Get Down To It
An ayahuasca illustration by Gregg Echols
The story of a playlist.
“Get Down To It” originally came together in Rdio.
Upon its demise, I exported my playlists (GitHub repo), not knowing where or when I’d find another music service.
The consensus was that Spotify offered the most reasonable transition. Music apps from Google and Apple were non-starters for me, for various reasons. Pandora was out, based on my history with the app, and the changing of hands and vision of the app since the early days back in ~2000.
How I got my playlists into Spotify could potentially be a topic for a separate post. Suffice to say I was able to convert with the aid of third-party products teetering on the verge of obsolescence.
For this piece, I pulled the data from Spotify with Exportify and formatted it for Medium with Airtable. The original Rdio version — shorter and with a few different tracks is in GitHub.
Like any good playlist, there are themes.
My guiding philosophy for the Get Down To It playlists (Vol. II is in the works):
- Do not be rhythmically mundane
- Do exemplify sonic dissonance.
- Border on danceable
“Rhythmically mundane”- what does that mean? It means I don’t want a predictable beat. I don’t want a standard time signature (4:4), or a time signature at all, as long as the danceability criteria is met.
“Sonically dissonant”. I don’t want harmonious “musical” tracks in this playlist. Microtones or atonal sounds are welcomed
“Borderline danceable”. This is the trickiest criteria to satisfy, since there are so many interpretations of what it means to “dance”. Let’s just agree that these tracks can be considered conducive to freeform expressive movement.
Lamp That — Equal Local, Can’t Stop It! Australian Post-Punk 1978–82
I ran across this track while scanning Rdio tracks one night, exploring the Post-Punk genre. I love the lo-fi production and anti-rhythms. Good opening track from this compilation. Haven’t found anything else from Equal Local.
Crisis — (Remastered Version) Jaco Pastorius Anthology: The Warner Bros. Years
Jaco is awesome, and Crisis was a real ‘fuck you, this is what I want’ track from him. An opening track on your first solo record? Fuck yes.
(This track is currently unavailable in Spotify. This is a huge gripe I have with subscription media. No control on my part, no warning or apparent concern on theirs.)
Yin — Larry Coryell, Eleventh House With Larry Coryell
So much more predictable than I’d like in the rhythm department. Still, it made the cut.
The Ocean Is The Ultimate Solution — Frank Zappa, Sleep Dirt
Ebbs, flows. Bass fingerboard slap as percussive highlight.
Ventolin — Crosmengegus Mix, Aphex Twin, Ventolin EP
All three criteria are satisfied here.
Sludge — Trevor Rabin, Can’t Look Away
More music from the Southern Hemisphere.Trevor provided the signature guitar sound of Yes’ 1980’s incarnation. There are hints here. I like the pure 1980’s composition and production. It serves as a call to action — a reminder that there is room for experimentation in commercial music.
Inchworm — Battles, Gloss Drop
Infectious, danceable synesthesia.
Minor Bird — Catler Bros., Crash Landing
The Catler Brothers really opened my mind to Microtonal composition. Something about this release, and the Minor Bird track speaks to my Native Texan, and the Two-Step is technically a dance. A warped vision, to be sure.
Steppings Tones — Mahavishnu Orchestra, The Lost Trident Sessions
John McLaughlin has a way with providing an extra-dimensional quality with the guitar. This is a sum-it-up Mahavishnu Orchestra track, in my view.
Satisfies the criteria.
Miles Behind — Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood, Out Louder
Relatively tame, but it’s here to dare the timid. Scofield always skirts the fringe.
UMEA — Zeena Parkins, The Adorables
Yep. Here as a counterbalance to the Zappa track. These don’t count as lyrics.
Holiday As Brutality — Clark, Empty The Bones Of You
One of the Clark tracks (another phase), could be reasoned as more danceable than some of the others. Satisfies the criteria perfectly.
Luxman Furs — Clark, Totems Flare
The other Clark track. Driving music. Meets the criteria for dissonance and danceability. Broken rhythms in a catchy box.
Smokin’ (Empty, Try Another) — Joni Mitchell Dog Eat Dog
I love Joni, and recording of an empty cigarette vending machine being hounded on this track works for me on so many levels. This is one of the few tracks with ‘lyrics’, though I see it more as the communication of a handwritten sign.
Track 2 — EP Version Aphex Twin, Windowlicker
A go-to.
Don’t Go Plastic — Squarepusher, Music Is Rotted One Note
Counterbalance for Larry Coryell.
Futura — Battles, Gloss Drop
Another satisfying track from Gloss Drop. Less
Night Food — Brian Melvin, Jaco Pastorius, Brian Melvin’s Night Food
More Jaco, why not. Sequencers can’t do it on their own.
Got a Match? — Chick Corea Elektric Band, Chick Corea History
Straightahead Jazz typically doesn’t do it for me, but I saw Chick’s band do this one on tour for this record and it stuck. Somehow, it fits. Another brief stroke of predictability.
Oh No — Pendler, Klingt.org: 10 Jahre Bessere Farben
An excellent compilation of experimental tracks (with a remarkable effect on air travel), this down-tempo track stood out and ticked the boxes.
No Flight Tonight — Larry Coryell, Badi Assad, John Abercrombie - Three Guitars
Purely acoustic. Face and knee as percussion instruments. Sounds like the title.
Punk Is Dead — Compassion Family, Welcome Back Cunt!
Crass vs. Compassion Family
Wild Smiles — Quiet Sun Three Colours White
I like Quiet Sun (N-incarnations). This sort of typifies their sound and has the sort of programmed Motorik beat as some of the other tracks.
