I started this site when I was 23 and now I am 36. Been there and done that for the most part. You can't put a price tag on the knowledge and commadery I gained through the years. If I had to??? I would do it all the same again. I learned some very valuable lessons. The site bashing and personal attacks sting, though. This place is my baby and I take it very personally.
I wish to continue and end on a good note, not because some nerdy hatters had an Internet Pileon concerning some apparently bad decisions to try and make this place better???. The "Web 2.0" redesign was done because people told me they wanted it.
I hope this place can thrive another 3-5 years??? maybe more? But since this is a user driven web site. I need your help.
Perhaps I'm just being overly sensitive but I sometimes get the feeling that some dudes think there is or was some white anti rap conspiracy or some malicious revenge of the nerds type shit at the core of the Waxidermy board. Which just isn't true.
I'm no big rap fan, and even I've gotten that impression from Waxi.
Not just with black music in general, but any white artist who isn't part of some trendy, avant-garde fringe.
haha but you considered everyone other than Mitch Ryder or Jerry Lee Lewis part of some trendy, avant-garde fringe.
True!!!
billbradleyYou want BBQ sauce? Get the fuck out of my house. 2,905 Posts
I don't understand the personal attacks and don't mind the redesign at all. Haters gonna hate related. Keep doing what you've been doing, it is appreciated by many. I am sure there are plenty of people that will step up and help if needed too.
The engine of this site was always its poasters, but the All Stars of days passed have all moved on. Whether busy with Real World Moves (tm), on Facebook or other boards like Waxi and Holler, this time was eventually going to come if nobody stepped up into those shoes.
If you look at the sheer talent that has passed through here, they're big shoes to fill. But ultimately, what I love most about some of the other places I poast are that they are inhabited by people who I can learn from - people smarter or deeper than me on a whole range of subjects. This includes Waxidermy.
Another quality of boards I like is heavy moderation. Moderators don't only wield the ban-hammer, they also encourage discussion and redirect it when it seems to be going off the rails. They welcome new members and lay out the rules. Raj cant be the only person expected to do this, but most of the others are MIA.
So the young guys should step up, sure, but without guidance they will just do them. And IMO, a point came where this board got to be like that Jay-Z line: "a wise man said don't argue with fools, cause people from a distance can't tell who is who." A lot of the OGs have told me the same, from their perspective. So without moderation, you have the inmates running the asylum.
Dudes on waxidermy dissing soulstrut... Dudes on soulstrut dissing waxidermy... This has been going on forever it's not a new thing and there has been plenty of bile to go around.
It's a shame that folks are looking to mete out blame, as that kind of misses the point. Handwringing and witch hunts won't make the situation better and indeed will cement the board's decline. I sure hope that doesn't happen. There was a time that I posted here all day and there were real relationships built through that. I have a lot less time these days but I hope that others can use the board to the same ends, that's what it should be all about.
It is no secret that Waxidermy prefers the folk over the funk.
Some funny threads there occasionally to lurk on. But I would go further to say that the few times I have gone there I have noticed more than a preferential tone, more like an anti-funk, anti hip hop attitude. And a cynicism and even a condescension toward anything other than bone, which is not what this client wants. aka dudes whose record buying evolved without hip hop as a factor, ever. (except Dcarfagna) I can't say it makes sense to me, maybe I need to go to Manitoba to get it.
the train of thought above does a good job of getting at the crux of the divergence, even if it is misreading things a bit. it's not that there's an anti-funk/hip-hop mentality so much as a disdain for the greatly outmoded philosophy that funk is apex of human creativity and the worth of any given music is measured by how "funky" it is. it's something that certainly stems from the breaks/crate-digging' approach to recorded music and has been sewn into the fabric of SS since the beginning...i think a lot of folks on here either grew out of this or just never cared in the first place. that shit was annoying when soulstrut was at it's peak but in 2012 it's just fucking depressing.
only on here would there be threads like "which fairport convention albums have breaks??" or "recommend some funky post punk!"...i mean do people really think that "africa brasil" is the best jorge ben album?
I have been a loooong time lurker on The Strut and hate to see that it might be put to rest.Waxidermy is cool but a lot of the duds there are on some "get that funky shit out of here" steez and I can't say I feel the same way so it rubs me wrong.Feels like those dudes would laugh at my shelves.Soul Strut put me on to tons of stuff through the years,much appreciated!
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
awall said:
Deegreez said:
pickwick33 said:
batmon said:
Burns said:
Waxi is too white.
It is no secret that Waxidermy prefers the folk over the funk.
