Today's Music

[Valve Bounce]

Has today's music evolved into a repetitious doof doof beat without any melody? I have been trawling through youtube and come across some fantastic stuff. But just let me put things straight - I am an old dynasour, nothing to be ashamed of. But a lot of the stuff by The Rolling Stones, Sting, Bobby Hackett, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Dion Warwick, Alabama, Doobie Brothers, sure as hell beats anything that the CLUBS beat out to the early mornings.
I mean, I played music from a Nino Tempo album and my daughter said:"I don't like Jazz until 5 minutes later she realised it was an album I swiped from her when we were in HK many years ago..
What happened to music with melody?

[BleAivano]

Valve, I am probably much younger then you (mid 30's) but I agree that allot of the modern music are "repetitious doof
doof beat without any melody", but not all new music are like the generic sh!t that they play on the radio.

I think the problem with today's music is that the larger record companies seems to prefer short time
thinking when it comes artists and record contracts. Make one album with an artist, hype hype hype
and extensive marketing then they dump the artist and bring in a new one and repeat the process.

So there is good new music the difficulties is to find it. Most of them are on smaller
independent record companies and as such artists the rarely gets played on radio and such.

A few Swedish artists that I think have done pretty good music is Baskery (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPEYGmXXl7Q), First Aid Kit (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PC57z-oDPLs), Laleh (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yw_nLu3JxOk),

[Valve Bounce]

I'm listening to Whitney Houston and that was great music. Just finished listening to Opie Bellas's Live for Life album. I guess I'm just an old geezer.

[Rudy Tamasz]

I don't think that we can file all modern day music as doof doof beat. Good music has existed forever and will continue existing long after all of us are gone for good. I had that kind of gloomy feeling about the fate of music back in early nineties when suicidal grunge bands wiped metal off the charts and techno was everywhere. But then I realized that was not the end of the world. Music changed, but my tastes developed, too, and I gradually got to like the new stuff: Low, Primal Scream, the Hellacopters, Frank Black, Mercury Rev, to name just a few. Same thing is going to happen to every new generation.

[Jag_Warrior]

Just as I'm sure my parents didn't like (or understand) the music my generation listened to, I have no idea what this noise is that young people listen to these days. But one thing I can say, the music I listened to (and the music my parents listened to) seems to have pretty well stood the test of time and is still pretty popular. I don't get the same sense about most of the music of today or really any time after the late 80's.

Another thing is, where before you just had radio and records (8-tracks, cassettes and then CDs), now there are all kinds of ways to get music. The industry is so fragmented and there is no focus (IMO). Also, rather than just focusing on making the best music possible, artists seem more focused on JUST making hits - even if they just become one-hit wonders. I know of no band or artist these days that can even begin to compare with the quality of music that came from the 50's, 60's or even the 70's. Now it seems to mainly be sappy boy bands, whiny girl-power bands, rap that makes no sense and fake pop music that is more like the (corporate created) Monkees than the Rolling Stones or Led Zeppelin.

Just my take.

[harsha]

Just as I'm sure my parents didn't like (or understand) the music my generation listened to, I have no idea what this noise is that young people listen to these days. But one thing I can say, the music I listened to (and the music my parents listened to) seems to have pretty well stood the test of time and is still pretty popular. I don't get the same sense about most of the music of today or really any time after the late 80's.

Another thing is, where before you just had radio and records (8-tracks, cassettes and then CDs), now there are all kinds of ways to get music. The industry is so fragmented and there is no focus (IMO). Also, rather than just focusing on making the best music possible, artists seem more focused on JUST making hits - even if they just become one-hit wonders. I know of no band or artist these days that can even begin to compare with the quality of music that came from the 50's, 60's or even the 70's. Now it seems to mainly be sappy boy bands, whiny girl-power bands, rap that makes no sense and fake pop music that is more like the (corporate created) Monkees than the Rolling Stones or Led Zeppelin.

Just my take.

