The Field - Looping State Of Mind

[Guest beatfanatic]

I guess since the album leaked so early, kompakt decided to release it digitally right away.

[jules]

someone explain to me why a record company would still try to sit on a finished album for months after it is ready in 2011.

 

this is still on heavy rotation at my house and at the office. there is only 1 track I'm not too keen on.

[Guest beatfanatic]

. there is only 1 track I'm not too keen on.

 

its "sweet slow baby" isnt it?

[Guest Enter a new display name]

 

SEAL OF APPROVAL

[joshuatxuk]

Is The Field Gold Panda?

 

The Field's style is influential for a lot of artists, I bet. Looping small fragments of a song to make a melody or harmony. It's not necessarily new, but the exposure was big because of Pitchfork. I think it was definitely rightful exposure. There are some genuinely memorable songs that have stuck with me over the years listening to From Here We Go Sublime.

 

I very much agree, lot of tracks I still play out, even if they are a bit long. There was definitely a novelty to From Here We Go Sublime in the way he played with repetition and flipped samples. It was very accessible for such a minimal and arguably experimental release. Hyped, yes...but appropriately so.

 

Also, I think Philip Sherburne half-jokingly referred to the style as "nanotrance"

 

gold panda is similar i agree. not as good though

 

I think he's up there, it's just a different approach. I find Gold Panda easier to throw on as well. That said, I think From Here We Go Sublime helped steer that kind of production to a broader audience for producers like Gold Panda.

[MAXIMUS MISCHIEF]

uh oh you guys, hipster alert

[jules]

. there is only 1 track I'm not too keen on.

 

its "sweet slow baby" isnt it?

 

no it's track 2 or 3, I can't remember off the top of my head. im bad with track names.

 

edit: yea it's track 3. just seems lazy in comparison to the rest of the album. for the record, I love sweet slow baby

[KGW]

I really need this but I refuse to buy digitally as my Field collection will feel incomplete.

[KGW]

Pre-order the vinyl at Bleep and you get the MP3s instantly and the 2xLP also comes with the CD and is only £13. Pefect.

[KGW]

Pre-order the vinyl at Bleep and you get the MP3s instantly and the 2xLP also comes with the CD and is only £13. Perfect.

 

The comments in this thread and Pitchfork review have me excited. From Here We Go Sublime is one of my favourite albums.

[Guest Archrival]

Easily one the best albums of the year so far.

[KGW]

Had a first listen. Seems like it will be good. Obviously it's difficult to comment after one listen given that there are so many sounds condensed into each track. I'm sure it takes repeated listens to reveal the melodies hidden within.

[jules]

Easily one the best albums of the year so far.

 

also, on sweet slow baby, i keep waiting for panda bear's voice to come in

[jules]

this album is still delivering on so many levels. fantastic. I never thought I could get into this dude but he certainly has me by the balls right now.

[MAXIMUS MISCHIEF]

i personally like yesterday and today a whole lot more. the main thing i love about his music is the wall of sound that builds up and just gets so awesome but this album has very little of that.. and also every time i listen to this album i feel like the vocals in burned out should be on some of the other songs such as looping state of mind. that song really needs those vocals and i can almost HEAR them when im listening, you can hear exactly wher it needs to start to give that song sustinence, but it doesnt happen and its disappointing to me.

but oh well its still pretty good just not as great as y & t imo

[KGW]

I think this is really good. I agree with most of the reviews in that it's a perfect balance of the first two albums. I definitely already prefer it to Yesterday & Today though.

[Guest catharsis]

Sorry for the thread resurrection folks.

 

I've been listening to a TON of new music lately - alot of minimal especially (Alval Noto, Ryoji Ikeda, SND, Deepchord, Echospace, Gas, and some ambient stuff etc). With all of the critics and fans raving about The Field, I've been trying to understand what the big deal is about by listening to The Field non-stop with headphones, in the car, in the listening room etc

 

To me, it just sounds like minimal music for beginners (no offense to fans). Listening to From Here We Go Sublime, I can't help but hear 2 chord variations of simple samples OVER and OVER and OVER with little progression and the same 4/4 kick / hi hat / snare routine with a stinkin percussion noise put through a phaser for 5 minutes. It's cool for one song, but an entire album that follows the same forumla just seems like a lazy way out.

 

Same thing goes for Burial - I can see the appeal in some ways, but I feel like the music is Massive Attack with woodblocks, fuzzy noise, and loads of repetition and cheesy vocal samples. Whey these people are getting praise when others are being overlooked is a mystery to me.

 

I would LOVE if somebody can shed some light on what I'm not understanding / under-appreciating. Thanks so much everyone - I've learned alot from many members here who are more experienced and skilled than I.

[jules]

you are listening wrong.

 

 

no but seriously, not everything is meant to be scrutinized in a headphones/soundroom atmosphere. some things are for moods, backgrounds, etc. i understand what you are saying and 6 or 7 years ago i would've been completely on your side but...some things are just too good to nit pick the crap out of. some things are worth loosening your grip a little.

[Guest catharsis]

That's what I'm afraid I'm doing. Some music is meant to be felt...not overly analyzed or criticized, but I can't help it given the amount of minimal music that is so much more captivating.

 

Even when I let go and try to understand The Field from a non-critical standpoint, I still fee like the repetition is overused. At least with some other minimal music, there's a sense of uniqueness and strangeness that is present, but The Field seems so cliche to me.

 

Take SAW II for example. Loads of repetition, but at least the music seems like it comes from an alien place that is captivating and intruiging. I feel like those within even a smidgeon more talent than me (which doesn't say much) could make a track that could sound like The Field by finding two decent samples, and inserting a 4/4 beat with the use of a phaser plug-in.

 

Is The Field really that unique / complex / original that nobody within this forum could rival its supposed genius?

[jules]

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

 

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

[GORDO]

I don't think the field is considered genius by any stretch but you are thinkingway too much about it. you don't like it, move on. tearing it down for others won't make it better for you.

[Guest catharsis]

Understood...I will not think...I will not think...I will not think.

 

I can appreciate a certain aesthetic with the Field's music, I just don't think focused listening is the best way to enjoy it. Maybe I need to be less sober. I shall try.

 

Thanks jules and GORDO.

[jules]

i used to hate, no, despise that type of music but it really clicked with me this summer and i love the field. strange. it happened around the same time i started to really enjoy burial too. i try not to analyze the crap out of things as much in my old age and i find i can enjoy more that way. although there is always that little voice in the back of my head...

[Guest catharsis]

@ jules - The Field JUST clicked with me mere moments ago. You're absolutely right.

 

After a decade or so with AFX, Autechre..(no need to mention names), I've always EXPECTED electronic music to be something that is challenging and requires careful attention to be enjoyable.

 

Recently I've been trying to understand Gas, SND, and of course The Field, and I've felt a little mixed. Now it seems I understand - sort of; at least not on an intellectual basis.

 

I can't help but think of minimalism as Kazimir Malevich's "The Black Square" which is utter entire shit. I mean how long can you appreciate a black square before you start to realize that if you painted an orange triangle that you should be just as appreciated.

 

Artists like Gas and The Field seem to hit you on a primal level, you feel it rather than think it. I'm not used to that approach, but for the first time in days, I've been grooving to The Field in a way that I can't say I've done in a long long time.

 

Thanks dude for encouraging me to persist.

[jules]