This year, the tracks that got the most people saying nice things to me were Hapi, Joy., and the Because of You remix thing.
But the best tracks I made this year1 are, in fact, Fuck All Your Dreams and Chosen Again.
Those three incorrectly popular tracks share one thing in common: I never considered them finished. That’s also true of other tracks I’ve made that people like, such as I’m Sorry. I only decided I’m Sorry was finished because I sent it to my friend Lola to see if she had any ideas for it and she said, “It seems finished.” I was ready to move on so just went with it.
Similarly, I never planned on finishing this week’s track, Spinning, which people seem to like. I was on the verge of deleting the whole project from my computer when I sent it to my friend Brian saying something like, “Is there anything in here worth saving? I feel like it’s a bit obvious.” And he said, “No, it’s a banger, keep it.”
So the tracks that I share with people when I want them to have a positive impression of my work, such as Spinning, are those I don’t feel proud of, while the ones I like and would be excited to come across in the wild are ones that don’t resonate with people much.2 Sometimes, this irritates me. But when it does, I try to remember the sage advice of my friend Pete, who said, “It’s like that for everyone.” Meaning that even the most successful artists often find the work they’re most proud of goes unappreciated.
I suppose, at some point, tiny re-education camps will be necessary for my tiny audience. But, in the meantime, here’s Spinning.
Granted, I didn’t make Hapi or Joy this year, but I didn’t consider them finished, either.
Friendship is one of the few outliers. I think it’s dope and it’s also a (tiny) crowd-pleaser.
Thank god for Brian. This is a banger! Love, your most musically basic friend ❤️
Another musically basic friend here--I also like this!
do you think this part of the disconnect with your audience: the music that you like and are the most proud of, part of why you enjoy/find pride in it is because of the way it bends, breaks, rejects certain musical norms or rules etc in a novel, creative way. Whereas most basic folks, like myself, although we could not articulate those rules or categories, part of what we like when we like music is precisely its conformity to those background rules or wtv...
it's like your favourite comedian right, what's his name... where so much of his humour comes from using repetition and absurdity, kind of breaking the rules of what we expect a comedian to do when they get on stage to be funny (and which *allows* them to be funny). But then if you're a comedian's comedian, and you know the rules being broken, and see how they're expertly being flaunted, thats the joke..?
i guess this argument makes it sound like in such cases one is enjoying a meta-music or meta-humour, which i dont imagine is your stance.
anyways, thanks for throwing us basic bitches a banger so often!