an0va wrote:

hey mods is it possible to partition this discussion into a new topic? I'm pretty interested in where this is going but don't want to keep derailing

Anyone can make a new thread, like this one.

I was hoping for the posts to just be moved but FINE ok (thank you!!!)

hey mods is it possible to partition this discussion into a new topic? I'm pretty interested in where this is going but don't want to keep derailing

Anyone can make a new thread, like this one.

Frostbyte wrote:

This is basically what I meant. I mean, I don't wanna say busking is stupid. My "but why" comment was in regards to going balls to the wall when it's like nobody around cares.

I guess I'm just more of a timid person when I perform. I mean, I would just feel odd dancing like crazy unless there's enough social energy to really justify it. Call me a social leech if you want, but that's just how I feel comfortable with those things. I'm not the first one to dance, ever. Not at an indie gig or a party or anything.

are you me

I've never played a chipshow. I've only played guitar in bands that would be weird to dance to. I don't dance when I play. I don't know if I move or do anything weird or anything, I'm too focused on playing. I don't know, it's probably way different with chipmusic. I'm kind of a timid/self conscious person, I just assume that nobody wants to hear my music. If I make shitty music, and I'm acting like an obnoxious jackass on a sidewalk, why am I even there? To annoy people? Dancing with the dynamics of the music makes the dynamics more apparent, but dancing with a gameboy in your hand is just douchey.

Sorry about my rant. Getting my point across is kind of nice without stuttering.
I already responded to the OP, so I'll stop posting now.

Ah. I assumed you and Aeros were talking about busking in general.

Oh oh. Nope, I think it's cool if it's received well I guess! I don't think I'd be able to do it, personally just because of the social anxiety involved in it. Maybe I could do it with a guitar, but that's overdone.

And aeros, I was here first

This is basically what I meant. I mean, I don't wanna say busking is stupid. My "but why" comment was in regards to going balls to the wall when it's like nobody around cares.

I guess I'm just more of a timid person when I perform. I mean, I would just feel odd dancing like crazy unless there's enough social energy to really justify it. Call me a social leech if you want, but that's just how I feel comfortable with those things. I'm not the first one to dance, ever. Not at an indie gig or a party or anything.

are you me

an0va wrote:

I think a healthy level of selfawareness needs to be practiced when you're taking this stuff to the public. I think within chip (or actually, electronic music overall) it's harder to justify this approach because of the fact that most of the audience doesn't know what you're doing.

Completely agreed. I'm definitely not advocating a crazy, flailing performance. Jumping around and stuff like that almost invites the "all you're doing is hitting buttons" accusation, actually. The thing with public contexts is that you kind of have to be aware of the fact that your presence is either ignored or even unwanted for a lot of people. This means you have to respect the context -- you're ALREADY playing really loud music, jumping around and generally being a jerk isn't going to help any. If, however, you invite the inquisitive people in by letting the music itself do the talking, THEN you can justify why your performance is cool by telling them the deets on chiptune and stuff.

This is basically what I meant. I mean, I don't wanna say busking is stupid. My "but why" comment was in regards to going balls to the wall when it's like nobody around cares.

I guess I'm just more of a timid person when I perform. I mean, I would just feel odd dancing like crazy unless there's enough social energy to really justify it. Call me a social leech if you want, but that's just how I feel comfortable with those things. I'm not the first one to dance, ever. Not at an indie gig or a party or anything.

Speaking of ATDI, would just like to say I want them to make a new record with Cedric.

we're not really writing it off - just saying it looks rather silly and we personally would prefer to stick to playing our songs in places where we know people will like them, or at least a place where if we look silly while we're doing it then we're in good company. (although you do have a point, either way we look like idiots)

here's the thing -- the place you're describing is a chiptune show at a venue attended by your friends, and unless you live in New York or a place where that community is already established, that place doesn't exist.

