What is going on with music these days?

[m.j.]

im pretty sure i am not the only one who feels this way... there is nothing fresh, there is nothing exciting, i have the same fav bands and artists since i was preteen, and i am open to new artists. i try to listen to some new bands, but it look like all you can find sounds like lady gaga or rihanna or a whole lot of complaining.... like the guy who sings you're beautiful....
where is rock'n'roll? what will we leave to future generations? eminem and that kid biber or something?

 

[CharlottefromCA]

Adele!!

But otherwise I would agree with you.

 

[MulletProof]

There's never ever a crisis of good music for me, just a crisis of time and dedication to find it. I used to have plenty of time and patience for that when I was younger, but it seems to decrease over time, now I stick to all-time favorites, sometimes I'll make an effort but it's a very mediocre one in comparison to the hours I'd spend trying to dig out music that fully satisfied my cravings.

I think quality music (and that's a debatable term, I know) is still something that is searched and found, it doesn't find you.. when music finds you it's, more often than not, not really worth your time (there are big exceptions of course), at least that has been my experience, there is music that just appears everywhere you go (like Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber for example), but just because it's everywhere it doesn't mean that's the only thing that's happening at that moment. There's always been good and awful music happening simultaneously, people that were creating something and sort of pushing the envelope and those that lived for an image and repeated sounds.. and there were always those that said there was a crisis of quality stuff, I think it's an age thing, no offense (since I'm a victim of age laziness too!). Also the more times goes by, new priorities appear and the harder it gets to catch up.. so I think one can be very easily left behind and fall out of touch with the world of music (or fashion or art, any field really).. especially when you get too attached to favorites.

 

[purplethistle]

I remember when I was younger most of the songs on the radio, which at the time were current, were actually quite distinguishable from the others. But theses days there is so much autotune and the same riffs or synth effects in all the songs they honestly all sound the same to me. Quite frankly you don't need as much natural talent to release a mainstream hit. Now its a far greater effort to find quality music that's going to worth listening to in lets say 5 years time.

 

[Psylocke]

There's never ever a crisis of good music for me, just a crisis of time and dedication to find it. I used to have plenty of time and patience for that when I was younger, but it seems to decrease over time, now I stick to all-time favorites, sometimes I'll make an effort but it's a very mediocre one in comparison to the hours I'd spend trying to dig out music that fully satisfied my cravings.

I agree with this. I barely ever make an effort to find new music but when I do I'll find incredible artists that make me think "How could I not have known about them before?!". I think it's more the case that commercial music sucks majorly at the moment. I really can't stand all that electronic pop music and all that R&B stuff that's on the charts nowadays whereas - in spite of being more of a Rock and Indie chick - I totally adored the pop music of the late 90's, the Soul and R&b stuff in the mid 90's and the Hip Hop of the early 90's. There are a few artists on the charts who still stand out to me and I love dearly (Kings of Leon, Muse, the Twilight Soundtracks ) but in general I definitely feel like I "don't get" popular music at the moment but maybe I'm just not as adaptable anymore. I think when you're younger and you're constantly talking about popular artists with your friends it's easier to get enthusiastic about mainstream artists than later in your teens and twens when you don't give a f about other people's opinions about music anymore and just listen to whatever you really like.

 

[Flashbang]

Well, I love Rebecca Black

 

[AndyMouse]

im pretty sure i am not the only one who feels this way... there is nothing fresh, there is nothing exciting, i have the same fav bands and artists since i was preteen, and i am open to new artists. i try to listen to some new bands, but it look like all you can find sounds like lady gaga or rihanna or a whole lot of complaining.... like the guy who sings you're beautiful....
where is rock'n'roll? what will we leave to future generations? eminem and that kid biber or something?

really?

 

[AndyMouse]

I don't get why people hate Justin Bieber that much!
I've just heard Baby a few times on radio so I really don't know that much about him but there's way worse music/lyrics, he's just a kid for God' sake!

 

[m.j.]

i don't hate that kid i just don't understand why is he that popular... i don't understand music industry anymore. its more about red carpets and lyrics could be written by a 4 yr old. oh and magazine covers and 'shocking' videos. every decade had its share of crappy music, wannabes and all that, but on the other side there were this great artists, bands, with songs that are going to live forever.

(Kings of Leon, Muse, the Twilight Soundtracks )

i like KOL, i like Muse even more, and twilight soundtrack is great (i mean, they included radiohead and i love the piano pieces)

​

 

[papa_levante]

I have found myself listening to more classic rock and oldies stations because I am fed up with music no longer being music. It's computerized notes. Doesn't music come from an instrument?

 

[jun3machina]

i agree. music is dead, or just re-hash after re-hash. i hate pop with a passion. the exceptions perhaps are jack white and his projects. he epitomizes the proliferation of the works of artists from the 1960's and 70's in rock.

