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Topic: The Truth Why Modern Music is Awful |
Glenn Suchan
From:
Austin, Texas
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Posted 11 Jun 2019 7:27 am |
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Maybe this has been posted elsewhere on the Forum. If not, and you have 20 minutes to indulge an interesting observation, well then, here it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVME_l4IwII
Keep on pickin'!
Glenn
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Steelin' for Jesus |
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Bill McCloskey
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Posted 11 Jun 2019 7:45 am
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| Interesting piece. Although a bit unfair to compare the best of the past with the worst of the present. If I recall, besides the Beatles, we also had The Archies. |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 11 Jun 2019 7:58 am The Truth Why Modern Music is Awful
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Because it is!
(Heard this before and I still agree that modern music buyers are getting ripped off in their album purchases due to increasingly inferior production values.)
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Those that say don't know; those that know don't say.--Buddy Emmons |
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Bill McCloskey
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Posted 11 Jun 2019 8:02 am
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| One thing is for sure: Janis Joplin would never get signed today. Can you imagine Joplin being auto-tuned |
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Curt Trisko
From:
St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Posted 12 Jun 2019 2:11 pm
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| Bill McCloskey wrote: |
| Interesting piece. Although a bit unfair to compare the best of the past with the worst of the present. If I recall, besides the Beatles, we also had The Archies. |
And even many of songs of the greats would fly under the radar today. Without the sentimental air of the past and the baked-in credibility of mass popularity, a lot of them would either sound crude or too full of cheesy hooks.
Every now and then new performers are pushed into mass media with the explicit schtick of being a sound-alike of really popular and well-respected artists of the past. There's Zeppelin sound-alike Greta van Fleet. 15 years ago it was The Darkness rehashing 80s metal. The list could go on and on. That can't be what you guys want.
A lot of people will tell you that there's tons of great music being made today... you just have to know where to look for it. The distribution channels and promotional methods are so different than they used to be. If you're not seeking out the music you like now, you'll end up being spoon-fed the lowest common denominator stuff.
Maybe what's different now compared to the past is that music snobbery isn't used as much as a mass marketing tool. For example, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon was totally sold from an angle of snobbery. And I'm sure Zeppelin was held above others for being more in touch with the roots of rock and blues. And I'm sure back then there was a small crowd of music aficionados who scoffed at the people who liked those bands for being polished versions of the music that inspired them.
What if the main difference now is that mass marketed music today is just more honest about how it sells itself? |
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Bill McCloskey
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Posted 12 Jun 2019 2:49 pm
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| Oh, i have always hated Led Zeppelin for ripping off the chicago blues guys, who never received the financial rewards or the recognition for inventing the music that was stolen from them |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 12 Jun 2019 8:04 pm
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Modern music is not awful, just the awful stuff is.
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Links to streaming music, websites, YouTube: Links |
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Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 12 Jun 2019 9:44 pm
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| Mike Neer wrote: |
| Modern music is not awful, just the awful stuff is. |
Very true! There has always been, and always be garbage. That doesn’t change the art that good ones made,, are making, and are going to make. |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 13 Jun 2019 9:18 am
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I've recently bought an album by a group called Mercury Rev. It is a take on a Bobby Gentry album from '69. I wouldn't have heard about this if I don't sometimes read music magazines. But I believe my cup of hearing new stuff is almost full.
_________________
Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 13 Jun 2019 10:44 am
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I hate it when every discussion about pop music centers on The Beatles. It's enough to make people think that there was no real music, no good music, and no variety and talent before the "Fab Four" came into being.
No, I wasn't a fan. I liked "Rubber Soul", but all the rest? Meh.  |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 13 Jun 2019 10:58 am
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What was so special about Rubber Soul, Donny? Help at least is very similar.
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Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Bill McCloskey
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Posted 13 Jun 2019 11:26 am
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| The rest like Sgt Pepper, Revolver, the White Album, and Abby Road? 4 of the greatest albums ever made? Meh? Yikes |
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Larry Carlson
From:
My Computer
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Posted 13 Jun 2019 11:27 am
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.
I don't listen to music much anymore except for 2 instances.
1. We have a radio on all day that plays classical music with no commercials.
It's publicly supported and I really enjoy it.
2. I listen to a lot of the folks in here (and other sites) that post up their recordings and videos.
Personally I think someone in here playing a lap steel with no backup or a fancy stack of pedals shows me
more emotion and effort than anything they toss out on the airwaves these days.
_________________
I have stuff.
I try to make music with it.
Sometimes it works.
Sometimes it doesn't.
But I keep on trying. |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 13 Jun 2019 11:40 am
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| Joachim Kettner wrote: |
| What was so special about Rubber Soul, Donny? Help at least is very similar. |
Everything about Rubber Soul was different. Got my attention. Help? Meh... Rubber Soul and Revolver.
_________________
Those that say don't know; those that know don't say.--Buddy Emmons |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 14 Jun 2019 7:45 am
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| It's all boils down to personal tastes. I just thought that Rubber Soul showed more maturity and simplicity. It was variety without the pretentiousness of their previous albums. |
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Bill McCloskey
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Posted 14 Jun 2019 7:55 am
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| BTW, Lady Gaga has put out a lot of good music. Better than 90% of the old stuff. |
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Mike Bacciarini
From:
Arizona
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Posted 14 Jun 2019 9:05 am
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I think Curt's observation is right on: "If you're not seeking out the music you like now, you'll end up being spoon-fed the lowest common denominator stuff."
