Reggae lovers are musical and why others aren't and why they get bored

[DonBanyan]

Oh, and I love the repititious qualities in Reggae. The drum and bass is like a mantra, which is why Reggae is such a meditative music.

Listen to a Tibetan monk chant Ohm Mani Padme Hum, and tell me you don't hear a Rub A Dub bassline.

http://www.dharma-haven.org/tibetan/mea ... e-hung.htm

DB

[Nugstriker]

Back to the beginning of the thread, I think something that might affect the way that people who listen to "main stream" hear reggae differently is because of the mastering. I am no expert, but from what I've heard the majority of reggae(at least back in the good old days) was mastered differently, even a little off, which gave it a unique sound. All these big record companies master their music very carefully in a certain way, to get a certain result.

[Anjro0]

thats funny I sing along to basslines all the time and I love reggae. I think one's compatability with reggae relies heavily upon their enjoyment and receptivity of the upbeat 2-4 chop. This can render the music heavily groovy, tapping on the primal enjoyment of beats in general. On one hand, though, I think your connoiseur knowledge makes you misjudge reggae's huge popularity - and the argument for this is that simply everybody likes Bob Marley. Sublime and 311's were popular because of reggae influences that made their music more commercially appealing than it would be as normal alternative rock. But yeah reggae is a good place to find for a bassline, and has that elemental drum n bass quality in a way.
P e a c e

[ACEtone]

Definitely some very good points here.

Re: The topic - I disagree that people who find reggae boring are unmusical. Surely some are and some are not and it is a matter of taste and to some degree understanding, though I really don't think that one needs to 'study' any form of music to enjoy it fully.

I would guess that the average 'reggae is boring' person is basing his opinion on having heard only a limited range of reggae and not hearing in a good listening environment.

But there definitely seems to be some hard to define stumbling block for some people to appreciate reggae. I don't think it is confined to reggae either (african, middle eastern etc - anything with unfamiliar rhythm). Those weaned on a steady diet of standard 4/4 and the occasional 3/4 rock rhythm for example may find the slippery one drops of reggae just too unfamiliar and uncomfortable - they may focus on that and little else and hence find it repetitive and boring.

Others mentioned the unique role of the bass in reggae music. I conjecture that the role of the bass in reggae is indeed a unique phenomenon and is due possibly to the following:
Much of JA music has been recorded with outdoor dances as the primary audience. Deep booming bass is required to fill so much outdoor space so recording it that way from the time of the introduction of the electric bass to JA music in 1967 would be the natural thing to do.
I think this is a really important moment in the development of the music. Listen to any north American or European (that includes you UK and Ireland!) music at that time and you will either hear the bass, if EQed low, as merely a rhythm sound - sort of thudding tunelessly along - or if EQed mid then it is really being played and recorded like a second guitar and is no longer really a bass. This still persists. I have tried to get into some soul and funk and while I like some of it, I generally find that the bottom end is sorely lacking and it spoils it for me a bit.
This general way of EQing was mostly geared towards radio - to sell records. Listening on the radio, the bass will be heard, but at a mid frequency. Hardly a bass then.

Whatever the specifics of it (and I would love to know more of the technical side of it), JA music has long taken a different approach to equalization and that huge range of frequencies heard in so much of reggae is very different to the squashed mid frequency range of most US UK Euro music - though that has changed somewhat in recent years. So I think this has a lot to do with it.
Reggae can be sonically unfamiliar to many ears and hence uninteresting except to the interpid outsider who seeks out difference - something with a bit of a challenge. Think UK punks.

In recent years reggae has become an international phenomenon and as such has often been recorded to appeal to the broadest range of listeners. The bass gets lost, the riddims get stiffer, the focus goes on the egotistical vocalist and the life gets taken out of it. That is the stuff that is in fact boring to my ears!

