With the addition of the laptop in a live performance gig, it is very
easy for a musician to really just stick with that. Software such as
MAX/MSP, Ableton Live, Reaktor, Pro-Tools...there's enough to occupy
one's time and energy strictly from the keyboard. My problem is when
a musician hits "Play" on his pro-tools sequence and does some
postmodern italo-disco dance for pretty much him/her self with
absolutely no consideration for the audience. What's the point of
performing live if you're not going to work it a little? And don't
get me wrong, laptoppers work it hardcore. take, kid606, BMG, Bill
Van Loo. These guys beat out some phat beats and crazy soundscapes
right behind their laptops. The key here is live music, folks, and
when a musician is smiling and getting into it and obviously tweaking
enough virtual knobs to get a crowd moving-either physically or
mentally-they are doing a fine job.
The last few shows at the Detroit Art Space have both impressed and
disappointed me in this sense. I'm not going to mention Telefon Tel
Aviv because they use guitars and their live presence is already
memorable without ever hearing a sound. I'm focusing more on
Perspects, LegoWeldt (not sure if spelling is correct) and Pole.
Perspects: resorted to snooty dancing and hitting play on his
machine. he used a controller but that was only slightly cool. There
was no improvisation. every track was already queued up perfectly, no
mixing between tracks, no eq-ing...i was basically listening to him
play cd's.
LegoWeldt: Awesome show. Played familiar electro tracks like you've
never heard before. The music was so good i didn't even notice if he
was using a laptop or tables. What I mean by this is that complex
mixing was apparent and the crowd was really into it. It's so easy to
fall into that routine of repetitive analog synth patches and
traditional 808 drum loops. i was glad i could hear something new.
Pole: I felt like I was waiting in line for something to happen. i
had to chain smoke to keep things interesting. slow and dubby tracks
with no feeling. Pole even shook his head at given intervals. I
didn't see that Vladislav Delay show that people have been talking
about but I imagine I felt very similar to the fellow who made that
first critical post.
IDM both intrigues and repulses me almost simultaneously. I really
think that innovative mixing is the key to any good electronic music
piece-even the experimental type.
::carlos
