What's wrong.....with todays music?

[ToughOmbre]

1) Exception would be country. Has always been, is now, and always will be the most popular muscic in the USA.

While I agree, I wonder if this will change as the baby boomers leave this world......

Thor, I don't think the "boomers" have anything to do with the popularity of country. Country music was the most popular music in America during the 40s, and no baby boomers were yet born. Not saying this is very "scientific" but I read somewhere that country singer Roy Acuff was voted the most popular singer by GIs in WW II. (Frank Sinatra was second)

And IMO country is still popular today because most of the rest of the music produced today, well, to put it bluntly, ......sucks!

TO

 

[BombTaxi]

Agree that Corporations have a noted and not positive affect on music. It has turned it into a product. As such, it's a question of producing songs that are 3 minutes long, two verses, a bridge and a final verse with a closing. Very standardized. To their credit, the music of the 60s, on it's good side, didn't go this way. On it's bad side, it probably set the standard for Corporate Music.

Also think if you expand the definition, the art forms such as Painting and Sculpture are dead. Now more "shock art" than any talent (I was thinking specifically of "Piss Christ" with a Crucifix in a jar of urine). You go out to the odd art show and see maybe 5-10% that has any merit and there isn't that much even there. The rest is just repetition or one step above "dogs playing poker". I've seen more novel stuff in a Disney movie than in your average artists work.

True, I'm not a great judge of art. But I figure it is supposed to make some impression on the viewer. Most of the time, I see it and think, "This sucks" or "So?". It isn't a Corporation's fault that art isn't any good. That is what I meant by the cultural affect of society. Most art I've seen is what I would call "safe".

To be honest Tim, I took a year-long course in aesthetics and the philosophy of art during my second year of uni (it was that or do Logic, and I did not want to do Logic ), and I still don't have a clue what makes good 'art'. Wandering around the V&A Museum in London with my girlfriend a few months back, I realised that many of the paintings and sculptures had no effect on me at all - but some of the more 'everyday' objects, clothing, furniture and the like, had a very profound effect on me. I also visited an exhibition of Cold War art design at the same museum about 18 months ago, and the architecture and the objects such as cars and electrical goods seemed more pleasing than the 'art' in the conventional sense. So maybe there is something hard-wired into each of us that is moulded by the eras we grow up in.

Coming back to music, I think the same point holds. I like metal, I like 'screamo', and I like a lot of classical work, old and new, as well as a lot of contemporary electronic and instrumental music. It's just whatever trips that switch in the mind, regardless of what your social environment dictates you should like. I just wish that the mainstream were broader, and less oppressive of other genres. Again, I feel it is about big labels maximising market share and profit while leaving everyone else to get by as best they can. A triumph of capitalism for sure, but a loss to many people who may never even realise there is something else outside the mainstream. I wouldn't recommend government intervention though, we would end up with music designed by committees and farmed out to the lowest bidder - even worse than the current situation!

 

[Thorlifter]

I'd have to think it does TO.

I would bet the percentage of people over, say 60, is extremely low that listen to anything other than country or easy rock or 50's and 60's oldies.

So if you eliminate that demographic, and take people younger than 60, they are listening to 70's music, your still have some disco freaks, 80's music and newer, all the pop stuff, (cough cough) rap crap and hip hop stupid junk.

Heck, I admit I may be completely wrong. It just seems to me that pre 60 yr olds are more diversified.

 

[Catch22]

My eldest daughter is infatuated with Justin Bieber.What a goose this guy is,he's never even heard of Germany!Do they not teach History or Geography in schools anymore?
Having said this there are some shining lights around,Muse and Coldplay to name a couple.The former are simply awesome imho

I'm ashamed that he's Canadian! He sings about things he knows absolutely nothing about too...

And Muse is fantastic, absolutely love them. If you ever get the chance, go to one of their concerts. When they came here in March, it was amazing!

 

[ToughOmbre]

I'd have to think it does TO.

