Techno Music Politics, or Technomusipolitics, is a tricky, often heated thing to be involved with. Amorphous, subtlely-stated, and not nearly as recognizable as who you'd vote in for Prez — yet at the forefront of many major decisions –?it is undeniably important and the thoughtlines are prevalent. In other words, you may not have a name for it, but it exists. You may have heard of "drum 'n' bass mafia" or "trance elitists". That all plays a part. To clarify, I have chosen to use the?necessary?evil of assigning a label for the purposes of communicating ideas in an accessible and convenient fashion.

Without further ado,?it's important for me to state my Technomusipolitical platform, adaptive and?evolving,?as follows:

• PRO-"TECHNO"
  I've explained in previous entries why I am fond of the term "techno" itself as an umbrella for all TECHNOlogically-based music. I don't mind "electronica" or the more staid "electronic music" either, as?I'm mellow and relaxed when it comes to such things.

• PRO-KRAFTWERK
  I bow down to the German pioneers and recognize all of their great founding accomplishments in the world o' electronic music. I humble before their lineage and the seeds they have nurtured for future generations to grow. I recognize them not only as great conceptualists, but great musicians — despite their insistence on being known as "sound workers" and related terms. Doing something as radical as taking the experimental and making it digestible as a pop song like "Computer World" is revolutionary, and they've done this repeatedly.

• PRO-MELODY
  I generally like music with a good hook, riff — something to catch my attention so I can sing along. This would, of course, be generally described as "melody". Now, mind you, in here I get into my embracing of contradictions, because I am also subscribed to the throughtline that you can come up with something bangin' and atonal. Even better is shifting a moment of that to lull the listener into a false sense of disatisfaction into a blissful chorus with a catchy tune. I do not relate to "bog prog" or "honk prog" or music created to be "above melody", because unmemorable music to me is music I might well not have listened to in the first place.

• SELECTIVE USAGE OF SUPERSAW
  I do not believe there is any specific single sound which should be banned from the technomusicological canon. Like sardines, they have their place amongst some sonic seasonings. And if music be the food of love, play on. I personally enjoy sardines with vanilla ice cream (not unlike Oscar the Grouch), and as overused and "trite" as supersaw may seem to be in big trance ch00ns, it sounds strikingly unique when set on top of, say, a classic 70s drum break, or even how it is employed in certain trance-n-bass hybrid varieties.

• 303, 808, & 909 RIGHTS COALITION
  These machines, and their makers at Roland helped bring us here. I am not going to turn my back on them ungratefully and denounce the machines themselves as "hackneyed" or "cliched". Rather, I will consider possibilities like creative effects processing, or as I just mentioned, using old sounds in a new context. The 909 cymbals are one of my favorites and they are tasty with pitchbend. I make similar cases for other sounds and even groupings of them, such as "piano with a beat" which describes a bulk of dream house.

• HISTORICAL EDUCATION
  I believe it is my duty to learn about what came before so I will better understand what comes next. I solemnly hold firm to the thoughtline that ignorance of the giants who came before me only blinds me to what has already been done and done well. I believe it's important for me to pay honorable respects to my techno forefathers — and foremothers, how sadly few of them there are — and to optimistically look forward as The Third Wave rolls on.

• DRUG AWARENESS
  I believe one should know what goes into his/her/its body, being informed of rewards and risks. Dance safely, keep yourself hydrated with water. I find it very, very tragic to hear when?a loved one is lost from this world because of?not knowing or taking a needless life-and-death gamble.?Also sad is a prolonged period of addiction and dependency, like watching a once-glorious building fall into shambles. When in doubt, don't drop. This not only goes for drugs classified as illegal by the government, but formal pharmaceuticals as well. (Related: I?personally hold the view that marijuana is far less dangerous than some make it out to be, and am openminded when it comes to its usage for medicinal purposes.)?If you are going to take drugs, I wish you good health and hope you will be well when you "trip". May it be a good trip.?As for myself, I don't need drugs — my perception of reality seems to be altered enough as it is. I'm high on music, high on life.

• HUMOR REGARDING SUBSTYLES
  Yes, I know there are 200… perhaps more than 300 substyles and subsubstyles of techno music. It does seem to get absurd at points. However, within absurdity, one can find a sort of pleasing Monty Pythonesque brand of humor, and learn to laugh along. I do not take genre classifications 100%, or even?69%?seriously. I?use descriptive adjectives much like?petting a cat.?Bruce Lee perhaps said it best, and I paraphrase, "My style is no style." And as he really said, "Be water, my friend."

