Is music getting worse ?

[songofthewind]

I find most commercial modern music insipid and whimsical. Gimme the sixties, seventies and eighties, mostly.

My dad hated the stuff I listened to in my teens, which was mostly what we now call rock. I used to play Cream at high volume on my Dansette, drove him mad. Guitar solos!

He loved his Glenn Miller and his Slim Whitman and his Karl Denver. But everybody he liked, and that I liked, could really PLAY.

So, maybe for me musicianship shows through, and I take comfort in that. (To be clear, I know lots of musicians nowadays can really play. I'm not saying it's only old guys.)

[PaulWarning]

10 hours ago, gjones said:

The stuff that gets airplay is manufactured pap (mostly). But it's always been that way; from the fifties until today.

But young people are coming out with great music in the 21st century, you just have to dig a little deeper to find it.

Two examples of bands from around my neck of the woods are Miracle Glass Company and Honeyblood. Both, in yer face guitar bands, that write songs with big catchy hooks.

 

thanks for those links, like them both, but therein lies the problem, there's that much stuff out there because it's so easy to produce a recording it destroys the will to search it out because there's so much dross to wade through, rather like all the channels and streaming services on TV, the choice is overwhelming.

BTW, what's with the capo on the bass? 

[casapete]

I'm definitely with the 'formative years shaping your choices' angle here. The sound of Motown coming from my brother's room when I was a kid, Beatles , Stones etc on the radio and TOTP / Ready Steady Go all still resonate with me to this day. However, unlike (it seems) most people on here, I have always liked POP music. There, I've said it. From those great 3 minute songs in the 50's/60's right through to recent stuff, I love a catchy well crafted song done well. Of course there's always been sh*te stuff in the charts since their inception, but likewise there will always be great pop songs being made - pop as in 'popular', tunes which capture a large audience by being more or less instantly likeable / danceable / singable etc. I don't have a problem with that whatsoever. In fact, I've made a living for the last 30 years in playing said songs for people to enjoy, so would perhaps be hypocritical of me to think otherwise. What I have noticed (as stated in a few posts above) is that fewer songs are standing out to me now, which of course is to be expected - after all, pop music (certainly chart orientated stuff anyway) is primarily targeted to the teen to maybe early 20's demographic. Even so, there are still gems to be enjoyed IMHO, music that is maybe ultimately disposable BUT is fun , happy and just makes you feel good. So where's the harm in that?

[chris_b]

Is music getting worse? From what point are you starting this decline?

A couple of years ago I had to learn a set of "modern" songs for a wedding. It included 90% of stuff I'd never heard, like Jesse J and Taio Cruz. There were some great songs on the list. They were well written, well recorded, satisfying to play and they went down well with the guests. I still don't listen to that stuff but I now appreciate, even more, there are gems in all forms of music.

These threads generate lists of stuff people don't like, but that isn't a list of bad music, just a list of preferences.

I think great music is still being made these days. Keb Mo, Delbert McClinton are still active, and Vulfpeck and Vintage Trouble are sounding as good as ever. And that's just some of the stuff I like. I expect after everyone has added their favourites to the list, we'll have covered most recorded music.

No, music was never bad and hasn't got worse. It's as good and varied as it ever was.

[Jus Lukin]

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Edited March 3, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[Leonard Smalls]

My taste in music was formed by the John Peel Show of the late 70s/early 80s, and by New Romantical and gay clubs of the early 80s.

Which means I potentially like absolutely anything so long as it:

a) is leftfield and a bit out-of-order

b) has got a daft hairstyle

c) funks'n'grooves like a mutha

d) would make most parents from any era demand it be switched off

 

[gjones]

2 hours ago, PaulWarning said:

thanks for those links, like them both, but therein lies the problem, there's that much stuff out there because it's so easy to produce a recording it destroys the will to search it out because there's so much dross to wade through, rather like all the channels and streaming services on TV, the choice is overwhelming.

BTW, what's with the capo on the bass? 

That's a good question that I've wondered about myself?

[Stylon Pilson]

Chart music today is mostly lowest-common denominator, soulless manufactured pap, targeted at teenagers, often nauseating in its repetitiveness, and most of it will be forgotten within 6 months.

The same is also true of chart music from any period since you were born.

S.P.

Edited August 12, 2019 by Stylon Pilson

[mikel]

19 hours ago, neilp said:

I don't think music is necessarily getting worse, but for me, recorded music is certainly getting less enjoyable. Autotune, protools, all of that has taken almost all of the humanity from it.

This. I do miss music that may be less than "perfect" but moves me with its pure energy and sincerity.

[chris_b]

4 minutes ago, Stylon Pilson said:

Chart music today is mostly lowest-common denominator, soulless manufactured pap, targeted at teenagers, often nauseating in its repetitiveness, and most of it will be forgotten within 6 months.

You sound like my Grandparents! That's what they said in the 60's and most of that "pap" turned out to be pretty good, and is still being played and enjoyed 60 years later.

Who'd have thought it?

[Stylon Pilson]

7 minutes ago, chris_b said:

You sound like my Grandparents! That's what they said in the 60's and most of that "pap" turned out to be pretty good, and is still being played and enjoyed 60 years later.

Who'd have thought it?

You're wrong though. If you go to https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/ and pick a random week from the 1960s then the majority of songs there will be no better than the average standard of what's in the charts today. Most will be either (a) obscure songs by obscure bands that no-one under 50 has heard of, or (b) filler singles by famous bands.

S.P.

[Cato]

2 minutes ago, Stylon Pilson said:

You're wrong though. If you go to https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/ and pick a random week from the 1960s then the majority of songs there will be no better than the average standard of what's in the charts today. Most will be either (a) obscure songs by obscure bands that no-one under 50 has heard of, or (b) filler singles by famous bands.

