First and second best electronic artists since 2003 are?

(ps i don't really keep up with this electro-mechanical music-making you speak of...)

2. crazy frog

(other nominees: Kelley Polar, Rex The Dog, Ada, Booka Shade, Hot Chip, Hystereo, Jackson & His Computer Band, M.A.N.D.Y.)

Please enlighten me - what does this mean? Also, he is on Domino, not Warp.

Although in looking that up I discovered he hasn't actually put out an album or anything since 2002. So I guess he doesn't count so much. Although that CD-R of various mixes and covers (the one he offered through e.g. the Max Tundra ILM thread) is really good and it's titled "Remixes and Interpretations 1998 - 2005" so maybe he's back in.

(honorable mentions: Isolee, Luciano, Wighnomy Bros, Matias Aguayo, Modeselektor, Apparat, The Knife, TBA, AGF ...)

fair point, I excluded Luomo from that list on that basis so... I only really caught on with "Wearemonster" so I just associate him with 2005 somehow (didn't hear the amaaing "Beau Mot Plage" till afterwards either).

being strict makes things very tough indeed. Thin times :(

-- Konal Doddz (stevem7...) (webmail), Today 9:02 AM. (blueski) (later) (link)

didn't Tynan make that recommended listening list?

villalobos has been around since the late 90s so i don't think he counts. i'd say ellen allien, but her solo records haven't moved me much.

If we're talking about the BEST since 2003, though, without taking questions of 'debuts' into consideration, the choices seem obvious: Villalobos and Isolee. More presence and consistent output than any others.

what is meant by 'more presence'?

"i'd say ellen allien, but her solo records haven't moved me much."

Oh they've moved me alright, but I guess that's obvious by now.

Los Hermanos

I was going to post myself that the seeming parade of micro trends (baile funk etc) never quite sticking around that long seems more significant, or telling, or representative than the arrival of any one big new artist somehow... but I didn't and now I just look silly for repeating the obvious :P

The "thin times" bit... is just my personal feeling right now. I'm sure I'm way off. I'm just... a little bit bored of electronics in the house/techno sense at present and have been since the start of the year somehow.

I feel like things I have been enjoying across the board are getting less fresh and less plentiful somehow... and I need to branch out a bit in my listening frankly.

fandango, I think that Lindstrom is a little bit more 'visible' than you contend, but understand your point.

It's a waste of time.

x-post it's even more ridiculous than asking "what is the best guitar based music since 2003", cos you've to try and single out the one all dominant movement/fad and pick an artist from that, or else just list ANYONE WHO HAS MADE A GOOD TECHNO LP, and we all know who they are.

the same way you can 'Only Pick One' or whatever relating to a specific artist. Define 'electronic music' as you wish.

Clearly I'm speaking quite obviously from the cultural perspective of being very removed from a lot of those scenes, fairly removed from most scenes IRL.

electronic artists = anyone that isn't just a person with an acoustic guitar and nothing else?

FINE, GO WITH THAT!

God, right now I'm back again living not-close to real record shops or decent club nights and the sheer futility and partial pointlessness of trying to seriously gauge IRL things like this -over the internet- is more obvious than ever.

I'm sure there are many who would disagree. However, I was gesturing more at the mp3s of my electronic artist music. Thanks!

That said, it's obviously still what I go back to time & time again and get a touch obsessed over. I'm not swearing the whole thing off or anything.

anyway...

Omar-S is such crap
Warp is still really advanced music
House music is SO tired, Electrohouse is super-zingy!!
What dance music needs more of is cocaine. And boutique labels to bring in indie & rock kids.

(weaksauce troll for ILM heavyweights)

I can't think of an answer for the question because I don't have one, I really like lots of artists but to elevate one alone to some kind of silly BEST status would make zero sense to me and is a way of thinking about music that I hate and isn't easily applied to the music I like.

