Techno/House Bobbins 2010

Please no one use the word "overproduced" in relation to dance music ever again, okthxbye.

The short track the Lex posted (just using this as an example, not an ad hom) sounds overproduced to me; tons of attention paid to minute EQ and compression details in place of an actually engaging composition, or interesting ideas. Ditto the Djebali tune you posted, it sounds nice but does literally nothing but that for 9 minutes (again not meant as a personal attack). Same with Lee Foss - U Got Me. Same with the overhyped snooze fest that is the John Roberts album. There's a transparency, or sterility to those kind of productions that strikes me as too complacent, too orthodox, and devoid of emotion. Just too clean and polite. I feel like there is a lot of stuff that's been coming out that places itself into opposition against those kind of productions. Take Mike Dehnhart's recent record on Echochord, the mix and sound design is top notch, yet the hi-hats crunch and the synths sound like they're coated in motor oil. Or D'Marc Cantu's Black Tears on Creme Jak, the loops sound mismatched and rub against each other in unpredictable directions. Both club worthy tunes that sound amazing on a big system but full of imperfections and blemishes. I know this isn't anything new, listen to most productions pre-the DAW revolution and you'll hear the same thing. I've got nothing against computer music however and wish to retract my stupid Ableton diss.

Apologies if you were just going for the quick put down though and don't want to engage in discussion.

It's a fair complaint but I don't really agree with it (disclaimer, not heard any of the records you're citing as alternatives, willing to believe they're excellent). I don't think there's anything wrong with just wanting to bathe in tune for a few minutes so I'm being a bit hippy and not viewing it as an either/or thing.

Also these threads have a history of people turning personal opinions about production techniques into tedious rigid ideological crusdades. The phrase "mindless overproduced Ableton house" was kind of Pipecocky and made my knee jerk snarkily.

also as much as lex's reaction was ott, it wasn't the beginning of the "negativity" you complain about...

If Vahid is actually offended or bothered by any poster going "cunt off you boring unpleasant man" then everything I believed about this world was wrong.

the negativity of this thread is v offputting, esp from idiots who like terrible music i hate.

poster 1: this music sucks
poster 2: you suck

or, put another way

poster 1: fuck this lame track
poster 2: no, fuck you

it doesn't bother me so much as it

1) makes me laugh, imagining the lex getting all huffy and pissed because i pooped on his track of the week, then blasting his favorite taylor swift diss song and ripping up his pillows in his bedroom while he crafts his retort
2) reminds me how lame and childish the uk poptimist crew can get when you really push them on something

i don't know, i just fell into the same trap: letting your disagreement over some music turn into ad hominem attacks

and i think it's fine to insult music, it's not like sounds have feelings, i don't know why or how the lex takes it so personally when i say fuck r&b samples, fuck sample-based house in general right now

"the negativity of this thread is v offputting, esp from idiots who like terrible music i hate."

come on that HAS to be the new board description!

Agreed.

Also, from my standpoint, so much of the much 'proper' (may the gods strike down anyone who takes it upon him/herself to say what is and isn't proper techno) or "utopian" that has been so beloved, a la sandwell district et al, is precisely what I find to be too complacent, too orthodox, and devoid of emotion (And believe you me, my ire has been well rankled by DJ's playing sets full of glossy, boring "abelton techno." But I'm just as annoyed by reactionism that privileges underproduced techno that often ends up sounding, well, underproduced).

Also. Anyone else enjoying the work of Lone? Having been pointed to him by that recent RA feature by M Matos and by the favourable reviews of Once in A While, I now feel rather taken with his productions. I guess there's not an immense lot behind them, but very pleasing nonetheless.

I think this is kind of nice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAKq5wlMhGs

lone is what, boards of canada + kyle hall? in other words, DOOOOOOPE.

really enjoying kassem mosse and the rest of the artists from the commix remix pack these days.

also marcel dettmann and shed's tracks from the modeselektion comp

I absolutely love that Storm Queen thing.

