Hey, that doesn’t sound ‘electronic’!

[Streed_303]

There are a few new releases going up on the shelves here in the RPM section. Before the short review, just a little bit on WHAT is electronic music. Basically, electronic music is music made with electronic instruments (as opposed to purely acoustic instruments). So, what is an electronic instrument? Basically, anything that creates sound electronically. The most recognizable would be synthesizers. Whatever make or model, these devicea allow for the oscillation and modification of audio waves triggered via a piano style keyboard to be played back through an electronic current. Of course, this is pretty vague there are many other devices out there that do this. You could say that tape recorders and turntables playback and modify sound waves. And yes, you are right! There are some purists out there who believe that the simple act of playing back a recording of any musical performace makes it electronic…

So, electronic is not really a style. It is more of a ‘process’. How something is created as opposed to what is created. For example, not all dance music is electronic. There are many tracks out there that feature acoustic instruments and live musicians. But, there are many tracks where the composer decides to labor over the track by recording short sequences; manipulating audio snippets; creating synthesized sounds; or whatever they see fit.

In previous posts, you have seen that ‘electronic’ music encompasses many different styles. There are musicians creating world, rock, pop, dance, and even classical.

With this preface, it makes it easier to explain the latest release by Chris Coco and Sacha Puttnam – Remasterpiece. On the jacket, it states: “Remasterpiece brings the past and the future together in a beautiful mix of classical and ambient music. A continuous blend of some of the greatest xlassical pieces ever, a turntable symphony that forms a stunning sonic landscape.” So, yes, on a casual listen; this sounds like a typical compilation of classical music. It features some well known tracks by Gustav Mahler, Carl Orff, Claude Debussey, etc… But don’t expect any remixes of ‘O Fortuna’ or any Saturday Night Fiedler’ here (or even ‘Switched on Bach for that matter). It really is beautiful stuff. And like the liner notes claim, its ambient. For a better description, go here.

http://www.remasterpiece.com

And for the more usual sounding things…

Check out ‘Hello Stranger’ by Kaos. It has the punk disco-ness like Tussle, but with a little more vocal. Not bad really, favorite tracks include ‘Town & Countryman’ and ‘Juices’.

There is the soundtrack to the recent anime movie ‘Appleseed’ The film hit theatres back in January. I am sure the DVD will be out soon. This compilation features tracks by some heavy hitters including the Boom Boom Satellites, Paul Oakenfold, Carl Craig, and Ryuichi Sakamoto. Interesting paralell here: I heard a recent interview with the people behing the movie ‘The Incredibles’. Basically it was mentioned that animation is not a genre of film (like a western, drama, musical, etc). It is a technique. So, yes, you can have an animated western, animated musical (Heavy Metal!!!), heck even an animated documentary.

And lastly, for the downtempo set, there is the full length ‘The Cosmic Game’ by Thievery Corporation. Guest musicians include David Byrne, Perry Farrel, and The Flaming lips. As stated, it is “A kaleidoscopic swirl of spychedelica, dub, indian, rock, brazilian, and other worldly influences” – couldn’t say it better myself.

Anyway, check out these links for more information… And keep it tuned to WCNI, New London!

http://www.remasterpiece.com
http://www.k7.com
http://www.thieverycorporation.com
http://www.a-seed.jp/index2.html
http://www.appleseedthemovie.com

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