Most overrated bands

[discreet]

[quote name='casapete' timestamp='1505321594' post='3371057']
Okay, my list of 'don't really get why they're so popular' or overrated -

Rush
Muse
Coldplay
The Cure
Radiohead
Nirvana
Blur
Pet Shop Boys
[/quote]

With you there, except for The Cure, who produced some very good songs. IMHO of course.

[quote name='Bolo' timestamp='1505323306' post='3371072']
Jamerson & Pino.
Not bad, but heavily overrated around here.
[/quote]

Pino not so much, but Jamerson is untouchable. Huge influence. Again, IMHO.

[T-Bay]

[quote name='Blink' timestamp='1505306343' post='3370892']
Surely the point of popular music is that it is the soundtrack to everything else that is going on in your life at that time and usually the happy stuff. Listening to it again after a period of time transports you back to that time which revives good memories and therefore a liking for the music.

There is usually some historical context to the music when it is first recorded, early Springsteen, early Oasis, early Stones, early Elvis, early Queen were all doing someone new when they started which is the bands gained popularity. Under a Blood Red Sky was a good album for U2 but fame and money change people.......

I personally have never understood people raving about Elvis. An important historical icon but hardly the greatest singer in the world. Mind you he did sing in tune (most of the time) which is something that Marc Almond has never managed to achieve!

History should not be judged purely by todays standards. Jaco is musician who's contribution to modern bass playing will still be felt by generations to come but musically his solo and most of his band leader output leave me cold.
[/quote]
Strangely some of the music I go back to over and over is when I am in a darker place. Bob Mould's awesome black sheets of rain in particular as being cathartic for me. I first heard it shortly after a bad breakup and it sort of stuck with me. Now it works as a way of,pulling me out in a sort of 'it's not that bad' way as it reminds of that time. I am usually melancholy after listening to it but it really helps. In fact most of my favourite music is a way of exorcising my frustration at how crap the world is to a lot of people a lot of the time, something I found very frustrating (and still do) even though I have been lucky in my upbringing and life on the whole.

[AndyTravis]

Always struggled to fathom the Pete Doherty thing. Libertines and BabyShambles.

Might've been more to do with him being a goon though.

[mentalextra]

Stormzy

[mikel]

Agreed, the Sex Pistols. Talk about hype. They were not even in the top 100 best Punk bands.

[itsmedunc]

[quote name='upside downer' timestamp='1505321669' post='3371058']
AC bastard DC.
[/quote]

Another lot!

[itsmedunc]

[quote name='mikel' timestamp='1505330125' post='3371154']
Agreed, the Sex Pistols. Talk about hype. They were not even in the top 100 best Punk bands.
[/quote]

A poll taken by whom?

There weren't even a 100 punk bands anyway? Unless we are including the mostly dire post 1979 offerings...

[FinnDave]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1505311468' post='3370941']
Simply Red for [i]sure[/i]. Also (puts on Nomex suit) ...Yes. Pretentious, over-long twaddle *runs away*.
[/quote]

I always though Yes were pretentious crap, and still do. And as for Chris Squire's bass playing....well!

[tom skool]

New order.
Fair enough they have written 3 good tunes and inadvertently broke new ground when they started. But the rest is regurgitated tripe with flat vocals, terrible lyrics and Hookey playing the same stupid bass line on everything. Dreadful live too

[dmccombe7]

[quote name='hiram.k.hackenbacker' timestamp='1505314784' post='3370975']
Led Zeppelin
[/quote]

I'm not a Led Zep fan as i find a lot of it solo's and musical nonsense that all seemed to be a common part of the music scene back then. I do like some of their more melodic songs tho like Tangerine and Going to California. No played out solos full of mistakes but nice acoustic melodies.

Dave

Edited September 13, 2017 by dmccombe7

[leroydiamond]

U2. Just writing U2 makes me squirm. Ugh!!

[Quevlar]

Wow! This is an interesting read.
Personally after listening to them i thought the Beatles were overrated. Admittedly i was only a little boy when John Lennon was shot so missed all the hype and their rise in popularity but i've listened to some of their songs and they never really did anything for me.
I would have said Nickelback as they seem to be a band lots of people dislike for some reason or other but for a generic rock band, got to admit i have heard worse.

[mikel]

[quote name='itsmedunc' timestamp='1505330530' post='3371163']
[b]A poll taken by whom?[/b]

There weren't even a 100 punk bands anyway? Unless we are including the mostly dire post 1979 offerings...
[/quote]

By me, and its a web forum, I dont need to justify my likes and dislikes, thank you. None of us do, its a bit of nonsense.

Edited September 13, 2017 by mikel

[itsmedunc]

[quote name='mikel' timestamp='1505335522' post='3371205']


By me, and its a web forum, I dont need to justify my likes and dislikes, thank you. None of us do, its a bit of nonsense.
[/quote]

Agreed, just wondering the source.

[mike f]

Pearl Jam - what beige sounds like.

[Cato]

[quote name='Quevlar' timestamp='1505335403' post='3371204']
Wow! This is an interesting read.
Personally after listening to them i thought the Beatles were overrated. Admittedly i was only a little boy when John Lennon was shot so missed all the hype and their rise in popularity but i've listened to some of their songs and they never really did anything for me.
[/quote]

Better hope Blue's not reading this thread.

I know what you mean though, I think it's an age thing. I'm only 42 so to me Beatlemania is just a few black and white clips of a band rendered barely audible by screaming fans.

