GENERAL NEW RELEASE SPECULATION TOPIC

[broke]

Also just to put things back on track, this came from the Instagram a day or two before the stupid hoax started: https://imgur.com/a/CbiMJvE

They also liked my post: "Imagine they would play live again."
I would take everything from that account with a grain of salt because it just seems too good to be true. The twitter account is where i would put my money on.

also, unlike to their twitter account, that instagram is not verified.

[DW]

The Instagram account is not listed on their artist page, on the Warp website.

[Echelon]

The Instagram account is not listed on their artist page, on the Warp website.

Bibio's Instagram isn't listed on his page either

[mondaffe]

The Warp instagram account follows Bibio but not BoC though.

[Geogandhi]

I don't think it matters, just assume nothing is real until something is real.

[bungler666]

I don't think it matters, just assume nothing is real until something is real.

+Double think

[writetomhatcher]

also, unlike to their twitter account, that instagram is not verified.

Just wanted to chime in: I reported their instagram page as Spam last week, and it is still up and running. Not sure how long Insta staff takes to pull down fake accounts (or even if they do that kind of thing!), but that makes me a bit more confident the Insta page could be real.

[Echelon]

also, unlike to their twitter account, that instagram is not verified.

Just wanted to chime in: I reported their instagram page as Spam last week, and it is still up and running. Not sure how long Insta staff takes to pull down fake accounts (or even if they do that kind of thing!), but that makes me a bit more confident the Insta page could be real.

That was a good move on your part and the only way we're probably going to get some truth on this.

BOCpages himself messaged Warp (who usually don't respond at all) and PIC (who actually responds more than Warp, or at least used to) and neither answered. I think Roswell did too with PIC.

[Geogandhi]

TLDR, beware!

I don't go on Reddit but have nipped in just lately for the fun and man, it's a funny read.
Just read a thread that someone is 99% sure that the birdy dude/ steno tape thing IS legit BoC.
Now, I don't have a problem with this at all, people can think what they want and it's down to them to let themselves go down these paths BUT, I find it really strange, and this happens with other artists to, especially aphex, that people think that no other person in the world can do what they do, so anything that is kinda close MUST be them. Some dude even said that no one else has gear like BoC so can not get their sound. Utter bonkers.
The fakes were fakes of course, i'm not talking about that shit particularly and Birdy dude is just another artist who makes nice enough BoCish tunes, Simple as that. Other people in the world are talented and can make good music. Many thousands of people have the gear to be able to do what BoC do, just they do not have their ideas, personality and quirks, they have their own. This is the main reason people fail when trying to impersonate them, it's that they are not them, not that they are not skilled enough. Patience and willing to just overwork or even underwork the material to reach such saturation and detail is there in many people but not in most minds as the need to get kudos from listeners comes first nowadays, unsigned artists especially. We have to remember, that now, if we want to make something sound old, like Old tunes era stuff, we have to purposely use things to degrade or emulate these ways of doing things to get these results. Entry level music making is clean and great quality now but can also be stale sounding if underworked. BoC used simple cheap gear and that sound was the result. they didn't spend months working on one sample getting it just how they wanted it by putting it through loads of rare unobtainable gear, at first. If you want to do those early style tunes for yourself all you have to do is buy some old shitty gear (although not cheap anymore usually). You can get there, really easily.
The problems you'll have is trying to work out what they would have played, copying their musical personality, guessing their chops , and not let your personality come through, that's the hard part.
Anything later, when they started to really get their style together and especially Music has the right, now that is where emulating will become a problem. They must have started to spend lots more time on their material and people will struggle to unpick their sound in order to recreate. It would be nigh on impossible to make a convincing MHTRTC track out of all their albums I think personally, people are skilled enough to make something close but it's the subjective stuff that's hard to get, it's not that BoC are the only people capable of these details, it's that the person can't see/hear their route to the end result.

