore.

clark has to be at least 60.

  pissflaps said:

  hahathhat said:

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

 

I really mean, its like these albums are already at level 80 on wow, and the worst thing is we don't have not even level 70's around them...

Maybe that's it. If electronic music hasn't caught up to those albums, why would they reveal their next moves to their competition before they have to (if you want to continue with the gaming metaphor). Eventually some "young Turks" will "bring it" and there won't be time for complacency

  David R James said:

  pissflaps said:

  hahathhat said:

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

 

I really mean, its like these albums are already at level 80 on wow, and the worst thing is we don't have not even level 70's around them, so I see myself playing the same two records when im the mood of complex-crazy-beats sort of sound. There are may be alternatives like VS with Detrimental as you mentioned which are "OK", but is just nothing compared to them.

 

I guess we have Wisp as the up and coming star for a safe legacy of Aphexy/SP quality music in the future in case "the masters" fail to deliver anymore.

 

No offence to wisp, but neither he or vsnares even come close.

Well I kind agree, but its better than nothing.

Clark is really talented, but he isn't into fast music, he isn't going to take that direction. His music is kind of "big beat" sort of stuff. And tbh im getting kinda bored at the compression thing, the last album was overkill. Flying Lotus "Los Angeles" sounded like a Clark record just because of the compresion usage, it doesn't mean it was really good, personally even better than latest Clark's effort.

  Betty said:

  pissflaps said:

  hahathhat said:

i think pissflaps meant we're at that point in the RPG where all monsters you can safely slay provide jack shit XP, thought you still need a significant amount to level...

 

I really mean, its like these albums are already at level 80 on wow, and the worst thing is we don't have not even level 70's around them...

Maybe that's it. If electronic music hasn't caught up to those albums, why would they reveal their next moves to their competition before they have to (if you want to continue with the gaming metaphor). Eventually some "young Turks" will "bring it" and there won't be time for complacency

Yeah thats it, but the thing is I dont see any "young Turks" trying to step on their game (to continue with the gaming metaphor, because its awesome), to go mental like they did. I in fact see them as that, as "well, we did these records, no one is going to get near that, so lets just relax and have some fun". So here you have Hello Everything and JAS, and 26 Mixes for Cash. And then some live gigs to keep getting money to live off it thanks to their status (specially mr Aphex). Again, not saying these are not good records, but they aren't anymore about getting mad at the studio, and that is the kind of music that I enjoyed the most. Its not as exciting as back in these days where there was some sort of competition about it. So here is when "the young Turks" need to appear, but again, besides Wisp and VS, I don't know anyone else with enough potential to pull off something that would make the big guys react about it. I mean, lets be honest, looking at todays youth, every single teenager is into rap music (crappy rnb, not even good rap), cheesy pop-rock-screamo shit, and not much really. The only electronic music references they may have is DJ tiesto and some random dubstep and dnb tracks in their iPods, and I even doubt that.

  pissflaps said:

Clark is really talented, but he isn't into fast music, he isn't going to take that direction. His music is kind of "big beat" sort of stuff. And tbh im getting kinda bored at the compression thing, the last album was overkill. Flying Lotus "Los Angeles" sounded like a Clark record just because of the compresion usage, it doesn't mean it was really good, personally even better than latest Clark's effort.

i never thought of it that way - clark being kinda big beat. big beat was the first electronic music that caught my ear. i was really excited when i first heard clark's stuff, and now that i think about it, that may be why. in terms of complexity, clark's music may not have the tempos, but there's insane layering. best metaphor i can think of is that aphex is high voltage, while clark is more high current. more directly, aphex is coherently programming 1/128 grid drums while clark would overdub four 1/32 drum patterns. in both cases, the magic is that it comes out coherently. maybe i'm getting this all wrong, i dunno. i can say for sure that repeat listens to clark have been rewarding; i keep finding things i missed. when i first heard clark's tunes, all that STUFF didn't water down the wine, i heard coherent catchy melodies, and the more i listened to it, the more detail i noticed. maybe clark is like a clever pen doodle that's six different things depending on how you look at/focus on it. drukqs doesn't really attempt to be friendly, because this would limit its scope... ok, this post is making less and less sense as i go on. i'm tempted to abort it. i'll just stop typing instead.

