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Re: [microsound] clicks & cuts, lots of gratuitous namechecking



> > oh, & a general word of advice to those inclined to buy pop music when
> > it 'looks interesting': avoid broadcast.
> now that is interesting because i was thinking about pop music the other day
> and i almost bought a broadcast album (having not actually heard them)... so
> are they a bit stinky? Ive been pretty underwhelmed with everything on Warp
> for the past couple of years... (although i am still a sucka for Aphex)

not a microsound-friendly thread, but...

the thing with broadcast is that i don't have anything against catchy
music & i can even enjoy some of their tunes.  but in the end, they are
derivative, bland & absolutely tame.  given the label lineage, i was
expecting something _at least_ as exploratory as stereolab, who aren't
even that crazy to begin with.  

broadcast's vocalist is in fact probably one of their weakest points;
not so much because her voice is naturally boring (you can't help that,
can you; most people's voice is naturally 'boring') but because she does
nothing with it & just lets go to every annoying tendancy; some of these
songs rub me the wrong way all right, mostly because of the way they are
sung; it sounds like she wants to be both laetitia sadier & beth gibbons
at once, while boasting a limited vocal range that doesn't let her be
either.  as for the instrumentation, it's potent at best but usually
tame, easy, & disposable.

as geeks-with-female-vocalist bands go, i find myself much more
satisfied with  say pram, who put their energies into putting together
weird sounds without really caring that the overall song structure is
not spotless.  their vocalist (rosie), for all the 'flaws' in her
delivery, is also much more interesting; 'omnichord' (from _north pole
radio station_) is one lovely song.  don't be fooled by the outrageous
use of times new roman on all their covers.  these guys are worth a listen.

& obviously, you can always go the whole nine yards & get the original
pop/electronic/psychedelic crossover that broadcast promised to be,
white noise's seminal _an electric storm_ (1968!) which is always a recommendation.

sorry for the off-topic post.  actually, let's get back on topic: what's
a good pop/microsound crossover nowadays?  _that's_ what i'm looking for
to begin with.

~ david