Coachella 2007!

Oh yes, I remember .
I also liked his OT Quartet and Felix stuff. The man is a genius.

Originally Posted by dteowner
One of the defining aspects of the music is extensive use of effects pedals while playing, operated with….wait for it….yer feet. With upwards of a dozen pedals, each with its own variable control, you've pretty much got to watch what you're doing.

Hmm… I don't know about that dte. I believe the original intent of the "shoegazer" label was to reflect how the bands behaved on stage. Rather than actin' crazy or rockin' out, they were known for standing rather still, looking down, and doing little or nothing to engage with the audience on a visual level. They were just "gazing at their shoes".

Dost thou droppest the gauntlet, foul youngling? Have at ye!

We're actually saying much the same thing, it's just a question of motivation. They were immobile performers as you say, but that stemmed from being tied to their equipment as much as anything. Members of "the scene that celebrates itself" were, overall, lousy interviews (probably dumb luck, although shoegaze is probably more likely to be played by wallflowers than hyper rockers), which gave some legs to the idea that the performers were unresponsive lumps by choice. Some of the bands probably became lumps to play along, but it all begins with effects pedals. The very nature of the music shows that varied sonic texture is paramount.

I do! Foul… um… fouling! :/

You're right in that we simply disagree on the motivation. The way I understand it, it didn't matter whether they had 1 or 100 pedals. It was their attitudes about performing and audience interaction that drew the "shoegazer" epithet. You're right that their music also tended toward the layerd, many-effect, moody style. But the "shoegazing" wasn't because they couldn't look up from their pedals. It was because they couldn't be bothered to look up from their pedals, or shoes, or the carpet, etc.

Wise you are, but much to learn have you still to know the Ways of the Gaze. Concentrate you must, young jedi.

Many gaze bands have elaborate visual presentations when they play live. It wouldn't be the musicians, but appropriate video/light shows behind the band. Think of how inappropriate it would be for the band to jump around and whoop and hollar. The visual presentation was simply another layer to the tapestry. Anything overly attention-grabbing would run counter to the tone of the entire presentation. Even if they had no pedals to deal with, the structure of the music would mandate that the players be unobtrusive. No layer may outshine the others.

[whiny voice] You want the IMPOSSIBLE! [/whiny voice]

I'm going to say that the term, like many words in a living language, has evolved from it's original meaning (my interpretation) to it's current meaning (your interpretation) and leave it at that.

Now I'm going to have to see if I can track down the NME article where the term was coined. Not to prove you wrong, but rather to prove me right to myself. You've shaken my confidence in my memory.

Originally Posted by dteowner
Now I'm going to have to see if I can track down the NME article where the term was coined. Not to prove you wrong, but rather to prove me right to myself. You've shaken my confidence in my memory.

Let me know if you do. I'd be curious to know for sure as well…

I'll get some additional confirmation since wikipedia has no guarantees, but I think this may be the answer. If we take the wiki as fact, you were right about the revision of the definition over time, but it went the other direction.

Originally Posted by dteowner
you were right about the revision of the definition over time, but it went the other direction.

Ah.. but yours is clearly the more useful and accurate one. Thanks for the education.

Always willing to discuss the genre ad-nauseum if given half a chance.

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