I would bet the percentage of people over, say 60, is extremely low that listen to anything other than country or easy rock or 50's and 60's oldies.

So if you eliminate that demographic, and take people younger than 60, they are listening to 70's music, your still have some disco freaks, 80's music and newer, all the pop stuff, (cough cough) rap crap and hip hop stupid junk.

Heck, I admit I may be completely wrong. It just seems to me that pre 60 yr olds are more diversified.

You could be right Thor, who knows. Actually I'm not a big "music guy". And when you're talking about tunes, it really gets subjective.

All I know is this......I wish Rap/Hip Hop could be erased from the collective memories of everyone alive!

TO

 

[herman1rg]

I personally was over the Moon when a Facebook campaign started up last December in order to get Rage Against The Machine to No1 in the UK single chart at Christmas instead of the manufactured pap supplied by Simon Cowell. The campaign was of course successful.

For anyone who has a liking for Classic rock music I can recommend Planet Rock which is available on DAB in the UK or over the internet worldwide (no I don't work for them)

 

[Thorlifter]

All I know is this......I wish Rap/Hip Hop could be erased from the collective memories of everyone alive!

TO

I couldn't agree with you more!

 

[theultimateend]

Not just you Lucky. Been thinking the same thing for years now. And it's not an "age" or "generational" thing either.

1) Exception would be country. Has always been, is now, and always will be the most popular muscic in the USA.

2) Hip Hop/Rap doesn't even count as music.

3) No group today compares to the greats that came before. Rolling Stones, Beatles, The Who, The Band, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, Bob Dylan, Pink Floyd, Lynyrd Skynyrd, etc, etc, etc, etc, etc,.

4) I'm sure some of the younger members will disagree.

TO

I'll start from the bottom and work up. Basically every decade, or every other decade, says that the decade that follows them (or every decade till they die) is a subpar musical generation. Because it is not what they grew up on and not what they are used to.

Much like when Google changed and I went ballistic. Once we are comfortable with something we will work extra hard to dislike anything different, it is a dissonance thing, our brains HATE cognitive dissonance and will fight it whole hog.

Some of the bands you named I really liked, some of the bands you named I would love to beat in the face with a shovel. Just like in modern times there are bands like that. I've admittedly only been alive for a little over 2 decades (nearly 2 and a half!) but I've found in my short lifespan that every five years there are some bands I like and many bands I dislike. I understand that most music is designed around a simple theory of catches and repetition, that is fine with me, since I'm not forced to listen to any of it I don't punish them.

Popular Rap and Hip Hop are no different than Popular anything else, they use a cookie cutter system to return profits. It's a business model, I don't condemn them for it. But to discount the entire genre is just nonsense. There are absolutely amazing prose to be found in Hip Hop songs (and I've heard a few in Rap). They are no different than the poets that read "just a little too fast" at theatre showings. While by large I don't enjoy the genre there are some amazingly talented individuals who should not be discounted because of stereotyping.

In an effort to not by a hypocrit I won't say that all country is terrible. I will note that MOST of it follows the same profit based system that hip hop, rap, and popular music follows. They look for a niche and they milk it till the darn cow dies. Every 4 years the rhetoric changes but the overall scheme of hyper patriotism, occasional homophobia, and hyper gender roles tend to surface in all the most succesful music. That's not always true! There are some country singers I've found to be very insightful, interesting, musically gifted (a term I rarely use for country singers), and basically folks I'd love to meet.

But generally I think Country gets a free pass when it should be fairly harshly scrutinized for being far more about cookie cutter money making than just about any other genre. This is coming from someone who grew up with parents OBSESSED with the genre, so I had many years to dissect it .

Overall I'd say that music these days to us is just like music "in those days" to the generation before it. Every generation the exact same statement is made and every generation people ignore the redundancy of it all.

History is beautiful in how redundant it is. The same series of events carry out with slightly different nouns and verbs like a multi millenia mad lib. It makes sense though given that our tool of dissecting the universe has been largely the same since the very first piece of history was written (and longer than that even).

