Pantha Du Prince-Best New Music 2009

A symbol of greater integration between the suspicious parent and revolutionary child

The Past

Until very recently, electronic music has been a musical obscurity or novelty in the U.S. For the most part we associate it with clubs; music that thumps in the background while sipping cocktails. I mean sure, there are pockets of enthusiasts who are dedicated devotee’s, but these are niches and they have remained secondary to the dominant rock stars, rappers and pop stars.

As a culture we have channels, frames of reference that we naturally socialize around. For America our macro soundscape has been: rock, soul, jazz, hip-hop and all of their sub genres and off shoots. Good or bad, these music styles our part of our cultural heritage, we instinctively digest them as paradigms in our brains, informing our most basic perceptions about music.

The Present

Americans have heard electronic music, but it hasn’t produced a Miles Davis or an Elvis. We have yet to see widespread adoption in our culture, and this is precisely why electronic music is so compelling.

Electronic music is still new; exploration and experimentation still possible. As a style, there are cornerstones, but not the cornerstones current musical paradigms have followed. Electronic music is still capable of discovering more mysterious about us-it’s creators.

The Future…

I feel that electronic music over the course of the next decade will emerge as a new musical paradigm. A nascent thirst has developed amongst audiences, more and more artist’s are venturing away from traditional styles. An overwhelming amount releases have come forth, not to mention a new recognition from the press and music consumers. These trends all indicate that a broader level of awareness is impending.

I can’t say this definitively, but the energy I experience today, might be similar to how people felt at the onset of be-pop.

A Reason?

Civilizations and their human constituents are undergoing a profound transition. A period of change that isn’t your average evolution through space and time, but a significance-a poignant moment. I see ourselves upon a precipice; a position inextricably tied to technology. We are a computer culture with a vast array of screens and programs.  From cell phone’s to personal computers,  we are connected to technology. Each passing day we integrate ourselves deeper into this massive mainframe and it’s changed everything: banking, medicine,communication and Lp33’s primary interest-music.

I can’t comprehend the magnitude of the moment, but I have a firm sense that we are in it. I’m not referring to a superficial change, but rather a poignant moment in our history.

Pantha Du Prince

German electronic musician Hendrik Weber is considered minimal techno, but minimal is a misleading label. Pantha’s sound is too lush to be minimal. Far too many instances with a host of sounds across the spectrum. The term Minimal should be reserved for releases on Touch, that feature a single waveform subtly altering for 20 minutes. I believe a more a apt description’s for Hendrik would be articulate/sharp. Delete the word techno.

Consider the imminent  “Behind The Stars’  off  Weber’s 2009 EP, which demonstrates the sharpest editing and precision with respect to sound. This music is honed—cut with an unrelenting diligence and conviction. It’s difficult not to feel impressed or even intimidated, but it forces you to think.

The sound of control; control through technology.

Hendrik’s music demonstrates what technology can manifest, and the effects are humbling. Ears seldom experience music so calculated and driven, but equally possessed with furious emotion. At first, the music is paradoxical. How can all this control, computation, and refinement have equally intense emotion? Doesn’t there have to be some sort of connection to a wooden instrument for emotion? No.

Pantha Du Prince shatters a common falsehood about the naturalness of technology; the pervasive notion that technology (silicon/electricity) is in some way less natural than other creative tools.

Instead, the music elicits that technology is an expression of life. I vehicle moving along, no less natural then it’s human creators. Weber has presented us with an incredible statement, delivered in a way that forces you to take notice of our direction- insights into the precipice. I can’t think of another records from 2009 that shook me like this.

Look Out For Pantha Du Prince’s 2010 LP “Black Noise” featuring Animal collectives Noah Lennox (Panda Bear ) and Tyler Pope of LCD Soundsystem.

You can grab Pantha’s latest EP The Splendor HERE