Comments on: A Troublesome Noise http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/ A small selection of the many things that have happened to Dan Sumption, his family, friends and colleagues Sat, 22 Nov 2008 10:03:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: Jonny D http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8137 Jonny D Sat, 14 Apr 2007 20:56:51 +0000 http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8137 "I read a pop bio about Harry Houdini, and it inspired me to make it seem like I was breaking out of manacles and a straight jacket. So I played the drums like that — and I still do. It's an escapist reality, in a way!" Sun City Girls' drummer Charles Gocher (1952 - 2007). Just had a really great bash on the skins seemingly taking Gocher's quote and the positive creative energy from this web discussion with me into the practice! The key part of your original entry is in the first few lines; the energetic changes and mental / spiritual power you are experiencing, which I consequently absorbed and transfered with me into my practice... thanks! Creativity is a real substance and there are methods of increasing it... in the 80's I learned the particular Buddhist mantra for artistic creativity... Hey, just noticed the pdf designs attached to that email - very nice. ..where's that can of beer gone....? “I read a pop bio about Harry Houdini, and it inspired me to make it seem like I was breaking out of manacles and a straight jacket. So I played the drums like that — and I still do. It’s an escapist reality, in a way!”

Sun City Girls’ drummer Charles Gocher (1952 - 2007).

Just had a really great bash on the skins seemingly taking Gocher’s quote and the positive creative energy from this web discussion with me into the practice! The key part of your original entry is in the first few lines; the energetic changes and mental / spiritual power you are experiencing, which I consequently absorbed and transfered with me into my practice… thanks! Creativity is a real substance and there are methods of increasing it… in the 80’s I learned the particular Buddhist mantra for artistic creativity…

Hey, just noticed the pdf designs attached to that email - very nice.

..where’s that can of beer gone….?

]]> By: rod warner http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8131 rod warner Sat, 14 Apr 2007 18:34:41 +0000 http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8131 ... great post... as for the jazz fans - they should get ears and investigate the history of the music - if not: fuck 'em... what I like about the current noise/improv scene is the boundary-crossing - too many on the old free jazz/improv scene were a humourless bunch who would exclude on the grounds of ideology etc just as much as the the old school moldy fygges and keep the circle tight... when Anthony Braxton plays with Wolf Eyes - or old Derek playing with anyone who came along - all of these are/were victories in expanding perception and expanding the field... and fun, damn it! er... and a liquid afternoon brings this to a close! … great post… as for the jazz fans - they should get ears and investigate the history of the music - if not: fuck ‘em… what I like about the current noise/improv scene is the boundary-crossing - too many on the old free jazz/improv scene were a humourless bunch who would exclude on the grounds of ideology etc just as much as the the old school moldy fygges and keep the circle tight… when Anthony Braxton plays with Wolf Eyes - or old Derek playing with anyone who came along - all of these are/were victories in expanding perception and expanding the field… and fun, damn it!

er… and a liquid afternoon brings this to a close!

]]> By: Dan Sumption http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8127 Dan Sumption Sat, 14 Apr 2007 16:14:13 +0000 http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8127 Well, yes, although I struggle to think of any at the moment. But it's not generally the music that annoys me as much as the intention behind it (and in front of it). Well, yeah, the music does sometimes annoy me too - I think you can always detect when there is a lack of passion in music, a lack of belief in the music for its own sake. When people put out records solely for the purpose of making money, this is usually pretty easily spotted and pretty risible. But there are also plenty of instances of artists who are passionate about their own music, but who are similarly pigeonholed just because that music is mainstream, popular and lucrative. I guess it's similar in a way to the current culture of celebrity - so many people want to be famous just because they want to be famous. In the same way, I think increasing numbers of people make music because they want to be rich and famous, without a real concern for the integrity of the music, and that does get my back up. Well, yes, although I struggle to think of any at the moment. But it’s not generally the music that annoys me as much as the intention behind it (and in front of it). Well, yeah, the music does sometimes annoy me too - I think you can always detect when there is a lack of passion in music, a lack of belief in the music for its own sake. When people put out records solely for the purpose of making money, this is usually pretty easily spotted and pretty risible. But there are also plenty of instances of artists who are passionate about their own music, but who are similarly pigeonholed just because that music is mainstream, popular and lucrative.

