Also, I meant to point out that most rock'n'rollers get into it to be that performer on stage. Not so much the case with the average producer gone big time. Autechre I know are just some geeks that wanted to make hip hop, but got way too out there and never came back (thankfully). Plus, these guys are such a walking contradiction to music culture that I've heard this report from many people. I think they make it dull/strange/uncomfortable for the audience on purpose just to mess with people...like..."you paid for this...hahahaha." Their music is great, but I can't swear that when they started, they were looking forward to getting on stage and impressing a crowd with their music *and* presence.

Prefuse73 came up backing southern rappers as a DJ/producer/programmer. He got bored and started doing his own thing which is commendable. But again, from the evidence of the short story that I know of his past, he also didn't start off trying to impress on stage.

So there are elements of a stage performance that are foreign to these guys.

I totally agree with you, Joel. There is a lot to be desired in a live performance and the "I'm checking my e-mail" look is not enough. I know that's not what they are really doing (I hope at least), but the affect is there.

Oh, I've heard that SquarePusher puts on a great show as well, but again he incorporated live instrumentation (his bass playing will blow your mind and he uses a live drummer often etc...).

Personally, this is exactly why I do not go out of my way to go to "electronic concerts" but aim more for the larger events where I can catch several artists and have the option of going to a different area if I get bored. I can't get myself to pay $35-60 for a few acts on one stage anymore. Plus I'm spoiled by my local scene where we get little known, but very talented heads dropping in for $5 club parties and free mountain parties. I'd rather be able to slap someone a high five after their set anyway and we don't put people on stages.

honestly, this is why I'm so fanatical about live looping sets:

the audience sees you playing instruments and producing as you go along and there is space for
theatrics and audience interaction (although I have seen several looping peformances that were the
equivalent of check the email laptop performances)

It was interesting, but when Massie of 808 State picked up a soprano sax (and played it rather sophmorically
and that says a lot coming from me, the jack of all instruments and master of none) the crowd energy
really picked up and people cheered. He just did simple looping and played soprano, guitar and keyboads
along with his set. He took more chances than the others I though, even though DJ Rob Hall had the
more dance energy of the show.

And you are correct Saro, I was enthralled from the geek, musical analysis standpoint. I did notice that most of the people
looked really passive (and at times during Rob Hall's overly long set) downright bored.

The thrill of listening to Autechre (with not a single thing to watch) was just that I love this groups creativity and , well, oddness as some one put it. Also, if they hadn't jacked up the volume so fucking radically the sonic quality was incredible with the sound system.

Why must every concert I go to lately be so fucking overly loud? I have played loud rock and electronic shows all of my life.
My nickname was 'thunderdrums' (what a stupid fucking moniker) when I was playing rock because I hit so fucking hard and
played so loud. I'm no wimp when it comes to volume but they were playing subs that were seriously damaging to anyone's ear.

The sad thing is that bass waves destroy or weaken the little cilial hairs in the ear that pick up 'intelligibility' frequencies in the sonic experience and all the hearing damage that will occur in fans at that show was painless and won't even show up for 10 years.

It's too bad because the time has come for law suits to be filed against sound systems that play at damaging volumes.

I think I posted this in another tribe, but my wife and I left the Bjork concert at Shoreline 3/4 of the way through because we were both
literally nauseated from how loud the subsonics were..............fuck that made me pissed off. I paid $200 for those fucking tickets and I love Bjork.

ahhhhh, rant over..........thanks for letting me spew

I don't think you came across as 'dissing' anything.

I think there is much potential to how electronica can interact with a crowd.

I don't really know how it might evolve, but I am sure something creative will emerge.

I should also mention the fact that one can go incredibly deep with design in Max/MSP
or, as in the case of a dilettante like myself, just use Max/MSP 'objects' that others have already
designed before you and just used them like one would use effects pedals or VSTs.

It's an amazing program for real time manipulation of sound.

It's also so complex that it is very hard, in real time, for an audience to know what you are doing
to cause the sound to change so rapidly.

That's part of Autechre's thing, I think.................they are using very powerful sound manipulation tools
that can create such incredibly morhphings of sound that it's hard for even someone like myself to figure
out what they are doing live.
(and as I'm saying this, I"m listening to their brand new CD which is really different from their live show......a lot
less rhythm driven and more abstract (and sparse, oddly enough).