As I've said elsewhere, I learned more about recording technique by listening to reggae, dub in particular than in any other way. The clear separation of the different instruments in their own particular frequency range sets good reggae apart from any other music I can think of.

I like some rock stuff and bits and pieces of other kinds of music too - much of rock is really, really boring. I think the people making the music even know this! That is why it is so often referred to as 'product'! There is really nothing more boring than some guy going off on a lengthy technically proficient but thoroughly pointless solo. However - a LOT of people like this kind of thing. Are they wrong? WE know they are - but we can't prove it!

The subtlety and restraint of much reggae is lost on that kind of listener.

It was really the UK ska revival (1979) that got my ears ready for this reggae music - in hindsight a lot of that stuff was not so great - but I'm thankful that it paved the way for this Irish bwoy to get to know the most crucial of crucial reggae sounds over the years.
I think it takes a catalyst to start an outsider off on discovering this JA music - many people just may never be fortunate enough to be at the right dance, or hear the right tune, or read the right words to start them off on a joyful voyage of sonic discovery...

Now Mozart - that s#$t is boring - where's the BASS Amadeus?

[Jonti]

While we're talking bass, I love the sound of good double-bass in jazz. I have a collection of Charlie Mingus LPs that get spun quite regularly. Nice EQing on those.

[ACEtone]

well Jonti - my understanding of the classic jazz stuff when recorded in studio was often recorded with two mics rather than close micing anything - all about the room sound. So the real sound of the bass and everything else would come through the air. A good room would result in a good recording and EQ adjustments at the discretion of the producer and engineer would then just be a subtle rounding off of anything heard as contrary to the 'real' sound of the music.

I thought about this while typing earlier. JA music is a fascinating story of a fiercely creative people embracing electric music and doing it their own damn way - with amazing results. The 'jazz' way of recording still persists with purists who figure that the performance is on the musician side of the studio. This is why I love dub so much. Away with the bad - forward the good.
Of course nowadays it has come to be a bit ridiculous where there is no live recording at all.
I've done it a few different ways to a limited degree, but for energy, nothing beats making some noise with others and mixing down to 'enhance' the sounds as all the JA great producers did - for me anyway.

And yes. Mingus. It has been a while - Ah Um is an old favourite. I have the vinyl somewhere...and a cassette somewhere...might just have to dig them out...

[flashman]

Ah come on. Mozart is such an easy target, no?
Of course, it has nothing to do with bass. Why judge a music for lacking something it has no particular interest in, rather than taking it on its own terms?

There is much to appreciate in classical music. It is completely different to reggae and doesn't really bear comparison. I think we should judge genres based on what they are trying to accomplish within their own styles.
I don't particularly like Mozart, but I've been known to go on months-long classical binges. It touches a different part of me and is definitely worthy of attention and respect.

[Jonti]

I think ACEtone *may* have been joking...

[flashman]

Oh, well, uh , if so just give me a minute while I remove my foot from my mouth. (what does that mean, anyway?)

[ACEtone]

yes I was joking but Mozart is a pet hate of mine. Not much these days - no time - no real interest - but when I did take an interest in classical stuff my tastes were more in the dub stylee such as Wagner overtures, Mahler Symphonies and as a contemporary to Mozart and far superior in my estimation, Haydn. Very beautiful stuff and a much better use of EQ
Really. Oboe concertoes and all of that.
Mozart is an annoying trebly shite, frankly.

A once very bitter singer guitar player (who has since had a sex change) said angrily to me a few years ago 'is there any kind of music you DON'T know about?' He didn't give me the opportunity to answer but I would have said something like, I'm just saying, you know, don't you think maybe...
We didn't have smileys back in the days of me actually meeting real people. Now that I'm in my interactive cryo-module smileys roooooooooool

Opinion can be misconstrued. I know a little about lots of things, probably a lot about reggae and dub in particular. I'm here to share and learn. And have a laugh hopefully.

how about all that jazz - now that sucks!
Jonti?
Help?