Re(2): the trip-hop/hip-hop thing

Peter Wang (Peter_Wang@new_york.gensler.com)
Wed, 19 Jun 96 10:34:34 -0100


Tyler Askew,tyler@america.net,Gateway writes:
First of all, who decides the line between hiphop and "triphop"? Who can
actually define "triphop" (probably no one)? so this makes this argument,
as to how they relate and/or which one is better, pretty foolish...
Secondly, the Source has turned wack...they don't even have a solid feel
for the good hiphop coming out today....

tyler

____________________________________________________________
I'm amazed at the varied responses to this thread (which I thought would
probably
have a pretty brief lifespan since I've agreed with what Dana Cobbs/John
Schauer wrote) -- but now I feel compelled to put in my comments since my
journey into AJ was through a progression after 12 years of listening to hip
hop. Being a beathead, this trip hop thing and its general adoption of the
use of hip hop beats lies close to my heart.

I'll make my comments brief:

Like John Schauer said -- it's the US hip hop consumers and listeners that
recognize
the difference between the two genres -- but not only that, it's also the lack
of rapping that greatly distinguishes the two. Some hip hop styles would make
great trip hop if only the vocals were eliminated. Has anyone on the list
heard of a trip hop track with rapping?? If they have, I'd like to know.
I've thought many times that if one would just take out the rapping from
JayZ's "Dead Presidents" --that would make a great trip hop track!! So the
line between the two genres, sonically, are not that clear cut, at least for
me. But since masses of people, consciously or not, tend to stay within the
confines of established boundaries, a consumer not familiar with trip hop
would classify a JayZ track without vocals still as hip hop, whereas some of
those on this list would most likely see that classification isn't so black
and white. And to quote J. Schauer, it's really true that "if
Stretch/Bobbito, Funkmaster Flex, or Sway/Tech played trip hop, people here
would immediately recognize the difference and change the station." Ask them
to articulate that difference may be difficult but they'll know the difference
sho 'nuff.

This type of classification is just helpful for ease of identifying some sort
of style and not much else. Leave it to your ears to do the rest. I don't
even think this thread would have come up if it weren't for the unfortunate
semantic connection between the words "hip hop" and "trip hop" which imply
that there's some greater connection between hip hop and trip hop than hip hop
and some other beat heavy genre like drum-n-bass or the stuff on New Breed.

p

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