This is kind of what Peter (Swimm) was railing against a while ago -- the attitude that our hobby isn't worth putting out there UNLESS it's greeted with showers of praise and excitement. That's basically a circlejerk. I'm not saying that anyone is obligated to go out there and perform, but the decision shouldn't be made on the basis of whether people will like it or not; that's YOUR job as a performer (and personally, I think the decision should be made on the basis of whether you can deliver a good "argument" for your art). Busking is just another way of doing this, and if done right, it doesn't look silly at all.

I think a healthy level of selfawareness needs to be practiced when you're taking this stuff to the public. I think within chip (or actually, electronic music overall) it's harder to justify this approach because of the fact that most of the audience doesn't know what you're doing.

Completely agreed. I'm definitely not advocating a crazy, flailing performance. Jumping around and stuff like that almost invites the "all you're doing is hitting buttons" accusation, actually. The thing with public contexts is that you kind of have to be aware of the fact that your presence is either ignored or even unwanted for a lot of people. This means you have to respect the context -- you're ALREADY playing really loud music, jumping around and generally being a jerk isn't going to help any. If, however, you invite the inquisitive people in by letting the music itself do the talking, THEN you can justify why your performance is cool by telling them the deets on chiptune and stuff.

I think the discussion comes down to assumptions made in different contexts. The important thing to ask when it comes to performance on a stage is "why is the stage needed?" (This will help answer a lot of questions re: why you like and dislike musical performances on stages (Swedish House Mafia doesn't need a stage to press "play" and fist pump for an hour)).

Most of the time, it's because a staged performance assumes that the audience will be static (relatively) and observe the performance the entire time, while the assumption on the audience's part is that the performer will be doing things that aren't really seen or expected in normal contexts, thus requiring a static and observant audience. What stages do is create a "space" for the performer to do his/her thing unmolested by people that aren't a part of the performance (good performances take advantage of this fact -- that's why people like it when you go crazy on a stage as opposed to busking). This is obviously just a generalization and doesn't apply to every single performance you'll see, but it's a good place to start when thinking about busking or performing in general. I also didn't mean for this to turn into a discussion on performance theory so sorry

I hear At The Drive In used to do their wacky stage antics even to a crowd of three people. But still, that was at the stage. I think a healthy level of selfawareness needs to be practiced when you're taking this stuff to the public. I think within chip (or actually, electronic music overall) it's harder to justify this approach because of the fact that most of the audience doesn't know what you're doing. So all they really interpret is 'someone flailing around while a track plays,' which is unfortunate because then they might go home with that impression, taking away from the music. Where in a different setting of the busking performer being a bit more reserved they might ask themselves, "what's really going on there?"

I don't know, it certainly is an interesting topic to discuss IMO.

It looks like a car battery charger and a regular bass amp, I may be mistaken.

Roland bass cube, I've seen many. I prefer a more compact approach.

There's nothing wrong with busking, you either enjoy performing for people or you don't, it's that simple.

we're not really writing it off - just saying it looks rather silly and we personally would prefer to stick to playing our songs in places where we know people will like them, or at least a place where if we look silly while we're doing it then we're in good company. (although you do have a point, either way we look like idiots)

From personal experience...WAY more people are totally into it while we're busking than you'd think.

And I'd like to say I don't think we ever look like idiots unless we intentionally act like idiots. Sure there are douchebags who give us looks, but I've never said to myself "Damn...those are the people I wish would respect us." No. You get remarks from people who you'd never want to speak to anyway. Saying the people who are doing the same thing you're doing only on the streets look like idiots is a bit frustrating since we're all part of this community. Maybe you're the idiot for not trying it? Just saying again...don't knock it until you've tried it, brotha.

Opening a stranger's eyes to Chipmusic is a great feeling and you'll never get that from just playing shows where you know the crowd is already familiar and completely into it. I do think playing shows is much more fun though...busking is just a different experience.

Plus busking is a great way to get people in your area interested in going to shows.