Do we? Isn't the purpose of threads like this also to find the people less celebrated or talked about (techno or not)?

but yet here you are on a music msg board RIFE with 'classic or dud' threads, 'only pick one/five/ten' threads and the like. tho i know you don't really go in for those. and obv. that is fine but other people will always do it and it can be useful method/part of the process of establishing position on things.

I think it's true tho that ILM is more concerned with listing/ranking/trying to establish consensus rather than music itself. perhaps that is more of a problem now than it was. (WHO ARE FIRST AND SECOND BEST ILM POSTERS SINCE 2003?)

what's the diff. between 'what's your favourite track of the last few months?' and 'favourite artist of last few years'?

assuming that's NOT the problem here, the 'electronic' thing is pretty much redundant given how widespread it is. but otoh we're constantly reminded/encouraged of the need to distinguish all those whose music is dominated by synths (hard or soft) and digitally sourced beats rather than good ol' fashioned guitars/drums and traditional song-writing values. but tribalism in this way remains understandable given the conditions of the playing field, media coverage imbalance and cultural prejudices etc. - there's still a sense of 'electronica' as catch-all bubble for a wide range of artists all different in sound but linked by the tools they primarily use if not also the methods they deploy or even the attitudes and philosophies they adopt. maybe that is less useful now than it was but i'm not sure (how do organisers of things like Sonar feel about that now? seems they still have a fixed idea of what 'electronic music' is, nebulous as it may be).

evidently i love ranking and idea of 'electronic(a)' catch-all still.

The ones I read have a lot more comment than the BEST of 06 or POX this or that. Not that I'm a list-hater.

http://www.discogs.com/artist/Trentemøller

You may already be on top of this, but that one track on Nam Nam is way tight.

Re Los Hermanos

The original line up was Gerald Mitchell and Dj Rolando. GM did Celestial Highways on Metroplex back in the late 90's which was a hit and Rolando was doing records UR in the mid 90's. Those cats are not new school whatsoever. I did not bring it up because I was trying to be polite.

Check the LH thread from a month ago. I made the a similiar mistake. ;)

I dunno, I'm not aware of anyone on ILM who likes Villalobos but not a lot of other dance music. Sure there are people who like Villalobos and who don't follow current twists and turns in dance music particularly closely,. i.e. casual observers.

Actually the funny thing with Villalobos especially is that, although his stuff has an increasingly distant relationship to the "club banger", it's v. difficult to imagine someone liking his stuff who wasn't already intimately familiar with dance music principles - his stuff is so tracky, so spare, so focused around rhythm etc. The first five minutes of the new Senor Coconut remix, for example, is basically designed for a long DJ transition - it has no other real purpose, and i imagine would annoy most listeners not prepared to accept and appreciate that.

If anything, the Villalobos tracks which go over most successfully with people who are otherwise into house/techno dancefloor anthem are those which are most like early 90s IDM - i.e. the fluttery melodic stuff he occasionally pulls out.

So yes to the IDM influence, but also yes to the organic approach to sound, something that he has in common with Isolee. I once asked Isolee what softsynths he used and he just laughed at me. "I use all kinds of sounds, real sounds" or something to that effect. A lot of the complaints on the booka thread object to the inorganicness, or "soulessness" if you will and i think that's a bit related. i still think a lot of people don't want to go over the hump of just listening to machines (me included)

maybe the intro to the Senor Coconut track is hard to take for non-DJs, but the idea of Senor Coconut is accoustic version of electronic songs. I was listening to Que Belle Epoque today - my favorite villalobos in years - and it's not a million miles away from krautrock.

... As well as a lot of IDM! You could even run the (admittedly tenuous) argument that Villalobos is like a marriage of organic deep house(that whole NuYorican Soul kinda thing) and organic IDM (Four Tet etc.)

"i still think a lot of people don't want to go over the hump of just listening to machines (me included)"

This is interesting though... would it haven been possible to say this and still self-identify as a techno fan throughout the 90s?

The original line up was Gerald Mitchell and Dj Rolando. GM did Celestial Highways on Metroplex back in the late 90's which was a hit and Rolando was doing records UR in the mid 90's. Those cats are not new school whatsoever. I did not bring it up because I was trying to be polite."

