What Happened?
I think, out of all my Blogs, this is one of the few that is asking the public a question. It's something that I just can't begin to understand; I just can't put my finger on it. So, let me put it in the air.
What's happened to the quality of mainstream music today, or is it simply changing tastes? I'm not trying to make a rant about, "pop music sux, wtf y dont ppl lyk rock?" Because I listen to quite a few different genres, I like disco, some pop, and even some electronic drum-and-bass instrumentals. Here me out, okay?
If any of you guys listen to the Oldies, surely you can agree that every individual displayed a LOT of musical versatility. I mean, Earth Wind and Fire, The Bee Gees, The Rolling Stones, The Eagles Van Halen, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Doors, etc. They added in so many different instruments and each song was so diverse. Plus, in a lot of the music, they told stories or talked about important issues (Sure, you had a few songs, like "The Lemon Song," but you know where I'm going).
But what happened now? With a lot of popular music out now, the majority of the lyrical content lacks as much substance as it used to. You rarely hear songs with stories in them. There's not as much instrumental variation either. For example, in R&B, people sing with this "nasally" style and add in some electronic background music and a drum track. In most popular rock today, there's your average three-minute guitar, bass, and drumg song.
Back in the 50s-70s, popular music had a lot more substance than it does now. So here's my questions:
- Are the musicians less talented? I think not. I've heard some arguments on here that people have become less talented, but that's not the case in my opinion.
- Are musicians adapting to the culture today? Possibly. Maybe it's just the change in values from then and today?
- Maybe the music hasn't changed, but rather the audionce's tastes? I think so. Popular music is more well-known than the underground... so maybe the public's demands have outweighed all the alternative stuff. Therefore, we simply haven't heard all that the music community truly has to offer.
I don't know. I'm leaning towards combining the second and third options. But what do you guys think? Or have you noticed it? I have nothing against R&B and rap, because it is simply another style of music. Some or most rappers would think that rock is the most abhorrent thing to have ever existed, so it's all opinion. So do you think that idea of "pop music" has changed? Remember, pop does not equal R&B or whatever you hear on your local radio station. It just means popular music. Some people confuse that.
What's happened to the quality of mainstream music today, or is it simply changing tastes? I'm not trying to make a rant about, "pop music sux, wtf y dont ppl lyk rock?" Because I listen to quite a few different genres, I like disco, some pop, and even some electronic drum-and-bass instrumentals. Here me out, okay?
If any of you guys listen to the Oldies, surely you can agree that every individual displayed a LOT of musical versatility. I mean, Earth Wind and Fire, The Bee Gees, The Rolling Stones, The Eagles Van Halen, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Doors, etc. They added in so many different instruments and each song was so diverse. Plus, in a lot of the music, they told stories or talked about important issues (Sure, you had a few songs, like "The Lemon Song," but you know where I'm going).
But what happened now? With a lot of popular music out now, the majority of the lyrical content lacks as much substance as it used to. You rarely hear songs with stories in them. There's not as much instrumental variation either. For example, in R&B, people sing with this "nasally" style and add in some electronic background music and a drum track. In most popular rock today, there's your average three-minute guitar, bass, and drumg song.
Back in the 50s-70s, popular music had a lot more substance than it does now. So here's my questions:
- Are the musicians less talented? I think not. I've heard some arguments on here that people have become less talented, but that's not the case in my opinion.
- Are musicians adapting to the culture today? Possibly. Maybe it's just the change in values from then and today?
- Maybe the music hasn't changed, but rather the audionce's tastes? I think so. Popular music is more well-known than the underground... so maybe the public's demands have outweighed all the alternative stuff. Therefore, we simply haven't heard all that the music community truly has to offer.
I don't know. I'm leaning towards combining the second and third options. But what do you guys think? Or have you noticed it? I have nothing against R&B and rap, because it is simply another style of music. Some or most rappers would think that rock is the most abhorrent thing to have ever existed, so it's all opinion. So do you think that idea of "pop music" has changed? Remember, pop does not equal R&B or whatever you hear on your local radio station. It just means popular music. Some people confuse that.
I think alot of musicians suffer from flock of sheep syndrome, they want to fit in with the success so they don't lose it. Just like sheep conforming to a flock. They get so absorbed into wanting to be a musician, they forget what they wanted to do. It's like they'll do anything they possibly can to reach their dreams. I'll use Christina Aguilera for an example. She has said that more than anything in the world she wanted to be a singer when she was a little kid, more than anything. When her first album came out, she built up a nice fanbase, and she was admired for her innocence at first, that didn't last long. Sex Sells, her record lable knew that, and they were pushing a whole new culture on her, so then we get the album stripped, a totally new thing. Im not saying that album was bad, it was successful, but trying to make it caused her to lose what she vauled and wanted to do. So then she took a little break, and we got her latest album, back to basics. I own that album, and it's totally different than her other two. She is finally doing what she wanted to, and it sounds so different than other artists out there right now.
