My thoughts and other useful information
I’ve been listening to so much good stuff this month, that I don’t have time to review it all. Here’s a quick list. I’ll expand on some of these later.
Being inspired by the exploits of Madlib and MF DOOM, I’m realizing more and more how very possible it is for me to start making my own music. What particularly appeals to me about the above artists is how low-profile their production methods are considering how good their music is. I just can’t shake this Quasimoto-esque fantasy of a dwelling in a bomb shelter/basement/studio all day long, doing nothing but laying down tracks. What’s more, Madlib (and probably most prominent rap artists as well) figured out entirely by experimentation how to produce music using little and relatively cheap equipment. From what I’ve gathered, he basically just uses a sampler and turntables. No computers, no Logic Studio. All he needs is a colossal record library and DJ skills. I’m not sure, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Madlib literally has the “beat tapes.”
I recently read an interview with Fat Jon (one of my favorite beat-makers) that reminded me what electronica should be, and why I love it so much.
School’s over. Yay. Time to move on to better things. I don’t have too much to say for now. I think, instead trying to plan out everything I’m going to do in great detail, I’ll just take things a day at a time and try to get as much done as I can. If I can look back at each day and say I got something done, then that’s enough. I will make some kind of log, though (offline) about all the music I’ve listened to, movies I watched, etc., so I can have some kind of reference for later in case I ever wonder, “what did I do that summer?”
This is the first in a series of posts about what music I’ve been listening to constantly over the last few weeks, sort of a less exhaustive kind of album review. I do have a last.fm account, but I only recently set up scrobbling, so the ridiculous amount of music already I’ve listened to on my computer and iPod wouldn’t be reflected. Plus, this gives me a way of sharing some thoughts about the music. Note that most of these are by no means new, just new to me.
So, it’s Friday, and I ain’t got no job, and ain’t got shit to do…so I’m blogging?? Yes, that is how awesomely pathetic my social life is. Anyway, I’ve decided that since I’m inevitably going to be on the Internet, wasting time, I might as well write. This kind of writing doesn’t require too much effort and I really should start journaling. So: my goals are to clean up the blog a bit, remove some of those pesky “upcoming post idea” posts on which I have no intention of following up, and crank out a few short pieces about what’s been happening with me lately.
I’ve decided to start writing some album reviews now that I have an iPod and more time to listen to my music. And also, I’m really annoyed at the ridiculousness of sites like Pitchfork and the shallow advertisement-style reviews of allmusicguide. It’s time for some reviews that are fair, honest, and a bit analytical. I’ve also been wanting to get some thoughts down on paper (again, pardon the term) about different underrated/underreviewed music for a while.
I finally got an iPod and I loooooveee it!! The interface isn’t perfect but it is still functional and attractive. It is so convenient being able to bring my music and videos with me anywhere. Really, how did I live without it before? And the classic has 80gb, which is plenty of space for all my music and podcasts as well as some movies. I just ordered a case for it because it gets scratched really easily.
Just for my (and others’?) future reference, here’s a list of the issues I have to straighten out with Ubuntu before I can find it 100% usable, as well as any fixes I’ve found. Read the rest of this entry »
I just did a fresh install of the new version of Ubuntu (7.10, “Gutsy Gibbon”) and I must say I’m impressed. The new version of Gnome is excellent, delivering (as usual) gradual but necessary improvements to the desktop. Add to that the fact that I was actually able to get the desktop effects to work, and–with some reservations–I’m sold.
