What BPM Doesn’t Tell You
Music by numbers doesn't add up to the whole equation.
For the first 20+ years I spent as part of nightlife, I rarely heard anyone utter the term BPM. That was DJ speak. These days, it seems to be the first and only descriptor for music out of 80% of people’s mouths. I find this extremely odd. I’m perplexed. I believe that music is meant to move people- both emotionally and physically. Inspire them. Revive them. It's about the embrace rather than the pace the music gives you. The beats per minute can’t encapsulate its countless characteristics that imbue it with rich emotive qualities. To do so is tragic. Would you sum up a book with a word count? Or a painting by its Pantone numbers? No, you wouldn’t. All are types of art and deducting to digits obscures what it can add to our emotional intelligence.
It's a sad reflection of modern day society that we focus on BPM and overlook its exponential attributes. Are we so immersed in our fast paced, swipe ready, TikTok, faux social media world; that we don’t have a nanosecond to talk about its intrinsic nature? I fear how this may further devolve in the future. Especially with AI replicating what’s written and said. Was Kraftwerk actually predicting this type of bleak soulless future when they said “we are the robots”?! The thought of that is beyond depressing.
Let’s make a point to talk about the melodies, harmonies and je ne sais quoi funk? How a set makes you FEEL. What’s the narrative and the storytelling? Too many highs without lows doesn’t allow for musical drama that can shake you to the core. The ebb and flow is where much of the magic is at. I’m generally not a fan of turbo tempo, BPM wylin’- that is until I am. There are tracks and moments in sets that I love within that range. And when that happens I'm smitten. As the arc of a fast trot is brimming with emotion, I quickly morph into Speed Racer; the extra pep in my steps translating to the pitter patter in my heart. Dazzling when done well.
Restricting our description of music to a number does little to portray its substance and soul. Its reason for being. Music is art poured directly from the producer’s heart. And trust, they thought about far beyond the BPM. So why shouldn’t the words that come off our lips reflect just that? The tea is that the way we talk about music feeds into its creation.
And you don’t need to be a linguistics lover or music head to speak properly about it. Good works just fine. Amazing, even better. As you can guess, I can get well…wordy. Surprising, radiant, buoyant, challenging, smart- etc, etc. I love pondering how to translate sound to verbal expressions while dancing. But you don’t need to do all that. You could even simply specify the genre. I’m not saying to avoid talking about BPM. It’s clearly an important trait. But people use words upon words to discuss all types of bullshit. You unfortunately hear and read them every day. So when speaking about what we love most, why not choose our words wisely?