Esoterica – Rocknerd

Riffusion: we’ve replaced these musicians with an AI model.

16 December, 20227 February, 2023 Esoterica 0

Can’t wait for Spotify to offer streams of generated nonsense music. And see if the record companies can spot the source tracks it was trained on.

Links: Bauhaus, WFMU Free Music Archive saved, post-punk indie labels, Pete Shelley’s XL-1 videos, Boy Harsher.

21 December, 2018 Esoterica, Goth, Industrial, Links, Post-Punk, Punk 0

What’s important to understand about entertainment from the 60s or 70s or 80s is that the entire audience is lead-poisoned, poisoning their kids with lead, pumping drugs cut with industrial solvents bought outside their kids’ schools, which are also poisoning the kids with lead.

Owen Kentauros brings you the 1980s on ukulele, in Japanese.

13 September, 201813 September, 2018 Esoterica, Pop 1

1980s New Wave on ukulele and occasional kazoo, on a grainy old webcam in 4:3. Bow to the viewer, play.

Records: The Rolling Stones, Deerful, Benjamin Shaw (2016, 2018).

7 September, 20181 June, 2019 Esoterica, Indie, Pop, Record, Rock 0

A party that everyone’s been looking forward to for weeks. They seem to be having a wonderful time.

Richard Syrett on Theodor Adorno, the Beatles, conspiracy theorists and … me.

6 June, 20186 June, 2018 Esoterica, Opinion, Pop, Radio, Rock 0

Did you know that Frankfurt School philosopher Theodor Adorno wrote all the Beatles songs? I sure didn’t! In fact, I still don’t.

Links: Frank Zappa ad jingles, runout grooves, AACS keys leaked, old Severed Heads.

28 December, 2017 Esoterica, Industrial, Links, Record, Your rights 0

And headphones up your nose.

Richard M. Stallman: The Free Software Song (1991, 2011).

14 November, 201717 January, 2018 Esoterica 0

Music nerds mostly won’t have suffered the sort of thing software nerds hear as part of their culture. Includes the techno remix and a version of the actually really good original.

Links: The KLF at the Shard, the fake grunge lexicon, how to swear on radio.

10 November, 2017 Esoterica, Links, Punk, Radio, Writing 0

23 November.

Links: Sex Pistols, Peter Hook, Martin Hannett, Lee Ranaldo, how music feels, Taylor Swift.

8 November, 20178 November, 2017 Esoterica, Links, Pop, Post-Punk, Punk, Writing, Your rights 0

The scourge of music bloggers shall be dealt with.

Links: Devo “Satisfaction”, failed electronic instruments, subgenres of electronic music.

26 September, 2017 Esoterica, Links, Musician, Post-Punk, Writing 0

It’s all about the bleep, even with guitar, bass and drums.

Links: Constance Demby, UK copyright trolls’ multiple extortions, The Return of the Giant Slits.

21 September, 201721 September, 2017 Esoterica, Links, Post-Punk, Your rights 0

Seriously, check out the space bass.

The Residents, Croxton Hotel, March 2016

15 September, 201715 September, 2017 Esoterica, Live 0

Certain bands make an initial mark on the world with icons.

Links: Pat Mills/2000AD, fund The Quietus, shoegaze in Asia, MRI rockin’ beats.

14 September, 2017 Esoterica, Indie, Links, Writing 0

And me on BBC Newsnight! (Not about music.)

Karlheinz Stockhausen as synthesizer music for ten year old children.

27 August, 20175 October, 2019 Classical, Esoterica, Opinion, Record 1

At age ten I’d heard synthesizers were cool, so found some Karlheinz Stockhausen to start me off. I, ah, didn’t quite know what to make of it.

Producers: Max Martin literally farts a top ten hit; Butch Vig; Brian Eno’s Oblique Strategies.

14 August, 201715 August, 2017 Esoterica, Links, Musician, Pop, Punk 0

“Always give yourself credit for having more than personality.” parp parp parp

The Ithaca Psychogeographic Liberation Front succeeds, as well as seceding.

6 July, 201717 March, 2022 Esoterica, Writing 0

Rocknerd is not a reliable path to artistic effect, but when it works, it’s not bad.

Lester Bangs on Brian Eno.

16 May, 201717 May, 2017 Esoterica, Musician 0

“It’s not a hard instrument, actually. People think synthesizers are difficult and mysterious, but in about a day you can understand how to use it. In about five years you can understand how not to as well.”

Alixandrea Corvyn, Amongst Animals, Near Death Experience, Tangerinecat — Dublin Castle, Camden, Thu 4 May 2017.

5 May, 201710 May, 2017 Esoterica, Goth, Indie, Live, Rock 1

I automatically staked out my life-long spot at stage right, leaning on the PA. I grabbed this spot in 1985 and shall not relinquish it.

Links: VPN survey, a generated music startup, Metal Machine Music for Lou’s 75th.

5 March, 2017 Esoterica, Links, Musician, Your rights 0

“My week beats your year.” — Lou Reed

Reviews: Venus + Mars, Carla dal Forno, The Black Veils (2016, 2017).

9 February, 20179 February, 2017 Esoterica, Indie, Pop, Post-Punk, Punk, Record 0

Vaporwave, ethereal post-punk pop and jangly punk-pop.

Links: Marquee Moon, CD rot, how to be a better producer, rockin’ nuns.

8 February, 20178 February, 2017 Audio, Esoterica, Links, Musician, Punk 2

Not every nun needs a Synthi.

Reviews: Quimper, Chrysta Bell and David Lynch, Black Tape for a Blue Girl (2016, 2017).

7 February, 201712 February, 2017 Esoterica, Goth, Indie, Pop, Record 0

Yes, that David Lynch. He does music too.

Links: Robin and Zappa, streaming piracy and the musical taste of dogs.

26 January, 2017 Esoterica, Links, mp3 0

How the Boy Wonder’s singing coach fired him.

The political event of the day: the Ithaca Psychogeographic Liberation Front issues Articles of Secession.

20 January, 20179 September, 2018 Esoterica, Writing 1

We secede from irony. Sincerity will pervade even our lies, and especially our lies.

The Voices: Oneiric Anthem (2016).

6 January, 201729 March, 2017 Esoterica, Metal, Prog, Record 1

Today’s “what the hell even is that”: a capella experimental prog.

Links: Soviet techno, music as a weapon, archive your damn tapes, oh Earache no.

6 December, 20167 December, 2016 Esoterica, Industrial, Links, Media, Metal, Punk 0

Have your retro communism techno, enlightening the unwilling, archive your damn tapes, this is not your father’s Earache.

Lou Reed: Metal Machine Music (1975).

30 November, 20165 May, 2017 Esoterica, Industrial, Record 2

“It’s all folk music, anyway.” — Lester Bangs

30 gigabytes of lost cassettes from the ’80s underground.

3 November, 20163 November, 2016 Esoterica 0

The Internet Archive has thirty gigabytes of cassettes from the ’80s for your delight and horror, from the collection of CKLN-FM host Myke Dyer. The collection was first put on line in 2009 and was made available on archive.org late last year.