It's been close to 5 months since I last posted, and I must confess I had very little intention of doing so again. Whilst claiming I had stopped doing so out of concern for the new copyright laws which could restrict the blogging of mp3's, this was coincidental to the more fundamental feeling that I didn't feel I had much motivation left to post what I was posting. My sudden decision to write today was caused by hearing a song I really wanted everyone to hear. Thus came the realisation that I had been trying to post things that I thought most people would like rather than those I genuinely thought were good, or that at least had some relevance to an overall point about music. From this point on I will be trying to write mindful of the mantra that you should always write for yourself, and while this may result in my occasionally sounding intolerably smug and tragically keen to seem arty, it should at least mean I have the drive to write more regularly about more important things, not necessarily restricted to a particular genre or trend or even music in general.
Boring and self-absorbed introductions aside, time for the music itself. When I started writing we were all riding on the crest of the wave of dubstep which was sweeping the UK at the time. It was new and interesting but, even better, was still evolving. The two principle directions in which the genre has gone since then have sadly not maintained my enthusiasm. Now, don't get me wrong, there is still a lot of clever and innovative stuff being produced, but it is becoming ever more difficult to find in the inconceivably huge cesspit that the scene as a whole has become. And I don't use the word cesspit without consideration; any inspection of the comments on youtube dubstep videos reveals a fanbase with an inexplicable penchant for shit, blood and incest in equal measure. As is so typical of the British attitude towards music, we have seized on one successful element, the 'dirty' wobble aspect of the genre, and gorged ourselves on it until our livers have finally exploded leaving some hideous dubstep pate. And many of those that haven't joined the descent into gratuitous filth have gone down the popstep line, which I find far less irritating, but just as pointless and inconsequential as most other stuff permeating the charts. Attempting to market dubstep to this wider audience has also led to the rise of people who know nothing about music developing a misconceived genre allegiance, shouting 'dubstep!' upon hearing any song at all with a bassline. This causes an awful lot of unnecessary aggravation. I must stress that my faith in dubstep has not completely died, and I will make sure that I post some soon to prove it, but overall I have been much in need of a comparitively minimalistic and clean antidote: nothing could epitomise this more than the productions of Nicolas Jaar.
Jaar is a musical prodigy in a way I don't think I've ever seen before except in classical performances. Born in Chile, he was inspired by the unique creations of fellow countryman Ricardo Villalobos in his early teens, and has since the age of 15 been producing his own brand of electronic music entirely unfettered by the restrictions of genre pigeon holing. Currently being released on the refreshingly laid back New York label Wolf & Lamb his productions have a sense of purity in their groove that is a perfect antidote to the aforementioned filth. Lie back and dissolve:
Nicolas Jaar - Time For Us
Nicolas Jaar - Marks
No Regular Play - Owe Me (Nicolas Jaar Remix)
