Saturday, July 12, 2014

Currently Listening To - July 2014

My tastes continue to head more into "Chill" and "Indie Electronic" territory. Here's what I'm currently listening to.

Indie Electronic
GGOOLLDD
Singles: "Gold", "Bling Ring"
Heard on what is becoming quite an awesome radio channel 88.9. Apparently GGOOLLDD is a Milwaukee group formed recently that has an indie electronic vibe with a great female vocal lead. Haven't found much more information on them, but will try and make it to a Milwaukee show in August. They definitely have potential. Makes me think of a female-led STRFKR.

Sylvan Esso
Album: Sylvan Esso
Singles: "Coffee", "Play it Right" 
Found in related artists when looking up GGOOLLDD. Apparently is also NPR-endorsed, which I try to ignore as they usually support avant-garde, academic 'artists.' But, in any case, is an interesting album. The sound editor really nailed it. The combo of an airy female voice over deconstructed elektro bass lines actually works well here.


Chill
Darius
EP: Romance
Singles: "Espoir", "S/ash" 
This is on the Chill side. Some good electronic chill music but has a new take on the chill genre. Heard on SiriusXM Chill channel. 


Currently Listening To - June 2014

Back on the blog. Now that I've started residency I find the only hobby I really have time for is finding and listening to music. Here's what I've been listening to in June.

Have all but abandoned trance music and now listening mainly to chill and indie.

Bombay Bicycle Club
Album: So Long, See You Tomorrow
Songs: "Overdone", "Luna", "Feel"
 Heard Overdone on my new favorite local radio station 88.9. After listening to the album almost 20 times, I can say it is a very solid album. Each song has its own merits and almost half could stand alone as their own single. Look forward to what else this group does.

Cashmere Cat
Single: "Mirror Maru"
 Good example of the chill music I've been looking for. It feels like it's building throughout the entire song, although I can tell how some people may think it is leading to a point that it never reaches. Blissful when listening to this in the summer with windows down.

Mr. Fijiwiji
Single: Sentient
I recently was on a roadtrip and listened to the XM Chill channel for about an 8-hr stretch. About 3 or so times during the trip I heard some amazing music that would make me check out my console to see what was playing. Each time it was Fijiwiji. Another example of a young kid with great talent. I like how the micro-sampling I used to like from Trance has been converted to the Chill side. Check out his soundcloud.

Tycho
Album: Dive
Heard about from my senior resident. An example of super chill music. I actually used it for awhile to calm my dog down while we were away. While it may be on the other spectrum of chill than Fijiwiji, it isn't just nap music. The transitions are seamless and themes are ethereal.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Theory 1, Progression of music.

Something I noticed from being a fan of classic rock 30 years behind the genre was how popular music changed from generation to generation. When my parents were young they listened to this rock which my grandparents rejected. My generation made rap and current "pop" music popular and the majority of our parents dislike this music. I don't think it's that people's tastes in music doesn't change and that's why the older generation dislikes the music. I think it's more that the younger generation strives to popularize something that their parents would not tolerate to break free. It may also be from a generalized trend towards liberalism in our culture.

But I think it's interesting that each generation for the most part rejects music of the upcoming generation. It makes me think of what my generation will reject and what will become the popular music for my future children. My initial belief is that it would be mostly electronic in nature and either very harsh or very ethereal. At least in the US electronica remains foreign to most people. But while I thought of this theory years ago I'm noticing that maybe music progression shifts aren't that sudden. Currently electronica has slowly invaded popular music. It started with a little synthetic beat in rap and r&b. Now the most popular songs of the "popular" genre are full of electronica. Not just the beats but now they take over the main melody and more sophisticated aspects from trance, house, and dance are infiltrating songs heard on popular radio.

Where I thought my generation would start to turn against this type of music, they are embracing it. So maybe the general trend is still towards electronica but our generation will not reject it.
A little background on me.

From a musician standpoint, I consider myself foremost a pianist. I also enjoy playing viola and mandolin. I picked up drums about a month ago.

From a social standpoint, I'm a medical student recently married.

From a listener standpoint, I started my musical journey with classical music and classic rock. I grew up in a house where music was constantly playing throughout the house. As my father chose the music, classic rock started to grow on me and I took it as a point of pride knowing a lot about the music that his generation thinks has disappeared. I listened to classical as music that I had a more emotional component to and fueled my interest in actually playing the music. I was into classic and classical through childhood until middle of college. At that point I suddenly found myself sick of classic rock. I had heard the same group of songs over and over and wanted something completely different. At that point I started listening to electronica. Currently I am still in a electronic phase as well as indie rock.

(1) Intro

So I decided to start a blog more for self-edification in my journey through music than anything else. I plan on having two lines of posts. One that delves into the characteristics, theories, and progression of music. And the other to track music I find as I try to define and evolve my tastes in music.

I have always been interested in music's effect from a musician's, a listener's, and a scientist's perspectives. My musical tastes have varied between times of little change and repetition to times of wild swings and a constant thirst for new material.