I read the following article with some interest during the week.
Sitting in a room with people and listening to an album in silence doesn't sound like a bad way to spend an evening. As long as you can discuss it all afterwards. i do note though that they talk generally about classic Rock type albums.
Now, i do not want to get into a discussion about whether or not Bowie is rock. rather one about the relative merits of the digital revolution.
Before i get there though, that guy towards the end of the article, who says he would like to save the song as a file and go in a take out all of the drum and guitar solos . . . that is not cool. Everyone is allowed to listen to what ever it is they like. You can not however go in and change the music. You just can't. By taking parts of it out you are taking away from the continuity of the song. To my mind that is about the dumbest thing you can do. Imagine taking the guitar solo out of Heartbreaker by Led Zeppelin
Does it make it a better song without a guitar solo?
no no no no no no!
What about taking the keyboard solos out of Jump by Van Halen?
(watch to see the blueprint for Hair Metal BTW)
I do get the point of the shuffle function on the ipod though. I really do. I am a very big fan of digital music. I understand the people who talk about the warmer sound of the vinyl. I had a copy of Paranoid by Black Sabbath that has all of the little noises you get from vinyl and believe when I say that Planet Caravan on that copy is still the best I have heard, and I have listened to that song a lot.
here is a digital version of it. Because well, why not
( a huge shout out to the person that posted that in vinyl online. Super phantasmically cool - apissy you rock)
This is however greatly outweighed by being able to listen to it on the tube, car, in the park , sitting in a meeting. . no not really in a meeting, well not often anyway ;-)The digital revolution has completely changed the music industry and the way we think about music. this is hardly a relevation. It is great though it really is. You say what ever you want about it, but if you are a proper music lover, then the accessibility and availability of song much music is amazing. The playlist has replaced the mixtape it really has.
Good riddance to the cassette while we are at it. I hated tapes. The ribbon tape getting twisted, getting damaged in the sun, the wet, the vaguely pleasant. Tapes stopping constantly, breaking. Shit when a tape broke I am sure an angel died. Was there ever a more heartbreaking event? That was it, you had lost that music from your life. When my first copy of LA Woman broke I actually shed a tear it hurt so much.
I am a little too young to remember 8 tracks. I have heard dreadful things about them though. Obviously they weren't great because they were replaced by the cassette.
CDs were definitely better. I understood a lot more about that format. Much more durable. But they still scratched and frankly weren't particularly portable. better definitely. But I used to have to travel with a bag of CDs.
I also got into the mini disc. That was great for travelling. Plus the ability to recreate the mix tape, which whilst it wasn't lost with the CD , it certainly because a lot harder with the need for re-writable discs and a cd burner.
Then digital. wow, it is so cool. I have an 80gb ipod. Which translates, with some tracks being well into the 2 hour bracket , dj sets mainly, at roughly 10,000 tracks. 10,000 different pieces of brilliance to brighten up my day , or suit what ever mood it is that I am in.
This is my mood at the moment.
You can now go on online and read reviews, make up your mind and get the music right then. That moment. This is where I think it gets a bit contentious. I like going to the record store. There is something very cool about it. Going through all of the different cds and records. But then what? buy it , go home, download it so i can listen to it outside of the house! Then I am left with the cd. Which will actually never ever be played again. Or extremely rarely. This is not a good use of the worlds resources. The loss though is the artwork and liner notes.
i have had more than one or two heated discussions with a couple of you about this. i love the artwork, and I find the notes interesting. But If I get a digital copy then i get the artwork, but rarely the notes. I still think it is worth it, but I do get why people miss them and would like to have them.
So, digital is best. vinyl possibly still sounds better, debatable , happy to debate. But nothing beats hearing a snippet of a song whilst out and about and then being able to go to the album and listen to it then and there.
more aphex twin for good measure
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrhZs6M5Z3w&feature=related
Just listened to the link Aphex twin Piano Tuners - wow that is actually quite a creepy video.
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