We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

[djc200]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

Okay guys... thanks for the comments and feedback. It's really great to hear all of your viewpoints on this. Just to give you an idea of what my life is like... I work for the New York Stock Exchange. Everyone here are accountants, auditors and finance people. I'm an auditor myself and everyone here on Wall Street pretty much gets drug tested randomly and I'm probably one of 10 people (out of hundreds) here that really sweat that. Maybe that helps to understand where I'm coming from. And no, you don't need to go underground... that's not what I was driving at. What I'm saying is that it's like you go into work after a long awesome weekend and you can't really tell your manager or boss that you were out on Sat night til noon Sunday because your favorite DJ was is town because no one stays up that late without "help". So we hide our little addiction to house music from everyone. But then every now and then, you might find that one person in the office who looks battered from the weekend and you both have a mutual understanding of each other's pain and happiness.

I listen to DJ sets at my desk all day long and it brings me back to
the weekend.

Anyway, headed into a meeting now and I'll write more later...

Thanks again you guys for your feedback...

and ps... i love all kinds of music as well... i don't always just listen to electronica, but it is my staple. when i'm sad, happy, pensive, anything... the right dj set will set me alive.

[djc200]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

I definitely did not say that electronic music is the only good music, btw. I would never be so arrogant to say that. But I will say that hip hop today is fucking terrible. What the hell are they rapping about these days? What happened the good old days of amazing lyricism and the art of MC'ing? It's gone. Biggie, Tupac, Nas, Jay-Z, Mobb Deep, Outkast, the list goes on and on...

Anyway, my point is... I graduated to electronic music about 4-5 years ago and since then, my life has never been the same. I feel alive again and it's because of music. Unfortunately, only a fraction of people actually listen to house music and "get it". I don't know where you are all from, but even in a metropolis like New York City, the hip hop clubs are packed with people clamoring to get in night after night while the house music clubs and lounges continue to struggle to get people in the door.

Yeaaaaaaaaahhhhhh....I am not sure I really agree fully with what you are saying here...
I am not really all in for that "arrogance" of saying that "our" music is the only good music...I don't know about you but in my opinion a little variation feels good sometimes...from classical to reggae I love it all. I love music. Not just house, trance and most electronic genres but music in general.
As for a filling of belonging to a secret club...not sure about that either especially with the commercialization of dance music...how is it secret if John Digweed comes third on the Dj list???

I don't know man...these are just my thoughts on the matter...I am not criticizing you just saying how I feel about the subject...

[Miroslav]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

Although I'm not part of any particular club...I understand a lot of the sentiments djc200 is talking about. Being so into this music, it is largely an outsider's game for me here in the Midwest. I'm up there with the best of them as far as obsession with this stuff goes. My work history has also been basically white collar in nature...finance at a big pharma company and now, after business school, finance at an aerospace and industrial conglomerate. Nobody in these places knows anything about the music and it is kind of "wierd"...but I always present it good-naturedly and as just an extension of the "diversity" that corporations like to talk about so much...

In the end, I've always managed to surround myself with the right people who "get it".. And to those around me who don't, I ultimately find that I can't explain it; you either find your way to it or you don't.

[Garrick]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

i don't bother talking to people at work about my social life much. whether it is underground or not, it is none of their business. the less my coworkers know, the better. people are too judgemental today.

[djc200]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

There is no "club" per se... it's if you listen to house music, you are a fan, and a member of the club.... the club of knowing and understanding electronic music, going to great lengths to listen to it, going out on a thursday night because ben watt is spinning at cielo, your favorite club in the US, even though you know you're going to be suffering at work in the morning... all because you're a fanatic.

Although I'm not part of any particular club...I understand a lot of the sentiments djc200 is talking about. Being so into this music, it is largely an outsider's game for me here in the Midwest. I'm up there with the best of them as far as obsession with this stuff goes. My work history has also been basically white collar in nature...finance at a big pharma company and now, after business school, finance at an aerospace and industrial conglomerate. Nobody in these places knows anything about the music and it is kind of "wierd"...but I always present it good-naturedly and as just an extension of the "diversity" that corporations like to talk about so much...

In the end, I've always managed to surround myself with the right people who "get it".. And to those around me who don't, I ultimately find that I can't explain it; you either find your way to it or you don't.

[Garrick]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

where do you work miroslav?

[Miroslav]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

where do you work miroslav?

I used to work at Eli Lilly in Indianapolis. I'm working on getting my MBA at OSU right now and I've just accepted an offer to join Textron after school. It's an integrated conglomerate headquartered in Providence, RI - two major company brands that most people probably know are Cessna and Bell (planes, jets, helicopters).

[Garrick]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

sweet... i work at lockheed martin in the aeronautics company... i know all about planes, jet, helicopters. i'm sure your co-workers are probably similar to mine... most are pretty ignorant.