The first time they recorded as Los Hermanos was 2002. Sorry for being a full year out in regards to the title of this thread. Where was the term "new school" used in the original thread?

And gee thanks for telling me in such a "polite" way that Los Hermanos are UR affiliated. Next you'll be enlightening me that Jeff Mills is a famous DJ from Detroit who used to be part of UR.

"Hating on a d'n'b group that came out in the 21st Century is a bit too easy. And I didn't even know Los Hermanos were electronic, I thought they were indie?"

The second sentence here shows that the first sentence should be ignored due to your breathtaking ignorance. Or breathtaking arrogance if you assumed I was stupid enough to suggest a Brazillian indie band on an electronic artists thread.

I was only trying to suggest some things were different from the overwhelming ILM concensus approved dance acts (Villalobos, Booka Shade, Ellen Allien et al). I haven't heard much Villalobos but Booka Shade (who I checked out on the basis od discussions elsewhere on this site) are, to reiterate, boring fiddly knobwash.

As for the thread, I just attempted to make an honest list but including labels just keeps nagging at me, I can't list off producer after producer, it just makes zero sense for one massive area of electronic music, house/techno.

Tim OTM above, it is possibly because of DJing but then surely anyone who's really into house/techno can identify that there are many many people doing great things who you couldn't elevate to the status of auteur, and who without each other would make little sense.

This sound a little hippyish but it really is quite a co-operative effort, albeit an unconscious one.

as for

that's not really why i see your position as that of a fanatic tho. you exhibit fanatic qualities by not really talking about any other kind of music recently bar the minimal/tech/electrohouse axes and being so immersed in that at the expense of seemingly everything else. i'm sure it's not 100% exclusivity but it looks like it. anyway this is not a bad thing obv., just one of the two ends. and if that is the case then yeah i can't see why this thread would be of any use to you.

I don't know why so personal but all I'd say is there are tons of people who in varying degrees check new dance releases every week, it's hardly fanaticism, it's just one subculture of electronic music consumption. Presumably anyone who doesn't just dabble is being precious here though....

there are tons of people who in varying degrees check new dance releases every week

anyway, fanaticism is not a dirty word! you're just one of the few people i know now close to that type. but how broad is the range of stuff you check out every week? i'm genuinely curious. if you or others go through all kind of stuff but find the only thing exciting you is stuff within one subculture then that's not unusual, but would that make someone stop bothering to make an effort to listen to stuff outside that scene after a while? i don't know if that is the case for you.

i'd be interested to hear whether Tim's lost interest in certain styles recently as well or whether he keeps up the same freakish level of enthusiasm across the board.

This sounds a bit odd, but I think that much of how I got into Villalobos revolved around the intense polyrhythmy of his sound-- there are times when I think he is closer to some African or Andean music than a lot of house and techno, at least in terms of rhythmic structure.

I was only trying to suggest some things were different from the overwhelming ILM concensus approved dance acts (Villalobos, Booka Shade, Ellen Allien et al). I haven't heard much Villalobos but Booka Shade (who I checked out on the basis od discussions elsewhere on this site) are, to reiterate, boring fiddly knobwash.

a) Not all of the artists you mention are consensus approved. Read the threads and you'll see the divisions.
b) The reason why so many people like Ellen Allien (I can do without her solo stuff, but whatever) and Villalobos is because they're good. What the hell is the matter with that? It seems like you're being adversarial without a good reason.
c) You are OTM about Booka Shade.

rockist, i'd suggest you get yr mitts on the achso EP (actually just 4 long tracks) - a far more fully realized take on what he was trying to do w/ theoreme....

I understand why this is so, Philip, and I agree, but I genuinely like the au harem better. Also, is Achso an EP? Can something that is two full LPs long be an EP? If so, that is totally weird to me, for some reason.