Some funny threads there occasionally to lurk on. But I would go further to say that the few times I have gone there I have noticed more than a preferential tone, more like an anti-funk, anti hip hop attitude. And a cynicism and even a condescension toward anything other than bone, which is not what this client wants. aka dudes whose record buying evolved without hip hop as a factor, ever. (except Dcarfagna) I can't say it makes sense to me, maybe I need to go to Manitoba to get it.
the train of thought above does a good job of getting at the crux of the divergence, even if it is misreading things a bit. it's not that there's an anti-funk/hip-hop mentality so much as a disdain for the greatly outmoded philosophy that funk is apex of human creativity and the worth of any given music is measured by how "funky" it is. it's something that certainly stems from the breaks/crate-digging' approach to recorded music and has been sewn into the fabric of SS since the beginning...i think a lot of folks on here either grew out of this or just never cared in the first place. that shit was annoying when soulstrut was at it's peak but in 2012 it's just fucking depressing.
only on here would there be threads like "which fairport convention albums have breaks??" or "recommend some funky post punk!"...i mean do people really think that "africa brasil" is the best jorge ben album?
Grew out of it or never cared in the first place? Depressing? Only on here?
Sorry, dude, but you appear from my view to be waaaay off-base. I mean, it's cool if people want to deny the funk. No wait, there's nothing cool about that whatsoever.
It is no secret that Waxidermy prefers the folk over the funk.
Some funny threads there occasionally to lurk on. But I would go further to say that the few times I have gone there I have noticed more than a preferential tone, more like an anti-funk, anti hip hop attitude. And a cynicism and even a condescension toward anything other than bone, which is not what this client wants. aka dudes whose record buying evolved without hip hop as a factor, ever. (except Dcarfagna) I can't say it makes sense to me, maybe I need to go to Manitoba to get it.
the train of thought above does a good job of getting at the crux of the divergence, even if it is misreading things a bit. it's not that there's an anti-funk/hip-hop mentality so much as a disdain for the greatly outmoded philosophy that funk is apex of human creativity and the worth of any given music is measured by how "funky" it is. it's something that certainly stems from the breaks/crate-digging' approach to recorded music and has been sewn into the fabric of SS since the beginning...i think a lot of folks on here either grew out of this or just never cared in the first place. that shit was annoying when soulstrut was at it's peak but in 2012 it's just fucking depressing.
only on here would there be threads like "which fairport convention albums have breaks??" or "recommend some funky post punk!"...i mean do people really think that "africa brasil" is the best jorge ben album?
Grew out of it or never cared in the first place? Depressing? Only on here?
Sorry, dude, but you appear from my view to be waaaay off-base. I mean, it's cool if people want to deny the funk. No wait, there's nothing cool about that whatsoever.
I bid on the funk
I won the funk
I paid for the funk
Please promptly ship me the funk
So I can listen to the funk
HarveyCanal"a distraction from my main thesis." 13,234 Posts
Sorry, but the idea that Waxidermy as a whole is "anti-funk" or "anti hip-hop" is some serious bullshit.
Sure, it's a bunch of nerds who (like me) spend way too much time thinking about records, but I can't think of a single kind of music that doesn't have numerous fans over there. Just because these two aren't held up as the only kinds of music that matter doesn't mean that there's some inherent bias against it.
The best of 2012 releases thread there is like 90% rap/hip hop, fwiw.
there's a big difference between between "what's the best meters LP?" and "WHAT'S THE FUNKIEST SHIT BY THE MAMAS AND PAPAS??"
I hear you, but for the most part those "PLAESE TELL ME FUNKY MANTOVANNI BRAEKXZS" threads fall by the wayside and off the front page with the quickness.
I think there's a few reasons things have declined here, but I blame a lot of that on actual lack of participation on our part more than anything. You can't have a message board with no messages. Even when it was some bullshit political threads this place looked alive. Just keep engaging and (outside of Raj's overhead situation) we'll be fine.
Sorry, but the idea that Waxidermy as a whole is "anti-funk" or "anti hip-hop" is some serious bullshit.
Case and point ??? OG Rick Mason just sold on there. I must admit, the sales on there are sometimes borderline ridiculous. It used to be the same way here.
Still, I can't deny how much I've learned from this site and the genuinely humble people I've met. I'd be sad to see the site go, but at the same time understand that sometimes people have to move on.
Shaping up to be my favorite Thin Lizzy record, just after Jailbreak
Possibly the closest to funk they ever got. Pre-Jailbreak, before their basic sound was established.
This album also reminds you that Thin Lizzy had some great guitarists, but were indeed led by a bass player.
back on some record nerd stuff, there is a UK Gladys Knight exploito LP called "Especially for you" which features a couple of funk instrumental guitar led tracks from some band called "Funky Junction" rumor has been that Funky Junction was actually Thin Lizzy circa 1971.