[Miroslav]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

sweet... i work at lockheed martin in the aeronautics company... i know all about planes, jet, helicopters. i'm sure your co-workers are probably similar to mine... most are pretty ignorant.

cool! We're a customer and competitor of yours! I see you're in Georgia, though...thought we might party when I do a stint at Bell in Ft. Worth (I'm in a 2 year rotational program)

[ShawnD64]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

Do you need to be in the underground to enjoy good music? Does being underground magically improve the quality of music?

Good music's good music, nothing changes that. Only thing that changes is partying with likeminded souls who get you. I reserve that for a select bunch of friends who love this shit as much as I do and we're more often than not the last men standing on a good night.

But if you think underground means a tribe or a club you can step into and everyone's patting you on your back and giving you some secret handshake and nod, that's bullshit. Some go to get pilled up, some go to booze, some go 'cos their friends are out, some love the music even if they don't know who the DJ is, and some go 'cos they're trying to pick up. You have no idea why people are at the same party you go to, as much as you'd like to think so.

Not that there's anything wrong, but all this talk of a 'club to belong to' sounds like some Ecstacy honeymoon.

in theory i agree with what you say, but take this scenario...

the last "secret" party i went to, went like so.... it was for the most part byob, but there was lots of beer/wine/booze there. when i got to the seventh floor with my buddy, people waited patiently in line and made pleasant convo, and when i got to the front of the line they asked for a $5 donation and when i paid an very friendly girl smiled and thanked me... everyone was into techno and happy to meet new people. no time limit and artists spent the whole week decorating the place.

this past weekend at a major club in boston... major lines in the freezing cold, dress code (i hate that). advertised price of admission $20/$15 with list. they bouncers kept people in line freezing for over an hour, with an empty club (to build hype). then charged $35 before 11 and then jacked it up to $40. then inside to be charged $8 a drink... fuck that.

if you are interested... read here... http://thephoenix.com/article_ektid25727.aspx
pic from the night

[feather]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

So you're saying everyone walked away with a satisfied grin, and come Monday you see some random from the party on the street and you feel all warm and fuzzy cos you were both at the awesome night and you can go back to normality knowing you've had your little escapade from the mundane?

Sounds familiar? That's the end scene from Human Traffic. Or was that Groove?

Being 'underground' doesn't so much as make the music any better but panders to our wanting to 'belong' to something. I don't have anything against 'secret/underground' or mainstream parties, hell I went to enough in my day, my point is the music doesn't change, the crowd does.

But there's no need to actively seek an 'in' or 'clued up' crowd as long as you're already partying with the right people, ie. your friends. Having the best crowd in the world doesn't excuse the fact that the music might be shit.

[Shpira]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

I think I lost you guys...

Anyway...I think the answer to the whole riddle is in following the good music...and sometimes following your friends.
I don't care about the venue and sometimes I don't care about the crowd I have gone out quite happily a couple of times alone and had a great night of fun and music...
I just close my eyes and feel the music...

went to laurent garnier alone---that was great, got chated up by some fat American girl ....lol
went to danny howells alone---that was shit, got chated up by 2 gays

So I think its the music thats most important although its always preferable to have someone to turn to and share your oppinions with...I guess it deepends how I feel at any given moment...


p.s. this is a sample of what 70% of people listen to in Serbia...LOL
so I am very much underground

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHRQ0azt_xM[/youtube]


AND BELIEVE IT OR NOT THE GUY ON THE VIDEO IN THE YELLOW T-SHIRT AND GREEN SHORTS IS MS'S OWN AND ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS --- "SKOTINA"

[ShawnD64]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

So you're saying everyone walked away with a satisfied grin, and come Monday you see some random from the party on the street and you feel all warm and fuzzy cos you were both at the awesome night and you can go back to normality knowing you've had your little escapade from the mundane?

never said that, just expressing my hate of some mainstream places.

there are some good parties thrown in some dive bars here... just providing an example where the underground was far better.

[djc200]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

Just to reiterate, my original post was alluding to the fact that people who don't listen to electronic music at all don't understand those that do. I didn't mean to take it to commercial house vs. underground house, but that was an interesting spin this conversation took.

headed to cielo for ben watt now. FUCK YEAH. tomorrow I will be hurting, but gloriously so... and my co-workers, well, they have no idea what euphoria on a dance floor is like, so they'll never understand that the pleasure derived from a night out like this is totally worth the sleepiness i'll experience the next day.

enjoy the ben watt sets in the promo area guys. it's sick!

dc

[Garrick]

Re: We Are 21st Century Counterculture...

rarely have i seen threads on here that actually stick to the point....
don't get your feelings hurt. have fun tonight.