Is experimental electronica in a rut?

[opus40]

I love Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Boards of Canada etc as much as the next guy, but is anybody else getting the feeling that the whole movement is running out of gas?
I mean think about it. Quaristice was good, but Just a Souvenir was pretty shite. Venetian Snares is getting on everyone's nerves, both AFX and BoC are basically retired (?). The Future Sound of London became Amorphous Androgynous and their new record sucks. I dunno what Amon Tobin's up to, but I didn't care for his recent collab.

Most new artists I encounter who do electronica seem to be uninspired, and do cheap knock-offs of the stuff we've already heard. Amateurs get caught up in arbitrary amounts of sample cut-ups and software effects and don't have anything different or unique to express.

Flying Lotus and Animal Collective are two current acts that still interest me a lot for the time being. I love Justice and Daft Punk, but I don't take em TOO seriously. Everything else just sounds too one-dimensional and limited. Electronica isn't the only genre I'm crazy about. I love retro pop, for example. But I'm disappointed because I think this kind of music and these artists showed a ton of promise, but didn't deliver as much as I had hoped.

I'm saying this like it's a fact, but it's still just my opinion. I'm just curious as to what other aspiring musicians who read this (primarily electronic, I'm assuming) have to say.

I'd really like to see an act that is as innovative as they are popular (like the late 60's Beatles) come in and get everyone excited about music again.

[FlightPlan]

Gotta agree, I find myself absolutely starving for new music that I actually like. Last dose was some Gaston Arevalo on the Thinner record label - kind of energized non-sleepy beats with nicely detailed textures and some light melodic splashes. So much of what I'm hearing lately is so completely hook-less, all background with no foreground areas of interest. Not that I'm looking for vocal pop or anything.

Help us out of our rut - suggest some new music that you're lovin' now...

p.s. one bit of good news - Casino versus Japan is releasing a CD soon - unreleased rarities - on Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0032X ... 760_snp_dp. I absolutely loved "Whole Numbers Play the Basics" (check it on Emusic http://www.emusic.com/album/Casino-Vers ... 13782.html)

[Tarekith]

Anything on Sending Orbs. Loving Secede's work.

www.sendingorbs.com

[eandersonase]

theres always highs and lows

when there is a low more people will see that and try to fill this gap and hopefully soon there will be a flood of new hot artists worthy of listening to. i say give it 6 months lol but also b/c of the economy a lot of labels have shut their door on new upcoming people but i know nothing and just felt like talking today hahaha

maybe try checking out new bands i recommend sound tribe sector 9 for the time being

[mode:masters]

Anything on Sending Orbs. Loving Secede's work.

http://www.sendingorbs.com

Ditto, plus Lusine is still rocking my world.

[q.musgrove]

it's a strange time for music I'm feeling lately too. I just keep trying to force my nose to the grind and not look up and around so much.

[SubFunk]

is that not our job? i mean to come up with stuff we actually really like.

[eandersonase]

Anything on Sending Orbs. Loving Secede's work.

http://www.sendingorbs.com

Ditto, plus Lusine is still rocking my world.

anything from ghostly is pretty good

have you heard any of mux mool's new stuff?

[silveriofunk]

have you heard

Ben Frost -By the Throat
Pantha Du Prince – Black Noise

both released within the last three months or so....

[smartass303]

i second pantha du prince, and dont forget the lovely dial label.
gaslampkiller is cool too, and then there is this london wonky phenomena which has also something in it. maybe sausage?

303

[ethios4]

The most innovative and experimental sounding music I heard last year was actually a dark psytrance album from Psykovsky - Da Budet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uK6lBsnUdIQ

I figure at some point AFX, Squarepusher, and the rest will have spent their all their money and will have to go back to pushing out material, just like how the 80's bands had a comeback in the 00's.

[ubermnd]

have you heard

Ben Frost -By the Throat
Pantha Du Prince – Black Noise

both released within the last three months or so....

wow, both brilliant. thanks for that.

i'm really getting into hudson mohawke right now. takes a few listens but really compelling stuff.

[anybody human]

Multimedia performance, that's where it's at. Not multimedia, the performance of multimedia, where the walls move and people move and sound and light reflect that. Check out Chunky Move's Mortal Engine, it was linked here recently. That's what's new, that's where music is going with technology and cross discipline collaboration.

I don't want to see a band or a DJ looking cool onstage, it's just tedious. There will always be a place for artists like that, Aphex, BOC, Radiohead etc. but the music has to be mind blowing. The audio visual thing suggests new ideas to musicians I feel and technology is going to start zooming with regards to making visual physical, there's a group at MIT that literally bends the walls in their performance, imagine what that could sound like.

[bosonHavoc]

Multimedia performance, that's where it's at. Not multimedia, the performance of multimedia, where the walls move and people move and sound and light reflect that. Check out Chunky Move's Mortal Engine, it was linked here recently. That's what's new, that's where music is going with technology and cross discipline collaboration.

I don't want to see a band or a DJ looking cool onstage, it's just tedious. There will always be a place for artists like that, Aphex, BOC, Radiohead etc. but the music has to be mind blowing. The audio visual thing suggests new ideas to musicians I feel and technology is going to start zooming with regards to making visual physical, there's a group at MIT that literally bends the walls in their performance, imagine what that could sound like.

hell ya.. that is the direction i want to go..
i'm dieing to control my video and lighting while i'm performing..
i just have to build my visuals rig.. hopefully by the end of the year... i'm always hopeful

and keeping up with all the music is hard.. i have a hard enough time trying to keep up with what is going on in Austin let alone the world lol.. i'm going to check out some of the bands in this thread though

lol their is still some music i have been meaning to check out since the 80's but haven't got around to it yet.. so much music so little time..

[Android Bishop]

all I gotta say is thank christ for this thread

Anything on Sending Orbs. Loving Secede's work.

http://www.sendingorbs.com

secede is probably the best thing I've come across in MONTHS