Ableton Forum

Whenever I see BT's name mentioned, there is usually some negative criticism involved.

To be honest, I used to appreciate the dudes work a lot more in the past, but I'm keen to know what causes the "i hate plugging BT" type comments around here?

sweetjesus wrote:Whenever I see BT's name mentioned, there is usually some negative criticism involved.

To be honest, I used to appreciate the dudes work a lot more in the past, but I'm keen to know what causes the "i hate plugging BT" type comments around here?

I think the general feeling of "anti-BT" isn't just found here, but even on his own forum at btmusic.com.

I believe it all started when he BT released Movement in Still Life. People wanted more songs like Flaming June, so half the album was progressive but the other half (U.S. release) was hip-hop and breaks, although the UK release had more trance tunes. Ok, so most people dealt with it but hoped his next album would be more like Flaming June. Then out of the blue BT wrote and produced the song "Pop" for N'Sync. He then featured Jaycey Chasez from N'Sync on his Emotional Technology album on one or two songs. BT was also slated to write and produce a Britney Spears song but backed out. I think all of this was enough to get most dedicated fans worked up. When Emotional Technology was released a lot of his fans were disappointed at the re-hash of 50/50 Progressive and Hip-Hop, and the addition of a few slower rock'n'roll tracks with BT singing.

I think the bottom line is the fans that "stick" the most are the ones who like Flaming June, Dreaming, Running Down the Way Up, Communicate, and some of his slower tunes like Satellite. But BT tends to cross genres a lot which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but he's kind of scattered all over the place but went for the total mainstream. Pop, hip-hop, rock, trance, where as prior to MISL he was more established and part of the click with Sasha, Digweed, and really supported that scene and culture.

I have the utmost respect for BT no matter what his direction is. BT is a very talented and classically trained musician who is making a good living doing what he loves. His best release to date is the score to the film Monster. It is amazing. Childhood Montage is a great track.

sweetjesus wrote:Whenever I see BT's name mentioned, there is usually some negative criticism involved.

To be honest, I used to appreciate the dudes work a lot more in the past, but I'm keen to know what causes the "i hate plugging BT" type comments around here?

not to offend anybody, and to offer a response to your thread..
there's probably a little jelousy present.
BT is an innovator. His music is unique and he usually beats people to the punch (pun intended). so it's understandable people are going to be envious when they hear fresh BT tracks. i know i did and still do. but i convert that energy into creative fuel. let's face it, his stuff is very well thought out and meticulously crafted.
we can only guess what he does to create his music. when we do begin to understand "how he did that" we most often feel overwhelmed or frustrated. but that's ok. some possible insight on this: http://www.ableton.com/forum/viewtopic. ... 4846#84846

oof, i was just about ready to make an analogy to when charlie parker first came on the scene.
i won't go there but you get the idea. etc etc.

best,
dp

To be fair, BT's music is really, really good. BUt seriously, look at his last CD cover and tell me what you see wrong with this picture. HE's uvber-talented without a doubt, yet he started catering to that holywood mentality and I think that's swhat pisses people off. No one can deny he's musically very talented, but here comes a time when you have to sat enough is enough, and he never did.

sweetjesus wrote: I'm keen to know what causes the "i hate plugging BT" type comments around here?

I dunno? I don't particularly like his music, I don't think he's a genius, and he did release an album with one of the most retarded asinine titles, "Emotional Technology", makes me ill to write it actually.

keep in mind that this is my first and probably last BT post.

I just want people to know one really simple easy to understand idea, my heros are not necessarily your heros, and my music taste is different than yours. Don't expect people to like the kind of music you do, and you'll be much happier, and have better taste in music, because you won't be judging whether or not a group is good or not by their popularity, but by whether or not you personally are moved by it.

so my question to you would be why does it bother you? Do you expect that everybody should appreciate what you see in music? I'm a big fan of Godflesh, but I really don't expect you to like them.

I think the fact that BT seems to be the computer geek electronic pop musician version of what Eddie Van Halen was to guitarists, tends to set people off a bit, and I don't blame them. I see nothing in his music, I find it empty, so it's hard to take when people paint him out to be a genius, that's all.

He seems like a nice guy in interviews though.

i just don't like his hair style.

Brian is extremely musically and technically talented, but doesnt live up to his potential in a lot of peoples opinions.

That, and the blatant grab for commercial success and stardom is what puts people off. Compare what hes done in the past couple of years since his early stuff, and well ... there really is no comparison

Personally have met him briefly and liked him tho

Plus his hair rockzORrzzs. imo

When i saw bt live a year ago i saw a man who was doing what he loves, and having an incredible amount of fun doing it. To me, that counts for far more than the fact that his music is technically brilliant or that he helped pioneer a huge area of music or that i'm not really into a lot of his stuff.

If he only used his powers for good instead of evil.

I hate them because they charge too much for phone calls and directory enquiries

ok- the dude is very nice guy. yes talented but the problem is how he talks about himself.

the thing that pissed me off the most was reading interviews with him talking about N'sync tracks being the best newest music out there, britney spears being one of the most professional talented young person out there, that he was showing Peter Gabriel how to use Logic and what an amazing score he composed for the Fast and Furious.

i am all for being able to talk confidently about oneself, he took it to another level. NOONe was on the level of BT according to BT, noone was chopping up guitars for breakdowns like he was, noone was recording real professional orchestral percussionists beating broken cars for film scores.

so he piqued my interest. i listened. wow, i was unimpressed. all the talk about his process and how the electronic community needed to share secrets. did Hendrix share??????? BT's sharing was more like himm telling us how many notes he spliced and quantized during one segment.

it sounded like formulaic dance music. i shalll say it was cooler than some dance music, slightly more musical still nothing spectacular. his sample disc is used more than most sample discs out there for commercials and advertising. good for him. nice that he named the loops after the artists he was trying to make them sound like.....shadow, aphex......

bottom line,..i dont care if someone is successful or even the rockstar variety,...it was the way he talked about HIS contribution to music, what he was doing to change the scene and how different he was. how much he just pushed dance music to the edge.

btw i wrote this using 32 out of the 56 keys on my computer, used spell check on every word and none of the posts on this board even come close to what i am doing. i used 21 periods, 14 commas, NO semi colons and still managed to write original string parts on top of it.

forge wrote:I hate them because they charge too much for phone calls and directory enquiries

Don't think the 'Septics' will understand that one.

Cryocon wrote:

forge wrote:I hate them because they charge too much for phone calls and directory enquiries

Don't think the 'Septics' will understand that one.

oh no you didn't!!!

'Septics' or 'Seppos' went out with the end of the Vietnam War.
ya damn POM!!!

Emotional Technology sounds so static and un-emotional. Its a weird little album which lacks depth in any sense of the word.

Its a popcorn album, designed to lure the longtime BT fans into buying it.

In a word: BT sold out.

i left out my favorite thing!

the thing that even pissed off friends of mine that were fans of BT's was when he insinuated that he was the first person to do audio stutter thing.

and no...i am not some nameless guy who hides behind the interweb, i would actually like to have this conversation in a constructive manner with the man himself.