I used to sell this all the time for the breaks.
The producer did lots of sound alike records for UK budget labels and they were filled with breaks and some original funk/psych cuts. My favorite was Lightning Red. I think the good cuts on that Gladys Knight are original instrumentals.
I will say this one more time, if you folks are ever interested in re-establishing that comp, I would be more than happy to contribue and fund for it, that is...if the artists are still content with their work.
This site means a lot to me. I am a certified small dude so I feel I don't I have much to contribute. I would like to post some mixes but have to update my technology situation to do so including a new cool edit program and some photo editing for dummies program. I will hop back in the finds mix and upload some googleable and non googleable stuff again!
So many great personalities on here even with the lull in the action.
i stopped reading by page 5, but here's my two cents:
when i found this place my face kind of melted. there's only a few people down here who i can talk to about records and finding the strut meant having loads of people who knew about music and were hella funny. then a friend pointed me to waxidermy and i couldn't resist. main reasons:
-record talk mainly, with lots of knowledge dropped and A LOT to be learned
-no sneaker or nba talk
-much more broad music wise
-cool records to buy / trade
-friendly people
i guess a lot of people did the same like six years ago. seems that the people who stayed are more interested in nba than records nowadays, and they probably don't need the strut to talk about that.
i've been here for a short period of time and i don't post that much, but it wouldn't be cool if it closed. the sense of community here is huge, and i suppose there's the key.
So has Raj changed the layout of the board because of all this nerdish hullabaloo?
It looks completely different when i log in at the office, framed with borders and all old-fashiony looking.
So peed-on (name and address withheld) stopped posting and is now cowering over there in ignominy, talmbout the strut aint shit. Soft.
DocMcCoy"Go and laugh in your own country!" 5,917 Posts
Dante said:
the SS top 100 might be the starting point...
I think you could be right, Dante.
Here's an example of how Facebook is doing something that SS can (and should) do. Every morning for the last four months or so, a friend of mine has posted a YouTube clip of one of his favourite records of the 80s on his FB page, along with a little story about it. Prior to this, he'd undertook a similar project for the 1970s, posting a song a day for a year, leading up to his favourite song of the decade. Sometimes the accompanying text will be about the music, sometimes it'll be a reminiscence of what he was doing with his life at the time, what was happening in the wider world, and so on. I'm sure you get the idea.
So, each morning these posts generate around 30-70 responses from his FB buddies discussing the merits of whatever song he's posted. Of course, it helps that he can write, knows his shit, has broad, solid taste and invariably has something interesting to say about the music, but that's all part of the appeal. Generally, people respond when they've got something positive to say about the tune, and don't if they haven't. Nobody's ordered them to do this - it's just assumed that the object of the exercise is, in part, to generate a dialogue about the music and what it means to people without sniping at the tastes of others. This has led to some interesting responses. When he posted Company B's Fascinated, one of the guys who responded had worked at the UK label that licensed it and had actually done the 7" edit. He was talking about how when the master tapes arrived from Miami, they were a mess with tracks bleeding into one another, and how it needed a shitload of cleaning-up before they could even start on an edit. There was even a Salma Hayek moment after my boy posted a Siouxsie and the Banshees song, and I responded with a tale of a Banshees gig I went to that ended in a near-riot. Up pops Steve fucking Severin of the Banshees, saying yep, I remember that gig, it was mad, blablahblah...
Anyway, I'm sure you see what I'm getting at. Perhaps it would have been more beneficial to suggest this when the SS 100 was first proposed, but to be honest I expected there to be a huge, sprawling, bad-tempered debate about what should or shouldn't be admitted to the canon before the whole thing finally petered out to nothing. But why not treat this as an opportunity to take a more positive approach to the direction of the site for a change? We've all been around long enough to know that ferocious clonning of greenhorns is a key part of the SS experience, but why not set that aside for a while and see where it leads us? This is not a call for a candy floss-and-unicorns regime, although I expect it to be interpreted as one - even asking people politely to ease back on the smack talk is like a red rag to a bull, as we all know. There have been innumerable threads in the past where attempts to generate music talk have invariably collapsed into bouts of "this record sucks/this band sucks/this genre sucks/you suck". Now I like lively arguments as much as anyone, and I'm not suggesting that negative commentary should get BAN. But how about allowing a little more room for people to get enthusiastic about something without the usual vinegary sniping. If people want to talk shit about something, then start a shit-talking thread, but let's hear more about what people like and why they like it instead of what they don't like.
