May the farce be with you
After a 10-week hiatus celebrating 10 years of Minus, the collective has unveiled a new concept in community.
Beginning with a date in Detroit during Movement 08, fans of Minus will have the chance to interact with the The Cube — a method of registering their live presence within the Minus environment — and will then have access to exclusive tracks, will be able to upload demos and will have the chance to win some quality gear, including Native Instruments’ Traktor Scratch System.
According to a conversation with Richie Hawtin, founder of the label, The Cube explores “how technology allows us as artists — and the audience — to make further human contact than would have been possible in the past.”
So what exactly is The Cube?
According to the press release, “What is apparent is that the Cube is a highly advanced communications device that responds positively to the presence of humans and interacts accordingly.”
Put into terms that most earth beings can understand, it’s a concept that’s both virtual and physical.
Seriously are these guys trying to make people detest them now? Or make their fans feel ashamed? Or do some people love this kind of thing? I suppose they must. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve nothing against people doing something conceptual, but M_nus has the feel of a juggernaut rock act at the moment, as it blasts out these projects where the concept seems pretty empty.
Maybe the problem is that conceptual projects just don’t work when you’re already hugely successful. There’s just no possible subtlety, it’s like the size of the artist drowns out what they’re actually doing. Also in this case I just think: “Why are M_nus doing this?” and I can’t think of what it says or means beyond the kind of vague references to the wonder of modern communication usually used to sell us mobile phones.
And THAT photo . It defies ridicule. Anyone want to try and make a good caption for it?
Here’s an idea, if you want to make human contact with your fans then why not communicate with them outside of these endless pompous press releases? Or by releasing some records that people like?
Chris Helt wrote:
“how technology allows us as artists — and the audience — to make further human contact than would have been possible in the past.”
So the person who took Magda’s recordbag out of a club in Germany last week, was just feeling The Cube-Idea!
p.s. I really feel sorry for Magda.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 10:36 am ¶
Ronan wrote:
yeah in fairness that’s everyone’s nightmare, and totally contrary to the spirit of the cube.
I for one see a new future for dance music, and it’s cube shaped.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 10:38 am ¶
Chris Helt wrote:
Sorry, not recordbag, but laptop-case.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 10:45 am ¶
Ciaran wrote:
Its a strange one. Clever what the “cube” can do, IE download tracks etc via bluetooth but E30 for membership…
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:02 am ¶
Chris wrote:
Hawtin’s a businessman and an artist and he’s developing his ideas in both playing fields. Fair play to him. I don’t think he’s pushing his musical ideas as well as he used to, tho, going off that RA podcast. I get a bit bored of him being lambasted for his love of new technology and business. He’s just an easy white boy target. I don’t see the same degree of hating on Theo Parrish for doing that Adidas ad. I wonder why…
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:11 am ¶
Ronan wrote:
I agree Chris, to a point. I’ve defended Hawtin a lot even though I’ve very little interest in his music. The above is pretty funny tho I thought, seems to be begging for people to make fun.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:13 am ¶
Chris wrote:
I don’t mean on this blog, obv, I mean in the wider context of dance music discussion. I say, let them all be. Do I care that Theo’s done an Adidas doc and goes on about how ‘comfortable’ his shoes are in that RA interview? No. Do I care about Hawtin’s Cube? Barely. Do I respect what they both do as artists? Yes. Do I always like what they do as artists? No. Etc.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:15 am ¶
Chris wrote:
Let’s face it, Hawtin’s going to become a robot soon anyway so we’ll not need to worry about what people think about him.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:17 am ¶
Chris wrote:
Last comment: that photo IS very funny. Oh, and I’m liking that Chaton mix. Keep posting them, Ronan!
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:18 am ¶
clom wrote:
caption suggestion
“Schtop! Hammertime.”
or perhaps
“This is not the method of registering your presence within the Minus environment you’re looking for”
Still, they’re the ones that are going to be laughing (or perhaps standing around in their dark robes looking hella serious) when they leave the planet and nuke all us fleshbags from orbit using the mighty power of the cube.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 12:31 pm ¶
jon wrote:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q0HMrDefd0
Posted 08 May 2008 at 12:35 pm ¶
Kraftwerk wrote:
I don’t have any problem with Hawtin’s music (even though it is not my paticular cup of tea) and his interest in pushing the boundaries of technology, these are all good and admirable things at the end of the day, but press releases like the above, photos like the above and the over the top adoration he and the Minus crew receive can only make him a prime target for satire and general piss taking. Its the PR that lets him down.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 12:56 pm ¶
aidan wrote:
“Smell my hand, i just digitally interacted with magda’s box”
Posted 08 May 2008 at 2:27 pm ¶
tomo wrote:
they look like the bad guys from Superman 2
Posted 08 May 2008 at 2:43 pm ¶
G wrote:
i didn’t think they really meant it very seriously… looks like they’re having a laugh and getting a lot of sponsorship for it… though the steep membership fee seems to be taking advantage a bit.
