The article discusses the importance of human embodied presence in music, emphasizing how both intentional and unintentional “imperfections”—along with the physical movements of musicians—play a crucial role in shaping the “soul” of music.
At first, I found myself wondering the same thing: Does electronic music really have a soul? The perfection in electronic music—precise timing, flawless pitch, and speeds that human musicians cannot physically achieve—often creates a robotic and somewhat inaccessible quality. This seems to contrast with the warmth and expressiveness of human-performed music.
However, as I reflected on my own experiences with techno and electronic music, I realized that we are actually drawn to its cold, half-human, and futuristic aesthetic. As the author describes, it embodies a “disembodied, techno-fetishistic, futuristic ideal.” In this sense, electronic music’s unique identity is not about replicating human imperfection but about embracing a different kind of artistic expression.
The evolution of electronic music challenges us to rethink the essence of musical “soul.” Does music require human musicians physically playing instruments to be considered soulful? Ultimately, both electronic sounds and traditional instruments are merely mediums for artistic expression. Defining musical soul solely based on the medium—whether electronic or acoustic—seems arbitrary. If digital music is purely “cold,” does that mean instrument is purely”warm”?
Even when electronic music fully embraces mechanical perfection, it can still be deeply expressive, depending on how the artist uses it. As I mentioned earlier, techno and other electronic genres transform cold precision into something deeply moving. The soul of music does not come from imperfection alone, but from the wild and imaginative ideas of the artist. Rather than rigidly defining musical soul based on how “human” a sound is, we should recognize that it is the artist’s vision that gives music its depth, emotion, and meaning.
P.S. When I was reading through the “backbeat” part and the microscopic line about the snare drum always played slightly later than the midpoint between two consecutive pulses, I tried to replicate the rhythm in Tidal (Not sure if it’s right but sounds so). Then I searched on Youtube about the drummer playing Backbeat. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to hear the tiny time difference between the two. Maybe I would need more listening training for this:)
d1 $ stack [
s "bd ~ sn ~ bd bd sn ~",
s "hh*8"
] # room 0.3