Just my 2 cents.

The TL;DR being that there is nothing wrong. Just like when two generations ago (from me) were ranting about your favorite music there was nothing wrong with it .

 

[pbfoot]

I don't believe there is anything wrong with music today. It just may be out of some of our comfort zones because in the advances in electronics and recording advances . What would the Big Bands or Buddy Holly sound like if they had access to todays tools ?

 

[ToughOmbre]

I don't believe there is anything wrong with music today. It just may be out of some of our comfort zones because in the advances in electronics and recording advances . What would the Big Bands or Buddy Holly sound like if they had access to todays tools ?

pb, there's no right or wrong opinion when it come to music. Just individual tastes. For me, I like classic rock and country. Actually I also like the Big Bands sound of the 40s, though not nearly as much.

More times than not though, I'm listening to sports talk radio rather than music anyway.

TO

 

[Bug_racer]

While that may fit in the timeline, I wouldn't say reality TV killed good music. I think since music has become so stale, reality TV is searching and searching for something good.

For me music started dying in the late 90s early 2000's just when all the reality TV shows started coming into effect . Since then most of the winners/runners up of reality TV shows produce 1 hit then disapear . Every year it seems the same , 1 or 2 hits then gone . Yes there are still bands around that play good music but they dont get the coverage they should and most wont make it into the top 50 . I grew up in the 90s when techno was king and listened to 2Unlimited , culturebeat etc . I still enjoy music from the 50s right till the late 90s , but for me thats where good music died .

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

There is plenty of great music today. It is all a matter of taste and opinion. I personally can't stand this new pop **** (Lady Gaga, Britteny Spears, etc) and I absolutely loath Rap and Hip Hop.

As you all know I am a metal and rock fan. I prefer the older era of Hard Rock/Heavy Metal (1970-1989) but there is still some good stuff that comes out today.

I will have to say that in the rock world the bands that are still the most relevant today are the older bands such as Metallica, Aerosmith, AC/DC, The Rolling Stones, etc. I say this because they are still popular and still making great music.

 

[Thorlifter]

For me music started dying in the late 90s early 2000's just when all the reality TV shows started coming into effect . Since then most of the winners/runners up of reality TV shows produce 1 hit then disapear . Every year it seems the same , 1 or 2 hits then gone . Yes there are still bands around that play good music but they dont get the coverage they should and most wont make it into the top 50 . I grew up in the 90s when techno was king and listened to 2Unlimited , culturebeat etc . I still enjoy music from the 50s right till the late 90s , but for me thats where good music died .

I agree and disagree....

Yes, there are plenty of "winners" that you get 1 or 2 songs from and they are gone. In many cases, thank goodness they are gone. But you have the winners that have started a great career; i.e. Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood are HUGE in their genre, Jordan Sparks is doing well. Daughtry and Kelly Pickler didn't even win and look at them.

In the UK, the X Factor has turned out Leona Lewis and Joe McElderry.

Popstars turned out Girls Aloud (20 consecutive top ten songs).

I side with Adler though. While I like anything except rap, I prefer something a little heavier. The more modern group like Nickleback and Seether are good and I'll listen to them a lot, but I like older bands like Ozzy, Queensryche, Metallica, etc.

Over the past few years, I've been getting into some of the euro rock bands like Nightwish, Epica (Simone is way HOT - see below), Kamelot, and I just discovered Pretty Maids.

 

[BikerBabe]

What's wrong with today's music?
Nothing!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU4uJUZHVJM

Heyull, they even make Rihannas "Umbrella" sound less annoying and more fun!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM2177pHMT0

 

[mikewint]

it's pretty amazing as i look at all these responses there is a definite pattern as to what each of us likes or dislikes and i think i could pretty well guess +/- 10 years each of your ages
in the final analysis: De Gustibus non est Disputantum

 

[Messy1]

I blame technology. It is now way too easy to make a mediocre singer sound good with all the hi tech computers and such out there. I do not know the terms, or the equipment used, but I think there are too many low talent singers out there, but with the use of sounds scrubbers, and computer software, they come out sounding much better than they are. I think the overall talent level in modern music has declined, especially in the pop world where all you need is the right look, and the sound technicians will do the rest. The right look too me seems the most important thing right now. There are not enough artists out there, true talented people who write, arrange, and perform their own music. Just the overall quality of music has suffered in the last 10-20 years IMO.