The smashing pumpkins were the last great band and their great sound died even before they disbanded.....

i also think it has to do with the easy access to studio stuff now with the advent of the internet and easy to download programs... autotune....at at home music mixers, etc. no one really knows how to master instruments anymore. yeah they can make an album, yeah they might be able to sing, but when it's all put together it's all fluff and no substance or talent. there is no GREAT anymore.....just the next best thing, and it's all disposable. Very few people have set the bar musically, and unfortunately they're so beyond the lower tier of people, they're almost extinct

 

[Unknownpleasures]

I have found myself listening to more classic rock and oldies stations because I am fed up with music no longer being music. It's computerized notes. Doesn't music come from an instrument?

oh,yeah.I agree I never thought I would be one of those person who basically live in the past but yes,the only band from recent times that I actually like is Interpol and I just don't feel them as much anymore...
There's still nice music but I as well miss the rock n roll,glam rock,brit pop,the 90's trashy music,soul,folk,80s dance music, and powerful balads.

 

[Toccata]

The problem is the lack of musical comprehension and the hazy
notion of what constitutes quality music.
The appealing idea that anyone can disregard musical craftsmanship
in favor of self-expression and be hailed as a musical genius.

The incorrect use of the word 'quality' has had the worst influence.
The misconceptions are as follows:
1. Quality meaning the fidelity of the recording itself.
2. Quality meaning the artists grasp of his own instrument.
3. Quality as in profound lyrical meaning or invention.
4. Quality based on genre or crossing genres.
5. Quality dictated by the fashion of the time.
6. Quality as in popularity of the artist.

01. INDUSTRY ARTISTS: Quality of the Recording.
Not only the 'loudness war' but all of studio technique as the end in itself.
ex. False Premise: The Kesha CD sounds better than the scratchy record of Mozart. Therefore Kesha is better than Mozart.

02. ROCK ARTISTS: Instrumental Technique.
The belief that the better musician is one who
sings louder and higher, or plays faster and cleaner.
ex. False Premise: Yngwie Malmsteen can play faster than Jimi Hendrix. Therefore Yngwie Malmsteen is a better musician.

03. POLITICAL ARTISTS: Lyrical Content.
When Lyrics relating to Morality, Ethics or Issues dealing
with Social Unrest supersede the musical meaning itself.
ex. False Premise: Bob Dylan wrote brilliant lyrics. Therefore, Bob Dylan is a brilliant Musician.

04. GENRE ARTISTS: Boundary-hopping.
When crossing over or morphing and combining elements
from other genre's is equated with musical mastery.
ex. False Premise: Paul McCartney can write good Rock Songs. Therefore, Paul McCartney can write good Classical Songs.

05. ICONIC ARTISTS: Trending the Current Fashion.
When cultural or social groups are at the heart of musical exaltation.
ex. False Premise: Kurt Cobain represented Generation X. Generation X considers him a musical genius. Therefore, Kurt Cobain is a musical genius.

06. POP: What is Popular IS Better.
ex. False Premise: Justin Bieber is the most popular artist. Therefore: Justin Bieber writes the best music.

You'll find most people judge music using a false premise described above.
I'm pretty sure I've committed them all. But my ignorance as an audience
member will not affect the artist. It just shows I have poor taste.
The decline in quality came when the ignorant audience member became the artist and took to music this superficial belief system.
This is why we have such cliche-ridden music. Musicians are no more qualified
at evaluating their own music than the audience who listens or the critics
who rate it using the same surface-level system.

The true nature of quality music is found between silence and sound.
It is the representation of music. Modernism buried it under a pile of
noise. But it still exists and until it emerges again, we'll have short
life cycles of musical trends, more sub-genre's, and LOTS of BAD MUSIC!

 

[AndyMouse]

^ B)

 

[saann]

There's never ever a crisis of good music for me, just a crisis of time and dedication to find it.

I think that sums it up pretty well for me. I think every generation goes through a 'there's no real music anymore' faze, having the same kind of crisis. What's popular by the general mass will always be what bombards us the most and what will generally be seen as 'not real music'. But you shouldn't judge the state of music by the music that's making money.

I love music, all kinds of it. And yes, there is a ton of crap you can choose to listen to today but just because it's what you're first presented with doesn't mean that it's all that's out there. That's why I love youtube so much, because everything is on there so all I have to do is take some time and click myself through and eventually I always find something good. Key word is that it takes time, because everything I see at first glance is usually bad.

So I believe the amount of good, 'real' music is still there. It's just that the ocean they're in just got bigger.

 

[StephlovesLoubi]

Check out Transfer on youtube. I like the song "Losing Composure"!! I also have their album and they are addictive.

I also love White Lies and Hurts.