The 90's were still good. You had alternate rock and grunge coming through. Not compared to the 70's ofcourse.

But now the music scene is so unbelievably crap on all levels , It really gets me when people in my office play those meaningless hip hop songs and pop songs which is corp created and then pushed down our ears. You see Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus getting airtime and that's the music they get.

[Rudy Tamasz]

But now the music scene is so unbelievably crap on all levels

Wrong. There's plenty of good music being written and performed these days. It won't take you too long to surf sites like allmusic.com, fanzines, blogs and discover great bands playing something you already like or something you might like when you hear it. Nothing prevents you from checking out up and coming bands in local clubs. They might not enjoy the superstar status the bands from 1960-1970s had but they are still worth listening.


It really gets me when people in my office play those meaningless hip hop songs and pop songs which is corp created and then pushed down our ears. You see Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus getting airtime and that's the music they get.

Retaliate by playing your music. I bet it will irritate Bieber lovers way more Bieber's music irritates you. :D

[Zeakiwi]

Many of today's bands that produce an older style sound are classified as indie so they are less likely to get hyped. Some still cut their own niche.
Just a random selection of fairly recent music.

Haerts All the Days http://youtu.be/Yb5y2jEyK6E

Lucius band http://youtu.be/FnH7YdO2XXg

The Map Room Band http://youtu.be/e_q03Xi4sWs

Lily and the Parlour Tricks - http://youtu.be/166E1E_l8Ik

Zig Zags band http://youtu.be/Isp44TvD0TI

[Jag_Warrior]

There aren't any clubs near where I live that play the type of music that I'm into. In fact, there aren't any clubs period in my immediate area - minimum 45 minute drive to get to anything even close to a decent club. But I have picked up a few songs and bands from TV shows or movies. The last one that really hit the spot was The Heavy (Short Change Hero and How You Like Me Now?). We all like something different. But to me, that's old style "real people music"!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=RDjXdhKyIEQpM&v=P1QUZzeZoPQ

[Koz]

How about this one?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pidokakU4I

[janneppi]

I once heard a pretty good explanation to why new generation of music sucks.
You're emotionally most affected at around 15 years old. Anything after that wont be as good. ;)

[Rudy Tamasz]

I once heard a pretty good explanation to why new generation of music sucks.
You're emotionally most affected at around 15 years old. Anything after that wont be as good. ;)

How about growing up? ;) I'm 39 and I believe I have some more clue about music than I did in the days of my metal youth. Although I still bang my head on some occasions. :)

[Valve Bounce]

My daughter installed PANDORA on my tablet and when I selected Carly Simon station, I got a fantastic stream of music from Bread, Elton John, Carol King, and even Otis redding, Temptations, .... I think you get the picture. You can select any artist and the music stream will be similar to the one selected

[MrJan]

My daughter installed PANDORA on my tablet and when I selected Carly Simon station, I got a fantastic stream of music from Bread, Elton John, Carol King, and even Otis redding, Temptations, .... I think you get the picture. You can select any artist and the music stream will be similar to the one selected

Bit late to this thread but I couldn't read it without posting!

last.fm does a similar thing. It also pays attention to what you're listening to (if you link it to iTunes or Spotify) and makes suggestions for stuff you might like based on other people's similar listening habits. So if you listen to a lot Massive Attack and a lot of other people that listen to Massive Attack also listen to Portishead then it will suggest that you listen to Portishead. It's not perfect but it does open up an awful lot. Trouble being that if your listening habits are in the past then it'll probably throw up a lot of stuff from the past.

Going back to the original post it really winds me up when people complain about modern music when they don't put the effort in to listen to what's available. Sure the stuff that's on the main pop radio stations may be crap but, but there are a vast number of ways that you can now listen to music and such a huge number of artists around that you can easily find things that you like. And don't give me that "in my day" bullshit, my Dad is over 60 and has exactly the same opinion, he's happier listening to something like Buck 65 or First Aid Kit as he is something from his past like Fleetwood Mac or the Stones. In fact quite a lot of the time it's him that gives me tips on stuff that's worth listening to.