also, your last sentence no sense; please irradiate.

  hahathhat said:

  pissflaps said:

Clark is really talented, but he isn't into fast music, he isn't going to take that direction. His music is kind of "big beat" sort of stuff. And tbh im getting kinda bored at the compression thing, the last album was overkill. Flying Lotus "Los Angeles" sounded like a Clark record just because of the compresion usage, it doesn't mean it was really good, personally even better than latest Clark's effort.

 

i never thought of it that way - clark being kinda big beat. big beat was the first electronic music that caught my ear. i was really excited when i first heard clark's stuff, and now that i think about it, that may be why. in terms of complexity, clark's music may not have the tempos, but there's insane layering. best metaphor i can think of is that aphex is high voltage, while clark is more high current. more directly, aphex is coherently programming 1/128 grid drums while clark would overdub four 1/32 drum patterns. in both cases, the magic is that it comes out coherently. maybe i'm getting this all wrong, i dunno. i can say for sure that repeat listens to clark have been rewarding; i keep finding things i missed. when i first heard clark's tunes, all that STUFF didn't water down the wine, i heard coherent catchy melodies, and the more i listened to it, the more detail i noticed. maybe clark is like a clever pen doodle that's six different things depending on how you look at/focus on it. drukqs doesn't really attempt to be friendly, because this would limit its scope... ok, this post is making less and less sense as i go on. i'm tempted to abort it. i'll just stop typing instead.

 

also, your last sentence no sense; please irradiate.

I see your point, im just saying Clark's music is not pushing things in the directions I like the most (music that feels like it moves fast). I don't know how to explain it, but I think it makes sense.

The last sentence, I tried to say that Los Angeles album from Flying Lotus has that compression sound all over and sounds almost like a Clark album, but with that Im not saying it is a bad album.

In any case, the point of my post was trying to express how no one is covering fast and complex electronic music like aphex and pusher did in these years, since they think these albums are not going to be matched by anyone, and whoever tries at it fails miserably to deliver decent results.

I think we will just have to hope that rich and tom get their love back for fast moving/changing/intricate detailed brain music somewhen in the future, it could happen, i dont think this is the end just yet. Atleast i hope not :undecided:

  pissflaps said:

In any case, the point of my post was trying to express how no one is covering fast and complex electronic music like aphex and pusher did in these years, since they think these albums are not going to be matched by anyone, and whoever tries at it fails miserably to deliver decent results.

you ever think aphex and pusher might have the next level squirrled away on their hard drives??

i used to get very annoyed at people that copied ideas i had; it's like someone cheating off your test when you studied hard. however, it occurred to me that the copycats put themselves into musical purgatory in exchange. they can only go as far as whatever they're copying... and even this takes a while. after a few rounds of having your style flatteringly imitated, you start doing bangers just to make the cunts sweat. this time, it takes an extra six months for copycats to get duplicates out, but in those six months you sell loads because you're the only game in town. meanwhile, during those six months, you are already hard at work on the next round... so just as all your imitators catch up to your last release, you're picking out album art for something six months ahead.

just because aphex and pusher haven't released any of this stuff in a while doesn't mean they necessarily stopped writing it... or that what they've released is all they ever wrote. yes, perhaps they're too old now, but these guys are so intense i could see them sitting on a masterpiece for a decade just to maximize tension/reputation/profits. which is cool for them i guess, sad for fans....

perhaps i'm just attempting to fence in reality with logic. i want more music like this too...

I dont think they have "the next level" on their hard drives. That is nice to think, but no I don't think so. But well, these people have 24 hours of free time to make music, and shitloads of entertaining, expensive gear, so I don't know.