Also, maybe it's finally time for a separate politics/sport (maybe TV/movies too) board. The politics/sports threads are clearly needling a lot of people. Let there be a place to discuss that stuff away from those who aren't interested in taking part, and let it stand or fall according to how interested people actually are.
Comments
I started this site when I was 23 and now I am 36. Been there and done that for the most part. You can't put a price tag on the knowledge and commadery I gained through the years. If I had to??? I would do it all the same again. I learned some very valuable lessons. The site bashing and personal attacks sting, though. This place is my baby and I take it very personally.
I wish to continue and end on a good note, not because some nerdy hatters had an Internet Pileon concerning some apparently bad decisions to try and make this place better???. The "Web 2.0" redesign was done because people told me they wanted it.
I hope this place can thrive another 3-5 years??? maybe more? But since this is a user driven web site. I need your help.
True!!!
The engine of this site was always its poasters, but the All Stars of days passed have all moved on. Whether busy with Real World Moves (tm), on Facebook or other boards like Waxi and Holler, this time was eventually going to come if nobody stepped up into those shoes.
If you look at the sheer talent that has passed through here, they're big shoes to fill. But ultimately, what I love most about some of the other places I poast are that they are inhabited by people who I can learn from - people smarter or deeper than me on a whole range of subjects. This includes Waxidermy.
Another quality of boards I like is heavy moderation. Moderators don't only wield the ban-hammer, they also encourage discussion and redirect it when it seems to be going off the rails. They welcome new members and lay out the rules. Raj cant be the only person expected to do this, but most of the others are MIA.
So the young guys should step up, sure, but without guidance they will just do them. And IMO, a point came where this board got to be like that Jay-Z line: "a wise man said don't argue with fools, cause people from a distance can't tell who is who." A lot of the OGs have told me the same, from their perspective. So without moderation, you have the inmates running the asylum.
Dudes on waxidermy dissing soulstrut... Dudes on soulstrut dissing waxidermy... This has been going on forever it's not a new thing and there has been plenty of bile to go around.
It's a shame that folks are looking to mete out blame, as that kind of misses the point. Handwringing and witch hunts won't make the situation better and indeed will cement the board's decline. I sure hope that doesn't happen. There was a time that I posted here all day and there were real relationships built through that. I have a lot less time these days but I hope that others can use the board to the same ends, that's what it should be all about.
.02
just an observation...
He was special. He would tell me to eat a bag of dicks and I called him fatty-fat-fat.
didn't SS pick out your living room suite? no?
:lalala: :get_on_my_level:
the train of thought above does a good job of getting at the crux of the divergence, even if it is misreading things a bit. it's not that there's an anti-funk/hip-hop mentality so much as a disdain for the greatly outmoded philosophy that funk is apex of human creativity and the worth of any given music is measured by how "funky" it is. it's something that certainly stems from the breaks/crate-digging' approach to recorded music and has been sewn into the fabric of SS since the beginning...i think a lot of folks on here either grew out of this or just never cared in the first place. that shit was annoying when soulstrut was at it's peak but in 2012 it's just fucking depressing.
only on here would there be threads like "which fairport convention albums have breaks??" or "recommend some funky post punk!"...i mean do people really think that "africa brasil" is the best jorge ben album?
Keep hope alive!!!!!
Grew out of it or never cared in the first place? Depressing? Only on here?
Sorry, dude, but you appear from my view to be waaaay off-base. I mean, it's cool if people want to deny the funk. No wait, there's nothing cool about that whatsoever.
I won the funk
I paid for the funk
Please promptly ship me the funk
So I can listen to the funk
Sure, it's a bunch of nerds who (like me) spend way too much time thinking about records, but I can't think of a single kind of music that doesn't have numerous fans over there. Just because these two aren't held up as the only kinds of music that matter doesn't mean that there's some inherent bias against it.
The best of 2012 releases thread there is like 90% rap/hip hop, fwiw.
There is? Please explain.
I hear you, but for the most part those "PLAESE TELL ME FUNKY MANTOVANNI BRAEKXZS" threads fall by the wayside and off the front page with the quickness.
I think there's a few reasons things have declined here, but I blame a lot of that on actual lack of participation on our part more than anything. You can't have a message board with no messages. Even when it was some bullshit political threads this place looked alive. Just keep engaging and (outside of Raj's overhead situation) we'll be fine.
.02
Soul Strut = "Doggone"
Waxidermy = "Listen to My Song"
So long as both sites are reppin' LOVE, who gives a FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK
Case and point ??? OG Rick Mason just sold on there. I must admit, the sales on there are sometimes borderline ridiculous. It used to be the same way here.
