I really like to read. I alternate between fiction and nonfiction. One of my recent fiction books was “Infinite Detail” by Tim Maughan.
It’s a dystopian, near-future, sci-fi book that looks at the question, “what would happen if the whole internet crashed?”. It’s a decently entertaining read, and had some provoking thoughts about technology and human relationships (and the power struggles therein).
It’s a dystopian, near-future, sci-fi book that looks at the question, “what would happen if the whole internet crashed?”. It’s a decently entertaining read, and had some provoking thoughts about technology and human relationships (and the power struggles therein).
There’s one passage that jumped out at me, though. The character is talking about making music in the internet era:
“Think about it. People could do what they liked, anything. It’s why the music became so self-indulgent, so undisciplined, and then so weirdly formulaic. Good art is produced under strict limits. Forces you to work with what you’ve got, to focus, right? There was no focus at the end. No control or vision. Just lots of people fucking about but ultimately following each other’s leads because they were drowning in choices. Unlimited possibilities.”
It’s such a true statement. There’s a lot of half-thoughts I have around this idea:
…This is what’s behind so much of the artisanal “maker” movement – creative people choosing a field with physical limits rather than the digital unending horizon of iPad app art art and beat-making.
…The comment from Steve Jobs about how important focus. That is, the ability to set your own limits of thought, action, and commitment are what determine success.
…That self-discipline is essentially the act of setting limitations for yourself. Whether it’s working out, fasting, choosing your words – it’s all an act of limiting yourself in the expectation that it will yield better results than if you hadn’t.
In the meantime, I’ll simply say that this is why I love acoustic guitar. The physical limitations of the instrument require you to be creative in the music you write and perform. Limitations force ingenuity.
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