The Dissensus Framework

[blissblogger]

Barry's signature is genius, I keep reading it as if it's part of his posts and it becomes a punchline.

me too!

 

[blissblogger]

the wire in 1998 was like syria in 2015.

sadly it wasn't quite that exciting - because of being a monthly. so by the time you might want to react what someone had written, that would be in an issue a month or even two months later effectively (given the turnaround times lof magazine production etc)

it was a forum for ideas for sure

also i've never met most of the Wire contributors, so definitely reduces an element of friction

with the weekly music press, you could retaliate with a response the next week, so it was much more combative. and you were hanging out as well, in the same office, pubs, gigs. so there's a friction of personality - sparks.

nothing like blogs though in terms of almost-real-time warfare of ideas, or baton-passing collaboration.

 

[luka]

But the blog thing only lasted a year or two.

 

[blissblogger]

"I have certain eccentricities, valves for the release

these activities are addictive, I am very aware that they are pointless and unhealthy,

You also become aware of how physically unhealthy it is, being locked into these screen habits. Breathing becomes shallower, heart rate increases eyes fixed rigidly at a very short distance, posture slumped and hunched, legs cramped.
In fact I’ve recently developed some kind of arm muscle strain through excessive particular movements related to these repetitious, addictive activities"

the reality behind these oblique confessions is so much sadder than masturbation, i regret to inform

 

[version]

sadly it wasn't quite that exciting - because of being a monthly. so by the time you might want to react what someone had written, that would be in an issue a month or even two months later effectively (given the turnaround times lof magazine production etc)

A month or so seething with resentment, sharpening your blade, throwing darts at photographs of your opponent.

 

[blissblogger]

But the blog thing only lasted a year or two.

i think it had a good three year hot streak there and then cooled off a bit but still pretty good

Dissensus formed towards the end of first flush

i think it was Twitter and Facebook that really killed the blogs though

 

[luka]

I remember it being the MP3 blogs. I remember Matt had all the figures. He did a post saying this lot get in an hour what the best of us get in a week. The games up. This is years before social media.

 

[version]

Gutterbreakz got in shit on DSF for hosting mp3s of dubstep tunes.

 

[luka]

I never read that blog for obvious reasons (or that forum)

 

[Mr. Tea]

Yeah, I never liked the whole thing of replacing an S with a Z either.

That'z becauze you're not down with the kidz.

 

[luka]

Obviously we love corpse now but there was some ruction at dsf and we got a whole flood of refugees, swamped by them, surging over the border, a terrible wave of these people, it totally changed our culture and way of life. They buried us in banality. So fucking boring and wet and average. Literally about 500 identical blokes.

 

[version]

Tea just caught a ghost.

 

[luka]

Obviously we love corpse now but there was some ruction at dsf and we got a whole flood of refugees, swamped by them, surging over the border, a terrible wave of these people, it totally changed our culture and way of life. They buried us in banality. So fucking boring and wet and average. Literally about 500 identical blokes.

That was the second worst period of dissensus history. The worst was when it was only me, droid and tea posting. Just us back and forth. That went on for about five years.

 

[version]

What did the three of you talk about? Craner?

 

[Mr. Tea]

Tea just caught a ghost.

Bustin' makes me feel good!

 

[blissblogger]

A month or so seething with resentment, sharpening your blade, throwing darts at photographs of your opponent.

more like the flame of indignation sputters out, and it seems pointless to respond because who remembers the contents of the issue before last.

that said, more generalized staking out of positions would be maintained over months and years, in implicit opposition to the other views. occasionally explicit.

but given that the Wire was pluralist by ethos, it didn't quite have the ferocity and stakes of weekly music press internicine disputes - which could be like wrestling over the actual direction of the paper, what would be given most coverage.

it does seem a little silly from this vantage point, admittedly

but at the time, it all felt urgent

 

[luka]

Good question. We all hated each other so I think we mostly exchanged insults. The same insults on a perpetual loop. Also we knew exactly what both of the others thought about literally every topic under the sun. But our commitment to the forum was so great that it outweighed our contempt for one another. That was the basis of a mutual respect. It was bigger than the individuals involved.

 

[version]

You should have gone paintballing or something.

 

[version]

the ferocity and stakes of weekly music press internicine disputes - which could be like wrestling over the actual direction of the paper, what would be given most coverage.

I'm picturing a bunch of guys in an office, all with their own corner like this and ranting each other:

 

[droid]

lol. Not quite how I remember it. With myself and Luka it was more like a very long game of chess, long drawn out moves, moments of detente and then board sweeping outbursts, explosive conflict avoided by our mutual disgust of tea.