Talk:Clownstep
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[edit] Headline text
[edit] Swing Beats?
I disagree with the swing beats component of this definition. i believe that a better example than "Bodyrock" is the example of "Twist Em Out" by Dillinja- It's similarities to the typical organ tune of circus clowns begat the clown moniker. Clownstep also refers to the irreverant nature of the hooks and basslines of artists like Baron, Twisted Individual, Generation Dub et al. Clownstep is essentialy a flavor of the month for drum and bass. Big names as DJ SS and Roni Size have taken to the sound somewhat.
Good point, the only meaning of the term 'clownstep' proceeds from its use as a pejorative term to refer to styles of drum and bass that do not fit the interests of a group of vocal internet nerds. I personally do not define "Bodyrock" as clownstep simply because it has a 3/4 beat pattern. "Twist em Out", on the other hand, definitely ha a clowny organ riff.
Perhaps it would be better not to mention any producers by name?
- I totally agree. I see clownstep as more of a selection of "cheesy" major-scale riffs, not just 3/4 beat patterns. And not mentioning artists is a good idea. Staticau 09:24, 12 July 2005 (UTC)
- i dunno, i pretty much hear the bodyrock beat in my head when i think clownstep.
- Well the origins of the term came from swing beat tunes with Bodyrock being one of the first tunes to be described as clownstep. This can be seen quite quickly from a search on forums like dogsonacid. Though the term switched with the creation of Twist em Out, moving from being a term used to describe 'swing-beat' tunes to a term used to describe tunes with "'cheesy' major-scale riffs". At this point it switched from being a mostly descriptive term to a mostly derogatory one. Also while Dylan may certainly have thought up the term himself, so did other people before him, he is probably best credited with making the term popular rather than actually being the originator simply because on forums such as dogsonacid there are a lot of people who latch on to things said by the big producers who frequent them. dogsonacid.com search link
[edit] Artist Names, Clownstep as Insult, Etc.
- sorry if the formatting of this remark is a bit off (i'm daft when it comes to some of the guidelines); i'm the fellow who authored the contentious center area of the entry. I've followed the curious genesis of this whole clownstep genre/controversy since it first came to my attention with various slags on twisted individual. the weird thing in this whole business is that most people i've talked to (and i've tried to really get a good cross section) don't really apply the tag to stuff like "twist em out", as someone above mentioned, but specifically to the stuff by twisted ind., baron, pendulum, and increasingly, pretty much a huge chunk of the london "old schoolers" (please don't hate me, i can't think of any other term) like ss, bassline smith, even phantasy and shodan!!!
i disagree with the school of thought that dismisses the whole business by saying that clownstep is simply whatever people don't like nowadays, as if there aren't sonic similarities between artists there. equinox may be unpopular with some of the cognoscenti, but by no means would anyone really abide calling his tunes "clownstep".
sure, there are those who'll just hear the slightest "wobble", or something too "poppy" in a tune and start slagging it on the boards, but we have to admit that the drums on "slam" indicate a portion of a distinct (while now almost universally regurgitated) genre that isn't always terrible (this evinced by the crowds of punters in front of the speakers, listening to this stuff for nine hours at a stretch).
not mentioning artists' names, especially when a certain few are almost univocally associated with it in the neverending discussions, is to me a bit like not talking about the gay relative because no one wants to deal with something "scandalous". it's unnecessarily conservative, it doesn't get the heart of the controversy, and it severely blinkers the discourse.
you don't have to necessarily be passing musical judgement (i.e. good or bad) on twisted individual to note that his particular sound is heavily associated with the tag, or to point out - as i did - that he doesn't mind it and has fun with it.
much of this might come down to the fact that a lot of people don't necessarily construe clownstep as pejorative in every case, but indicative of a certain style, overused as a descriptor, but not wholly inappropriate. i'm working from that point, if you want to scrutinize issues of NPOV.
sorry i'm so long winded. 161.211.200.173 03:54, 10 February 2007 (UTC)