(a slightly larger ‘lighten up techno fans’ message than techno vocals?)
i don’t really understand why richie’s such a love/hate figure - he never seems to be taking himself that seriously in interviews. maybe i’m just biased because i think his music’s fucking brilliant.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 3:02 pm ¶
todd wrote:
i heard if you destroy the cube you than have to fight richie hawtin to the death, which, if successful, unlocks 10 free minus downloads !
Posted 08 May 2008 at 7:41 pm ¶
mind at large wrote:
i was under the impression that minus was a record label, you know, these businesses that release music/press vinyl. 10 weeks of silence and all we get is one flacid release and a goofy-ass marketing campaign. this is the beginning of the end.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 8:56 pm ¶
Ronan wrote:
“i heard if you destroy the cube you than have to fight richie hawtin to the death, which, if successful, unlocks 10 free minus downloads !”
please somebody make “mnml” for xbox360.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 10:27 pm ¶
Joe wrote:
From the concept videos on their website to the Radio Fritz show from a few weeks ago, I think it’s evident that minus are happy to take the piss out of themselves…taking them seriously is almost equal to admitting that you think they’re a concern more relevant than even they think they are.
For what it’s worth, I’m ridiculously excited about the new stuff coming from Heartthrob and Louderbach.
Posted 08 May 2008 at 11:24 pm ¶
mind at large wrote:
nevermind what i said earlier. now that i’m stoned this whole thing is really quite hilarious. the first one is at demf and i’ll be there - see what this cube business is all about.
Posted 09 May 2008 at 3:36 am ¶
mano wrote:
wow i didnt know the x-men did techno…
Posted 09 May 2008 at 5:12 pm ¶
chrisdisco wrote:
i dunno. all signs point towards it being serious. i think part of the reason richie is such a lightening rod for debate, criticism and anger is that he has been such a huge inspiration and force of innovation for so long, and now that is disappearing as he goes further and further up his own ass. like so many people, richie’s plastikman stuff in the ’90s and his DE9 series were fundamental in shaping my tastes. without doubt, the best dj sets i’ve heard have come from richie. and over the years, plus 8 and then m-nus have released plenty of amazing tracks. and now, very little of that is there. richie’s sets are increasingly dull and uninspiring. m-nus are churning out average mnml records and seem much more concerned about being cool and making money than anything else…
m-nus aren’t dead as a creative force. for my mind, troy pierce is one of the best djs and producers out there. magda is a fantastic dj and gaiser’s sound hasn’t got stale yet. but it gets increasingly hard to separate the hype and bullshit from the music.
it is certainly a strange phenomenon. i dont think we’ve seen much like this in the techno scene before. anyway, i better stop.
Posted 10 May 2008 at 12:35 am ¶
todd wrote:
“please somebody make “mnml” for xbox360″
i’m thinking gamecube.
Posted 10 May 2008 at 8:11 pm ¶
Stef wrote:
Funny that someone called Kraftwerk has a problem with this given that they’re the lads who pretty much started this crap: going on about how they were robots, wearing makeup and all that shite.
Posted 11 May 2008 at 5:04 pm ¶
HRSN wrote:
m_nus=b_ring
Posted 11 May 2008 at 7:40 pm ¶
Robbie wrote:
“going on about how they were robots, wearing makeup and all that shite”
What a contribution!
Posted 12 May 2008 at 4:14 pm ¶
Stef wrote:
Don’t get me wrong, it’s great music but there was some extremely silly stuff spouted along the way especially if you go by what Wolfgang Flur has to say.
Posted 12 May 2008 at 4:26 pm ¶
Ronan wrote:
I guess at that time it was a bit more original.
Sometimes when buying tracks you see “In Love With Machines” or some such title and just cringe…those ideas are really creaky and old now.
Posted 12 May 2008 at 8:01 pm ¶
Ally Howie wrote:
It does all appear slightly contrived, but you have to respect, in my opinion, how Ritchie and the team have built an identity that is unrivaled and surpasses anything gone before in the dance Music industry.
If you consider all the whole package, how the label has evolved since it’s arrival, the visuals from Ali Demirel that accompany the live performances, they’re pushing the boundaries and raising the bar as to what can be achieved from a music label.
They do all look rather silly though and i would much prefer an release worth buying for a change.
Posted 13 Jun 2008 at 12:49 am ¶