Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly – an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.
𝙍𝙪𝙗𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝙈𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙃𝙤𝙡𝙮 𝙒𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙝 – 𝙍𝙤𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙩 𝙊𝙬𝙚𝙣
Charles is speaking artfully…
Over the course of the last few years, we have witnessed the progressive speed of A.I. and generative A.I. (what I habitually like to call “HAL” for simplicity’s sake). This has been faster than any other cultural change. Not just in how quickly we have altered our way of doing things, but how fast the technology has improved. It was seemingly weekly leaps. Which is frankly too fast for average humans to keep up with, or even be comfortable with. On the whole, we humans cannot comprehend this kind of progression at such a rapid pace. We need time to mull it over and work it all out. Most of us do not think in terms of ones and zeros, but instead in terms of light and dark and question marks; the good, the bad, the “I don’t quite understand”. And the “I don’t quite understand” is not just the technical aspect, but more often elongated to “I don’t quite understand WHY”.
Artfully speaking, the last time we had THIS kind of speed in progression was in the early 1960s. At the dawn of said decade it was decreed that guitar groups were on their way out, with no mention of any replacement. At this point, a “guitar group” was thought of like The Shadows: an instrumental band, or a backing band for a singer. No one foresaw the idea of the singer/s being part of the band itself. Songwriters were odd-job men or classically trained surnames atop cheaply printed sheet music. Writers were writers, players were players, and singers were good-looking actors playing a part as the lead role. And then a group called The Beatles came on the scene. They wrote, they played, they sang. But they were repeatedly told “guitar groups are on their way out”. What the system had not been able to comprehend was that this unknown group was the start of something new. The “guitar group” as we now know it, was only just getting started. From 1963 to 1969 there were vast leaps just every few months. It was a true revolution in art, designed for the young, but quietly pricking the ears (and eyes) of the middle-aged (then thought to be anyone from the age of 28 to 50 – basically any possessor of a cardigan and a pipe).
What we were witnessing, was young, brilliant, eager minds at work. As far as teenage fans were concerned, songs just happened. Back then (unlike in more recent years), people weren’t familiar with or even aware of what went into making such records, for this was all behind closed doors. Studio doors. Interviews with band members – or as the stuffy old BBC would likely have called them: “banned” members – very rarely had questions about the music itself and the whole process of making it. Instead, it was more “So how are you enjoying your tour of America?”, or “Do you intend to grow your hair indefinitely?”. And yet, behind the scenes, the most magical movement was bubbling and blowing up. The writing was fresh and wild. The guitars were making sounds that compelled lab-coated engineers to frown and sweat. The singers were convincing microphones to contemplate suicide. Until the last few years, it seemed impossible to ever witness such a leap so great as the decade from 1959 to 1969. Yet here we are. The biggest artful leap in history has been during the last few years. I say “artful” not in the correct sense of the word (clever and crafty), but more in a literal sense. And yet, these past few years have shown very little to do with actual art. Those years of ’63 to ’69 were vitally human. Which is exactly what the current climate is not.
We keep being told by various tech CEOs that HAL removes the “laborious process” of making music, leaving us with a fully formed piece of music to listen to. There’s only one problem with this. Well, actually there are myriad problems, but let’s just deal with the one. That “laborious process” – spoken of like sticky detritus – IS the art. It is the everything that makes the final result have any point, purpose or worth. And so, inevitably there has been kickback. While I did expect this technical progression to be lightning speed, what I didn’t foresee was the speed and ferocity of said kickback. For some, it’s an angry, deep-seated rebellion. A revolt against such sickenings that feel akin to betrayal. But for many, it’s simply that they never changed. They ignored the masses and the hype, and just got on in their usual way; the only way they ever knew. HAL is ignored largely by older people; cast aside as a fad; a gimmick. Much in the same way many of these older artists observe social media; a cheap waste of time that has absolutely nothing to do with them. These artists are not trying to be trendy. Fashion has always been a young man’s game (and so it should be). Being older has its own known drawbacks, but it does lend the benefit of authenticity. Interestingly, it hasn’t always been this way. Back in the 60s, those young members of The Beatles and The Who were not following trends; they were inventing them. The older ones tended to do what they saw as being expected of them, rather than what felt right. And so, with this “have pen; will write” attitude, I feel quite content in being decidedly middle-aged. Yes, I can finally admit to myself that I am most definitely middle-aged. Sigh. Unless I live to the age of 104, in which case I still have another decade to hit the dreaded “M.A.” – “Stop it, CC; you are what you are”. Quite right.
And here’s another artist who is what he is. Please welcome Robert Owen to the stage! Apologies for the slightly longer-than-usual pre-amble, but I thought in this case it was quite important to truly set the scene. Now, despite the name, Robert Owen is not British or even American. He is from Berlin. I have been quietly keeping my eye on him for a while. His music always intrigued me, but until now I always felt there was something somewhat incomplete about his releases. A disconnected sound, potentially intentional, but not quite to my taste. There was, however, always something about his sound that teased me. I think I was waiting for “the one”. His latest single, ‘Rubber Mask of Holy Wrath’ is, I believe, that one. And I further believe this song to be as far away from HAL as it is possible to be. HAL is good at copying the sound of real instruments. It is also good at copying mainstream sound. But it is not good at capturing the human mind. Probably because it does not know what’s coming. We are but weird souls. And when HAL does “weird”, it just misses the mark. I think the reason for this, is that it has never held a light bulb. While it might not be easy to work out if a song is HAL, it is definitely (at least so far) easy to tell if it is NOT made by HAL. And ‘Rubber Mask of Holy Wrath’ is NOT made by HAL. While I have no doubt that HAL has its uses, generative HAL has no purpose in art that I can see, aside from fakery and dupery. When creating a piece of music and you wish for something to be a certain way, what better way than to do it manually? A true artist CANNOT rely on HAL to “save time” by doing it for the artist, unless we actually get to a point where HAL can read the artist’s mind… But even then, where would be the fun in that?
Speaking of an artist’s mind, let’s look at the mind of Robert Owen. His influences are both clear and unclear. Clear, because I can hear the essence of certain artists; but unclear, because the sound is simultaneously so disparate from those influences. A drop of vanilla essence makes a difference to the overall flavour, but does not make the dish taste of vanilla. I believe this is how influence should be, rather than simply being something from which to copy. HAL, take note. Actually, no. HAL, please do NOT take note; stay as you are. However, just to give you an idea of the sound, try and picture (in no particular order) The Beatles, 10cc, Joe Jackson, Peter Gabriel, Kaminski, Jeff Lynne, Sparks, Blur, Tears for Fears, McCartney, Alan Parsons, Madness, David Gilmour, Eno, and the minds of Bowie, Cave and Waits (but not necessarily the music). Then mix in some coldly organic electronica and the occasional strangely satisfying dissonance, and you might get halfway there. Much like last week’s CC pick, there is constant change in Robert’s way of writing and producing. But unlike last week’s pick, this man is not even attempting to appeal to a mass audience. This goes beyond pop. For me, this is “weird” done right. There is a forever sarcastic smile. Like Stravinsky and Picasso, one has to know the rules in order to break them. Going headfirst into “weird” will usually end badly. Which probably explains why we tend to get the slightly older artists making the unusual material. The foundations and experience must be there in the first place in order to go further. That’s how The Beatles were able to migrate from ‘She Loves You’ (Yeah, Yeah, Yeah), to ‘I Am The Walrus’ (Goo-Goo G’Joob).
A warning: ‘Rubber Mask of Holy Wrath’ is not for those who suffer from the curse of the short attention span. Remember, Robert Owen is not trying to appeal to the Swifties. I suspect that he is not really trying to “appeal” to ANYone. He is making the art that he needs to make. Should anyone wish to join him on his journey, they’re more than welcome – I’ll be on that train. The song is 8 and a half carriages long. Sorry, minutes. But peculiarly, it doesn’t drag at any moment. And what I find a REAL joy is the lack of pretension that can so often be synonymous with this style of music (should this style be categorisable as a “style”). I hesitate to call this a song, because it fits no usual verse-chorus-verse form; but as unusual as it stands, it still somehow remains a song. Length is a hindrance in this streaming world, because royalties are paid by the stream. Hence the main reason why we have shorter songs these days. If royalties were paid by the minute, I suspect that the world would have gone all Pink Floyd a long while ago; pretension intact. ‘Rubber Mask of Holy Wrath’ is simply the length it wishes to be, while concentrating more on girth. This thing is full fat with a restrained belt of respect.
What can I say about the music itself? The piano is heavy-handed after a false start. But this lumpen way of playing seems to impress upon us the confidence of its player, rather than show off the ivory amateur. It is very much intentional, this proud way of playing. Actually, while I’m here, nothing in this song is wispy. Everything is defined and calculated in that comically cliché German way, yet nothing is ever robotic; it’s simply efficient. Nothing is wasted, and everything is there for a reason. This is how a pro producer works. Like last week’s pick, the bass and drums are what keeps everything together within the superb mix. But I suppose what really brings me so close to this piece is the voice. Robert (who does everything except the backing vocals) has a voice that might seem like a friend to you. At least it does to me. And do bear in mind that I have never spoken with this chap in my life. I know almost nothing about him. For all I know, he might not exist and this is all HAL. In which case I might go the way of the above spittle-drenched microphones. But we have to take some things at face value, or we will all go insane. I would love to hear that Robert Owen is in fact the brother of Kaminski, but I highly doubt this will be the case. Let’s briefly get back to the music. Robert knows how to control everything he has at his disposal, whether it’s the use of a physical instrument, or the means to express the melody or sound in his mind through some sort of synthesiser. Nothing is over or underdone. As for those beautifully fresh, wide backing vocals, they are courtesy of Maria Maier, Stefanie Sagert and Heike Bollig. It feels to me like this song took quite a while to put together. More of a condensed opus than a song. But believe me, Robert, every effort’s second was worth it. It’s the kind of astounding piece that would warrant a “Making Of” video.
And then there’s the words!! Golly, they’re just absolutely- ah damn, we’re all outta time. You’ll just have to listen for yourself.
I wonder if 104 seems likely… Wearing my cardigan, I glance at my pipe: “Nah, probably not”.
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