That's the spirit .

So... You want IDM to stay IDM and not progress into something else fresh? OK. Well there are a lot of good straight IDM act out there still making records. Maybe it can't move forward, but it can certainly move sideways.

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I've heard some good field recordings that are on the verge of freshness without being completely pretentious and wank. Best current example I can think of is Tetsu's Waterloo Terminal. Field recordings are the next logical reinvention of the old mode. Its only right for the entire process to come full circle, considering that it began with borrowed sounds, evolved into mimicry of borrowed sounds, and then returned to it again.

Field recordings are one way to go. They are not the only way to go. I disagree with how you felt about autechres last album although I know a lot of people who agreed.

I think some of the, "innovators", those who look for something fresh and new are turning away from more generic IDM because they want something new and people who belong to that group will herald it's death. As a lot of people did with rhythmic noise a year or so ago. Yet Rhythmic noise is more popular than ever in the UK club scene.

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The true death-knell of the whole process is the fragmentization of typical genre categories into endless subgroups. Its a kind of useless stratification which complicates the matter. Maybe its a symptom of the whole system gnawing away at itself.

It's more a symptom of a system that's grown so large that recognisable groups of bands are doing similar things, a BOC fan wouldn't necessarily like Vsnares, but a Hecate fan probably would and even a more open minded drum and bass fan.

The simple fact is that if you played (and I have) both Boc and Vsnares to your average person there is no way that they would put them in the same category.

Categories evolve as music evolves...

1975 metal
1982 Thrash Metal, Glam Metal, Metal
1990 Thrash Metal, Death Metal, Funk Metal, Black Metal, Prog Metal.

Did this mean metal was going to die? No. The bands were just becoming different enough to justify sub-genres

What's happened is that IDMs experimentation has led to the creation of genres of music as people have picked up on an idea and made it into a style.

"genres" discussions rarely lead somewhere.

anyway i believe that idm is not a genre but more of a "therm" used to describe and group a big big bunch of people who combine "genres" (experimental, glitch, ambient, hip hop, electro...) using mainly a computer and whatever else they want (acoustic guitars, a video camera, drums...).

The sub-genre bullshit has got to stop. Metal didn't reinvent itself, or even fractionalize itself enough to warrant those (superfluous) distinctions. Its been chewing its own cud for a long time, recycling itself with no where to go. No more about genres, please.

Back to computer music:

Nothing stays fresh forever, nothing continues to evoke that sense perpetually. For the majority of people IDM is just a novelty, and that makes it highly disposable. If you look at the sales figures for your average idm artist in the next 5 years you'll see the results.

Its just a shame that the majority of IDM fans, once the traditional routes have been explored, either become pretentious about progression (which is a symptom of their own boredom), or drop their interest altogether. Idm doesnt have musical staying-power.

So you're saying Warrant sound like Emperor?

I agree with you about the attitude of the artists towards their work. in terms of cheques and balances. But affordability does not equate to quality (which we see slipping). What it does equate to is saturation, and the saturation has become the problem. If there were only institutions like Jenkinson and Paradinas, Gescom, so forth, there wouldn't be a problem. But the bandwagon effect - necessitated by the things you mentioned (affordability of technology) - is debasing the entire thing. Because lets be honest, laptop tweaking is not exactly a picasso'esque level of expression. Its no suprise that the tools of production have led to saturation and detritus.

Yes but surely this can happen in any style of music? Just because there will begin to be crap stuff released doesn't mean there will no longer be any good material.

Creative individuality and Economics define and sustain IDM.

Creative individuality

IDM is mostly made by individuals (max 2 people). IDM gives the artists the chance to make music by theirown, their own way. IDM surely is made by people who don't want to bother by dealing with egos, difficult personalities, or stupid producers.

IDM is the most free and individual expression of creative freedom.

Economics

IDM groups people who make music for the joy of doing it. Not for the money.

Nobody makes IDM for the money even if Fennesz has a country house or Richard james owns a WWII Tank. Actually several IDM artists have a job or an activity who raise them money for equipment and distribution.

Likewise IDM is meant to be free.

Free to make since using pirat software cost people nothing and big strong PC's can be very affordable.

Free to listen since many artists post their music for free on the internet. Free to get since you won't hear Autechre complaining about free filesharing: they know their fans love the real thing moslty the vinyl. Also I am sure they prefer for someone to hear their music via piracy than for this someone not to hear them at all.

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IDM won't end soon because:

1) Is affordable.

2) Is easy to make.

IDM isn't the only genre where this attitude prevails, I think you will find it in all types of music. Is IDM really that easy to make?

Saturation will lead to decreasing sales, but that doesn't mean that true quality will disappear. A diamond in a mountain of rocks is still a diamond.