• IT'S WHAT YOU USE AND HOW YOU USE IT
  Many analogies have been spoken by knowledgeable luminaries far before I came to address the topic of gear in the studio. Work WITH the machines, not in opposition to them — unless it's for desired artistic effect, as there tend to be exceptions. Kraftwerk themselves called it something obvious: THE MAN-MACHINE. A harmonious fusion. Just make sure what you're using works comfortably for you, be it a vintage set of analog keys, or the latest in computer technology, or even an acoustic guitar you're planning to process and warp. Don't use equipment because you were peer pressured into it, as you will be unhappy and it will show in your compositions. I have enjoyed music from all over the spectrum coming from a wide variety of setups. Also linked, more people need to ask "WHY do you make music this way?" as opposed to "WHAT do you make music with?", which can be uniformly generic and monotonous.

• LESS ANONYMITY, MORE PERSONALITIES
  I am very much a fan of some "anonymous" acts. However, the balance is skewed such that even today, we have superstar DJs, yet many people do not know the real names of their fave producers, or even what they look like. Is this important? It can be. We're human beings, after all, and as much as some people would like "the music to stand alone" and "the music to speak for itself", it simply cannot. A human — in tandem with machines — created that beat, so who's really speaking here? It is a type of techno-shamanism in this modern era that we channel magic through out sufficiently-advanced technology (which continues to advance!), and so, like the witch doctors of old, it may be wise at times to wear a mask when introducing strange new sonic tapestries. However, I consider it foolish to do it to merely remain in line with "tradition", for what is tradition in such relatively recent musical development?

• ADVOCATE FOR HEARING PROTECTION
  Hearing loss is imminent if you subject yourself to loud techno music on a regular basis. Clubs pump out sound that can kill. Consider using earplugs, especially some special types that don't dull and blur the higher frequencies. It's a worthwhile investment because we have no known wonder that can?magically cure your?tinnitus and hearing impairment. If there?was, I'd be using it because I have hyperacusis.?I've written about this before. I want you to take good care of your ears so you'll be happy in the future.

• PRO-MINIMALISM
  Minimalism for me is not necessarily playing a barren two-note ostinato, and can also be about taking a finely-selected handful of musical ingredients, and treating them with maximum care and precision in the "soup" — using them to their fullest effect as you see fit. This varies on an individual basis, so I smile upon personal truths. A contrast might be in choosing the choicest kick drum and hi-hat sounds — and rhythms — but overlaying them with a really messed-up mash of sound effects. It might produce something?amazing. In fact, it?already has. Many times.?Furthermore, you may have heard of giving each instrument space in the mix. Yes, you can do this, and there can be times within a song where you throw a single?reverb on the whole works?to ultragel all the parts into one cohesive heap of AWWWWWW! This, to me, is also a type of pro-minimalism.

• ANTI-TECHNOSNOB
  I?had enough frustrating times dealing with classical music snobs who would stroke their chins and wax rhapsodic about some "high art" and how I wasn't "getting it". Bah! There's gonna be music you like, and music you dislike, with many colors, shades, and hues in between. All sorts of rich gradations.?That's life. I'm a big Avril Lavigne fan, for example, but I can't say I'm much into Hillary Duff's singing. I do believe someone confident enough in their musical tastes should be able to convey what they are truely passionate about without maliciously and chinstrokingly dismissing a peer's faves. This type of negative behavior is lowminded. I present the following quote of Gary Numan's:
  

  "I went to a Spice Girls gig once. I was slightly arrogant about it and said I wasn?t going to get anything out of it and was wondering why I was going. But although it wasn?t my cup of tea, a little kid of about eight or nine years old in front of me was having a brilliant time, waving her arms and singing along to every word. I said to (my wife) Gemma then that that?s what it?s about and we must never forget that. If people like the music, that?s the be all and end all. Anything else is arrogant and judgemental."

• UNITY IN DIVERSITY . . . THE REEMERGENCE OF PLURR
  We are many yet should focus on singular goals for the global dance music community. Civil wars and infighting only set us back and make us look even more hostile in the eyes of governments and societies. Hello, RAVE Act? Hello, negative stereotypes? I've never related to those who say "I love minimal tech, I hate?cheesy trance".?This type of conflicted?behavior?only weakens us all, links in the chain breaking. There is enough pain and suffering in the world as it stands. Can we not set aside differences — or better yet, learn more?about one another in a technomusicultural exchange? And?for that mind over matter, broaden our passions to include not only the domain of the electronic, but the acoustic, and beyond too?

  Why be polarized?and eat the same thing every day, when you can have a luscious smorgasbord of whatever you want, at your whim, and perhaps some new items that you've never tasted before? Please,?contemplate avoiding this redundancy.?Explore. Discovery keeps the soul youthful.?Music has great healing power and other therapeutic properties.

  I'm optimistic about the future… hear you there!!!

Peace, Love, Unity, Respect, & Responsibility