I guess it’s similar in a way to the current culture of celebrity - so many people want to be famous just because they want to be famous. In the same way, I think increasing numbers of people make music because they want to be rich and famous, without a real concern for the integrity of the music, and that does get my back up.

]]> By: Jonny D http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8126 Jonny D Sat, 14 Apr 2007 16:00:34 +0000 http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8126 Yeah, gotcha! Is there music which makes you cross cos it's so damn shit and pampering to thick people? Yeah, gotcha!
Is there music which makes you cross cos it’s so damn shit and pampering to thick people?

]]> By: Dan Sumption http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8125 Dan Sumption Sat, 14 Apr 2007 15:49:14 +0000 http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8125 The 5,000 is, I admit, a total guess, and in some ways an overestimate as many are not complete albums. All that I know for sure is that I have a little over 20,000 tracks, obviously most albums will have about 10-15 tracks on them which would mean more like 1500 albums, but I know that a lot of those tracks are individual tracks from albums, which to Slimserver will seem like lots of little entire albums, and others are CD singles, which will appear as albums of 3 or 4 songs. So, on reconsidering, I would say it's more likely that I have around 3,000 albums. I have no problem with mainstream music, I really do embrace pretty much everything and am equally happy (sort of) listening to AMM, Blur or Christina Aguilera. I do, as you would expect, have a big problem with the industry though. One thing which my experience with Noise of Trouble taught me is that there is something to be found in every piece of music if you apply yourself to it, and I try to apply this learning as much when listening to pop music as when listening to noise music. Free music does stand apart from most other music for me, in the amount of effort it takes for me to properly appreciate it, and for that reason (and because of the hectic nature of my life) I listen to a lot less of it than I'd like to. I don't think I'll have a problem getting something into Sandman, although as yet I'm not quite sure what (or when). As Mark says in the editorial to the current issue "Sandman doesn't have a house opinion, it's the many varied and diverse writers that have the opinions. Sandman is just a forum for them". The main reason why there's not a lot of noise stuff going into Sandman is that there are not a lot of people writing noise stuff for Sandman (although I suspect that if a dozen people were all to try and get reviews of noise gigs into the mag, they might find a smaller percentage getting published than if they were reviewing more mainstream musics). Also, if I do make this into a bigger article bringing in the local scene, I will definitely be picking your brains for information, as most of my experience of live improv gigs still relates to London 15 years ago rather than Sheffield today. The 5,000 is, I admit, a total guess, and in some ways an overestimate as many are not complete albums. All that I know for sure is that I have a little over 20,000 tracks, obviously most albums will have about 10-15 tracks on them which would mean more like 1500 albums, but I know that a lot of those tracks are individual tracks from albums, which to Slimserver will seem like lots of little entire albums, and others are CD singles, which will appear as albums of 3 or 4 songs.

So, on reconsidering, I would say it’s more likely that I have around 3,000 albums.

I have no problem with mainstream music, I really do embrace pretty much everything and am equally happy (sort of) listening to AMM, Blur or Christina Aguilera. I do, as you would expect, have a big problem with the industry though.

One thing which my experience with Noise of Trouble taught me is that there is something to be found in every piece of music if you apply yourself to it, and I try to apply this learning as much when listening to pop music as when listening to noise music. Free music does stand apart from most other music for me, in the amount of effort it takes for me to properly appreciate it, and for that reason (and because of the hectic nature of my life) I listen to a lot less of it than I’d like to.