BoC were lucky that the industry in this kind of music was in it's infancy and they hit upon a sound that was different, they got picked up and became who they became. They don't and have never needed to pander to anyone, always had the freedom to make what they want and listeners were already hooked in. They are established and don't have a problem promoting themselves. Nowadays it's impossible, even for talented people to get noticed, they have to become promotion machines and that kind of sucks. I can see why Birdy dude wanted to tag himself into the mix or even if he did? Could be just a tagging issue, who knows. I don't think they claimed to be BoC, unless they are on reddit driving the traffic, I hope not ha.
Anyway, point is, if you like some music, i.e. Birdy dudes music, give them the credit, not BoC, it's clearly not BoC or even close so just give the kudos to the person that made it.
I am not Birdy either, I just think people are owing him a disservice by trying to pin it on someone else in hope that their gods have given them a sign. Of course this goes the other way too, Don't not give it the time of day just because you know it's not BoC either.
Be open to all, not closed off and only focussed on your idols. Other people are out there and we're all capable of being on BoC's level, just we all have our own personalities.
Weird rant I know.

[vonS]

TLDR, beware!

I don't go on Reddit but have nipped in just lately for the fun and man, it's a funny read.
Just read a thread that someone is 99% sure that the birdy dude/ steno tape thing IS legit BoC.
Now, I don't have a problem with this at all, people can think what they want and it's down to them to let themselves go down these paths BUT, I find it really strange, and this happens with other artists to, especially aphex, that people think that no other person in the world can do what they do, so anything that is kinda close MUST be them. Some dude even said that no one else has gear like BoC so can not get their sound. Utter bonkers.
The fakes were fakes of course, i'm not talking about that shit particularly and Birdy dude is just another artist who makes nice enough BoCish tunes, Simple as that. Other people in the world are talented and can make good music. Many thousands of people have the gear to be able to do what BoC do, just they do not have their ideas, personality and quirks, they have their own. This is the main reason people fail when trying to impersonate them, it's that they are not them, not that they are not skilled enough. Patience and willing to just overwork or even underwork the material to reach such saturation and detail is there in many people but not in most minds as the need to get kudos from listeners comes first nowadays, unsigned artists especially. We have to remember, that now, if we want to make something sound old, like Old tunes era stuff, we have to purposely use things to degrade or emulate these ways of doing things to get these results. Entry level music making is clean and great quality now but can also be stale sounding if underworked. BoC used simple cheap gear and that sound was the result. they didn't spend months working on one sample getting it just how they wanted it by putting it through loads of rare unobtainable gear, at first. If you want to do those early style tunes for yourself all you have to do is buy some old shitty gear (although not cheap anymore usually). You can get there, really easily.
The problems you'll have is trying to work out what they would have played, copying their musical personality, guessing their chops , and not let your personality come through, that's the hard part.
Anything later, when they started to really get their style together and especially Music has the right, now that is where emulating will become a problem. They must have started to spend lots more time on their material and people will struggle to unpick their sound in order to recreate. It would be nigh on impossible to make a convincing MHTRTC track out of all their albums I think personally, people are skilled enough to make something close but it's the subjective stuff that's hard to get, it's not that BoC are the only people capable of these details, it's that the person can't see/hear their route to the end result.

BoC were lucky that the industry in this kind of music was in it's infancy and they hit upon a sound that was different, they got picked up and became who they became. They don't and have never needed to pander to anyone, always had the freedom to make what they want and listeners were already hooked in. They are established and don't have a problem promoting themselves. Nowadays it's impossible, even for talented people to get noticed, they have to become promotion machines and that kind of sucks. I can see why Birdy dude wanted to tag himself into the mix or even if he did? Could be just a tagging issue, who knows. I don't think they claimed to be BoC, unless they are on reddit driving the traffic, I hope not ha.
Anyway, point is, if you like some music, i.e. Birdy dudes music, give them the credit, not BoC, it's clearly not BoC or even close so just give the kudos to the person that made it.
I am not Birdy either, I just think people are owing him a disservice by trying to pin it on someone else in hope that their gods have given them a sign. Of course this goes the other way too, Don't not give it the time of day just because you know it's not BoC either.
Be open to all, not closed off and only focussed on your idols. Other people are out there and we're all capable of being on BoC's level, just we all have our own personalities.
Weird rant I know.

