King Keytan
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Ayr, Scotland

I've been thinking a lot about the way artists group tracks based on the styles of music and the medium they made it with a lot lately and wanted to find out other people's opinions.

Do you prefer artists to stick to one format per album? Would you prefer an artist to say, release an Amiga album and then a separate LSDJ album  even though they are in the same style? Or does the fact that they are in the same style warrant the tracks being on the same release? Is the thing they were made with the way you prefer them to be grouped?

Also, what do you think about bonus tracks on albums? Is it an extra incentive to get an album even if it's in a different style/format, or does a progressive jazz track at the end of a minimal house album seem tacked on and out of place even when made by the same artist and with the same tools?

Ultimately none of this really matters too much and people should release an album whichever way they want, but I feel like it might help to know the general consensus on this stuff.

Last edited by King Keytan (Dec 17, 2013 3:09 am)

ShinigamiMachine
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St. Charles, MO

I always enjoy variety in sound, but I like the style to stay within related genres (dubstep and dnb for example although i hate dubstep tongue)

chunter
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Brunswick, GA USA

I blend everything I like...  is that off-putting?

herr_prof
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More artist driven records and less genre driven please

Saskrotch
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Chicago IL
herr_prof wrote:

More artist driven records and less genre driven please

Totally agree

But for me, I try to write albums instead of just compilations of tracks I've done (except for a couple times). I always feel like an album should have a specific feel to it, so I tend to group stuff by sound/style.

Sesska
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France (au milieu)
Saskrotch wrote:
herr_prof wrote:

More artist driven records and less genre driven please

I always feel like an album should have a specific feel to it, .

+1

a certain coherence within an album tends to give the artist a ''pro'' aura, it somehow has to tell a story, like the different scenes of a movie.

i feel that it's also a kind of ''respect'' for the audience, not to throw bits of spare tunes all together in a ''album'' smile

Jellica
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England

same here. i feel that my proper releases should have a feel to them rather than just a bunch of random tracks banged together.

I've made more than enough music this year to put out several records but most of it doesn't fit together in a coherent release or it isn't good enough to release.

Sesska
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France (au milieu)

in another life I've worked on some projects for dancing and theater performances (I was on Reason+ friend on turntables then)

it was great for composition to have both general directions for every given tracks AND a global plot to follow... it gives a lot of ideas in terms of samples, instruments to use, different colors to add, a certain rythm to find between tracks.

sandneil
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idc really

id rather be swamped with stuff & be able to find my own gems in it than be given a handful of tracks every few years in the name of consistency/coherence/other vague terms (ahihi bitshifter/blitz lunar)... the gold standard is the ropmusic releases with 50+ tracks.

a lot of weight is given to The Release but in the end its just that, a release. like a fart. it doesnt have to be a masterwork and ultimately its not really even up to you to decide what is/isnt your magnum opus.

im not saying "dont do a concept album" just dont let thoughts like these prevent you from sharing stuff you made with people who might enjoy it:
"these tracks dont 'fit' well together"
"this album is too long"
"this is an album but the chip scene prefers EPs"
"this album is too diverse"

ya if youre charging money for something maybe you need to try offering good value for money. but taking songs away isnt likely to increase the value for money ever

PROTODOME
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UK
herr_prof wrote:

More artist driven records and less genre driven please

Sesska
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France (au milieu)
sandneil wrote:

taking songs away isnt likely to increase the value for money ever

this sentence will fill up my boring day at work with deep silent metaphysical self debate smile

SuperBustySamuraiMonkey
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Madriz, Supain

¿Can you imagine a rock band releasing a fuzz only record, then a muff only record, then a clean+phase only record, then a distortion record?

SketchMan3
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NC in the US of America

Honestly I don't care. They can throw as much variety at me as they want. I like to be surprised by music. It's nice for things to be related, but they don't have to be "same" to be related.

I'd think one would be able to better tell a story with a variety of things.

PROTODOME wrote:
herr_prof wrote:

More artist driven records and less genre driven please

^

ShinigamiMachine
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St. Charles, MO
SketchMan3 wrote:

Honestly I don't care. They can throw as much variety at me as they want. I like to be surprised by music. It's nice for things to be related, but they don't have to be "same" to be related.

Basically what I meant.

Brother Android
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TX
sandneil wrote:

but taking songs away isnt likely to increase the value for money ever

Value for money is a poor metric in these matters - by this logic, why not release any old thing that comes into your head? Why not make all your songs 10 minutes longer than they need to be? An artist who edits their own work ruthlessly may not produce a lot of material, but maybe the material is deeper and more enriching.

Not to say there's anything wrong with being prolific and releasing a lot of stuff, but there's inevitably something lost there. We all have limited time and ability, and there's a lot to be said (though it doesn't get said often these days) for using what you've been given to make something as good as possible rather than making as much of it as possible.

MicroD
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Dallas/Fort Worth, TX

My style always varies a little bit, though I think writing a group of songs within the same year or two generally makes them related enough (as they represent my general leanings/feelings around that time.)

I do prefer releases that are limited to a specific sound set or chip, so they are at least more sonically cohesive. I've done 2 Game Boy albums, an NES album, and plan to keep up with that grouping method in the future.