I'd rather you said her voice sucked and left it tbere.
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:06 (five years ago) link
There’s no such thing as authenticity, granted, but it’s a boring position nowadays, and I’m not entirely sure it holds up in practice. I want to believe.
― pomenitul, Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:17 (five years ago) link
boring things are good
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:18 (five years ago) link
that doubles as my response to the thread idea
Authenticity used to be the boring one tbf.
― pomenitul, Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:21 (five years ago) link
I still stand by the fact that music critics are judging Beyoncé under a rockist lens: She makes album-length statements, she makes important political statements, she hasn't had a Number One single in nearly a decade (that didn't have Ed Sheeran on it), she made a "video album," she has monster tours and headlines Coachella and gets prestige alterna creatives like Jack White/Vampire Weekend/James Blake/Jon Brion to help out
All this stuff (or its equivalent) would have been more Green Day/Brian Wilson/U2 than Usher/Britney/Ciara in the year Kelefa wrote his thing
― 5th Ward Weeaboo (Whiney G. Weingarten), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:22 (five years ago) link
All of which is to say Beyoncé is obviously awesome, but she's not certainly not some victory for the war against using "authenticity" as a measuring stick
― 5th Ward Weeaboo (Whiney G. Weingarten), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:24 (five years ago) link
Cadences can be authentic.
― The nexus of the crisis (Sund4r), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:25 (five years ago) link
Cadenzas too.
― pomenitul, Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:29 (five years ago) link
― 5th Ward Weeaboo (Whiney G. Weingarten), Saturday, September 8, 2018 7:24 AM (seven minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
whiney otm
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:32 (five years ago) link
David Byrne would almost certainly be considered a musical colonist today.
― campreverb, Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:52 (five years ago) link
Brian Auger rules
― reggie (qualmsley), Saturday, 8 September 2018 14:59 (five years ago) link
― flappy bird, Saturday, 8 September 2018 15:04 (five years ago) link
the amount a great rock records is in decline with each passing year
― nostormo, Saturday, 8 September 2018 15:16 (five years ago) link
Sgt. Pepper is underrated.
The consensus take is generally more correct than the contrarian one, although the latter may still be more interesting.
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:02 (five years ago) link
― nostormo, Saturday, September 8, 2018 8:16 AM (forty-six minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
not controversial but also untrue imo
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:03 (five years ago) link
i would think that though
I agree with as well.
I would maybe go as far as saying great, face-melting rock is largely a forgotten craft.
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:05 (five years ago) link
what was the last great face-melting mainstream rock band?
― omar little, Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:28 (five years ago) link
Like arena rock? Probably pearl jam
― F# A# (∞), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:33 (five years ago) link
System of a Down and Deftones come to mind
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:36 (five years ago) link
I would personally pick Mastodon although I don't know how mainstream they are. They've had a bunch of tracks over the past decade that sound pretty mainstream to me.
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:37 (five years ago) link
Abandon the word "mainstream" ('cause there's no such thing, every artist is a cult artist from Kanye and Beyoncé on down - there are millions of Americans who have never heard a Beyoncé song and never will) and I could list great rock bands all day.
― grawlix (unperson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:37 (five years ago) link
I guess if they play them on the radio/kroq or some equivalent
― F# A# (∞), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:38 (five years ago) link
Part of my problem is I haven't voluntarily listened to the radio in well over a decade, so I have no idea what turns up there these days.
I don't personally care if rock bands achieve mainstream success, I'd be happy with them existing and surviving.
A lot of indie rock bands currently seem to be wrapped up in mining 90s grunge sonics, which is fine, I just wish there were more guitar heroics. I want some badass riffs!
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:42 (five years ago) link
yeah and i guess also maybe a band that's unabashedly heavy on the riffs and solos. Pearl Jam is a decent choice.
― omar little, Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:44 (five years ago) link
One of my perpetual and controversial hobbyhorses:
Most of the time, when a band transitions from a fiery debut to more mature and understated follow ups, the debut tends to be the far superior version of the band.
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:46 (five years ago) link
i was v surprised that my favorite rock record from last year (manchester orchestra) actually turned out to be kind of a successful rock record too
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:47 (five years ago) link
mature understated follow-ups forever btw
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:48 (five years ago) link
i guess i don't have many actual controversial opinions except when Ross mentioned King, i remembered that i was extremely bored by the album and after giving it many chances i sold it : /
― omar little, Saturday, 8 September 2018 16:50 (five years ago) link
Me either. I am almost totally ignorant of pop music at this point. I know what's up in metal and radio-friendly hard rock because I still get sent promos of that stuff by publicists and labels. But I spend about 80% of my time listening to jazz these days.
