Guys,
I've been bemoaning the fact that the best in music (well, the kind I listen to anyway) went away with the arrival of DJ remixes and club mixes. For me music was always about melody, harmony, meaningful songwriting and yes, sensibility. Even if you were doing a basic dance track, the lyrics had to mean a little something to the performer and hence the audience (Safety Dance anyone?)
However, the arrival of iTunes, file sharing, downloadable content and home studios meant the end of the music as my generation understood. Billboard was irrelevant. Live Tours became more about the imagery and the spectacle and less and less about the music. What has followed is a whole generation of instant fix posturing dopes of the likes of Nikki Minaj (ugh), Chamillionaire (remember him?), Ne-Yo (classic lyric this one - 'It's getting hot in her, so baby take off your clothes').
Magnificent stuff (yawn). Designed for instant gratification, screw quality, screw career development, screw musical excellence - just get me the eyeballs, show me the money, point me at the nearest Escalade dealer, and get me my tattoos.
But I've written all this before. So I'm done ranting.
The last 6 months I've been privileged to listen to some artists who have bucked this ridiculous trend and while making music they believe in have actually reached massive audiences and earned much deserved recognition. These are artistes who in my book (for what its worth eh?) would have been respected and appreciated by anyone who really cared about music. Here's my meaningless contribution of the clutter of quality artistes of this day and age:
I've been bemoaning the fact that the best in music (well, the kind I listen to anyway) went away with the arrival of DJ remixes and club mixes. For me music was always about melody, harmony, meaningful songwriting and yes, sensibility. Even if you were doing a basic dance track, the lyrics had to mean a little something to the performer and hence the audience (Safety Dance anyone?)
However, the arrival of iTunes, file sharing, downloadable content and home studios meant the end of the music as my generation understood. Billboard was irrelevant. Live Tours became more about the imagery and the spectacle and less and less about the music. What has followed is a whole generation of instant fix posturing dopes of the likes of Nikki Minaj (ugh), Chamillionaire (remember him?), Ne-Yo (classic lyric this one - 'It's getting hot in her, so baby take off your clothes').
Magnificent stuff (yawn). Designed for instant gratification, screw quality, screw career development, screw musical excellence - just get me the eyeballs, show me the money, point me at the nearest Escalade dealer, and get me my tattoos.
But I've written all this before. So I'm done ranting.
The last 6 months I've been privileged to listen to some artists who have bucked this ridiculous trend and while making music they believe in have actually reached massive audiences and earned much deserved recognition. These are artistes who in my book (for what its worth eh?) would have been respected and appreciated by anyone who really cared about music. Here's my meaningless contribution of the clutter of quality artistes of this day and age:
- John Mayer - Outstanding guitarist, intelligent songwriter, Unique vocalist. But most importantly, versatile and always relevant. Put aside his human frailties for a second. So he's a jackass sometimes. Just listen to Born and Raised to know what the future of folk rock and blues is.
- Kid Rock - I know, I know..this guy raised mayhem as a young man. Started out as a rapper. But his last 2 albums bear more than a passing resemblance to the great Bob Seger. Brilliant songs, showcased by an unapologetic delivery and lush arrangements. He hasn't forgotten how to rock, he just does it better now.
- Maroon 5 - They know what to do, in what dose and how to make it accessible. Probably the best dance rock band in the world. Shades of Jamiroquai with a liberal splashing of Motown. Adam Levine maybe the best male vocalist going at present.
- Train - Consistently impressive. Their latest album is a bit weak, but this is a real hardworking band that has retained its fan base over 12 years. Not bad in the 15 seconds era.
- Adele - Saved the best for last. Man, this lady can punch a hole in your chest with her vocal chops. Brilliant musicianship and she's getting better. Reminds me of Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone and the like.
- Dave Matthews Band - Prog Rock is in good hands with these virtuoso musicians. Consistently brilliant.
There are other artistes making good music, but they're just not being received widely enough - Vertical Horizon, Rob Thomas, The Corrs, and the like. For now, I;m just happy that the world isn;t completely crazy. Good music can and still does get played. I'll sleep well tonight.