I admittedly have a musical compass that was set in stone back in 1967 when I saw Buffalo Springfield live. All of the Beatles/Byrds stuff coalesced for me with these guys, then I followed on with Richie & POCO... got me into PSG (thanks Rusty!). All of these folks brought their influences with them, and now they in turn have influenced me and countless others. Of course we love the music we love, and don't seek out much of anything else. Sometimes I can hear myself sounding like my dad... "The music kids listen to these days!!!!". There are lots of folks I really like: Diana Krall, Dixie Dregs, Yes, Sam Bush, and yet "my bag" is still the bench mark in POCO. This forum has been a great help in opening my eyes to other and more recent musicians and bands that I sadly have been oblivious to.
My take away here is that, although the commercial music industry (and music) has changed so much, there is still great music for each of us to discover, enjoy and be inspired by. The internet has certainly been a blessing in many ways, in spite of simultaneously being a curse.
_________________
MCI Arlington S-10 3+5, George L E-66, BJS & Emmons bars, Fender Stage Lead II 100W 1x12, Fender Satellite SFX, custom FX rack, 1983 Dobro 60D, SX-8 lap steel, Martin D16GT, Ibanez AS73, 1978 Rickenbacker 4000 custom.
Last edited by Mike Bacciarini on 14 Jun 2019 3:54 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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James Mayer
From:
back in Portland Oregon, USA (via Arkansas and London, UK)
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Posted 14 Jun 2019 10:41 am
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How to avoid brainwashing, as described in the video: I've been avoiding "Malls", "Radio Stations", and "Latest Hollywood Movies and TV Shows" for the last 20 years, all while constantly listening to music I love or exploring new original material. I haven't lived in a house with cable television in 20 years. The only time I hear bad pop music is when I'm showering and changing in my office gym after my morning bike commute. Even the local grocery stores know not to push that crap on their customers.
There are plenty of modern bands that value old-school recording techniques, record original and "out there" material. You just have more options and the lazy option is to let someone spoon-feed you.
"Snobbery" is just another way of saying "distinguished taste". It comes in handy. |
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Matthew Walton
From:
Fort Worth, Texas
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Posted 15 Jun 2019 10:15 am
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I play in a swing band, and I always laugh when I hear folks talking about that damn pop music crap they play on the radio these days. Uhh... You know we're just playing 90 year old pop music, right? 
Don't get me wrong, I also much prefer Louis Jordan to Katy Perry, I just try to keep perspective on the whole thing. 
_________________
If something I wrote can be interpreted two ways, and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, I meant the other one.
1981 MSA "The Universal" Bb6 S-12 9/5 | 2024 Excel Robostar Bb6 S-12 8/5 | 2009 MSA SuperSlide C6 S-12 | Peavey Nashville 112 |
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Fred Treece
From:
California, USA
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Posted 15 Jun 2019 2:07 pm
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Good points from Mathew and James.
Like Bill M. implied with his Beatles/Archies comment, a good 75% of the stuff my generation grew up listening to was crap. The “classic rock†stations are a testament to that. And I dare say, so are the classic country stations. That ratio probably hasn’t changed much with today’s mainstream and underground as well. Is the good stuff today not as good as the good stuff in the old days? Now that I am older and have an appreciation for pop music of many eras and sub-genres, I can safely say, I doubt it. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 17 Jun 2019 4:07 pm
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| Quote: |
| ...If you're not seeking out the music you like now, you'll end up being spoon-fed the lowest common denominator stuff. |
But...who decides that nearly everything on the radio and TV has to be that way? Go back to the '60s and '70s, and there was just so much more variety compared to today. Stars had vastly different voices...and bands, and the players were mostly identifiable by their different sounds/styles. Nowadays there's just this terrible, incredible, boring sameness with all the "chart" music. My folks were from the south, so I have nothing against "southern/twang" accents. But that's about all we hear on the radio and TV today. And when the "band" is mostly the same group of musicians, and they and the producers are all trying for the same sound on every record, is there any wonder that so many say..."To hell with the radio and TV anymore"? We don't need 250 radio stations with the exact same programming. They've managed to stay profitable with the young-oriented pablum, but they've also alienated an entire generation away from the medium. I hear it from the over-40 generation almost every day.
Progress? I guess that depends on your point of view.
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Don R Brown
From:
Rochester, New York, USA
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Posted 18 Jun 2019 4:28 am
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Just one MORE example of the media dictating what we are going to hear and see.
_________________
Many play better than I do. Nobody has more fun. |
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Fred Treece
From:
California, USA
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Posted 18 Jun 2019 7:21 am
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| Don R Brown wrote: |
| Just one MORE example of the media dictating what we are going to hear and see. |
The corporate media is being dictated to by their corporate sponsors, who are selling stuff that we are buying. The buck stops with the consumer. Or is that only the beginning?
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7UjvdZm-Tu8 |
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Curt Trisko
From:
St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Posted 18 Jun 2019 7:51 am
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| Fred Treece wrote: |
The corporate media is being dictated to by their corporate sponsors, who are selling stuff that we are buying. The buck stops with the consumer. Or is that only the beginning?
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7UjvdZm-Tu8 |
That's a point that can't be repeated enough. As disappointed as we are with the products that are pushed on us, do we really want them to feel like it's their duty to enlighten us? That's a dark rabbit hole to go down. I think it's better to think about it the way we think about electing politicians... that you don't get what you need - you get what you deserve. |
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James Mayer
From:
back in Portland Oregon, USA (via Arkansas and London, UK)
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Posted 18 Jun 2019 8:13 am
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Why do you guys care about "charts". Why are you paying for corporations to dictate the rules of their game to you when you have the vast wealth of the internet at your disposal? This is a bit like complaining, in 2019, that the video rental shop down on the corner doesn't have a good variety of VHS tapes.
Last edited by James Mayer on 18 Jun 2019 8:17 am; edited 2 times in total |
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