Interesting points have been raised here. Actually I think cover artwork
is the easiest way to remind a track for a vinyl collector.
When i raised the 1000+ records in my collection, i still could (by
seeing a record artwork or listening to it) remember by heart the name
of EPs, label cat, and most of the time the titles of the highlight
tracks. This was in the early 2000s. For example, at that time the funny
thing i could do is associate this kindof info with almost the full
tracklisting of a Jeff Mills DJ set heard at the radio or in a party.
Now i have raised the 2000+ records, and as labels are opening and
closing so fast, most of these new records i get are from different
labels (which was not the case some years ago, when there were fewer and
bigger labels representing at least 3/4 of the records i bought). At
that point the memory trick is just impossible anymor,e though i still
know at least the artist name and the label of what i have.
Sorry for these long words, but I think my personnal situation shows
something more general : electronic music has completely bursted in term
of quantity of good labels and producers. And digital download + file
sharing makes you able to have 2000+ records in one month, while it took
me 10 years to buy them on vinyl. Which leads to the fact that now
people own many tracks, and got them so fast that they hardly remember
them. Then it is impossible to remind everyhting very clearly.
Thats why associating a picture with sounds eases the memory thing, and
that the picture/record browsing can make you think to a track you would
not have thought to.
The track selection process has evolved. Digital DJs have so many files
that they can forget to play the 'good' record, and at the same time
constrain themselves to the files they know they will work and they can
access easily. The 'old school' DJs has to make two selections : first,
what he brings in his flycase, second, what he plays in a party among
this first selection. To me, above the Djing technique, this selection
constraint was the most important thing to appreciate a DJ in a party,
and digital DJing has removed that.
Cover browsing would partly solve that problem IMO.
--
Benoît.
[EMAIL PROTECTED] a écrit :
Phew! (good job I'm off on holiday for 3 weeks on Friday as that's 313ed me
out).
