techno production (2000-2004) compared to todays sound....

[Mattias_Fridell]

Mattias I am so guilty of asking you for the fast stuff, I admit it.
I just had this discussion with Glenn about tempo and energy.
Now the sound is clearer, and a good amount of producers are paying more attention to what is done behind the scenes sonically.

Me & Glenn is discussing this a lot and about how energy translates & works with slower tempo & clearer sound. I'm definitely hooked with slower tempo but raw energy like from the 2000-2004 era, refined to todays environment in the scene. Just feels not enough people are doing this and is either stuck in old ideal or just converted to bandwagon sound. Classic feeling and intensity in new package is high in demand me thinks.

[ritaheed]

Classic feeling and intensity in new package is high in demand me thinks.

Yeah I know what you mean - I was listening to a remix by the Space djz of an A.Paul track and I couldnt work out if it was proper techno or minumal(ish). Kinda came to the conclusion that it was kinda proper techno but just had the clear, digital sounds of today.

Dont get me wrong it wasnt full on proper techno but it did have that element in it with minimalish elements aswell

Was a bit surprised to hear Mike Humphries free download sounding the way it sounded.
It was still braw though :)

[teknorich]

A lot of what is called Techno now just sounds like harder minimal to me. The distinction has become very blurred. In the A.Paul thread, Mark EG said that Naked Lunch is one of the few labels keeping hard techno alive, but tbh I'm not sure how much of their output I'd even call hard techno. It is faster than minimal, but a lot of it is just as smooth, with similar production values, and overall not a very "hard" or rough sound.

(Even look at what the Advent and Industrialyzer are doing now - is that techno or minimal?! Generally around 135+ BPM which puts it in the techno category, but it has very much a smoothly produced, minimal sound to it)

In the recent Glenn Wilson mix which was posted up, there was a new remix of "Aural Exciter," the original of which was an absolute BEAST of a tune, but the new 2010 remix sounds much much weaker, flatter and less powerful than the original. I know things have changed, and styles have moved on, but that new remix just doesn't come close to the tough attitude and sound of the original, which is a real pity.

It's a difficult one - play too hard and scare the audience away, or give in too much to the "new techno" crowd and water it down...

[teknorich]

@ Matthias - am gonna check out some of your newer stuff when I get home tonight . I definitely like the idea of what you said; keeping the roughness and energy of the old style techno, but repackaging it in a way which works in the present day. You got me curious to hear what you're up to!

[ritaheed]

A lot of what is called Techno now just sounds like harder minimal to me. The distinction has become very blurred. In the A.Paul thread, Mark EG said that Naked Lunch is one of the few labels keeping hard techno alive, but tbh I'm not sure how much of their output I'd even call hard techno. It is faster than minimal, but a lot of it is just as smooth, with similar production values, and overall not a very "hard" or rough sound.

(Even look at what the Advent and Industrialyzer are doing now - is that techno or minimal?! Generally around 135+ BPM which puts it in the techno category, but it has very much a smoothly produced, minimal sound to it)

In the recent Glenn Wilson mix which was posted up, there was a new remix of "Aural Exciter," the original of which was an absolute BEAST of a tune, but the new 2010 remix sounds much much weaker, flatter and less powerful than the original. I know things have changed, and styles have moved on, but that new remix just doesn't come close to the tough attitude and sound of the original, which is a real pity.

It's a difficult one - play too hard and scare the audience away, or give in too much to the "new techno" crowd and water it down...

exactly mate - 100% agree with you

everything is really blured the now - ppl who have not been into techno do call this harder minimal sound techno

aye a was surprised with glen wilsons mix aswell - a thought him being the daddy of hard techno (hereo's, punish etc) that it would have been along those lines

a do think the style of techno has really changed but this should not mean that the proper hard techno that were talking about has to go

Dj Ogi is hard techno and schranz and I do like him but I do think his stuff sounds really similar with each release and just doesnt cut it from the real hard techno a few year ago.

Dont think the hard techno where looking for is going to come back anytime soon - from going to festivals abroad its basically all minimal and schranz - its mental how the european schranz crowd like to call schranz "hard techno" - in my book it defo aint

[Mattias_Fridell]

@ Matthias - am gonna check out some of your newer stuff when I get home tonight . I definitely like the idea of what you said; keeping the roughness and energy of the old style techno, but repackaging it in a way which works in the present day. You got me curious to hear what you're up to!