# 1. Ricardo Villalobos Thè au Harem d'Archiméde
# 2. José González Veneer
# 3. Electric Six Señor Smoke
# 4. José González Stay in the Shade EP
# 5. Devendra Banhart Niño Rojo
# 6. Nelly Furtado Loose
# 7. Sinéad O'Connor Sean-Nós Nua
# 8. Brightblack Morning Light Brightblack Mo...
# 9. Amadou & Mariam Dimanche à Bamako
# 10. DJ Drama & Lil Wayne Dedication 2
# 11. Frank Black Fast Man Raider Man
# 12. Sonic Youth Rather Ripped
# 13. Cibelle The Shine of Dried Electric Leaves
# 14. Herbert Scale
# 15. Amps for Christ Every Eleven Seconds
# 16. Keane Under the Iron Sea
# 17. Danielson Ships
# 18. Gnarls Barkley St. Elsewhere
# 19. Evangelicals So Gone
# 20. Regina Spektor Begin to Hope
# 21. The Like Young Last Secrets
# 22. Smog Rock Bottom Riser EP
# 23. Camera Obscura Let's Get Out of This Cou...
# 24. Phoenix It's Never Been Like That
# 25. Pavement Slanted & Enchanted: Luxe & Reduxe
# 26. Sunset Rubdown Shut Up I Am Dreaming
# 27. El Perro del Mar El Perro del Mar
# 28. Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium
# 29. Mr. Lif Mo' Mega
# 30. The Replacements Don't You Know Who I Th...
# 31. Arctic Monkeys Whatever People Say I Am,...
# 32. Radiohead Com Lag EP
# 33. The Walkmen A Hundred Miles Off
# 34. The Raconteurs Broken Boy Soldiers
# 35. Metallic Falcons Desert Doughnuts
# 36. Tilly and the Wall Bottoms of Barrels
# 37. Danger Doom The Occult Hymn EP
# 38. Scott Walker The Drift
# 39. Young People All at Once
# 40. Tunng Comments of the Inner Chorus

Just a devils advocate suggestion as to why he might have a following amongst less dance obsessed fans. Though that statscock could be as broken as ILM's.

Despite this, I agree with Tim F! He may be a superstar DJ now (opening for Westbam & Paul Van Dyk pre: Love Parade) and Pitchfork may well have transferred it's Kompakt luv over onto the guy (mangling Phil S' statement a bit, sorry).

But as far as any indications I've gathered amongst more indie peoples tastes... Dude is practically invisible. His recognition somewhere WAY below DFA/Goldfrapp/The ghost of Electro & E'Clash > MU > Ellen Allien (who I reckon has picked up sales-wise but little in indie crossover appeal since Berlinette) > Kompakt, other Microhouse etcetera. Below standard issue "IDM" acts even... although maybe he's a little more visible than your propah Techno/House music (i.e. "old skool"/90's Retro/Detroit etc).

# 1. Ricardo Villalobos Thè au Harem d'Archiméde

INTERNETTERS CAUGHT IN BEING SPOOKED BY 'FREAKY HOOKLESS ETHNIC? RECORD,' ASKING PITCHFORK WHAT TO THINK SHOCKAH

http://www.horsburgh.com/images/tower_hit.jpg

Also for whatever it's worth, IMO very very little, I work in a shop and whether I like it or not tend to hear a pretty wide selection of every new release.

I mean why is this even important?

As for the importance of listening to a lot of different music, if you are a DJ it doesn't mean that much. If you are producing, it means everything. You have to have an open ear in order to get ideas from other places and drag them into whatever you are doing.

I read DP's post as the New York Pussy Cat Dolls...

Yeah yeah, it's all relative tho isn't it. But no point arguing here I suppose.

Also for whatever it's worth, IMO very very little, I work in a shop and whether I like it or not tend to hear a pretty wide selection of every new release.

I mean why is this even important?

I think it's worth a huge amount, potentially. Your job clearly informs your perspective. You're able to hear a wide selection of new releases by doing it. As far as this thread goes this doesn't necessarily mean anything tho even making the point that the concept of 'electronic artists' and the idea of ranking is pointless to you can still be useful. Like I say the only reason I'm grilling you is cos I'm genuinely curious about how your tastes/habits have changed as a result of doing what you do (Flattering eh? and more interesting than this ranking business no?).

