This post is combination of multiple parallel streams combined into one, hopefully, coherent thought. The result of this is that introduction maybe a bit jarring but hopefully re-reading may lead to a better understanding I probably should write a book about it or maybe just a really good pamphlet.

I was pondering about sampling whilst driving to do the weekend shopping.

Sampling is where you take a snippet from one media and use it somewhere else. It can be quite recognisable or completely transformed into a different form by chopping and changed virtually everything within the sample.

I've been enjoying the role of sampling in the history and development of Hip-hop. The BBC4 documentary here has been overall awesome. Manual sampling by repeating breaks from duplicate classic funk records on two record decks gave the disenfranchised people, the means and tone to express their voice. This was often the marginalized, downtrodden and poor. The technology boom of the 80s enabled direct electronic sampling from music and other sources. This has now flowed into every area of mainstream music as any breakdown of a modern song reveals sounds which are either 100% samples or augmented organic sounds. This is the reality of modern music, you can't afford to mike up a drum kit to get a decent sound when there is one in the box which sounds better than your efforts. This approach is also rolled out to the majority of instruments. I would like say that this should only apply to the low-end artist but I feel that the margins are squeezed everywhere in all levels to ensure that the top dogs still have the their large cut of the financial pie.

I'm not down on this, being an oldish grumpy white man but I think that this is limiting the colour of our art, particularly in the mainstream. There are only maybe a few palettes of drum sounds which everyone is using and everything is starting to sound the same. I also see this in the guitar pedal world, everyone is cloning, copying and modeling a classic that they aren't really trying to do something new. There are exceptions like gamechangeraudio.com who are really pushing the envelop. I might return to this idea and play a guitar riff or three through my Marshall JCM800 and the Pod2 emulating the same rig. I'll record it onto a looper pedal and then play the same riff in parallel and pan them left/right. Atm, this is beyond me as I need a couple of guitar cable that works and some child-free moments!

Technology enables artistic development and progression e.g.,the electric guitar open new doors; The CCD in modern cameras then phones enabled everyone to take virtually unlimited photos. However, there is a place for all art to be in appreciated together. Oil paintings haven't been replaced or superseded by photos, it is just another strand of artistic endeavour. However, what worries me is the acceptance and normalisation of the process. If everyone has beautification filter running all the time in all digital media, how do we really know what is true and a real representation?

Anyway, my thoughts at this point turn sideways to church and I thought about sampling in the context of a faith community. I think it is possible that people want a sample-based faith experience. There is a general, reproducible thing which is dependable, reliable and predictable. They want to know that every Sunday, the worship will be like the worship at the Mega-event or the time when X ...; or they want the sermon to be with the same number of C.S. Lewis quote, an inspiration theme, good joke and be completely theological consistent and up to peer-reviewed literature standards.

Lockdown has forced the church off-piste but many have retreated to the safe sampling ground. We know this works in this format and we will repeat it as we know how it works, what happens and there are no shocks

There have been many innovation too, pushing back the boundaries. The imagination is there but this also has a high cost in time, technology and creative juices, often from unpaid volunteers.

The question is how have the innovations been received. Sample-fed people have very high standards and expectations. Poor quality media, sounds and visual turn people off before they have even heard the message. It's just another data source, which can run in sync with the Netflix and social-media live chats. This often results in a metric-based experience analysis - the number of hits, likes as a measure of effectivity. Also where are the ugly, media non-savvy leaders in modern young churches?

Sample-based church also suffers from capturing one moment and trying to repeating it. The Amen break is one moment of magic, which was captured and has been repeated in many different environments. When we find a magic mountain moment, we try to analysis, store and loop/reproduce it. Maybe Peter on the mount of transfiguration was trying to capture a sample of the experience by building tents and staying there. Instead of looking forward, we are caught in a time-loop, trying to reproduce former glories. We don't go through the struggle/trials/frustrations/dead ends/wrong turns/bonkers ideas which fail but push us closer to the next place.

The church used to lead the world in creativity but recently it does look a lot like its been sampling too much of the world instead of being be different from it.