yeah im not sure it was really there in the artists' minds, at least not that consciously. it was prob no different to every other new genre in its first 15-20 years, where it is only natural that things move forward at a much faster pace, before there is time to sit back and take stock of it all. but whether there was a knowing desire to make something advancing the music or not, the music was doing that anyway. as far as more consciously 'fwd' music, you could look at the keysound this is how we roll comp as that, but while i do like a good half of whats on there, its ultimately just another re-something (configuration, formulation, etc, etc), rather than something new in its own right.
i think there are still great things happening, like that ben ufo fabric mix, night slugs, etc. whether theyre all that 'new' im not sure. which is sort of my point - i still have a need to know, or to feel that i am hearing newness, whereas most of these producers, and moreover, the younger audience, doesnt seem to. forget the idea of being self consciously forward looking, they dont seem that bothered. perhaps partly due to their age, but then if disclosure are talking about wanting to make tunes that could have slid into an old garage set, then that doesnt really work as a defence either.
its actually good in a way, im sure old garage producers get a kick out of seeing their music being overhauled and made successful again, must be different to before when they would end up being pushed to the side or just playing back to 95 raves, so in a sense of the music coming of age, i think its quite nice actually, and novel. all this appreciation for the old-schoolers. i dont think that was there before.