“A quest for another sort of authenticity—the paid-for privilege of being present at an Event—fuels what Amnesia Scanner call “the experience economy” of today’s festivals. Just as much as bottle-service raves on cruise ships or EDM gatherings like Electric Daisy Carnival, experimental music festivals are selling exclusivity and a sense of occasion.”- I feel Simon Reynolds touches on something here that never becomes fully developed in the piece- which is the “expensiveness” artists mentioned drive to evoke- see Arca’s residency at Hudson Yards “The Shed.” Not to say this completely undermines potential political efficacy- Chino Amobi especially- but does further pressure an elite posture as the aspiration. Nonetheless great to hear from Reynolds on this.

"These conceptual works rarely seemed like records to live alongside in a casual, repeat-play way. They were statements to encounter and assimilate, developments to keep abreast of." Very true. This is just one dimension of a phenomena happening across media, lowbrow and highbrow. Look at film: each Marvel movie exists to set-up the next; disposable things to "keep abreast of" rather than "live alongside". This is probably due to the hegemony of The News as this century's dominant cultural form. In the same way that it doesn't make sense to read a breaking news story years after its been released, it wouldn't make much sense to listen to "Paradiso" or watch "Iron Man 2" a few years after they've been released.

„If its [conceptronica‘s] subject, in the broadest sense, was liberation, why then did I not feel liberated listening to it?“ — the content-form dilemma in respect of that musics agit-prop claims is another conversation worth dwelling upon. but for starters, simon, i think ‚conceptronica‘, if at all, unfolds it’s potential for liberation on the dancefloor rather than your home stereo. it’s simple as that and yet, of course, extremely difficult. other than that: brilliant and comprehensive read