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Music Based on Pi Keeps Bodies Movin' Forever
Posted by Wilson Rothman at 9:30 AM on October 4, 2008
I'm starting to believe in those Apatow movies about nerds suddenly becoming popular without having to shed their nerdiness: A dude name Paul Slocum—who I'm picturing looks exactly like Michael Cera of SuperBad/Juno/Nick & Nora fame—hooked a crappy old amp to his little laptop, told the laptop to continuously calculate the digits of the magical constant pi, digits that run to infinity to the right of the decimal point, and turned those digits into synth commands for surprisingly danceable house music.
I'm old(ish) now, but I remember being in clubs with one song jumping to the next while the beat keeps on going and going, with everybody just kind of bouncing along (with alcohol and other fuels to speed them along). That's pretty much what it's like hearing Slocum's music, MP3s of which you can download in short form or long. As you might predict, Slocum himself explains it, well, like one of Michael Cera's characters might:
The software progressively calculates the sequence of digits in pi, starting at 3.14 and progressing towards infinity. As the program calculates the digits, it feeds the results into an algorithmic music generator containing my structural criteria for house music. The resulting piece of house music is infinitely long and static and never repeats itself.
Hear that, party people? Infinitely long. It might kill you, but at least you will never have to go home! [NoiseAddicts]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
Bruce
Posted October 5, 2008 6:20 PM
this is the worst music i've ever heard - its not appealing whatsoever!
DJ Rollyz
Posted October 9, 2008 5:02 PM
This choon rocks! I'm gona play the long version on my radio show. :-)
loslosbaby
Posted 9:50 AM 4/10/08
Pump up the volume, up pump the volume,
volume the pump up, up volume the pump,
pump the volume up, up the pump volume,
...
loslosbaby
T-Will
Posted 10:17 AM 4/10/08
The system is down, the system is down...
T-Will
tarzan69
Posted 10:15 AM 4/10/08
It would have been so much more appropriate if he used e instead of pi . . .
tarzan69
Numerous
Posted 9:59 AM 4/10/08
@loslosbaby: Oonts oonts oonts oonts. Oonts oonts oonts oonts.
Numerous
diem
Posted 9:57 AM 4/10/08
..."and turned those digits into synth commands for surprisingly danceable house music."
Hold up -- god doesn't think he's tiesto.
diem
Wilson Rothman
Posted 10:24 AM 4/10/08
@macegr: Didn't take long for The Man to kill that video, did it?
Wilson Rothman
macegr
Posted 10:24 AM 4/10/08
@macegr: Aw, I just wanted to post a link...embedding is turned off way too much these days.
macegr
doug316
Posted 10:23 AM 4/10/08
Yeah, why not try it with any random number generator.
doug316
macegr
Posted 10:21 AM 4/10/08
Finally this means something:
+ Watch video
macegr
velvetwoodstock
Posted 10:46 AM 4/10/08
Has this man never heard Thomas Bangalter? Repitition is fundamental in house music.
velvetwoodstock
AUAnonymous
Posted 11:09 AM 4/10/08
@velvetwoodstock:
Definitely, they should've chosen something more repetitive, like .999 etc
AUAnonymous
jschell
Posted 11:04 AM 4/10/08
@doug316: or any other irrational number. meh.
jschell
walkathon
Posted 11:33 AM 4/10/08
Presuming this is Paul Slocum of Synthcart Atari 2600 fame ... go Paul go!
walkathon
banmojo
Posted 12:52 PM 4/10/08
infinitely 'static'?? doesn't he mean infinitely DYNAMIC??! dumbass geeko....
jk
banmojo
jibbly
Posted 1:49 PM 4/10/08
Totally awesome, like Fiery Furnaces for mathematics based dance music!
jibbly
dingus
Posted 1:39 PM 4/10/08
Holy shit, I used to work with that dude at a summer job long ago! I had him pegged as the guy who was voted Most Likely to Demo Some Crazy Electronic Shit At Burning Man in high school.
dingus
nosebleed
Posted 10:00 PM 4/10/08
yes, this is Paul Slocum of TREEWAVE fame as well.
a band he's in w/ Lauren Flax who say (via their myspace)
"pair from dallas making noise pop w/ obsolete computer/videogame crap
-> [ atari 2600 / c64 / 286 / dot matrix printer ] <- "
it's great music too, something along the lines of their listed influences - stereolab, m83, lali puna...
but again, in bit music.
check them out!
i've got their EP, i love it.
[www.myspace.com]
nosebleed
AlexLand
Posted 12:36 AM 5/10/08
so there's some sponsorship going on here or what?
movies like nick and nora are awful. i really hate garden state for starting the trend of emo movies for 20somethings. put belle and sebastian on the soundtrack, yeahhhhhh!
AlexLand
BiZarRroBALlmeR
Posted 6:40 AM 5/10/08
I like pie.. ; P
BiZarRroBALlmeR
dna
Posted 1:27 PM 5/10/08
Yep... sounds infinitely static to me ;)
dna
SulabhaJobonee
Posted 3:37 AM 5/10/08
It's interesting, but has NOTHING special to do with Pi. Any random number sequence would produce a result indistinguishable from the track produced. Try e or the last digit of every listing in order from any phone book. The whole "Pi" thing is just a stunt. While the real accomplishment was coming up with an algorithm that didn't depend on considered, thoughtful input. As a meta-creative achievement, it's very good. As a publicity stunt, it sucks.
SulabhaJobonee
SwetaCorvus
Posted 12:38 AM 5/10/08
A metal band called "After the Burial" made a song with a time signature that was Pi. Its a damn good song too. The name is "Pi the Mercury God of Infinity"
SwetaCorvus
KLanD
Posted 2:28 AM 6/10/08
wow, now that's sweet.
KLanD
thejakechord
Posted 7:27 AM 6/10/08
@diem: It should, however, be noted that Tiesto thinks that he's God.
thejakechord
Moldy Cheese
Posted 9:15 AM 6/10/08
Hate to be a poo-pooer, but as I recall several people have been doing this for nearly 30 years (look up Iannis Xenakis). In fact, as SulabhaJobonee points out there are many avenues for mathematically generated beats aside from pi, like E or even the human genome sequence.
Moldy Cheese
kidnextdoor
Posted 4:22 PM 6/10/08
um...it sounds like a 5-year-old banging on a Radio Shack keyboard. Give me a break.
kidnextdoor
VideoVampire
Posted 3:44 AM 7/10/08
That song made me want to go to Six Flaggs...dont know why.....
VideoVampire
EricAlder
Posted 4:43 AM 7/10/08
"... the beat keeps on going and going, with everybody just kind of bouncing along..."
That explains a lot, including the right picture.
EricAlder
nutbastard
Posted 5:25 AM 7/10/08
@Numerous:
oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oon oon oon oon-oon-oon oon oon..........wwwwwwwaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH
oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah oonts-ah
nutbastard