REVIEW: THE SOUND OF SILENCE I BOX SET by Austere

[APK]

Mike said:
"... I may insist that real names or at least a link to public contact info such as a blog
may be required to post in this "Independent Reviews" section."

I'm fully in support of this.
And I think real names are necessary to give these things credibility.

[ffcal]

Mike said:
"... I may insist that real names or at least a link to public contact info such as a blog
may be required to post in this "Independent Reviews" section."

I'm fully in support of this.
And I think real names are necessary to give these things credibility.

I'm in agreement with this, too.

Austere, I hadn't realized you had sent a copy, but no, I never received it.

Forrest

[Austere]

And I think real names are necessary to give these things credibility.

We like anonymous. If that means we can't post here... hey, haven't for a long time anyway.

Why anonymous? Because we're anti-ego. Because it's a great way to get honest feedback from friends rather than "It's great" because, you know, they're friends. And lots of other good reasons. But that's just us.  If it means we can't post here, cool.

Oh, and copied the other half the thread, since he won't even read the forums, and he Skyped:

"One other cock-up: the 120mm "CD" in the box set isn't a CD at all. That's why it's clear. Tell 'um what it is."

It's a clear, plastic "regular" CD that's actually a unique, etched 78RPM record. Yup, we built a Japanese model of an Edison recorder, and played stuff, and when we liked it, we put on a plastic disc and etched a 78RPM "record" during it, with a "horn" that captures the sound. No mics, no electronics... well, a motor spins the disc so you can etch it. But that's all.

Can you play it?  Probably not. Although they sound pretty cool at 45 and 33RPM and will not hurt your needle nor turntable, we promise! Should you put in your computer? Nope. Won't hurt it either, though. What would you hear? Super lo-fi drones and swirls and stuff. That's yours to keep and hear... it's one of a kind, just like you.

We wanted to create unique recordings for unique people. And hey, 78RPM gets a bad rap. So anyway, if you have / bought / get the boxed set, that clear disc? Won't hurt your computer, but it's not a CD, it's a 78RPM record, and every one is unique. Just like you. Really.

[mgriffin]

Nobody has said anything about no more anonymous posting. The idea is that that the "Independent Reviews" section might need to have some kind of identities attached to the reviews, otherwise people won't be able to tell if they're independent or not. There are plenty of other places here to talk anonymously about all kinds of subjects, including music.

[petekelly]

'Real names', sock-puppetry - the plot thickens !

[El culto]

Nobody has said anything about no more anonymous posting.

Even i am not a native speaker i understood this too.

Actually i find this guys a bit too much thin-skinned in regard to their expressed "we donīt care" coolness.

[Austere]

Actually i find this guys a bit too much thin-skinned in regard to their expressed "we donīt care" coolness.

Hee, hee. Of course we care! Posting = we care.

We're just trying to get facts straight, that's all. Nothing more. We weren't/aren't/won't "defend" ourselves. Just trying to get info straight. Like J. Pe is not one of us, etc.

Trust us. We are not cool. We know cool, and we're not. 

OK, bye bye for a couple more years. It's been fun! 

[Bill Binkelman]

Wow....what a lot of fuss about such a little thing. I will admit, A., that these posts of yours sound somewhat atypical from other ones of yours I have read over the years here and elsewheres (no need to be THAT self-deprecating - that's my shtick!)...and it has been years that I have known you. That's fine...everyone changes over time (look at me).

As far as the brouhaha over reviews, while the initial review was a little hyperbolic, I never thought it was a plant. Just a very zealous fan. If you have followed Austere over the years, they you know that they have never been preoccupied with self-promotion and have always been modest to a fault in the face of praise. So thinking they either authored this review or endorsed it is a little nonsensical. Nothing personal to those who criticized it...just that it would be the same as accusing Steve Roach of making overly commercial music or accusing Mike G of being mercenary in how he runs Hypnos. Those are two examples, like Austere, of people who simply are not wired that way, at least from what I can tell from my vantage point (which can be wrong, of course)

Just sharing my view...it's all good, really. Hey, A. Don't be strangers, man. 2 years is "2" long. :-)

[Scott M2]

Hey Joe - Thanks for contributing to the forum. I look forward to any further thoughts you put forth,
though they probably won't provoke as much fun as this one. Cheers!

Hey Austere guys - I'll bet Mike would make an exception in the anonymous dept for you.
You were fun to have around here - and speaking of fun... your 78 sounds awesomely wacky! Cheers to you!

[drone on]

This is why I keep leaving the forum...and coming back!

But seriously, my hats off to Joe LP and Austere for handling all these attacks with supreme coolness.  Plus your comments made me laugh harder than I can remember at something posted here.  Laughing so hard I'm crying! 

[APK]

"all these attacks" ??

 

[mgriffin]

Threads like this one wear me out.