If you're actually willing to try listening to something a bit different from the generic crap that fills most stations then try BBC 6Music. You'll get a really good mix of music from the past and alternative new stuff from a wide range of genres. Lauren Laverne, Steve Lamacq and Tom Ravenscroft in particular have good shows.

You might not like any of it but Adele, Alt-J, Metronomy, Bon Iver, Foals, Richard Hawley, Midlake, Seasick Steve, all examples of people making music at the minute that are well worth listening to...and that's just people that I've heard on national radio, it doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of all the fantastic artists that haven't been discovered or have a sound that doesn't have a huge following at the minute.

[555-04Q2]

Has today's music evolved into a repetitious doof doof beat without any melody? I have been trawling through youtube and come across some fantastic stuff. But just let me put things straight - I am an old dynasour, nothing to be ashamed of. But a lot of the stuff by The Rolling Stones, Sting, Bobby Hackett, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Dion Warwick, Alabama, Doobie Brothers, sure as hell beats anything that the CLUBS beat out to the early mornings.
I mean, I played music from a Nino Tempo album and my daughter said:"I don't like Jazz until 5 minutes later she realised it was an album I swiped from her when we were in HK many years ago..
What happened to music with melody?

Todays music is not really music. It's a computer generated noise with a person who can't sing saying the same line over and over again a thousand times while winning a grammy award and making $ 100m at the same time.

Thank god for my huge cd collection of Dire Straits, Genesis, Phil Collins, Foreigner etc :D

[Valve Bounce]

[quote="Valve Bounce":23kaqvpi]Has today's music evolved into a repetitious doof doof beat without any melody? I have been trawling through youtube and come across some fantastic stuff. But just let me put things straight - I am an old dynasour, nothing to be ashamed of. But a lot of the stuff by The Rolling Stones, Sting, Bobby Hackett, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Dion Warwick, Alabama, Doobie Brothers, sure as hell beats anything that the CLUBS beat out to the early mornings.
I mean, I played music from a Nino Tempo album and my daughter said:"I don't like Jazz until 5 minutes later she realised it was an album I swiped from her when we were in HK many years ago..
What happened to music with melody?

Todays music is not really music. It's a computer generated noise with a person who can't sing saying the same line over and over again a thousand times while winning a grammy award and making $ 100m at the same time.

Thank god for my huge cd collection of Dire Straits, Genesis, Phil Collins, Foreigner etc :D[/quote:23kaqvpi]

OK. I'm with you. But I will be fair and listen to the music suggested by the poster above yours.
I remember, many years ago, that my brother went down the new arcade in Brisbane, and found this new coffee place Primitif. The girl/manager asked him what music she should play, and he suggested Ella's Cole Porter song book, Oscar plays pretty (Petterson), Shearing, Brubeck, Barney Kessel, and other Jazz stuff that was easy to listen to. The place was a hit because there was nowhere else in Brisbane that you could sit down and listen to great music. I like music that is great and easy to listen to.
I lived opposite entry gate 1 at Etihad stadium for 9 months, and some of the concerts there were not that great for me, and it sounded like they were playing outside on my balcony.

[Bagwan]

Much of the corporate packaged music out there is put together with the same formula as the last big hit .

Search for independent music , not big label .

Just a short time ago , a country music artist (can't remember his name) was commissioned by Ford to write a song for it's commercials .
It didn't mention Ford at all , but emphasized "strong" , in reference to the man driving needing a truck just as "strong" .
From what I understand , it did ok on the Country charts .

It's a new way to do it , instead of the "Like a Rock , buy it from Bob Seger" route .

My niece , Rose Cousins(great musician , by the way , check her out) got a song onto TV a little while ago , and she's an independent .
So , it can be done .

It's a tough road for any indie , though , as CD's don't sell near as well as just a few years ago .
At our shows , we used to sell 20 or 30 for the artist on a regular basis , but getting rid of 5 is more the norm now .