S.P.

Don't forget the endless stream of novelty/comedy songs that dominated the charts throughout the sixties.

[DoubleOhStephan]

1 minute ago, Stylon Pilson said:

You're wrong though. If you go to https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/ and pick a random week from the 1960s then the majority of songs there will be no better than the average standard of what's in the charts today. Most will be either (a) obscure songs by obscure bands that no-one under 50 has heard of, or (b) filler singles by famous bands.

S.P.

BBC4 often show TOTP from the 70s & 80s, there's a surprising amount of both obscure and fillers on every show. 

[songofthewind]

2 hours ago, chris_b said:

These threads generate lists of stuff people don't like, but that isn't a list of bad music, just a list of preferences.

This.

[Ant1972]

20 hours ago, edstraker123 said:

A really interesting video. Is it just  music or is everything getting worse ? Films, tv, literature and even politics have all been dumbed down for the reasons stated in the video - risk aversion and the need for a commercial return. Conversely , the fact that it's now much easier for more people to make music with garageband, fruity loops etc. can only be a good thing as who cares about chart music anyway !

I think I have to defend modern TV and make it an honourable exception... Sooo much great stuff around... here's a few for you to check out:

Russian Doll, Lady Dynamite, Fleabag, Master Of None, Kidding, Atlanta, Better Call Saul, Forever... and many others.

[Stylon Pilson]

37 minutes ago, Ant1972 said:

I think I have to defend modern TV and make it an honourable exception... Sooo much great stuff around... here's a few for you to check out:

Russian Doll, Lady Dynamite, Fleabag, Master Of None, Kidding, Atlanta, Better Call Saul, Forever... and many others.

The situation with TV is exactly the same as with music. Yes, there is good stuff out there if you go looking for it. But if you turn on the television at a random time and flick through all the available channels, 90% of it is awful.

S.P.

[cheddatom]

Every time I put Radio 3 on it's something interesting. I'm told 6 music is generally good but I've never tried it

[casapete]

1 hour ago, Stylon Pilson said:

You're wrong though. If you go to https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/ and pick a random week from the 1960s then the majority of songs there will be no better than the average standard of what's in the charts today. Most will be either (a) obscure songs by obscure bands that no-one under 50 has heard of, or (b) filler singles by famous bands.

S.P.

Mmm, not sure about this- just tried it out with this week in 1968 and (by my reckoning obvs) there are a fair few cracking singles in the top 30 , 19 in my view. Most of these by famous bands or artists, the word 'famous'  depending on your age though of course. Of the remaining 11 there are 9 fillers and 2 novelty maybe. To many people on here they are probably songs that are relatively unknown but nevertheless were big tunes then. Just saying....🙂

[still-young]

1 minute ago, casapete said:

Mmm, not sure about this- just tried it out with this week in 1968 and (by my reckoning obvs) there are a fair few cracking singles in the top 30 , 19 in my view. Most of these by famous bands or artists, the word 'famous'  depending on your age though of course. Of the remaining 11 there are 9 fillers and 2 novelty maybe. To many people on here they are probably songs that are relatively unknown but nevertheless were big tunes then. Just saying....🙂

Yeah but it would be the same if you did it in another 50 years. They'd be big songs now, but would probably be relatively unknown in 2069.

[Burns-bass]

3 hours ago, Stylon Pilson said:

You're wrong though. If you go to https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/ and pick a random week from the 1960s then the majority of songs there will be no better than the average standard of what's in the charts today. Most will be either (a) obscure songs by obscure bands that no-one under 50 has heard of, or (b) filler singles by famous bands.

S.P.

I agreed with this in principle until I rewound the clock to this week in 1967...

https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19670809/7501/

I guess it reflects the hold of the 60s on our culture, but there are some timeless songs in there, whether you love pop, soul, psychedelia or even a bit of rock.

[Mykesbass]

3 hours ago, Burns-bass said:

I agreed with this in principle until I rewound the clock to this week in 1967...

https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19670809/7501/

I guess it reflects the hold of the 60s on our culture, but there are some timeless songs in there, whether you love pop, soul, psychedelia or even a bit of rock.

There's also some full blown old rubbish in there too though! Topol, a pretty dreadful Tom Jones offering (and I like quite a lot of his stuff), The Bachelors, Englebert and the Mike Samme Singers. Pretty dreadful, easily taking the shine off the good stuff.

[BreadBin]

14 hours ago, cheddatom said:

Every time I put Radio 3 on it's something interesting. I'm told 6 music is generally good but I've never tried it

I've been introduced to some great new music by 6.

[Pseudonym]

Maybe we're spoilt for choice these days. As several people have said here, there's a formidable amount of material with few good ways to sort through it -- and every recording made today is subject to comparison with decades of readily available recordings.

A Briton of my age and tastes had certain predictable ways to get into music: lots of gigs, specialised radio shows, a lively and partisan music press, subcultural word of mouth, trial-and-error record purchases etc. That process took time and money, but it was almost a rite of passage. Whatever it was that you liked about the music -- technical virtuosity, emotional heft, a connection with your own life -- you probably grasped why you responded to it, and who you were as you did so. Today, it's both easier and more difficult to conduct that kind of deeply personal aesthetic courtship.

I don't think music is getting worse. I do think that my old habits need occasional adjustment.

[Mykesbass]

2 hours ago, BreadBin said:

I've been introduced to some great new music by 6.

Me too. And although it gets regularly slated on here, I find at least one new act every year that I like through Later.

[Barking Spiders]

Like the olde f@rt I can sometimes be, when I'm in ASDA I do curse the flaccid pap being pumped out at quite high volume and think current mainstream music is the biggest pile of c@k ever made. Then I come across a random 1976 episode of TOTP on BBC 4 and am forced to change my mind.