At 01:06 AM 10/6/2002, Tosh Cooey wrote:
Sure maybe it's flame bait, but at least it's honest flame bait.
Well, sincerity has never been much of test for truthfulness, has it?
I've had this in me for about two months now.
Do you ever wonder why a laptop show is boring? I know many of you do
because I've seen the posts to prove it.
I know why a laptop show is boring.
It's because the f**king music the artist is playing is boring.
That's right. It doesn't matter how intelligent you think you are or
how intelligent you think the artist is, or what they are trying to
"achieve" with their boringness, the fact is that their music sucks.
It's true, otherwise nobody would be complaining that it's boring.
It's like the story "The Emperor's New Clothes." All it takes is one
little girl to say "it's boring" and everyone knows the truth....
I think you make a valid point - at least form your perspective. The
philosophical difference between "valid" and "sound" might be helpful here.
Your interpretation is possible from your observations, but not necessarily
even probable. And although I realize you are trolling with this, it
obviously is something about which you feel strongly . The first thing I
would say in response is that your criticism seems too wide on several
fronts. From the bulk of your post, it looks like you are critiquing a
laptop performance instead of the music, but you go on to indict the music
itself. Personally, I would be quite amazed if you can tell the difference
between what is laptop and non-laptop unless you were watching the
performance. And since a laptop is only a type of computer, I don't think
you intend to lump all computer-made music into the category of 'music
which sucks' (yes, I realize that "laptop" has become a genre of sorts, but
if you think about it, how much of what you call electronic music COULDN'T
be performed on laptops? Not much).
Second, the notion that someone is complaining about the music
being proof that it's boring is awfully weak. People complain about most
anything. Maybe they think they are "extra special" because they are elite
enough to reject whatever people around them are enjoying. Let's reverse
the argument. I have read many posts from people who say they enjoy laptop
music AND performances; in fact, many more of them than ones of this
nature, therefore it's not boring and everyone knows the truth. It doesn't
matter how "extra intelligent" the complainer thinks he/she is by rejecting
the norm at these shows.
Of course, the real issue under all of this is the tension between
objectivity and subjectivity in aesthetic judgements. And although I am
somewhat facetiously taking what you probably meant to be half serious in
serious fashion, I would seriously point back to this link as a valid
discussion beginner (which I think I posted to IDM yesterday)
http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1368630
I like that you made the point that you made, but I think that in order to
be taken seriously it needs to be tempered. SOME laptop performances and
musics are indeed boring - especially if you judge them based on criteria
which applies to more 'traditional' forms of live entertainment. Do we
evaluate them in some teleological fashion (i.e., according to some special
"purpose" which applies to IDM related music)? Do we evaluate them based on
how they "move us" inwardly? If one can dance or chin stroke in some
particular ratio? Or if the music drones sufficiently for some trance-like
inducement? For me, music is about moods - it all changes according to
where I'm at when I listen. I saw Tejada do a laptop set which one might be
hard pressed to call "boring" (but I don't know - you might call it so). I
think it's important to see that music and performance has more than one
function and application, and that's not even taking into consideration the
artists' end of the spectrum. I'm not arguing that there are no possible
aesthetic judgments which aren't altogether subjective, I'm just saying
that the one which you made above is indeed. And, of course, having read
your posts for many years and knowing you're no dummy, I realize that was
intentional. I'm just in the middle of my Sunday morning caffeine influx
and this grabbed my eye, so instead of posting an URL to another ebay
auction, I did this. :-)
jeff
ps
I recall having to shift my perspective when I saw Kraftwerk the first time
decades ago.
I know it's not an apt analogy with where you're coming from, but it just
came to mind.
Many of the people who loved the records had a hard time with the shows. It
*was* quite
a radical shift for the time period. I didn't think it was boring then, either.