 

[mandoman]

Rap though, I have literally no liking for. Sure, they can talk really fast. Faster than I can. But they're not singing at all...

Rap is bad attitude non-music. Give me RUSH any day. 8)

There is awesome music in all genres . I think us older folks must remember what your parents thought of the new music we brought home . It wasn't Percy Faith or Perry Como in my case.
Please remember how many of the artists have sponsers that they cater to

I don't know about that, since I'm a fan of many kinds of music, but there are some good tunes, and artists out there. My son introduced me to a band called Dragon Force. Those guys are incredible. There are some others he has played for me, but old an forgetful as I am, I can't remember them, LOL!!!

Well, you got me started.....

RAP sucks, plain and simple. No talented jackasses acting like they are something soooo special, while the world looks at them like they are a joke. I'm not sure how these guys are making money as their concerts hardly ever sell out. Out of the top ten grossing tours last year, there isn't one rap act.
AND PULL UP YOUR PANTS YOU F'ING IDIOT. Damn. And you have these young idiots driving a $4 car with $2000 wheels and a $1500 stereo.....and thinking they are all badass. Go back to your "Will you have fries with that" job and try to learn a little respect.

(breathe Thor) I just hate that whole genre of so called music.

You tell 'em, gramps, . I agree completely, so don't think I'm making fun of you.

I should not get into this discussion at all. But you have to remember my age... I'm 76. I grew up to the likes of Glenn
Miller, Benny Goodman, Tommy Jimmy Dorsey, etc. These guys made music. Some big names sang with this bands,
Frank Sinatra, Helen Forrest, Doris Day, Ray Eberly, Bing Crosby. There were groups, too, The Mills Brothers, The
Andrews Sisters, The Ink Spots. Man, I could rant all day about what I call "music".

Charles

All good stuff. Don't forget old Louis Satchmo Armstrong.

And IMO country is still popular today because most of the rest of the music produced today, well, to put it bluntly, ......sucks!

TO

Nahh, give me George Jones, and Tammy Wynette any day. Then there's the likes of Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys, or Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys. All good stuff.

 

[Marcel]

Over the past few years, I've been getting into some of the euro rock bands like Nightwish, Epica (Simone is way HOT - see below),

Epica was here in Dordrecht, a few months ago. Nice gig

 

[Thorlifter]

I bet. I like their music and just looking at Simone, but I could do without her boyfriend doing all that vomit "singing". What do they call that? Death Vocals?

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I bet. I like their music and just looking at Simone, but I could do without her boyfriend doing all that vomit "singing". What do they call that? Death Vocals?

Those "Death" vocals you are talking about, they are alright when done properly. I am a big Metal fan I prefer the older "Classic Metal", i.e. Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth (all 4 will be playing on the same stage together for the first time in June, and I have ticket! ), Black Sabbath, Iced Earth, Iron Maiden, etc..., but there are some really good "Death Metal" bands out there such as Amon Amarth, Gojira, etc.

Try Amon Amarth for instance. They are very aggressive but still very melodic at the same time. The voice is also the very rough growl of a voice, but at the same time in my opinion it goes well with it. The band is considered a "Viking Metal" or "Melodic Death Metal" band. I really like them.

Amon Amarth - Twighlight of the Thunder God

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3WJX1cIuY4

Amon Amarth - In Pursuit of Vikings

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPRt6Tt6RyM

If you want to try some "Melodic Black Metal" try Dimmu Borgir

Dimmu Borgir - The Serpentine Offering

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAmMcBQavKE