Music Movements

From Post Modern to "EDM" & "Virtual" Performers

Many advancements in technology have been seen over the past century, which have played a significant and direct role in influencing artists and musicians as well as the development of tools and instruments that they use. While it is quite beyond the scope of a single class period, the FMX 211 class recently plowed through over 16 musical movements that use technology, and some of the prominent artists, musicians, and bands that made significant contributions to the movements or otherwise embody their genre. The discography (found at http://art211.santiago.bz/?page_id=181) provided does a great job of representing each of these movements. However, I do feel that there are at least a few "notable mentions" that are worthy of adding to this list.

The following is a list of  5 Artist's / Musicians / Bands that I feel should be included to the aforementioned discography:


DISCO
Lipps Inc. - "Funkytown"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVwiixXViT0

This track is just oozing with technology! Synthesizers, effects, and even a vocoder that uses the human voice to modulate the carrier signal of a synthesizer. I think the vocoder is one of the coolest things that has happened to the human voice in the past century. Here's a link to "The Secret History of the Vocoder" published by the New Yorker on 20 August, 2014.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvR4qK0B--w



FUNK
George Clinton, P-Funk, Parliament, Funkadelic (or what ever name you happen to know them by). Funk was completely left out of the discussion. I understand that it is closely related to disco, but it's definitely not the same thing. George Clintons music in the 70s and 80s continued to be heard throughout the house movement and is still played by DJ's around the world. Synthesizers and Samplers were a big part of his sound. I think a good example of his work is "Atomic Dog"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etRu094xhvE



INDUSTRIAL / GOTH
Nine Inch Nails - How were they not on this list? Ok, I guess they could have also been included in the Nineties movement, but they weren't there either. Rant Over...
The "Downward Spiral" album featuring "Closer" & "Hurt" were recorded in a Mansion that was the site of one of the Manson Murders. Trent Reznor's use of synthesizers and samplers on this album is quite incredible. 

Nine Inch Nails - "Closer"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nv3M5OvCJuQ



NINETIES
Rage Against the Machine... Just a typical four piece rock band from the nineties right? Nope! They're the first group that comes to mind when I think of "crossover" bands (Bands or Musicians that blend 2 or more styles together), with their particular combination of Rap & Rock. However, I have them listed here as a result of Tom Morello's (the Guitarist) contributions. His use of effects pedals and extended techniques (non standard articulations or ways of playing a musical instrument) often imitate sounds normally made by DJ's / Scratch Artists & other electronic musicians. A good example is "Killing in the Name"... Check out his guitar solo that starts around 3:50...

Rage Against the Machine - "Killing in the Name"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWXazVhlyxQ



ELECTRONIC / PRODUCER CULTURE
Mostly Robot - This group is made up of several endorsed artists from Native Instruments. They create original electronic music live on stage in a highly improvisational way. One of my favorites in the group is Jeremy Ellis, who is well known for his particular style of "finger drumming" using Native Instruments "Maschine".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DauCj-wH1Fg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-q5KkwHtmw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE_iEf4c8Ss

Performance Art - UPDATED

"Old Tech VS. New Tech"

https://youtu.be/SuxnyiwATnE

"Old Tech VS. New Tech"
- A Performance Art Piece by Joshua Campbell

Presented by The University of Tampa
In association with FMX211 & Professor Roundtree
(Spring 2019)

I asked total strangers at a local coffee shop (Starbucks) to express their feelings about technology while exposing them to Old Tech (Camera Obscura) and New Tech (Green Screen & Color Keying) and explaining how I would combine the 2 technologies into a single video. This combination of 2 contrasting video styles and subjects creates a sort of "Montage" art piece that is inspired by Sergei Eisentein.

My Performance Art was about inviting strangers to participate and be video recorded while learning about and using a combination of old and new technology & expressing their feelings about technology Here are 3 of my favorite performance artists In no particular order:

1              Banksy:

http://banksy.co.uk/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqQYVKSmugc&feature=youtu.be

I loved “the Punking of Paris Hilton”… He made 500 really awesome
looking imposter CD’s and snuck them onto the store shelves… What a cool way to
make a statement! He totally had to use tech in his work… He used a DAW (Digital
Audio Workstation) to record, edit, and mix the audio for the cds. His art
style for the booklet was fairly low tech, but cool… He used an exacto knife
and glue to insert commentary into the original booklet, and scanned it to make
the copies.

2              LaurieAnderson: http://www.laurieanderson.com/

“Landfall” with the Kronos Quartet is really cool. The music
is fantastic! I was first introduced to the Kronos Quartet from a professor at
the University of New Orleans, performing music from Phillip Glass. Tech is an
integral part of Laurie Anderson’s Work… Music, Video, and even topics about
computers of tech are used . 3   T hrobbing Gristle:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8klW9trVTQ&feature=youtu.be

This group is credited with starting Industrial Rock… Although
KMFDM are the self proclaimed godfathers of industrial, more evidence supports
that Throbbing Gristle came first! No pun intended… Tech is an integral part of
their work… The use of effects processors, synthesizers, drum machines, samplers,
and other recording and audio equipment is central to their work.

How are they related?

I think one of the ways they are
related is that they have all used music and sound in their work to make commentary
on social issues.

Is Tech an essential component in their work?

Yes, Tech is an integral part of
each of these artists work.

What is to be done in the field of Performance Art?

It seems like everything that could
be done has already been done. Instead of searching tirelessly for a way to be
original, I think it’s more important to take in the world around us. Then we
combine ideas and resynthesize them in much the way Surgei Eisenstein resynthesizes
video into his genre of “Montage”. The originality is evident when you see that
the combination of 2 unlike and contrasting things creates it’s own unique
message that is greater than the sum of it’s parts.

XEROX ART, "Speak Out!"

"SPEAK OUT!"

Silent... Still... Always watching... Taking everything in... You become overfilled and you need to let some out, but you can't! There's always something stopping you. Even when you dream, something is keeping you from letting go. To your surprise, you wake up tomorrow and take some more. Tomorrow keeps coming over and over again, but nothing changes. You have no voice, but at least you can see!

It didn't seem right to use a proper canvas for this project. I felt that it needed to be fragmented and barely holding together. I chose to use one of the moving boxes left from my last military move after retiring from the Marine Corps. This box had some of my audio equipment in it. The day to day life that I knew on Active Duty as a Marine and as a Musician becomes more distant every day. That part of me feels broken and loosely stitched together the way this cardboard canvas is. Of course, no one can see that on the outside. That's why the canvas has to be covered. Behind layers of copies of different versions of myself lies the truth of what's holding it all together. 

It's just 50lbs fishing wire... 

Clear and transparent...

Covered with layers and layers that are held together with some spray adhesive...

Something has to keep it all sticking together...