With regard to live playing,more specifically-going out to a bar or club to see a band perform,everything must be played live with no pre-recorded backing whatsoever,in order for me to fully enjoy the performance.
In fact,the bigger the band,the more interesting it gets interaction wise,but when it comes to creating & recording at home(especially with my isolated life),I cannot live without my midi sequencer & multi track recorder.
Whatever I do at home,whether it's all performed by myself,or there's some collaboration with someone on this forum,I am proud of everything I do,because even though it's automated,it's still created by me and it still has the human touch,because my fingers and my mind & soul are involved.
In the past,I have performed with a number of different people and some of the experiences were good & enriching,but for the most part,it usually tends to be difficult finding compatiblity with someone & when there is multiple people invloved,there's always some potential for more conflict which interferes with creativity & getting things accomplished in a reasonable amount of time.
Forming a band to perform on a regular basis can really be a nightmare,as there is always someone in the band that is not as dedicated to the craft as I or you are and if that is not the problem,someone eventually gets married,or wants to go solo,or move away somewhere and then you have to start from scratch again.
I have know quite a few people that were involved in a band that was decent,but when the founding member of the band goes off on his own,the music this person creates tends to be sigificantly better,because this person is focused with unbridled creativity & ideas,because none of the personality conflicts or time contraints get in the way of the music.
I don't mean to sound so cynnical & negative,but to me,a band is like a marriage,in that you have to find that rare special person(s) that you thrive with,that brings out the best in you and that's so hard to find.
Kara's specialty is playing live and I respect and admire that greatly,but my specialty is being a programmer & a studio based muscician,which allows me to accomplish all the things I was unable to do outside of this realm.
I also like alot of electronic music as well and one of my biggest influences is artists like Howard Jones & Jan Hammer.
As far as having that human connection with interacting with other people,well,I myself,am pretty much satisfied with the collaborations I have done here on this forum.
Also,as important as my hobby is to me,it's still just a hobby and I am only willing to devote just so much time to my craft,as I am a lost,restless soul and I am not really able to stay focused on my music as much as some others,so sequencing is all I really have time for,most days.
Don't read me wrong though,as this forum is very important to me and the people on this forum have inspired me to write more music now,than I have in any other time in my life.
In fact,I think I have really peaked musically,thanks to you fine people.
Thom