traces-of-desire

The Kissing tree - ftprints11

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 02:52:51 +0100

The new ftprints11 album The Kissing Tree (2011) features new songs such as Better Days, Warm, What's it gonna take? as well as more the electrodance styled tracks such as Don't u want to dance? and I want the truth. This album is more of a synthesis of genres than the Unsound and Thump twin set, focussing on simple yet evocative musical statements. Like all ftprints11 music there is more to it than meets the eye (so to speak) and rewards the discerning listener with depth of field ralely attained in pop.

Musical Chairs

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:21:30 +0100

Music involves one in an intimate and deep relationship with their own emotional reactions and interpretations. One meets themselves in the journey of a song, but may not recognise themself. Much like a dream, when a song or piece of music is heard, it can get to you; it can work itself into your mind, inhabiting your unconscious. Songs evoke memories and emotions which are unique to us, yet they are inspired by the very same sound that others hear. But no two people hear exactly the same thing, nor do they experience the same reaction. However, this is not what record companies want. They would rather that the consumers reaction was predictable so they can market more music to you even more efficiently. Young people are being trained, or programmed, by mass media and marketing techniques and music is the most powerful element of persuasion of them all, simply because people don't take pop music seriously. But they should; it can change the world and is already doing it. The corporates do not realise how important it is to a self, a culture and the sharing of an expressed ideal. They do know how lucrative it is for them to exploit the power of pop musicians and writers for thier own ends. They do not care what music is sold as long as it is selling. No doubt we will have to endure a string of Michael Jacksons 'new' material - which is in fact dated, second-tier songs and out-takes. How can it be new when it is not? What is new is what you have not heard before, that's all. Music brings minds together in concert, and in this shared meaning experience there is no time or place, just the eternal longings of the human heart. Desire fills our hearts but music comes from the heart, and it will find its way back there if one is listening to the songwriters. I don't mean that formulaic and trite shit, or crap dance music (the Australian Aborigines only needed clapsticks to have a rave party - a corroboree - so what is the big deal in making people dance? Mating rituals may need a little throbbing music to aid success, but it is the sale of alcohol, ecxtasy, speed etc which drives the venue operators) which is designed to suck in more stupid people who are like sheep, but the real stuff, the good stuff, the surprisingly emotive and meaninglful sounds of an accomplished music artist who actually has something to say. Good musicians are driven underground, forced to find their own audience whilst the big record companies manipulate the market by stacking it with their cheesy pop-star products, many of which are rip-offs of some credible artist's style which they use to attract attention or are already TV celebrities. It does not follow that a singing competition winner or a celebrity is an important artist in cultural terms. Many wannabe pop stars just want to get famous' at any cost and there are many who will pander to that delusion. But fame is a fraud; an illusive, shallow, superficial and false. It is, rather, the delusion that fame can satisfy our longing for admiration and freedom which is the greatest danger to an individual's 'belief and action system' - their narcissism. But freedom is to be found within, and that is precisely why music is so important because it is the activity which above all represents the true heart of humankind and rational economics has no place in that relationship. Music is not a competition, so why have the TV networks opted for the American/Australian 'Idol' format, for no self-respecting singer would appear on such a show. The pressure to emulate other bygone pop stars is tremendously unfair on these novice singers. Though they may have nice voices, their aspiration to be stars has little to do with original, innovative, content. No wonder the world seems to move so fast when the soundtrack to your life is in the hands of greedy corporations who have got your number! Make your choice from the feelings of your own heart and do not listen to what others are 'supposed' to be listening to or buying. That is their life, not yours. Choose the soundtrack to your own life!

flexrock

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 22:37:05 +0100

ftprints11 (aka Richard Rummery and special guests) is the originator of flexrock, a unique form of modern pop/rock music, gestures and structure which draws upon the Art tradition as much as the fashionable trends and developments of the popular forms. No style of musical expression is out of bounds here, the are all relevant and valid if they are sincerely performed and crafted to evoke real emotions and memories that can heal and nurture the inner self or unite people in collective dancing. Flexrock is a form of musical communication which recognises foremost the needs of the modern listener in its diversity, flexibility and depth. The aim is to create and maintain an intimate and rewarding relationship between the artist and listener without hyperbole, sensational claims and exaggeration which spoils so many acts. Flexrock is music for real people who need a little more sophistication in their pop; expect anything from melodious repetition and beats, to dark poetic excesses and riffs. Rummery is a pop philosopher and songwriter with extremely broad musical influences - from Debussy and Wagner to Zappa, U2 and Kylie. He represents a new breed of original recording musician which was not possible ten years ago such s the pace of change. But Rummery, like many geniuses of history, is always steps ahead of the mainstream pack - which is ironic because flexrock is steeped in the music of the past and aims for a brighter and more expressive future. What is extrordinary about flexrock is its accessibility to the mainstream whilst retaining the all-important credibility required for serious critical attention and longevity. Whilst other major artists have been distracted from their natural artistic development because of industry restrictions and greed, ftprints11 have negotiated a natural course of development which is reflexive on the popular yet always transcending it. Hence, the prolific nature of Rummery's work. Technology and creativity are the markers of all the new generations dealing with constant change, and this is first captured in the spirited and worldy attitude of the new music of the times. But the rush for the new must be tempered by the need of traditional meanings, and it is this commitment to the solid foundation of the possibility of experiencing a 'truth via organised sound' which is the purpose of of flexrock units like ftprints11. Quality songs are what people not only want but need, however the mediocrity and vaccuous music produced by corporate powers today, who are marketing to ever younger and impressionable people because of the slipperiness of the 'public' or market they think they have constructed, yet the individual is free to choose thier own music. The corporate approach manipulates the mind of the individual, but the individual can fight back with their own choices. This threatens the possibility of being controlled by marketers, paving the way for a 'new enlightenment' led by music. So, unique pop artists who are not compromised by economic and media pressures, like so many are and have been, are even more valuable and represent the future of the changing music - listener relationship.