Ex Nihilo Nihil Fit by Chasing Voices

thank you

That Chymera track is just pure loveliness. I've been all for the general direction of whatever Chymera I've heard, but I've always felt it needed a bit softening at the edges, and this delivers just that.

And that Storm Queen track IS kinda nice, kinda really nice.

saw alex barck (jazzanova) last night and wow was he awesome. not really from a technical stand point but more from the way he played these wtf-is-that unknown/unreleased tracks. one standout track is the one with a "hard knock life" sample (annie soundtrack). any idea what that could be?

love that storm queen track

really feelin' this track from earlier this year, esp. when the distorted voices come in about halfway thru

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCJX4_JbYAE

this koze/isolee thing on beats in space is awesome

anyone diggin this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pUhQLRe6w4

nice acid-y cosmin trg remix here. He also did good EP earlier in the year, Liebe Suende

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEgg-p5oTzk

This is too much fun/too mad to pass up...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EkGZK2g2qo

Along with MMM and Workshop 11 its prob my fave techno bits from '10

http://www.smileyhut.com/smileys/headbang.gifInner City - Good Life (Unreleased Schermate Tool) - 2010 - Unknownhttp://www.smileyhut.com/smileys/headbang.gif

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNFqlWBzmdc

Picked up that Bakey Ustl 10" today (along with Hype Williams' Find Out What Happens.. LP). The Bakey Ustl is frickin' awesome!!

i really really want mp3s of that bakey ustl ;_;

fkn vinyl-only releases

vinyl only has hit me quite a bit this year, ended up buying quite a few records even though i don't have decks or a record player, then had to get them digitized elsewhere. That said, totally understand the financial reasoning behind vinyl only releases (though I have basically no desire to get into that particular debate)

Haven't been able to afford much vinyl this year, but I did buy that Bakey Ustl the first time I heard it. Very fine.

I'm kind of surprised how little Glass Eights talk there is on ILM. In any case, I'm 1.2 listens into it and it's reeeeeal purdy.

'glass eights' is very nice! john roberts is playing here with omar-s and d'julz next weekend, i'm excited to hear him live.

A-side tracks of this: http://www.residentadvisor.net/review-view.aspx?id=8436

if the ep had only been the a-side, might have snuck into my top 10 for 2010

I hope it's alright to revive a past year's Techno Bobbins, as I wasn't sure where else to post this, but... I picked up The Traveller by Shed a few weeks ago, and it has grown to become something I listen to almost every day. It's really sublime, really creative without being ostentatious about it, it sounds great, it displays restraint and lays ideas bare without being "minimal," it feels gently enigmatic like lots of my favorite techno does.

Side question: how much digging into past year's techno/house do you guys tend to do? The scenes move fast, and given that I didn't buy much new music at all (relatively speaking) for the past few years, I'm playing catchup on '09 and '10 (and discovering lots!).

lots!!!

i actually spend much more time digging than checking new stuff.

i feel like when an album sounds "current" and it's from this year big fucking deal

but when i dig up something from 06 or 08 that sounds fresher than it did at the time, it's like a buried treasure rush

now that i think about that, maybe it's because i tend to hear one track, learn about a new label, and then sort of relentlessly track down their whole back catalogue if i like it enough

last year i found out about artless / mojuba

I have so, so far to go in exploring techno, but the ravenously-explore-label approach seems pretty sound... I suppose the labels I'm really starting to dig into at this point are Rush Hour, Delsin (mainly because of that Morphosis record from this year), and Ostgut Ton...

now that i think about that, maybe it's because i tend to hear one track, learn about a new label, and then sort of relentlessly track down their whole back catalogue if i like it enough

otm, I do this with artists or related artists

Honestly, fuck staying current. Not that I don't follow new stuff with very much enjoyment, to have the question "did it come out in the last year" define your listening tastes is myopic, counterproductive, and just silly. (This is why, for instance, I would welcome '10 or even '09 stuff in the 2011 thread. Better it be spoken there than have nowhere to go).

the nuum only moves forward iirc

sometimes doesn't bother to even look backward, or sideways