There are a few who are consummate marketers out there .
Check out Fred Eaglesmith , a Canadian legend almost nobody has heard of .
Be warned that you could become a "Fred-head" .
This guy has a selection of about ten T-shirts from which to choose , and twenty buttons , half a dozen hats , and a variety of other items with his name on them .
That goes with music on CD , vinyl , cassette , and I believe , 8-track , if you want it .

Check out his "I like trains" , or "I shot your dog" , or , a personal favourite of this Fred-head , "Small motors" with which this gruff character can bring a room to tears .
He has played 230 or so shows this year , down from 260 last year .
You now make money for the performance , rather than the merch , to a large degree .

[MrJan]

Todays music is not really music. It's a computer generated noise with a person who can't sing saying the same line over and over again a thousand times while winning a grammy award and making $ 100m at the same time.

That's rubbish and, dare I say it, a bit ignorant. Try listening to these tracks and tell me that they fit what you're saying.

gekHV9DIjHc

Here's a guy that lives and breathes music, it's fascinating watching the documentary 'It Might Get Loud' and seeing him jam with Jimmy Page...especially seeing how Jimmy Page pays attention to the way he plays.
PnTb0PfbSoE

I think it's sad when people can't move beyond the music of when they were younger. There are currently so many brilliant musicians making so many types of music that, as I said before, complaining about modern music if you're not actually willing to listen to some of it is just bullshit.

[Malbec]

I think it's sad when people can't move beyond the music of when they were younger. There are currently so many brilliant musicians making so many types of music that, as I said before, complaining about modern music if you're not actually willing to listen to some of it is just bullshit.

I couldn't agree more. There are plenty of great bands out there if you know where to look. If you think modern music is all dance and electronic rubbish all it shows is that you haven't tried to find the good stuff.

And guess what, for the guys who think music went downhill after the 70s/80s/90s/delete as appropriate there are plenty of bands out there who would agree and make fantastic new music with those eras as their greatest influence.

I'm currently listening to Arcade Fire, London Grammar and the Lumineers, bands I would have thought are pretty mainstream and are nothing like the monotone mass produced rubbish alluded to in the above posts.

[Malbec]

That's rubbish and, dare I say it, a bit ignorant. Try listening to these tracks and tell me that they fit what you're saying.

gekHV9DIjHc

Thanks for the tip, just ordered their entire catalogue... on CD of course. Great stuff.

[Valve Bounce]

Todays music is not really music. It's a computer generated noise with a person who can't sing saying the same line over and over again a thousand times while winning a grammy award and making $ 100m at the same time.

That's rubbish and, dare I say it, a bit ignorant. Try listening to these tracks and tell me that they fit what you're saying.

gekHV9DIjHc

Here's a guy that lives and breathes music, it's fascinating watching the documentary 'It Might Get Loud' and seeing him jam with Jimmy Page...especially seeing how Jimmy Page pays attention to the way he plays.
PnTb0PfbSoE

I think it's sad when people can't move beyond the music of when they were younger. There are currently so many brilliant musicians making so many types of music that, as I said before, complaining about modern music if you're not actually willing to listen to some of it is just bullshit.

Hi, I don't mean to be picky, but I did try to listen to your music, but somehow your links didn't work on my laptop. Not to be outdone, I copied the link, loaded it onto youtube, and it now works. She is great, reminds me of joan Baez, which I consider is a Trulli great compliment. Have you heard the Furies version of Sweet Sixteen? It is so sensitive to me at the moment that I can't listen to it at times. Too emotional for very personal reasons.

I am now logged on to Pandora and listening to George Shearing Radio. There were so many great jazz pianists who never made it intothe big time, but hell! it is just awesome listening to them.

Oh Yeah! not to be beaten, your links do work directly, and I will use my mini-ipad to run them so that I can listen to them properly on my BOSE Mini-link via bluetooth. My ultrabook is great for computing but the sound is very flat.

