David Byrne: When to resist technology

♪ (David Byrne music) ♪

♪ I used to think that
I should watch TV ♪

♪ I used to think that
it was good for me ♪

The recording part of music
has gotten much cheaper.

People can record on their laptops.

They can edit and compose
on their laptops,

and the quality is fine.

The means of production
have been handed to the creators,

which is kind of wonderful,

but it means that
there's a lot being created,

and not all of it is good.

♪ And I would lose myself
and it would set me free ♪

The software that allows us
to record on laptops

tends to encourage us
to record in certain ways.

It tends to make the songs
very regular, repeatable.

The tempos are usually
very strict and steady,

which at some point in the past
was an ideal,

but an absolutely steady tempo is
maybe not the best thing in the world

In some ways computers and technology
push us in a certain direction,

and we have to know creatively
when to resist that.

When to resist the things that
computers make too easy.

Depending on what kind of music it is,

I'll start off with maybe a guitar
or something first to get a framework.

Starting without the computer allows me
a certain kind of freedom.

I'm not restricted by what
the computer tries to get me to do.

♪ I know, I like,
Behold and love this giant ♪

♪ Big soul, big lips,
That's me and I am this ♪

♪ Everybody gets a touched up hairdo ♪

♪ Everybody's in the passing lane ♪

♪ Adoration makes you touch dark shadows ♪

♪ Weird things that live in there ♪

I don't think the quality of recordings
is the most important thing.

The music that I heard when I was young,
I heard on a horrible-sounding little radio.

But it completely moved me.

It completely changed the way
I thought about music and other things.

Obviously when I'm recording
or capturing a piece of music,

I try to get the sound to be
as good as possible.

But I realize that
somewhere down the line,

people might be listening
on their phone with their headphones

They might even be listening
holding their phone in their hand.

Maybe on their computer speakers,
that's very likely.

You know, the speakers that
are maybe this big.

So I realize that
it's there if people want it.

But if they don't want it,
or can't afford it or don't need it,

I hope that the song and music works,
in whatever format.

♪ How am I not your brother? ♪

♪ How are you not like me? ♪

When I see people listening to music
on their phones,

maybe without even headphones,
just holding the phone up,

it makes me wonder:
what kind of music works well like that?

A global pop music?

Is that the kind of music that
sounds best like this?

Or is it some other kind of music
that sounds best?

Like maybe a solo violin,
or something very, very simple.

If one were to compose music that
sounds good when you just hold up a phone,

what would it be?

I don't know.

♪ Maybe someday understand them better ♪

♪ The weird things inside of me. ♪

(applause)