>From DufDuf: "ie. minimal is a technique like dub is a technique"
Disagree. Dub is a genre, Minimal is a genre. Rhythm & Sound does not sound like Magda. Yes these things exist along a continuum of sound, but are certainly at fairly distinct ends, with rather pronounced sound differences, regardless of how they are mixed together by a dj. Sure after a certain point we are sometimes splitting hairs, and of course everything bleeds into different areas, but that's part of the fun. People can get a little crazy with categorization, but it's a very useful tool for talking about certain types of music. I can say "minimal" and people know what I'm talking about for the most part. It might be hard to classify a single track, but I'm quite comfortable using a label to make it easy to discuss a type of sound as a whole. "I mean seriously the repetitive complaints I keep hearing about laptop dj's or copy cat stylists .. and references to the same single dubstep producer is wearing me thin." My delete key works just fine on messages I don't want to read. I just don't read posts I'm not interested in. I appreciate your opinions and did find them interesting, but writing in to everyone to say you are tired of hearing a discussion about something while participating in that same discussion is weak sauce. "I've been beat up around here before . for saying this, but the music is moving. It's doing new things, in a million different ways." I'd say there's plenty new in the performance side of things, but things aren't moving all that fast on the music-writing side. The technical ability to spit out a track on ableton in a few hours doesn't mean it's going to be any good. "I honestly can't tell any more the difference between house, techno, techhouse, detriot, minimal or any other genre you might want to mention." Splitting hairs again. I don't think it matters at all how you classify one piece of music, but people like to generalize in order to make things easier for large groups of music. There's just too much music out there. You have to know what area of the dartboard to shoot for in order to narrow it down to find stuff you like. That, or find people whose taste you trust in order to suggest things. I've found that people on this list for example, generally like the same kinds of things I like, so I don't care if they call it "X" genre, it gets the benefit of the doubt. And for the most part when people suggest music on here, I don't really hear any discussion at all about genres. It's 'check out this track' or 'check out this mix.' and I think that's fine enough for most. "The current era of music can mean everyone is a producer in their bedroom. So what I think we are hearing is people using the same sort of production techniques across similar tempo's and styles of music." It's always been that way, with whatever the current medium/techniques are. Tape edits to laptops, most people putting out tracks were/are always using the same sorts of tools at the same time. "I just think we might get more life out of electronic music if we start to look at some of the processes going on as the use of techniques as opposed to genreification followed by quick dismissal." I've got no problem genre-fying something that I think is mostly terrible (or excellent). It's my opinion. Classifying a group of music that sounds similar is perfectly valid if you are trying to express your opinion. No, I haven't listened to every 2-step record out there, but I can comfortably say that I'm not that interested in that music as a whole. No, I haven't listened to every minimal record out there, but I've heard enough (and certainly bought a few), to know it's not something I'm interested in either. "Currently I am enjoying the sounds classified as minimal because they provide a group of tracks that enable me to play sets that contain a lot of spatial texture." Rock on. "The use of reverbs, delays, stripped out melody modes and monotonic rhythms enable out board sample layering and the use of off beats on the other deck to construct the type of sets I have wanted too for years." Well I guess that is the good thing about most minimal records, you can put 4 of them on at the same time and not really notice it, it does give you a lot of room. I'll give you that it can certainly make for a lot of fun mixer work. "Lets face it every Dj wants to be producer with out having to do the hard work in the studio." No. And from FBK: "What would make me happy is a bit of funk coming back into the sound...or at least the acknowledgement of the groove. The electronic holy grail is really whatever you want-for me it's to have the music I love not all sound like it's coming out of the same three boxes from four people." Very well put. -Arturo