[Valve Bounce]

I think it's sad when people can't move beyond the music of when they were younger. There are currently so many brilliant musicians making so many types of music that, as I said before, complaining about modern music if you're not actually willing to listen to some of it is just bullshit.

I couldn't agree more. There are plenty of great bands out there if you know where to look. If you think modern music is all dance and electronic rubbish all it shows is that you haven't tried to find the good stuff.

And guess what, for the guys who think music went downhill after the 70s/80s/90s/delete as appropriate there are plenty of bands out there who would agree and make fantastic new music with those eras as their greatest influence.

I'm currently listening to Arcade Fire, London Grammar and the Lumineers, bands I would have thought are pretty mainstream and are nothing like the monotone mass produced rubbish alluded to in the above posts.

I hear you; please read my previous post above later. But I will use my mini-ipad to listen to your music on a proper sound system later. Right now I am listening to jazz pianists, many of whom are from the '50s and which I think would be fantastic when I share the time with a glass of Chais Clarendon Shiraz. http://normanswines.com/the-wines/5/chais-clarendon/ I cannot help having the taste of an old geezer; I am an old geezer. :D

[MrJan]

Hi, I don't mean to be picky, but I did try to listen to your music, but somehow your links didn't work on my laptop. Not to be outdone, I copied the link, loaded it onto youtube, and it now works

Yeah not sure what happened there, you used to be able to have Youtube videos in a post if you formatted it like that :mark:

The proper links are:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqS1MV_xA_I
First Aid Kit, defined as Swedish 'folk' music. There's quite a revival of slightly folky based stuff at the minute. They come in for a lot of stick from the puritans but a band like Mumford & Sons are a great example of just how popular the folk sound can be.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnTb0PfbSoE
The White Stripes shot to fame well over a decade ago and Jack White has been part of many other projects since. It's clear that the guy loves music and has immersed himself in it for a long time. There's quite a lot of his stuff that I'm not a big fan of, but I think he's a great example of how modern music isn't all about money grabbing and mediocre sounds.

[Valve Bounce]

After listening to what I thought was beautiful piano Jazz through George Shearing radio on Pandora, after three hours my daughter asked me when I was going to stop playing that ELEVATOR MUSIC.
I concede defeat. Let's face it, I am just an old geezer from a distant past. :(

[anfield5]

Today's music is like many of today's items... disposable , cheap and forgettable. Granted there are still some quality performers out there, but they are being swamped with this mass produced, "America's got no Talent Idol X" rubbish. The salvation is that long after these abominations have passed (next Tuesday at 3:15) the proper music will still be here

[Jag_Warrior]

Today's music is like many of today's items... disposable , cheap and forgettable. Granted there are still some quality performers out there, but they are being swamped with this mass produced, "America's got no Talent Idol X" rubbish. The salvation is that long after these abominations have passed (next Tuesday at 3:15) the proper music will still be here

Quoted For Truth!

[BleAivano]

Today's music is like many of today's items... disposable , cheap and forgettable. Granted there are still some quality performers out there, but they are being swamped with this mass produced, "America's got no Talent Idol X" rubbish. The salvation is that long after these abominations have passed (next Tuesday at 3:15) the proper music will still be here

Yes the salvation will soon come from the Rock N' Roll preacher (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7UWNQ0pBck)!!!!!

So till Deaf do us apart http://www.htloz.net/forums/images/smilies/awesome/headbang.gif

[MccarthyL]

The amount of crap in music industry has doubtlessly grown bigger, but I think it's just because the music business has grown bigger in general. Back in the days, we didn't have that much musicians to listen to and it was hard to become a famous artist. These days, one can start a YouTube channel and kick start his/her career as a musician. Plus, the demand has increased, too, and the supply is growing consequently. BUT! It doesn't mean that people don't make good music anymore. I happen to bump into amazing bands every once in a while. It's just getting harder to filter the artists and find the good ones because of the informational saturation.