The Logic Off Topic list

TazmnianDv@... wrote: <I have the Underworld Live
DVD.  The songs are songs - lengthened perhaps but not
the improvisorial freedom you discuss.>

... i would agree to a certain extent there (this had
to be the case because the dvd project was a huge one
financially, perhaps these gigs were more carefully
planned then their usual ones?) but quite a few of the
tracks differ from their 'recorded versions' quite
significantly (compare 'cups' with the album version)
or have new sections ('push upstairs', 'king of
snake') that didn't exist on vinyl. i've heard them
combine elements of two or three different tracks at
once in a live situation, i would call that
improvisation (especially as they claim to never
rehearse).


<In fact, it seemed that most of their musicianship
was manning mixing desks - rather than keyboards. They
fiddle with the faders a bit.>

... you've hit the nail on the head there, though i  
suspect you didn't intend to. they use the entire
set-up as 'an instrument'. one of the things that most
excites them in a live scenario is knowing that
because everything is bought in on-the-fly like this
anything could happen, so 'bringing in the wrong sound
at the wrong time' would have them improvise around
the mistake and make it 'work'. 

<Many non-techno artists use some degree of
sequnencing with some live elements - Madonna, Janet
Jackson, Depeche Mode. ... even BT. I saw him live 
about 2 years ago - a great concert that appeared to
be mostly live actually but I read it was all
sequenced.

So can some of you outline for us how techno music
is made.. things different 
that non-techno?>

... i would suggest that maybe these acts that you
mentioned (with possible exception of bt and depeche
mode) incorporate sequencing into their live set-up
(usually as a finished arrangement, the other
musicians playing along to the sequencer) whereas the
live techno musicians would improvise the arrangement
with sequenced loops, ie: making up the arrangement in real-time.

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