Too Much Music?

[TaranT]

HoustonPress.com: Sales of CDs are falling faster than you can say iPod

...It wasn't addressed in North's study, but a lot of people today have taken a worse than merely passive attitude toward music. Laments like this are now common: "I used to be a big music fan, but I'm not anymore. Music sucks today. All you ever hear on the radio is crap, and MTV doesn't even show videos anymore."

And there are elements of truth to some of those claims. For one thing, we really are awash in a sea of crap these days. Both the major labels and the underground are churning out lots of shoddy music...

Sadly, all too often, today's great music often goes unheard, and we'll likely never know just how much of it sinks without a trace. "There's no quality control now," Brennan says. "You just throw it out there and hope it sticks. The good thing with digital technology is that it's so cheap, anyone can release their stuff. But the bad thing is, everybody has released their stuff...."

The message this medium (meaning, CDs & CDRs) delivers is that music has become a throwaway commodity....

[Otohiko]

I don't think the amount of stuff out there is a bad thing. I always have and always will blame the companies themselves for falling CD sales, with the primary issue being pricing and availability.

As far as crap... hasn't there always been a lot of it?

[kikai_saigono]

Meh, I agree. New music coming out is crap these days mostly. I mean, like I really care that Fergie thinks she is the hottest shit around here? Not really....o.o Emo music could use a little more flavor and variety. Rock could sound less rip-offish of Emo, Country could go kill itself, and Rap is just.....pitiful.

[Jebadia]

Meh, I agree. New music coming out is crap these days mostly. I mean, like I really care that Fergie thinks she is the hottest shit around here? Not really....o.o Emo music could use a little more flavor and variety. Rock could sound less rip-offish of Emo, Country could go kill itself, and Rap is just.....pitiful.

Is it no wonder I haven't heard any good rap since 1999? Seems all the good rap artists where put on backburner or just don't get very much good play from anything mainstream anymore, then again they seem to be avoiding the mainstream o.O (and yes good rap artists exist, though I'd believe you if you found it hard to be true, they are almost mythological now).

[wurpess]

Meh, I agree. New music coming out is crap these days mostly. I mean, like I really care that Fergie thinks she is the hottest shit around here? Not really....o.o Emo music could use a little more flavor and variety. Rock could sound less rip-offish of Emo, Country could go kill itself, and Rap is just.....pitiful.

I so agree. Rafe will be there listening to music and stuff will come on and he'll be like "OOO! I have to get this CD" "Who is it?" "Fallout Boy." "They sound like Panic At The Disco." He sticks in a cd. "Who's this?" "Red Jumpsuit Aparatus." "They sound like All American Rejects, who I can barely tell from the Ataris." It seems the rock scene is being flooded with the rip-off emo sounding stuff. It makes me want to kill myself.

[Otohiko]

I would argue that Emo is actually just a bad ripoff of rock, myself
(then we come to 'what is rock'?)

Oh honestly, it depends on WHERE you're looking for stuff. Major labels have of course been pumping out increasing amounts of shit, let alone radio or MTV. On the other hand there's plenty of great stuff just out of sight.

I frankly don't see why the complaining. Even in the worst-case scenario, there's just so much good music out there that even an addicted afficionado like myself couldn't hope to have time for all of it in my life. If anything's on the backburner for me, it's a whole bunch of recommendable albums/bands/genres that I still haven't had time for.

[Psygnius]

I paid for a lifetime subscription to Sirius, does that count as contributing back?

[Brad]

I think people seem to forget that in the late 60's and 70's rock renaissance there were thousands of terrible bands just like today. Perhaps he makes a good point about the overall quality of mainstream music as opposed to the past, but what difference should that really even make? I haven't turned on the radio or watched MTV in an extremely long time, yet I am constantly getting and listening to new and great music.

Go to a show or two. Support local artists that are being innovative. Music isn't dead. Not by a long shot.

[kikai_saigono]

I would argue that Emo is actually just a bad ripoff of rock, myself

Yeah, but I'm not a fan of Emo. I'm a fan of rock, and it kills me to see once rock bands turn emo-crybaby musical artists. (if we can even call them that anymore? o.O?)

But I do beleive good rap still exists....but if it's out there, I haven't heard it. =\
That's why I use songs in videos (amv or not) that is not modern or maintstream right now. Or at least I try not to. Most of the really good artists I hear I find on other amvs or videos, because I can't stand to listen to radios anymore unless it's alternative. 90's alternative, preferably?

Like Panic! At the Disco? What makes me want to listen about a song where all they talk about is a nun having an affair with a married guy...? Thanks, but no thanks.

But it really gets down to being a matter of how you look at it. Some people really like newer songs. It's just whatever opinion you have. o.O

[Otohiko]

Well I mean I used to be one of those people who claimed that 'good music died around' 1974, but for the past while I've been primarily noted for listening to a lot of post-1999 music, ranging from prog-rock/metal to psy-trance to ambient to vocal-oriented songwriter type stuff to Russian punk/rock/folk-prog. You wouldn't hear a lot of that on the radio here, sure, but it's out there in huge (and increasing) amounts otherwise. It DOES depend a lot on personal preference, but there is a lot out there to be discovered for the willing ears.