Re: Rhythmic Randomness vs. Melodic Randomness

[Daryl Shawn <highhorse@mhorse.com>]

Derek Bailey's solo stuff is incredibly beautiful, to me; but pretty 
damn random-sounding rhythmically. No groove whatsoever! But it's still 
pleasing, to some people, even though it's melodically random-sounding 
too. (I say "-sounding" because he plays in an intuitive way, not random 
in some kind of generated sense.)

When it comes to looping, I love varying or random-sounding rhythms that 
are repeated, especially when they are layered. I think rhythm and 
texture relate in the same way that matter and energy do; it's the same 
stuff, but according to circumstances, appear as one or the other. 
Simplistic, obviously. I'm no scientist! But a lot of the looping I 
enjoy (my own included...) includes all kinds of arrhythmic, 
non-groovacious crap that sounds like music, to me, and even seems to 
create its own rhythm, though perhaps too complex to beat one's foot to. 
I don't think rhythm has to necessarily be consistent, or markedly 
present, for good stuff to happen.

Daryl Shawn
www.swanwelder.com
www.chinapaintingmusic.com