Still, I can't deny how much I've learned from this site and the genuinely humble people I've met. I'd be sad to see the site go, but at the same time understand that sometimes people have to move on.
I used to sell this all the time for the breaks.
The producer did lots of sound alike records for UK budget labels and they were filled with breaks and some original funk/psych cuts. My favorite was Lightning Red. I think the good cuts on that Gladys Knight are original instrumentals.
two words:
firefox
adblocker
strut experience is easily modified to ad-free...
secondededed
This site means a lot to me. I am a certified small dude so I feel I don't I have much to contribute. I would like to post some mixes but have to update my technology situation to do so including a new cool edit program and some photo editing for dummies program. I will hop back in the finds mix and upload some googleable and non googleable stuff again!
So many great personalities on here even with the lull in the action.
when i found this place my face kind of melted. there's only a few people down here who i can talk to about records and finding the strut meant having loads of people who knew about music and were hella funny. then a friend pointed me to waxidermy and i couldn't resist. main reasons:
-record talk mainly, with lots of knowledge dropped and A LOT to be learned
-no sneaker or nba talk
-much more broad music wise
-cool records to buy / trade
-friendly people
i guess a lot of people did the same like six years ago. seems that the people who stayed are more interested in nba than records nowadays, and they probably don't need the strut to talk about that.
i've been here for a short period of time and i don't post that much, but it wouldn't be cool if it closed. the sense of community here is huge, and i suppose there's the key.
the SS top 100 might be the starting point...
It looks completely different when i log in at the office, framed with borders and all old-fashiony looking.
So peed-on (name and address withheld) stopped posting and is now cowering over there in ignominy, talmbout the strut aint shit. Soft.
I think you could be right, Dante.
Here's an example of how Facebook is doing something that SS can (and should) do. Every morning for the last four months or so, a friend of mine has posted a YouTube clip of one of his favourite records of the 80s on his FB page, along with a little story about it. Prior to this, he'd undertook a similar project for the 1970s, posting a song a day for a year, leading up to his favourite song of the decade. Sometimes the accompanying text will be about the music, sometimes it'll be a reminiscence of what he was doing with his life at the time, what was happening in the wider world, and so on. I'm sure you get the idea.
So, each morning these posts generate around 30-70 responses from his FB buddies discussing the merits of whatever song he's posted. Of course, it helps that he can write, knows his shit, has broad, solid taste and invariably has something interesting to say about the music, but that's all part of the appeal. Generally, people respond when they've got something positive to say about the tune, and don't if they haven't. Nobody's ordered them to do this - it's just assumed that the object of the exercise is, in part, to generate a dialogue about the music and what it means to people without sniping at the tastes of others. This has led to some interesting responses. When he posted Company B's Fascinated, one of the guys who responded had worked at the UK label that licensed it and had actually done the 7" edit. He was talking about how when the master tapes arrived from Miami, they were a mess with tracks bleeding into one another, and how it needed a shitload of cleaning-up before they could even start on an edit. There was even a Salma Hayek moment after my boy posted a Siouxsie and the Banshees song, and I responded with a tale of a Banshees gig I went to that ended in a near-riot. Up pops Steve fucking Severin of the Banshees, saying yep, I remember that gig, it was mad, blablahblah...
Anyway, I'm sure you see what I'm getting at. Perhaps it would have been more beneficial to suggest this when the SS 100 was first proposed, but to be honest I expected there to be a huge, sprawling, bad-tempered debate about what should or shouldn't be admitted to the canon before the whole thing finally petered out to nothing. But why not treat this as an opportunity to take a more positive approach to the direction of the site for a change? We've all been around long enough to know that ferocious clonning of greenhorns is a key part of the SS experience, but why not set that aside for a while and see where it leads us? This is not a call for a candy floss-and-unicorns regime, although I expect it to be interpreted as one - even asking people politely to ease back on the smack talk is like a red rag to a bull, as we all know. There have been innumerable threads in the past where attempts to generate music talk have invariably collapsed into bouts of "this record sucks/this band sucks/this genre sucks/you suck". Now I like lively arguments as much as anyone, and I'm not suggesting that negative commentary should get BAN. But how about allowing a little more room for people to get enthusiastic about something without the usual vinegary sniping. If people want to talk shit about something, then start a shit-talking thread, but let's hear more about what people like and why they like it instead of what they don't like.
Also, maybe it's finally time for a separate politics/sport (maybe TV/movies too) board. The politics/sports threads are clearly needling a lot of people. Let there be a place to discuss that stuff away from those who aren't interested in taking part, and let it stand or fall according to how interested people actually are.