Huge rant, man. Although I see and agree with the point.

The Reddit sub has been a bit boring since the hoax. Its back to random photos of hexagons and bizarre memes. I guess its a different age group, so its hard to be critical or judgmental.

I agree on the BoC point. You can pretty much emulate (to varying degrees of quality) anything from BoC to Autechre. I can do a shitty BoC with an SH101, tape and a sampler, and a shitty Autechre with Eurorack and/or Max. The question is, why bother, unless the aim is to be a cover band.

Of course, there is a lot more going on than just sounds, but that merits a dissertation. I do think that their sound isnt just a different sound in an industry in its infancy though. I think its conceptual, historical and also deconstructive. To me, they are like the TS Eliot or James Joyce of music. But I will shut up, as it risks being a bit pretentious.

[Echelon]

The Birdy tracks, as someone pointed out, are creative in that they aim to make Catalog 3/Acid Memories level BOC. They managed to fit the criteria and I think that's the only reason I considered them. Birdy definitely aimed for a blind spot in their catalog because we really don't know what those tracks sound like and only have a few hints.

In the heat of the moment I was convinced, but I understand now it was foolish.

Honestly, I hope one day, we can hear at least some of those unreleased EP tracks (even if they are crappy like BOC claim) just to hear how they stack up against the endless amount of fakes created to impersonate them.

[Geogandhi]

No Vons, I think it's worth expressing for the sake of clarity and giving the amount of mystery or demystification warranted to their craft.
I was not at all trying to bring BoC's music down to a level of normality, I agree, they are indeed in their rightfull place, they deserve it. True pioneers, the *insert important equivalent in any other field* of electronic music. I was just pointing out that they are human and people can be as creative and touch on similar themes without being hijacked by obsession. I think Birdy can exist without being attached to BoC, I mean, to my ears, it's wildly different in many ways and I doubt they were created or intending to be considered like BoCs early material. That might be an influence but it's someones personal music. The fakes were different because they were totally intended for deception, they were made for that sole purpose, even if for jest so we can totally disregard any merit in those.

We should stop trying to place our own purpose on artists material. Let them be what they are, even if they touch on similar vibes that BoC use, we need to credit where credit is due.
Saying that, Birdy is probably stoked that he's had this boost and hopefully won some listeners that will accept them for them, not because they could have been someone known already.
This is a situation I have always felt strongly about and one reason I stopped visiting watmm, the aphex a equivalent is excruciating to see. This past weeks events have not spurred this rant just made me voice it here, and also because I don't have a reddit account.

[Geogandhi]

Ech, it's not foolishness, I think the point was to ignite playfullness and to see what could be achieved from something so small and vague. No one should be embarrassed to have had a flutter of excitement even a slightly delusional one. It's par the course for this little corner of fans.

[vonS]

“ people can be as creative and touch on similar themes without being hijacked by obsession. I think Birdy can exist without being attached to BoC”.

I totally agree. But, in this case, you had a particularly obsessive fanbase, coming out of Covid, starved of new music (from a Salinger esque band, who take as long as MBV to make anything, and although they are probably nice normal guys, their reticence in a social media age adds to the mystique) and set out on a hoax.

As such, many people (myself included) suffered from a group delusion/apophenia, where we saw what we wanted to see, and for many, heard what they wanted to hear.

I wouldnt take away any wide generalisations from this peculiar event. Its more sociological, rather than relative to that persons music, if you ask me.

[Geogandhi]

Yeah, I guess you're right. I just feel a bit bad bad for birdy for not being recognised for his own work but also stoked they got some exposure, and all this said, i'm actually being a cullprit of my own peev, i'm placing my own purpose on their work, assuming their initial motives based on my own morals.

[Echelon]

“
I totally agree. But, in this case, you had a particularly obsessive fanbase, coming out of Covid, starved of new music (from a Salinger esque band, who take as long as MBV to make anything, and although they are probably nice normal guys, their reticence in a social media age adds to the mystique) and set out on a hoax.