Wish more DJ's could do this though! Doing it well, and tight, of course, not zany & forced ecleticism as such but, as long as we're talking beats in some kind of regular rhythm pattern?

I suspect comedown/chill out area DJ's find it naturally easier/more acceptable to bring "outside" genres in these days...

As I said, I think mostly you're projecting your ideas of current dance music, ie that it's a very narrow sliver of similar sounding music, this is not the case, but even if it were, liking one genre obsessively and noting the value of this does not preclude one from liking other music, I just don't talk about other things because I don't have alot to say about them usually.

Funnily enough despite listening to dance music alot I haven't noticed myself becoming more stupid and unable to get into other styles, form coherent sentences etc. (Though a friend who listens to alot of techno is now unemployable and mostly drools)

I've actually got into dub in quite a big way in the last year, mostly cos of listening to minimal. This is a pretty good example of non dance music you get into by listening to dance music, my point being that there's nothing narrow about wanting to opt out of the grist for the mill albums you read about in the paper for a few years, it's healthy and should be encouraged.

There are just as many ways to like alternative music as there are to like crossover albums, stop acting like anyone who does this is being pretentious or engaging in oneupmanship. I believe it's called ambition maybe you should give it a try......

ha ha. i just want to know what people like. why oh why is it so hard...

I'm not projecting an idea that the music is similar-SOUNDING thus somehow bad. It's conceptually similar. If one were focussing on music that all fitted under the same umbrella conceptually I would view this as 'narrow' in some way. Doesn't mean someone shouldn't do it. It's obv. very useful that some focus on specific areas - making them experts in them.

I wouldn't have known you had got into Dub until you'd revealed it, would I? So now I have an example of how listening to one thing has led to listening to/discovering something different and outside of that (but with some connection evidently) which is all I wanted really.

I never accused you or anyone similar of being pretentious or engaging in oneupmanship (and I don't think I really implied it). You've always been over-defensive like this on ILM. Although I am amused by your inference that I lack ambition somehow.

Steve I think the implication of people being "precious" was a bad start and from there it's just the usual refusal to believe in or total lack of understanding (or combination of the two) of peoples musical tastes in this regard.

Also I'm not really being defensive except to the extent I'm defending a point of view, so it's somewhat natural.

which is all I wanted really.

why? why did you want this? it's so fucking soul destroying!

oh fine, there is no similarity AT ALL between House styles and Techno styles and whatever's inbetween or overlapping them then. Happy? (give me a break...)

Steve I think the implication of people being "precious" was a bad start

No, I am enjoying this! And learnding.

But I still don't know why this argument. Steve what is your argument here or your point of view? It seems a bit like you don't have one and are just asking lots of questions.

None. So I must be punished.

if you really want to get conceptual, I'd just point out that there's a gargantuan amount of music "conceptually similar" to house/techno, outside of those two genres.

I'm just surprised you can never let valid generalisations like these just pass without questioning it. I mean I would've thought one would immediately be able to recognise some ways in which they are similar/closely-related conceptually without questioning it as if the idea was ridiculous but never mind. Maybe I take it for granted too much now. Again, it's all relative but you seem to resent the idea of lumping styles of dance music together at all for argument's sake so whatevs. It's just a difference of opinion (if not based on dilettant/fanatic split) rather than right/wrong issue I hope.

Steve what is your argument here or your point of view? It seems a bit like you don't have one and are just asking lots of questions.

What's wrong with just asking lots of questions? Unless you don't think they're good/worthwhile ones (I get this distinct impression - but I think that's harsh). There doesn't have to be a pre-determind point.

I just got annoyed by people questioning the point of the thread in the way they did so this has all stemmed from that. But it's better than people just boringly agreeing with each other all the time I hope. Good to re-affirm stances (unless a stance is something outmoded like 'electronica catch-all' and we don't have to do that anymore).