(I'll quickly mention that this was in response to a post of mine requesting
advice, specifically about how to file our music on mp3.com . I'm still
stumped... bear in mind that I can't create my own genre, I can only choose
from what's there...)
> [Emlyn]
> Goth!!!!! It can't be true - how embarrassing.
> Can anyone suggest something appropriate by way of genre?
>
> [Martin]
> I wouldn't personally put The Land Canaan in the "goth" cathegory right
> away as it only bears some resemblance (male vocals, the strings and
> some of the melody style) to what characterizes goth music in my
> opinion. However, both the music and the song is very much what would
> in most countries be filed under "goth" or "darkwave". It's quite close
> to bands such as Soil & Eclipse and Dronning Maud Land, and I find
> myself thinking of Webber's The Phantom of the Opera. ;)
I don't know those bands... I lead a sheltered life :-) I'll check them out.
The Andrew Lloyd Webber link comes up again. I'll come to terms with it yet.
I've had a few people say it sounds like a musical, and that we ought to
make a musical out of it. In fact, we embarked on that track in a fairly
cursory way, then got happily distracted by the birth of our second baby.
So basically, what it comes down to is that our music is Goth-Lloyd-Webber.
What do these types of music have in common? They both take themselves way
too seriously... I'm not sure that I'm happy with the implications of
that...
>
> The resemblance to Soil and Eclipse is quite striking anyway. I prefer
> your lyrics, the voices are about as good but Soil & Eclipse is a
> little bit better musically, at least their more recent releases. Not
> to say your music is bad at all. On the contrary, I really like it.
Thanks. I've mentioned the hardware we used before onlist... a bit
shamefacedly. I'll just say that it wasn't top of the range audio
hardware...
On Leaving was recorded over a year ago, sat in the cupboard. Bad me. We're
working on new material now; we are working with an excellent pianist, and
are about to go looking for a cellist and perhaps a violinist. Probably a
name change in the works, too.
I'm really champing at the bit to do some more recording. On Leaving was
recorded only a few months after I started classical singing lessons, and
Jodie was morning sick! Expect a superior effort on future recordings.
>
> snipped a lot of interesting stuff about gothdom/death
> Anyway, "gothic" (or "alternative", which doesn't really mean much
> these days) would probably be what most people'd call your music, but
> you could always call it "neo-ambient" or something. It is tradition
> for bands labeled as "goth" to say "we're not goth!". ;)
If I same I'm goth, then I'm not, but if I say I'm not, then I am. Oscar the
Grouch has this kind of problem...
> But don't
> despair. I label my own band Kallisti "experimental rock" and everyone
> else says "oh, your goth band". ;P
>
> Personally, if I'd write a review of The Land Canaan, I'd say that it's
> musically mostly "slow, dark electronics", vocally "musical" and leave
> the classification at that. Genres aren't the most important thing in
> the world. I'd concentrate on whether it was good or not, and on the
> content of the lyrics.
Consider it done :-)
>
> /Martin, goth/synth/metal/pop music journalist in Sweden
>
We owe a great debt to Sweden in our music! We had a music theory teacher,
Ulle Palmqvist (sorry if that's wrong), for over a year, to whom Jodie owes
some, and to whom I owe all my musical knowledge (at least that which hasn't
come from J). We'd still be seeing him if we hadn't moved interstate. We'd
take a composition to him, he'd sight read 5 hand-scrawled staves, playing
two or three on the piano and humming another, then say "that's not wrong,
that's fine, we'll take out the fifth and call it an E13". Thanks, Ulle, if
you're out there...
Emlyn
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Mon May 28 2001 - 09:59:56 MDT