Electronic music is an interesting beast. The genre has existed almost as a cottage industry since it's inception mostly comprised of odd mad-scientists making music with computers (sequencers, pc's et al.), each looking to produce the perfect combination of bleeps and blurps. The people behind the beats have both benefited and suffered from the anonymity provided to them by eschewing major record labels. Artists are free to change identities and genres over night, sample anything imaginable and twist knobs on small boxes to produce seismographic beats to provide the latest symphony for everything from your latest car commercial to tonight’s drug-fueled rampage. Hundreds of producers toil away their hours crafting pieces that will have an extremely short life span....some of rotation of the biggest electronica averages 1-2 yr life span to the normal listener. Comparing that lifespan with the amount of rotations given to other genres, even hip-hop, which would arguably be the older brother to electronica; the life span to date weighs in at about 10% of the competition at best. The pioneers of this genre have, for the most part, gone one to enjoy little fame and riches, but that probably wasn't why they got in the game in the first place.
Each genre has their icons; from Norman Cook (i.e.Fat Boy Slim) to Goldie to the Chemical Brothers and a sea of others electronica is no different. All of which who have done their time and enjoyed minimal to major success over the evolution of the music. For every icon in the electronic genre there are a handful of geniuses and large amount of hacks. (Probably also contributing to the music’s short lifespan.) Paul Sanders is one of those geniuses. Normally known as the Wax Doctor, this man, when most people were filing through Sub Pop catalogs looking for the next big grungy thing in 1994, was producing some of the most impressive electronica of the time. Even compared to similar styled music ten years its junior, it stands up as brilliance in form, production, and feeling.
The Wax Doctor is a heavy influence on the jazzy/intelligent drum and bass tip. His was a unique blend of interesting samples and sounds with beats and grooves that had teeth. Many have tried to imitate his works; few have done so very successfully. Even during the peak of his career to most he existed largely shrouded in the buzz residing at that time around the genre and his works buried in mixes at clubs and raves of the UK countryside. To the industry insiders, he was a 23 year old kid who was producing some of the biggest beats on the biggest labels...you can fin his full discography here.
The Wax Doctor's work now trades mostly on eBay these days. He seems to have vanished from electronica and the web took off about 3 years too late to preserve his existence. He had a CD called "Selected Works 94-96" that was pressed by a British record company (R&S) but has been out of print since 96, and R&S records, to my knowledge, no longer exists. (They have a website, but it hasn’t had an update in 8 years.) The CD contains most of his more memorable tracks. (I have a scant few other on records so if you're really into these tracks, drop me an email.) Ok...music below, standard drill, it won't stay up forever so grab it now, hope you enjoy
1. Atmospheric Funk
2. All I Need
3. The Step
4. The Spectrum
5. Finer Things
6. Kid Caprice (Remix)
7. Heat
8. Offshore Drift
Colin--nice piece. One complaint: I'm sad to see you use the word "electronica". I try to avoid that word like I try to avoid calling my girlfriends bitches (damn hard too, cuz you know how it is, brotha!). I truly loathe that word because it was created by some ignorant rock music critic who just never understood electronic music. Not that they do now either. Furthermore, at the time we had the word "techno" (now of course this means something else, but at the time in the mid-90s it was somewhat all-encompassing) and "electronic music" itself works just fine.
Another thing. Part of the ephemerality of the music itself is inherent and unique to the genre. I hypothesize that partly because it lacks vocals, it can be difficult to catch and remember specific tunes. Electronic is inherently corporal rather than cerebral. So your body may remember that snare, but your memory may not! Plus, electronic music genres quickly become redundant (after awhile you can only do so many things with particular sounds until it starts to sound derivative) and that's when you see sub-genres (which basically describe work from, say, 2 people).
Also, I've witnessed a resurgence in "retro" techno in the mash-up genre, like when I saw Too Many Djs. Princess Superstar does it too. I mean, it's pretty close to impossible to miss that Josh Wink hook from Higher State of Consciousness no matter who you are. ARguably, the zenith of the acid track.
Everyone needs an 808, right?
:)
Posted by: kc at September 30, 2004 02:01 AMuh, duh. i meant 303....
ouch...you're right...busted and guilty as charged..."electronic music" would be more appropriate (that's what I get for writing on the BART in the morning)....
As for the presistance of electronic music, I was sort of looking at it like this. I've been digging and finding a lot of old drum and bass lately (b/c that's like my thing, n'stuff)...anyway...I just started to realize that sopme of these tracks from the earlier years in the genre maybe had 1000 pressings on vinyl and in some cases never saw the light of day on CD. So the chance that *anyone* would be able to find then in 20 or so years would be pretty difficult.
To your other point, I think the people that know the music, will remember it better than some other music for some of the very reasons you've postulated. However, I just sort of think it's a same that alot of people may never get to hear some of the stuff I've been getting into lately. (not because my music choices are better than everyone else, but because there are geniuses in every genre that could bring those people the same joy as I've recently had finding all this old dnb)....then again...that may just be my thing and other people get off doing completely different things...
if i hadda getta beat box, I'd rock the 404 (dancehall flavas)
p.s. nice use of "ephemerality"
Posted by: colin at September 30, 2004 09:40 AM2 tings ta KC--
1st: You can't use the word ephermerality unless you're describing the morals of women.
2nd: We all know that the sense which most powerful triggers memory is smell. So it stands to reason that it's hard to remember specific electronic music tracks because they all smell like cold milk.
jeffro - i'm so old-skool i make me beats on a 101
Posted by: jeffro at September 30, 2004 06:39 PMcolin--w/r/t peeps not hearing the music (because of limited pressing, etc), hence the creation of the dj! that's yer job, brotha!! bring us da phat beatz (i gotz bof of yer mixes in rotation on my musicmatch jukebox). unh.
you guys are the DISSEMINATORS (there's a movie idea fer ya--how 'bout the evil pop-music industry taking over all the good music and then the DISSEMINATOR comes to town slingin' rekkids and savin' the day. There could even be a vinyl show-down!)
Posted by: kc at October 1, 2004 03:00 AMI would prefer to be reffered to as an INSEMINATOR...but I digress, thanks for the kind words
becareful...Jeffro's a pop music junkie...you might hurt his fillins
my beats smell like 2 week old cream...after a coco crispies treatment...eww
Posted by: colin at October 1, 2004 07:11 AMKC's movie may be more of a documentary than a Michael Bay flick. In the 70s, when pop music was becoming a permanent force and a major industry worthy of corporate control the Disseminators did come to town in the form of pirate radio stations. A decade or two later the industry was more than powerful enough to pressure the FCC to crack down on these stations who were supplanted by corps like ClearChannel who now hold an obviously monopolistic position. Luckily the pirate stations' ghost has been resurrected during the last decade by the fabulous internet -- The only populist mass-media we've got.
Napster was obviously the bane of the 5 major record labels but lifeblood for the indie rock band kicking ass in Tucumcari, OK but who's van couldn't putter across the county-line.
jeffro -- Hit Me Baby One More Time
ps BTW, colin, nice essay
Posted by: jeffro at October 1, 2004 09:31 PM