Re: popularity

Elson Trinidad (elson@westworld.com)
Fri, 11 Apr 1997 09:59:11 -0700

At 10.35 AM 4/11/1997 +0000, you wrote:
>> Just a short note 'cos nobody's mentioned it....in the vibe of this
possibly
>> growing, constantly emerging thread I would like to point all listees'
>> attention to this month's cover of Downbeat. "ACID JAZZ" in huge
letters in
>> the center of the page, and the article discusses BNH, Buckshot, US3, and
>> Incognito, as well as rightfully positions the Groove Academy (Giant
Step) as
>> one of the key U.S. founding fathers (NY in the houuuse! :)

>So, yes aj might be headed for mainstream, but that means (to me) that
>the doors are opening up. People are tired of hearing the same old same
>old. They're tired of hearing the pop tune of the month. People are
>looking for substance. Which is good!

I, too look forward to see AJ hit mainstream. Grunge is dying fast. I know
most people here are against
the 'mainstreaming' of AJ for fear of low quality artists, but 1) you can
always *not* listen to them and 2)
you're also forgetting that it will challenge others to doeven more
interesting stuff. I'm confident that
AJ is a diverse enough genre that even the most the most banal mainstream
stuff will still sound good, and it does.

The way I see it, in the UK, AJ has had its day. But I don't think it
matters. In the US, it's still trying to emerge.
After all, America is the birthplace of not only jazz itself, but pretty
much all the other subsets of AJ: soul, funk,
hip-hop, blues. Jazz is a relatively timeless genre, and though not
everyone is into it, I believe most people in America know have at least a
basic sense of sounds 'jazzy' and what does not. And everyone, with the
exception of the most anal-retentive jazz purist, loves the sound of jazzy
chords/solos over a funk/hip-hop beat.

I do think the "retro 70s" sound is a fad, and you can't spend decades
doing that. I think the reason why many people think the new BNH material
is 'lacking' is because it doesn't rely on the "retro 70s" sound that much
anymore. Fortunately, there *is* room to successfully fuse the 70s sound
with today's sound and sounds of the future. And I've heard it many times.

I do think the only thing really standing in the way is our rejection of
the term "acid jazz." I'm sorry, but I know we're complaining whatever
we're complaining about the term, but then we're also complaining why not
enough people show up at the clubs or our shows. I've said it before, I'll
say it again: Not everyone has the AJ list at their disposal, not everyone
has the internet even. If I see the words "Acid Jazz" listed on a club ad,
you know I'll have at least some interest in going. Clubs that play house
music, for example, clearly state they play "house."
People want to know what to expect, at least in the general sense. If we're
gonna use another term, let's all (and all meaning the whole world, not
just the list) agree on it, define it to the world, and use it.
Realistically, "Acid Jazz" probably won't die; Remember a couple years ago
in London when Giles Peterson and the Talkin Loud crew tried to throw a
party to 'officially celebrate the death of the term "Acid Jazz"'? I don't
know if the whole thing was a joke or not, but the event was eventually
cancelled.

Hmm....

Elson

-30-
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Elson Trinidad
Los Angeles, CA, USA
elson@westworld.com * http://www.westworld.com/~elson
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