― grawlix (unperson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 17:03 (five years ago) link
Here's my controversial jazz opinion.
Kamasi Washington is this generation's Wynton Marsalis, a very popular, but essentially conservative figure in the jazz world. He maybe enjoys a bit more cred at the moment because the older music he references still has some hip cachet, but he's not bringing a lot of new ideas to the table.
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 17:08 (five years ago) link
Music criticism is great.
― gospodin simmel, Saturday, 8 September 2018 17:15 (five years ago) link
xp i'm not sure i'd agree w/ that take on wynton (i think he's worse than that) but i agree w/ that take on kamasi
― the late great, Saturday, 8 September 2018 17:18 (five years ago) link
Lol, fair
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles), Saturday, 8 September 2018 17:19 (five years ago) link
Kamasi's way more important as someone bringing people into the tent than he is as an actual musician (and I like his music). I don't think he'll be very influential in the long run in the "younger players want to sound like him" sense, but his influence in the "young people who didn't know jazz was an entertainment option available to them now actively seek it" sense is massive. (Though his musical skills are frequently underestimated even by people who praise him - I don't see much writing about the fact that he does all his own string and choral writing and arrangements, and produces his albums himself.)
Shabaka Hutchings, on the other hand, is influential in both the "bringing in new listeners" and the "making genuinely innovative music" senses. I think over time he'll be seen as more and more important.
― grawlix (unperson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 17:50 (five years ago) link
― Mario Meatwagon (Moodles)
I’m a huge fan of debuts. Some bands get their sound just right in their first ep/lp, and there’s a sense of wonder that usually gets lost by the time the next album arrives.
― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Saturday, 8 September 2018 18:13 (five years ago) link
Not exactly a controversial opinion though?
― Scottish Country Tweerking (Tom D.), Saturday, 8 September 2018 18:14 (five years ago) link
I mean, the old trope about bands having had their entire lives to write and develop material for their first album and then, thereafter, having less time to crank out new material in between tours etc?
― Scottish Country Tweerking (Tom D.), Saturday, 8 September 2018 18:17 (five years ago) link
Yeah, I think it's more "controversial" to believe, as I do, that most bands' debut albums are actually pretty bad, and its album three or four that you really want to pay attention to. My personal list of bands whose first album was great and/or their best work is pretty damn short: the Bad Brains, Van Halen, and...honestly, that's about it. Most bands get better as they go on.
― grawlix (unperson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 18:27 (five years ago) link
poptimism is extremely good and still underrated in 2018
― flopson, Saturday, 8 September 2018 18:48 (five years ago) link
Yeah, I think it's more "controversial" to believe, as I do, that most bands' debut albums are actually pretty bad
true, more controversial, and also generally wrong.
― sarahell, Saturday, 8 September 2018 18:51 (five years ago) link
The list of classic punk bands from the pre-SST era whose best album isn't their first album is like 1. the Stooges 2. the Clash
― 5th Ward Weeaboo (Whiney G. Weingarten), Saturday, 8 September 2018 19:06 (five years ago) link
(or a singles collection)
I'd argue yr wrong about The Stooges and that Fun House is kinda overrated, but really only for the purposes of this thread, but The Stooges first album is pretty fucking solid.
― sarahell, Saturday, 8 September 2018 19:13 (five years ago) link
Also, Phil's opinion is wrong because some of the best bands only put out one album
though I would argue that Adam & the Ants 1st album wasn't their best, but partly because the Demos were better
― sarahell, Saturday, 8 September 2018 19:17 (five years ago) link
My controversial opinion: Adam & the Ants was a better band than The Clash
― sarahell, Saturday, 8 September 2018 19:19 (five years ago) link
About the Clash's 1st album not being their best...
― Scottish Country Tweerking (Tom D.), Saturday, 8 September 2018 19:20 (five years ago) link
Controversial opinion: Bands that only put out one album suck. I'm not gonna sit here all day worrying about it, but off the top of my head I can't think of a single (rock/metal) band that only put out one album that I give a shit about. All the bands I like have exhibited some degree of longevity.
― grawlix (unperson), Saturday, 8 September 2018 19:24 (five years ago) link