Quote

“Since Aristotle, man has organized his knowledge vertically in separate and unrelated groups — Science, Religion, Sex, Relaxation, Work etc. The main emphasis in his language, his system of storing knowledge, has been on the identification of objects rather than on the relationships between objects. He is now forced to use his tools of reasoning separately and for one situation at a time. Had man been able to see past this hypnotic way of thinking, to distrust it (as did Einstein), and to resystematize his knowledge so that it would all be related horizontally, he would now enjoy the perfect sanity which comes from being able to deal with his life in its entirety.

Recently, it has become possible for man to chemically alter his mental state and thus alter his point of view (that is, his own basic relation with the outside world which determines how he stores his information). He can restructure his thinking and change his language so that his thoughts bear more relation to his life and his problems, therefore approaching them more sanely.

It is this quest for pure sanity that forms the basis of the songs on this album.”

–Quote from the liner notes of The Psychedelic Sounds of The 13th Floor Elevators

Babies & Beats

Press Release: Newborn infants detect the beat in music (Dutch | Hugarian)

Researchers have found that newborn infants are able to detect the beat in music. The results support the theory that a sense for detecting a regular beat, termed ‘beat induction’, is innate or possibly learned already in the womb. Beat induction is probably fundamental to the origins of music, because it allows clapping or making music together, dancing to a rhythm, etc. István Winkler, Henkjan Honing and colleagues investigated beat induction in sleeping babies two or three days after birth.

Since it is not feasible to observe behavioral reactions in newborns, the researchers used scalp electrodes to measure electrical brain signals. The babies wore self-adhesive ear?couplers (see photo) through which a simple, regular rock rhythm was delivered, consisting of hi-hat, snare, and bass drum. Several variants of the basic rhythm were constructed by omitting strokes on non-significant positions of the rhythm. These variants were played to the infants, with a “deviant” segment, missing the downbeat, occasionally interspersed. Shortly after each deviant segment began, the babies’ brains produced an electrical response marking that they had expected to hear the downbeat but had not. This innate sense of rhythm is probably essential for bootstrapping verbal communication and music appreciation, the researchers say.

The research was conducted at the Institute for Psychology of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Cognitive Science Center Amsterdam at the University of Amsterdam within the EmCAP (Emergent Cognition through Active Perception) collaborative project funded by the European Commission’s 6th Framework Programme for ”Information Society Technologies” (contract no.: 013123).

Article #08-09035: “Newborn infants detect the beat in music,” by István Winkler, Gábor P. Háden, Olivia Ladinig, István Sziller, and Henkjan Honing. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0809035106

Source: http://cf.hum.uva.nl/mmm/newborns/index.html

The Unsung Goddess of FUNK

This morning, I rediscovered the ultra-fine music of Betty Davis; it had been a few years since I last listened to that tape I had copied from my ex-gf (a domina / stripper / musician).

Anyway, if you’ve never heard Betty Davis, go LISTEN NOW or be officially de-funked!!!

From CD Universe: “Despite an abundance of talent, a crack back-up band (which included most of Graham Central Station), and some of the most stinging funk tracks of the era, it’s really not all that surprising that Betty Davis never became a star: the girl was a stone-cold freak, and her self-titled 1973 debut more than illustrates that fact. Second wife to Miles Davis and Jimi Hendrix’s former girlfriend, Davis is often credited (by Miles himself in fact) with steering Miles toward the sounds that would give rise to his fusion period, and one listen to the acid-tinged wah-drenched guitars on the album’s opening track, “If I’m in Luck I Might Get Picked Up,” makes it clear that Betty was on a decidedly different trip than almost all of her contemporaries. The album can be quite odd, yet Davis is so unhinged and brimming with such confidence (particularly on the cult fave “Walkin’ up the Road”) it’s impossible not to be amazed. Frustratingly, Davis remains in relative obscurity to this day despite providing the template for the sexually confident female performer that has been used by Lil’Kim, Foxy Brown, and Kelis, among others.

2007 digitally remastered reissue of the 1973 debut album from Funk diva Betty Davis (not to be confused with the actress Bette ‘Mommie Dearest’ Davis). In recent years, rappers from Ice Cube to Talib Kweli to Ludacris have rhymed over the intensely strong but sensual funk of Betty Davis. One can hardly imagine the genre-busting, culture-crossing musical magic of Outkast, Prince, Erykah Badu, Rick James, The Roots, or even the early Red Hot Chili Peppers without the influence of this R&B pioneer. In addition to the restoration of the incredible original cover art, the albums feature compelling and heartbreaking liner notes written by author and respected soul music scholar Oliver Wang (O-Dub/Soul Sides) and include her second interview in decades, making these essential reissues for any soul or funk-rock collection. In 1973, Davis would finally kick off her cosmic career with an amazingly progressive hard Funk and sweet Soul self-titled debut. The album was recorded with Sly & The Family Stone’s rhythm section, sharply produced by Sly Stone drummer Greg Errico, and featured backing vocals from Sylvester and the Pointer Sisters.

Personnel: Patryce Banks, Pointer Sisters, Kathi McDonald, Anita Pointer, Annie Sampson, Sylvester (vocals); Doug Rodrigues, Neal Schon (guitar); Skip Mesquit (saxophone); Jules Broussard (baritone saxophone); Greg Adams (trumpet); Michelle Gillette (trombone); Hershall Kennedy, Merl Saunders, Richard Kermode (Clavinet); Doug Rauch, Larry Graham (bass guitar); Greg Errico (drums); Victor Pantoja (congas); Pete Sears (unknown instrument). Audio Remasterer: Dave Cooley.

The Wire (p.43) – “Davis gets over on pure attitude alone. The obvious comparisons are to Madonna, Lil’ Kim and Kelis….The music on BETTY DAVIS is as loud and nasty as she is…”
CMJ (p.46) – “Every word hisses and slithers out of Betty’s chompers like a cobra leering and ready to strike…”
Down Beat (p.62) – “The grooves of her music still have power after 30-plus years….This stuff is upside-down funky, and tilts toward the raw side…”
No Depression (p.86) – “She doesn’t sing her originals so much as attack them, sometimes like a 300-pound bouncer, other with ninja-like stealth, and always with powerful impact.”

More: http://www.lightintheattic.net/releases/bettydavis

Rip It Up and Start Again

This takes a little while to load, but is a great blog about post-punk, etc:

http://ripitupandstartagainbysimonreynolds.blogspot.com

Atlas of Plucked Instruments

Visit: http://www.atlasofpluckedinstruments.com/
for a complete history of stringed instruments.

Based on a large private collection of plucked stringed musical instruments (plus additional material from books and websites), this ATLAS will give you information about almost all the different plucked instruments still in use.