I do regret that a new forum member who was only trying to contribute had to end up in the center of this muddle. Hope you stick around Joe LP!

[ffcal]

Threads like this one wear me out.

I agree.  I have nothing more to add, though I did receive a nice email from Austere and hope to hear some of their music soon.

Forrest

[jkn]

Hold on...

Wait.

What?

There was a pubic hair in that box?   Oh man it's probably on my floor!    (Yes, I have this box)  Thankfully, it's likely been vacuumed up by this point.


Honestly - I do not mind flowerly purple prose reviews...   if someone feels like writing about music and takes the time to do it - that's awesome.   Of course - having a balance of good and bad is nice... but i have to admit - I almost always only write about music I like.   

So - Joe ...  don't go!   Keep writing - and write the way you want to. 

John

[drone on]

Well if not attacks, what would you call it? Snide remarks?  Joe LP wrote a glowing review and got accused of writing a press release for a 3-year-old release (GIVE ME A BREAK).  Austere chimed in and then was accused of "faking" his "I-don't-care" attitude (GIVE ME A BREAK!).  It seems like somebody's always got to make a smart remark, then later take no responsibility for starting or inflaming the situation to begin with.  Even in my last post somebody's got to pick something out and question it, like I am so out of line or off base or something.  If there's one thing I would change about this forum, it's the negative attitude.     

[El culto]

I thought i wouldnīt response anymore, but this have to be answered

Actually you could cool down a bit too 

If there's one thing I would change about this forum, it's the negative attitude.   

In German we say, for this we have to start first by ourself

Austere chimed in and then was accused of "faking" his "I-don't-care" attitude (GIVE ME A BREAK!).

If you have read the WHOLE conversation (did you?) then its more then clear that Austere reacted  - after Mikeīs statement/idea for clear names - like they are in a huff ("If that means we can't post here"). Nobody has said this or whatever before, so should i say here also "GIVE ME A BREAK"? I for myself expect a little more maturity, especially for someone with this kind of showen and declared "we want to be different" profile. And finally, they responsed to it in my direction and all was fine. I donīt think this topic needs further "warm ups" and also Austere is perfectly be able to response to other comments by themself if they feel there is something unfair said.

If you really see this comments as an "attack", then we donīt need anymore discussions and/or different opinions at all!

[APK]

On my end, I didn't have any trouble with Joe LP's perfectly sensible reply or with Austere's general response.

I simply thought, after reading the 'review', that it read more like a promotional announcement than a music review and said so. It still does read that way to me. I'm sorry this seemed to cause a little verbal avalanche here that divided the camp. But you know, this is a public forum and what is posted is open to alternate views as long as they have credibility and are not simply vindictive. I'm also a moderator here, and partly responsible for posts getting into the right sections and threads. Joe LPs post put in a different section, like Other Ambient in an "Austere" thread, would not have brought a response from me. It was nothing personal.

Maybe we can just move on now.

[jkn]

Word.

John

p.s.     This is both a "backing" of Mr. APK's last comment... as well as my attempt to get the last "word" in. 

[Austere]

Hey Joe

"... Heard you shot your woman down. Hey Joe...."

Sorry. Hendrix is still god.

Thanks for contributing to the forum. I look forward to any further thoughts you put forth,
though they probably won't provoke as much fun as this one. Cheers!

Wethinks, like us, he's been scared away. Which... is bad. It's like a bitchy clique that makes any new person have to be hazed.

Hey Austere guys - I'll bet Mike would make an exception in the anonymous dept for you.

Oh, no, no exceptions. If there needs to be names, then we won't post in this forum.  Exceptions tend to be hard; black/white, which rarely reflects the real world, is still the easiest. So if no anon posts in this forum, we won't post. We choose to be anonymous; we accept any consequences of that, and rules are rules are rules, and only play fair.

You were fun to have around here - and speaking of fun... your 78 sounds awesomely wacky! Cheers to you!

To be honest, it was fun to build a record etcher, and find a use for all these clear plastic 120mm "CDs" we'd be trying to figure a use for. We should mention we did run out, so some are on "coastered" CD-Rs. But it was a hoot to build, and the results as well. The actual recording? Ooof. Still, worth it. Every one unique. Any one who has one, has their very own. We think everyone is unique, and the idea of giving them a unique piece of musick was impossible not to do. Oh, and yes, whacky!! But that's pretty much our modus-operandi.

Cheers to you! Good to see you still posting, out and about, etc. And thank you for your polite, thoughtful response! Yrs, A

[Austere]

hats off to Joe LP and Austere for handling all these attacks with supreme coolness.  Plus your comments made me laugh harder than I can remember at something posted here.  Laughing so hard I'm crying! 

Then our mission successful, and our work here done!  Truly, laughter is the only reasonable response. Cheesios, A