Please do, just don't listen 1 EP and tell me it's 127 BPM Techno before you take a listen to more stuff hehe, I do a lot. The good thing about today is that I can stamp my name on more then just 1 style, before I had to use aliases when I made some dub stuff or more scaled music. The stuff I've done for Tontek, Foot Fetish and others is more what Im talking about though most of it is upcoming. If you liked Glenn's Motion mix I can reveal that some tunes there is coming from me.

[ritaheed]

Please do, just don't listen 1 EP and tell me it's 127 BPM Techno before you take a listen to more stuff hehe, I do a lot. The good thing about today is that I can stamp my name on more then just 1 style, before I had to use aliases when I made some dub stuff or more scaled music. The stuff I've done for Tontek, Foot Fetish and others is more what Im talking about though most of it is upcoming. If you liked Glenn's Motion mix I can reveal that some tunes there is coming from me.

Just checked you out man - stomping stuff :) - really like the tougher sound youve got going on.
Will defo be making a purchase of your stuff in the future :)

[The Overfiend]

Went on Juno and yes, the Hard Techno game has it twisted right now.
Sorry to say it.
But I heard Nothing Hard Tech at all.

[ritaheed]

Went on Juno and yes, the Hard Techno game has it twisted right now.
Sorry to say it.
But I heard Nothing Hard Tech at all.

did you just search the latest releases?

[Mattias_Fridell]

Sweet, thanks Ritaheed

[justin schumacher]

there is much wider pallete of sounds and textures in today's techno sound. that is what i like,. also production values are now much higher that 5-10 years ago,. some of today's music sounds too digital, that is true. some people are releasing 3-5 eps a month, which is self-destroying, but on the other hand, if there is a target group, then fair play.

what i think, peoplegot tired of still the same loopy 4x4 bashing. this is really not that interesting to people anymore. bit sad, but true. new forms, more experiments, wider sound spectrum + real production values, that is what i want to hear in today's music.

this


was listening to some records from that era the other night and almost forgot about the energy those tracks used to bring. it is without question missing from todays definition of techno.
but lets be honest.....at a party....unless the sound system was absolutely pristine, the subtle nuances and grooves of compressed drum loop techno would sound like a wash of harsh upper-mid/high frequencies....coupled with a muddy thundering low end. after a while, my ears would hate me.

there is no reason....with todays technology..... that we cant have the same grit and energy in techno, but just cleaned up with more interesting arrangements and sound sculpting/automation.

imo....thats what advent and industrialyzer, virgil enzinger bring to the table (as far as harder techno).......but to call THAT minimalish.....really???

i really like what Sawf is doing as well......just pitch it up a bit

[The Overfiend]

Ritaheed I looked in the past 8 weeks, and was sorely disappointed.
Justin, your response gets the high five.
I can't remember a time in any Nyc club where I said, damn that sound is so defined, lol.
Except in Limelight and the sound in Twilo was dope when it was around.

[ritaheed]

in yer face rawness :) :)

YouTube - Damon Wild - Rotary

this is what gets me moving - 1998 aswell - oooooft

[ritaheed]

YouTube - Cold Dust - AA1 - Nervehammer (Michael Forshaw Mix)

a played this out once and every one went nuts :)

[qUE]

The way Techno is made nowerdays is generally very different to back in the 90s. I'm not sure how many artists still use a real 909, or any other analog gear for that matter.

Most of the people I've seen play out "live", use laptops. Which with any music software available for both Mac and Windows, as soon as you try to overdrive anything it just sounds awful, no serious grunt to it at all.

I certainly miss the days of Chicago and Kalamazoo stuff making it over to the UK, but then those records I have are still great imho.

[morbid]

Most of the people I've seen play out "live", use laptops.

bring back the days of lugging your CRT monitor to a gig innit





proper techno

[drift9]

Except in Limelight and the sound in Twilo was dope when it was around.

those were some good times, but now gone forever with nothing really to take its place.
and now Limelight is a shopping mall...
shopping mall.

[The Overfiend]

Limelight, a shopping mall? Are you kidding me?
I had some of the best times of my life for years on end in that place, and now it's a mall?

[drift9]

yeah. the below article has some of the ground plans for it. i might have to walk in their one day for the pure head fck of the whole thing.

The New Limelight Shopping Mall Makes Former Club Kids Weep

[teknorich]

"They paved paradise, and put up a parking lot..."