I’ve been slightly slacking on my blogging lately. The weather’s just been beautiful, and it’s a pity to sit at home in the dark and type, instead of soak up every breathe of fresh outdoor happiness. Today I went driving aimlessly, picked up a buddy, went to the park for some baseball and basketball, drove around some more, BBQed at said buddy’s place, and then took a nice stroll around the neighborhood, which ended in spending some time sitting on buddy’s stoop. Yes. We sit on stoops in Brooklyn. The weather was absolutely perfect. Warm, sunny, clear skies, but not humid, and a little breezy at night. Bliss is the only way to describe it, really. Pure bliss.
In other news, I’d like to talk for a while about the sad state of the music industry. I won’t say there’s a lack of legitimately excellent musicians. What I will say, however, is that there is an influx of talentless, soulless, faux-musicians. I’m talking about guys that starts bands just for the perks; to be able to say “I’m in a fucking rock band!”, and/or to get the (illegally young) girls, and/or to make cash and live the life that everyone wants to live. I won’t name names. But I’m mostly talking about the trend of dancy powerpop. I’m all for dancing. I love dancing. In the shower especially. And I love music that makes me want to shake my butt (and awkwardly look for some sort of fitting hand/arm movement). But dancy powerpop that is being made popular by weak bands… it just gets under my skin. Music can make you wanna dance, but still be substantial. The majority of what’s out there is not. It’s completely unoriginal, uncreative, and you can see right through the layers of fluff to the truth that IT’S COMPRISED OF BUBBLE GUM MELODIES COVERING UP THE FACT THAT THERE’S A HUGE VOID IN THE MIDDLE. There’s no soul, there’s no heart anymore. It’s just a mosh up of funky beats put together with absolutely no passion, and only made in the first place so that these beats get stuck in your head and you buy the band’s flimsy record and pay for their hair dye and green tea.
Though I’ve only got a measly twenty years under my belt, which makes about … maybe 17 of coherence, I’m pretty positive that this has gone on with music for decades. I’m not expecting to like everything. That’s not my issue. What my issue is, is that I at least expect musicians to want to gain my respect. Put forth something that you poured yourself into. Show me something that I can see YOU in. Don’t pass off some bullshit power mix with no meat as music. That’s not music, that’s not art. That’s the pretty but stupid girl at school that all the boys wanted to be with, WERE with, and then realized that beneath the appealing surface there was nothing there.
Music should evoke some sort of emotion within listeners. It should stir up something, anything. The worst thing for a song to do is make someone indifferent towards it. To feel it’s mediocre. It’s better to completely hate something than to be like “This isn’t even good enough for me to formulate an opinion on”. I love songs that make me think, I’m a huge lyric person, I love analyzing, ripping apart, whatever. But I also love music that I don’t need to think about. Men, Women & Children make me wanna DANCE! They are awesome. And they’re not trying to be something they’re not. They know what they want to do, and they GO for it. And even though there’s nothing really deep there (that I’ve found yet, at least), they are a legitimate band that I enjoy listening to and have tons of respect for. MW&C is completely different from the majority of shit that I’m addressing in this blog. What I’m saying is, basically, go big or go home, and make music for the right reasons. Make music because it’s what keeps you alive. Don’t decide one day, let’s be in a band, put together some crap melodies, pass em off as dance music, and be proud of it. DON’T be proud of just coasting through the music scene. That’s a disgrace.
With that all being said, I appreciate that everyone has different opinions on what’s good and what isn’t. What I’m saying is, as a lover of music, you should consider which bands you support. Look past the crap and the bullshit and see music for what it really is. And this especially goes to teenage girls who look for as many bands as they can to be friends with on Myspace, and Sharpie their bodies with, and who’s the cutest guy in the band that they can hook up with after the show. That’s NOT what music is about. And you’d be way cooler if you went against the pack and actually listened to decent musicians. Know your stuff. Be open to genres you wouldn’t normally listen to. And make decisions on your own, not based on which band you think knowing will make you the coolest amongst your peers, whose opinions most likely suck.
Grr. It just disappoints me is all. End rant.
Cheers. Kind of.