My theory is that the Beatles were so influential that to anyone who wasn't there at the time they just don't sound that innovative.

Their sound and song writing structure have been copied so much since that the original material loses much of it's impact with younger generations.

I certainly wouldn't describe them as over rated though. They changed the direction of popular music, it just gets harder to hear that the further we move from the event.

Edited September 13, 2017 by Cato

[mikel]

[quote name='Cato' timestamp='1505337738' post='3371228']
Better hope Blue's not reading this thread.

I know what you mean though, I think it's an age thing. I'm only 42 so to me Beatlemania is just a few black and white clips of a band rendered barely audible by screaming fans.

My theory is that the Beatles were so influential that to anyone who wasn't there at the time they just don't sound that innovative.

Their sound and song writing structure have been copied so much since that the original material loses much of it's impact with younger generations.

I certainly wouldn't describe them as over rated though. They changed the direction of popular music, it just gets harder to hear that the further we move from the event.
[/quote]

Agreed. The Beatles have to be taken in context. Back in the day they were the pilot fish for the rest of the music world. People held there breath when a new recording was imminent. Exciting days, I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who did not live through the 60s. Anything and everything was possible.

[bassbiscuits]

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1505319016' post='3371027']
I also like the Levellers. Levelling The Land is one of my favourite albums. Fantastic live in the early 90's.
[/quote]

I hear ya - I loved Levelling the Land and have seen the band twice at various festivals over the years - been brilliant each time.

In fairness I don't remember them ever being heaped with quite the same gushing praise as some of the other truly overrated acts on this list anyway.

Hence whether the Levellers are any good is secondary to how highly-acclaimed they are/were in the first place, if you follow me.

Edited September 14, 2017 by bassbiscuits

[silverfoxnik]

It's a good read, this thread. 😁

Top of my list, especially as far as the BC fraternity is concerned, has to be Jamiroquai. I think Vulpeck are hugely overrated too.

IMO, there's a difference between bands who's music I personally don't like, and bands who I think are overrated. In the case of Jamiroquai, I personally don't like their music at all and I think they're vastly overrated.

Conversely, I actually quite like some of the Vulpeck stuff I've heard, but still think they're a bit overrated

Just my personal 2p worth of course.

To try to argue that The Beatles are overrated is an utterly futile exercise; all the evidence - their sales, cultural impact, critical acclaim, respect from their peer over the years, etc, etc - is too compelling a case.

Be that as it may, it doesn't mean you have to like their music.

[PaulWarning]

[quote name='silverfoxnik' timestamp='1505342172' post='3371265']


To try to argue that The Beatles are overrated is an utterly futile exercise; all the evidence - their sales, cultural impact, critical acclaim, respect from their peer over the years, etc, etc - is too compelling a case.

Be that as it may, it doesn't mean you have to like their music.
[/quote]not wanting to start another Beatles debate but I have to say he's right, bit like saying Elvis was overrated, didn't like a lot of his stuff but I'd never say he was overrated

[Nicko]

[quote name='itsmedunc' timestamp='1505319398' post='3371029']
PS. U2 as well. A bad enough pretentious band but when they and equally pretentious Green Day murdered The Skids song, The Saints Are Coming, they went onto my "Sh*t List"!
[/quote]

I can understand people not getting Green Day, but pretentious isn't a word I'd associate with them.

[quote name='AndyTravis' timestamp='1505326354' post='3371108']
Always struggled to fathom the Pete Doherty thing. Libertines and BabyShambles.

Might've been more to do with him being a goon though.
[/quote]

I've played a couple of songs in our set, the song writing is great, but you are right about Pete.

[quote name='mikel' timestamp='1505338698' post='3371235']
Agreed. The Beatles have to be taken in context. Back in the day they were the pilot fish for the rest of the music world. People held there breath when a new recording was imminent. Exciting days, I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who did not live through the 60s. Anything and everything was possible.
[/quote]

Are you Blue in disguise?

[RockfordStone]

this is such a hard one, because its so subjective.

some people will say a band is overrated, but the size of its fan base shows otherwise. its one of those ones that's never can come to an agreement, but since we like to disagree and discuss on here

radiohead, anything related to morrisey, queen (i like queen but they are overrated), coldplay, jeff buckley, nirvana, the stones... controversially also don't get the hype around jaco pastorious either, he may be a great jazz musician who changes the way people look at bass, but it really isn't all that nice to listen to at times.... i suppose that makes me an unlearned heathen around here.

my theory is a lot of bands/artists get overhyped if they die tragically or young.

[Johnny Wishbone]

[quote name='RockfordStone' timestamp='1505378656' post='3371396']
my theory is a lot of bands/artists get overhyped if they die tragically or young.
[/quote]
Completely agree. In the interests of avoiding a flame war however, I'll refrain from naming a couple of glaring examples.

Edited September 14, 2017 by Johnny Wishbone

[PaulWarning]

[quote name='RockfordStone' timestamp='1505378656' post='3371396']


my theory is a lot of bands/artists get overhyped if they die tragically or young.
[/quote]that's because they've not had chance to go past their sell by date, who knows how Buddy Holly, Hendrix etc, would have turned out if they'd lived.
Here's another one I just don't get Tom Jones

[Yank]

Re: Springsteen. Listen to one album. Born to Run. Either you like or not. Earlier or lator albums might be spotty, but this is the one that put him on the map.