And squarepusher has definitely taken a more friendly approach on music due to a possible now normal lifestyle, Richs a dad... I don't really see them going back into it. About copycats... its an interesting discussion. Im sure most of people (including big names) started learning their instruments/gear by triyng to make music in a similar fashion to one's favourite music, and then evolve from there taking different routes. The thing is, you simply don't see anything out there (at least that I know) that could be considered, not even similar. I mean that stuff is so devoid (specially super-digital pusher's era), its so down right mental, that it goes beyond the concept of copycats or having a musical "style". To learn how to operate sound devices to do that sort of shit would take a person years of fucking around, and the odds that someone has the talent to learn and then translate that knowledge into sound, are just really low (again, consider in that era they already where full time musicians). The whole thing is just very complex.

  Quote

So whats next?

A few live dates then a 3 year hiatus then maybe a jazz EP. It's over for this guy.

The future of this style of music lies with Clark now.

  Quote

A few live dates then a 3 year hiatus then maybe a jazz EP. It's over for this guy.

The future of this style of music lies with Clark now.

Clark fits in "this music style" as electronic music but he doesn't cover the spectrum afx and pusher are able to. And we need to rely on more than one artist anyway, we are fucked otherwise.

  Dr Clitterhaus said:

A few live dates then a 3 year hiatus then maybe a jazz EP. It's over for this guy.

The future of this style of music lies with Clark now.

Are you mental? Like Corkey mental?

Clearly the track ktpa1 & ktpa2 ARE the next level, your ear's just can't keep up with the 1601/2027 tempo.

Oh and one of the things I find fascinating about afx/pusher comparisons is the background there. They both kind of come to a crossroads from different directions in that era. Rich from a vacuum and a lot of self-taught dabbling, and tom from a more traditional and focused training as a bassist. I suspect a lot of the similarities in their accomplishments with music was the result of being in the same place at the same time, sharing many of the same influences even, and the differences being their musical backgrounds and the way they grew. I don't look at that era of music as a pinnacle moment when both roads merged into one as much as an interesting quirk as two roads intersected. I don't think there is another level, music doesn't grow like a building - layer upon layer - it grows like a tree, branch by branch. Emulating that kind of underlying energy is darn well impossible, and those albums capture an important moment in electronic music. Much like Detroit techno was way back when. Any one could emulate that music from a technical standpoint these days, but the underlying energy and motivation behind that music is quite another thing and has long since disbursed itself in other areas. Wow what a random purge of thoughts.

  Drahken said:

Oh and one of the things I find fascinating about afx/pusher comparisons is the background there. They both kind of come to a crossroads from different directions in that era. Rich from a vacuum and a lot of self-taught dabbling, and tom from a more traditional and focused training as a bassist. I suspect a lot of the similarities in their accomplishments with music was the result of being in the same place at the same time, sharing many of the same influences even, and the differences being their musical backgrounds and the way they grew. I don't look at that era of music as a pinnacle moment when both roads merged into one as much as an interesting quirk as two roads intersected. I don't think there is another level, music doesn't grow like a building - layer upon layer - it grows like a tree, branch by branch. Emulating that kind of underlying energy is darn well impossible, and those albums capture an important moment in electronic music. Much like Detroit techno was way back when. Any one could emulate that music from a technical standpoint these days, but the underlying energy and motivation behind that music is quite another thing and has long since disbursed itself in other areas. Wow what a random purge of thoughts.

yes, you can't go home again.

rdj does seem to be much into nostalgia, though...

i have a feeling pissflaps would maintain no one has matched pusher/afx "from a technical standpoint", either.

but maybe you meant detroid music.

  Dirty Protest said:

  Dr Clitterhaus said:

A few live dates then a 3 year hiatus then maybe a jazz EP. It's over for this guy.

The future of this style of music lies with Clark now.

 

Are you mental? Like Corkey mental?

Corkey mental? Is this a reference Anthony Hopkins ventrilequest dummy in the film "Magic"?

An E too far. Life Goes On Corky mental.