Data visualization is often used to make complex data more understandable, and often used just for the hell of it. One thing it does do well is break down the intertwined sounds of the music mash-up, as seen in Benjamin Rahn’s Girl Talk visual timeline. The mesh of tracks used, while not being easy to decipher by the untrained ear, is much more easily understood by the eyes.Following in this tradition is The Man in Blue‘s Anatomy of a Mashup: Definitive Daft Punk visualized. What it does is breakdown his mashup of Daft Punk’s back catalogue, Definitive Daft Punk. The Man in Blue’s motivation was wanting to show the layman and woman the subtle and complex intricacies that go into creating a mashup.He explains:The art of the mashup has come to the fore in pop culture of recent years, but beyond Biggie Smalls crooning over Elton’s keys, I feel that the general public understands little of the nuance that goes into constructing a complex mash-up from tiny pieces of songs.In order to explain the layering and interplay that goes into something like a Girl Talk album or The 139 Mix Tape I decided to take my own mash-up of Daft Punk’s discography – Definitive Daft Punk – and reveal its entire structure: the cutting, layering, levels and equalization of 23 different songs. By dividing up the sound data for each song and computing its appearance in realtime, the resulting visualisation gives you an understanding of the unique anatomy of this particular mashup.Created using the latest HTML5 and CSS3 technology, it gives further credence to the mash-up as artform, as well as being a fantastic visualisation and a great mix. Go here to give your eyes and ears a thrill. He recommends watching it in Chrome and so do we.
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Visualizing The Art And Craft Of The Mash-up
The Man in Blue deconstructs his mash-up Definitive Daft Punk, showcasing the complexities of this modern artform.