I don’t think I’ll have a problem getting something into Sandman, although as yet I’m not quite sure what (or when). As Mark says in the editorial to the current issue “Sandman doesn’t have a house opinion, it’s the many varied and diverse writers that have the opinions. Sandman is just a forum for them”. The main reason why there’s not a lot of noise stuff going into Sandman is that there are not a lot of people writing noise stuff for Sandman (although I suspect that if a dozen people were all to try and get reviews of noise gigs into the mag, they might find a smaller percentage getting published than if they were reviewing more mainstream musics).

Also, if I do make this into a bigger article bringing in the local scene, I will definitely be picking your brains for information, as most of my experience of live improv gigs still relates to London 15 years ago rather than Sheffield today.

]]> By: Jonny D http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8124 Jonny D Sat, 14 Apr 2007 15:24:14 +0000 http://www.sumption.org/2007/04/14/a-troublesome-noise/#comment-8124 Beatiful synchronising there! 5000 albums?! Wow. Yeah enjoyed reading this Dan, totally true about improvising requiring 100% attention. Almost seems ironic doesn't it? Your blogentry seems to end short, leaving me desperate to know more about human endeavours in free music creating and listening. I listened to my first Stockhausen the other day - Wow!! I also think 'free' visual artists are utilising the same parts of the brain (or not using it!) as 'free-musicians' (ergo viewers and listeners) and I had a great conversation with painter Brian Jackson yesterday about the really revolutionary (anarchic?) act of improvising. It becomes an intense personal experience which bypasses preconditioned ideas and concepts. It is always a pleasure to play with you (more synchronicity). Other local free-musicians like Mick Beck, Charlie Collins and Martin Archer are, I believe, moving into very interesting new realms of instant improv-creation. Collins in particular is a good example of someone who earlier in his career (with Clock DVA) was seemingly breaking new ground by 'fighting' mainstream music but has since matured and succesfully concentrates his efforts on tapping into purer and more positive creative energy. Archer's Discus releases (on which the large Sheffield improv community feature a lot) are regularly featured and reviewed in Wire mag. Many of their gigs at the Red Deer and the Nether Edge Club are a joy and a truly contemplative and engaging (definitely not instantly accessible or 'catchy'!) experience. We are also extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to meet in an improvising group (TTV) and I have had these odd feelings that we are doing something really *right*... We have a large problem with mainstream music and the industry. I wish you success with getting this published in Sandman, you may save one or two young, bright people from the usual brainwashing 'music trends'. Beatiful synchronising there! 5000 albums?! Wow.

Yeah enjoyed reading this Dan, totally true about improvising requiring 100% attention. Almost seems ironic doesn’t it? Your blogentry seems to end short, leaving me desperate to know more about human endeavours in free music creating and listening. I listened to my first Stockhausen the other day - Wow!!

I also think ‘free’ visual artists are utilising the same parts of the brain (or not using it!) as ‘free-musicians’ (ergo viewers and listeners) and I had a great conversation with painter Brian Jackson yesterday about the really revolutionary (anarchic?) act of improvising. It becomes an intense personal experience which bypasses preconditioned ideas and concepts. It is always a pleasure to play with you (more synchronicity). Other local free-musicians like Mick Beck, Charlie Collins and Martin Archer are, I believe, moving into very interesting new realms of instant improv-creation. Collins in particular is a good example of someone who earlier in his career (with Clock DVA) was seemingly breaking new ground by ‘fighting’ mainstream music but has since matured and succesfully concentrates his efforts on tapping into purer and more positive creative energy. Archer’s Discus releases (on which the large Sheffield improv community feature a lot) are regularly featured and reviewed in Wire mag. Many of their gigs at the Red Deer and the Nether Edge Club are a joy and a truly contemplative and engaging (definitely not instantly accessible or ‘catchy’!) experience. We are also extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to meet in an improvising group (TTV) and I have had these odd feelings that we are doing something really *right*…

We have a large problem with mainstream music and the industry. I wish you success with getting this published in Sandman, you may save one or two young, bright people from the usual brainwashing ‘music trends’.

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