Add in some actual activity on the Twitter--more than usual too--and many believed this was it. The one thing that was bad about the hoax was that it usurped attention away from the Twitter and legit activity. But hey, maybe BOC and/or their management might realize this and swing back with something more substantial than likes.

Ech, it's not foolishness, I think the point was to ignite playfullness and to see what could be achieved from something so small and vague. No one should be embarrassed to have had a flutter of excitement even a slightly delusional one. It's par the course for this little corner of fans.

I never thought of it that way. Thanks for saying that I've definitely been looking to have that "flutter of excitement" for a while, (and especially during this stressful year) so in a way, Birdy or Vane achieved that. I guess I shouldn't take it so personally because it's all in good fun.

[bungler666]

More like, that "wow and flutter of excitement"

[Geogandhi]

Ok, so after my little ranty thing, I started thinking.
I'm going to try and make a convincing Boards of Canada track, one that could sit on one of the albums happily. Now of course, that sounds way over confident in my abilities. It's not, I have been pretty vocal on how no one could do it, mainly down to a combination of not being them and trying to trace where their audio has been in order to reach that certain colour.
This is obviously pie in the sky and i'm 100% sure of failure but why not give it a go and see? At least to show confirm either way, to myself that what i'm arguing has some truth. Is their any point? probably not apart from just a fun, personal excersise, And I don't feel i'd be wasting my time particuarly, i'm pretty lazy so it would be a much needed boost of activity.

Question is, what album would you like me to go for?
As I said, MHTRTC would be the hardest I think and if I was to choose, i'd probably just jump in at the deep end with that.
I'm going to go fully in, drums, samples, synths, a full track in their classic vein.
Should I make a seperate thread for this. Is anyone interested at all? Pretty sure i'm going to do it anyway. Maybe spend a couple of weeks on it (which in my world is a few sessions of a few hours) but i'll try my hardest.

[Echelon]

Ok, so after my little ranty thing, I started thinking.
I'm going to try and make a convincing Boards of Canada track, one that could sit on one of the albums happily. Now of course, that sounds way over confident in my abilities. It's not, I have been pretty vocal on how no one could do it, mainly down to a combination of not being them and trying to trace where their audio has been in order to reach that certain colour.
This is obviously pie in the sky and i'm 100% sure of failure but why not give it a go and see? At least to show confirm either way, to myself that what i'm arguing has some truth. Is their any point? probably not apart from just a fun, personal excersise, And I don't feel i'd be wasting my time particuarly, i'm pretty lazy so it would be a much needed boost of activity.

Question is, what album would you like me to go for?
As I said, MHTRTC would be the hardest I think and if I was to choose, i'd probably just jump in at the deep end with that.
I'm going to go fully in, drums, samples, synths, a full track in their classic vein.
Should I make a seperate thread for this. Is anyone interested at all? Pretty sure i'm going to do it anyway. Maybe spend a couple of weeks on it (which in my world is a few sessions of a few hours) but i'll try my hardest.

In honor of the anniversary of A Beautiful Place Out In The Country, I want you to make the fifth track on the EP. I always feel like that collection ends way to soon. Be sure to make it very eerie and include a reference to the Branch Davidians

That EP btw is such a brilliant left turn for a group who could have milked the Children sound for all it was worth. I really hope they celebrate it this year.

[vonS]

I think Geo is the toughest. Dense harmonics, multi layered synths and samples, purposive use of samples (vocal and audio), multiple layers of foley, mathematical and conceptual patterns and layering (satanism, occult, music theory, mathematical theory, popular conspiracy theorys, numbers stations, waco).

Short answer: five chords, four bars, four note melodies, add a different element every few bars, tape degredation, and special sauce, use gunshots from the Waco siege as snares (with a bit of reverb) and hats! Also, numbers and oranges. And Leslie Nielsen.

Seriously, though, facetiousness aside, its a tough project. You may be able to nail the audio (of whatever album), but the undercurrents and conceptual glue is the tough part. Its so much more than the sonics, in my view.