Kurtni, April 5th, 2007 at 11:33:09am
Eh... things change
I mean... I'm sure when our parents were our age
A lot of kids thought the Beadles were sh*t and hated them cause they're mainstream
southernidiot, April 5th, 2007 at 12:54:53am
why just mention rap and hip hop? lets face it hardcore and emo are about how sad a rich dude can get to be, and metal its bout "we are so mean yeeeeah" happy punk is "we are so revel on MTV"
where is the rock?
Or atleast some substance man
how are we supposed to change the world??
when the basic messages are
"Im so so sad"" we are revel!!!!!""OMG I luv MTV"
Its not that you cant be SAD its just do I really have to say it? most these kids have a great life oportunitys, and if theyre life is so empty why dont they just change it? they complain and complain but man its not like they were born without chances its up to them change.
and well the actual music sucks most the time but its not just cuz of rap n hip hop man emo and happy punk and metal and pop have lot to be blamed about
Also whats wrong with SEX? I mean all the Rolling Stones songs were about sex, love drug, rock n roll, or society but mostly sex and drugs
how is that bad?
is pleasure bad? as long as there is prtection there is nothing wrong with sex
I mean we all come from sex and what if it with many ppl? whats wrong about that if there is protection and care for each other
Dumbfuck, April 4th, 2007 at 11:22:43am
I completely concur with you. But i HATE rnb and rap and hiphop music. I find hip hop and rap music degrading for women. You see people in Australia listening to rap music, and the music for the ghettos and whatnot, and its kind of pointless cause they music would make no sense to aussies because theyre not from the ghettos in the us.
Vegemite, April 4th, 2007 at 05:30:02am
I love you for posting this. My musical taste is also diverse like yours; because of my culture. I grew up listening to reggae, soul, dancehall, motown and thigns like that. Then as I got older, I was into dance, hip hop, RnB, house, garage and jungle music. Then in my early teens to now, I got heavily into rock, indie and grunge bands; not to a degree to what some people here are involved, but none-the-less, Im down.
Those band you mentioned set the pace for loads of artists around today. They combined all types of instruments and sounds and that's now very apprarent in what we percieve to be 'pop' music. And that gets forgotten.
Everyone's caught up in what's 'in'. Following the trends set by fat cats like MTv, they dont pay much attention to the musicallity or the lyrics or the guitar riff, bass line or drum beat. True most songs dont tell stories these days, but those oldies do but as some here stated; these days its all about the image, how much imagery you can convey in a video or what kind of attitude you can put across in interviews.
In closing, lol, and in answer to your questions; musicians arent less talented. Theyve been curbed by the need to promote 'pop' or music that is 'popular'. All musicians have to evolve and adapt; they have to keep it fresh and exciting. But also not stray way from the sound that made them good in the first place. And lastly, I dont think music has changed; its just that bands or underground artists have more ways of actually getting their music out, therefore people who didnt know of them before can actually find out about them and hear their stuff i.e. MySpace. Hence why the audience's tastes change.
Sorry for a long post...I guess I had alot to say, though it probrably wont make sense.
AndTheCowSaidMoo, April 4th, 2007 at 04:51:50am
I agree too. Music these days don't address issues, in fact most of it is "Lets have promiscuis sex and party".
What kind of example is that setting to children? No wonder there's been a rise in teen pregnancy! Music and media is mostly all about sex!
I was watching a kid's movie and the main charecter actually started talking to his Dad about sex (very very VERY covered up, but it was still about making babies). This was on DISNEY channel! And Ashley Simpson is adored by little girls everywhere... and then she brings out that new song aabout sex and the little girls start singing it, not knowing what they are singing until some other kid tells them.
Sorry, I seem to have gone off on a whole other tangent.
But yes, there don't seem to be many meaningful lyrics in popular music anymore. Pink, Green Day, The Fray, MCR and some other musicians still have musical meaning (whether it be about politics, love, or life's problems, it still has meaning).
But other then that, it's all about partying and sex.
GreenDayCookieFairy, April 4th, 2007 at 03:13:11am
I completely agree.
Music is meant to be about meaning and I feel like it's lost alot of that.
I mean, in the 40's there was this song called 'Strange Fruit' by Billy Holiday and it had serious meaning.
The lyrics were like 'Strange fruit hanging from the trees' and it was actually about the hanging of african american people.
and now it's like, 'I'm gonna hang in da crib wit all my hoes'.
It's so meaningless.
germma margaret!, April 4th, 2007 at 01:14:54am
I think all those bands oldies were quite osm but lets face it alot of it was the rocksatr image. Some songs aint exactly osm but since they were BIG bands well everything was taken as osm. I think there is some really good music out there but its harder to find it. There is music with messages but most time underground music is way better. I mean MTV and those corporations put on the worst music but underground on internet, there is some good music.
and there are some pretty osm bands like Foo fighters, muse, red hot, racountreurs, SONIC YOUTH!!!:] and many others but to find something more you need to look underground Ive heard there is one osm liverpool band named futtons or something like that for what the article said I think you might like em
Dumbfuck, April 4th, 2007 at 12:14:16am