NIME Week 1: Uses of Music
LISTENING: Masonna 'Frequency L.S.D.'
I can split my own daily listening habits into two categories:
The first is music which I use to augment my daily activities, typically while commuting and working. The second is music I listen to as an end in itself, while doing little or nothing else. There is some overlap between the two, but not much.
If I’m listening to music while commuting or working, it has to be something which, first and foremost, has a strong sense of rhythm which I can nod my head to without having to think very hard. It can be something which evokes pretty much any mood or emotion, thought I find things that somehow evoke more complex emotions (i.e. simultaneous gloom + physical energy, violence + calm, chaos + focus) the most interesting. It has to be something with great attention paid to sonics and atmosphere, whether it be using primarily electronic instruments (i.e. electronica, synthpop, italo disco), primarily acoustic instruments (i.e. exotica, library music), and/or elaborate or adventurous manipulation of non electronic sounds and instruments (i.e. krautrock, underground disco, obscure psych records, 60s girl groups, Joe Meek, ABBA). I have little or no interest in lyrical content nor allegiance to traditional verse-chorus-verse song structure, and extended instrumentals and 15+ minute long tracks are welcomed. Since I typically try not to pay attention to lyrics I’m very open to vocals in languages I can’t comprehend and vocals distorted or vocoded to the point of unintelligibility. In fact, I often prefer them. I want something that propels me forward without requiring my attention (hence singer-songwriter music, folk music, or anything with a heavy focus or lyrical content over sonics are out), but is interesting enough to listen to as an end in itself should it find itself in the foreground of my thoughts (so a lot of techno, house, and trance are out since they seem, to me, to necessitate large social gatherings and/or drug use in order to be enjoyed properly). Typically I find music that fits into my parameters also very good for social gatherings in which my iPod or laptop finds its way to the stereo.
So that’s what I listen to as far as ‘background music’. But sometimes, usually 2 or 3 times a week when I’m at home at night am not going out, I want to just sit there, doing little or nothing else, and listen to the most bizarre, difficult, and/or punishing music I can find. I have found this, by and large, in noise music. Noise music by definition is based around harsh, distortion-heavy sound with very minimal, if any, use of rhythm or melody. Some is improvised, some is very carefully composed, but the objective is always unrelenting sonic assault over traditional musicality. Many of the best works are released vinyl-only in small editions, and the act of looking through my shelving unit for the LP I want, placing it on the turntable, and sitting still and listening for 30+ minutes takes on sort of a ritualistic feeling. The hidden structure of the music and creative voice of the artist reveals itself upon repeated listenings in a way which makes a good noise record a richer and more enjoyable experience upon each listen.
