Tired of what's popular right now? I am!

[Inferno]

I am so sick of all that poppy crap filled with women with way to little clothing on! I mean the artists that america's youth listen's to nowadays are just not that talented! I mean what happened to the day when guitar was a skill! Now 16 yr old punks come out and think they're great when in reality they now 10-11 cords. It just seems like the bar set for music now adays is below my feet! Anyone else feel like that?

[Tarnish]

Anyone else feel like that?

I agree...while there are some talented popular bands right now, the bad ones heavily outweigh the good. What's worse, is that each of the songs sound the same. It's like I've heard each of these songs a million times before...and I've heard it done much better.

[ShiroiHikari]

I feel the same way, dude. Music isn't dead, but it's surely not healthy right now, either.

[KBMaster]

I disagree only partly. While most new bands sound the same or aren't that good, I still find many new bands that I like, such as Anberlin. The good bands might not be as popular, but they are still there. But yes, a lot of bands and artists seem to get their way into music companies when they don't deserve it.

[inkjet1987]

Mainstream music hasn't been good for a long time.

[Steeltemplar]

What's popular right now?

I would say that I am not so much tired of what is popular as I have never really cared for it in the first place. Every once in awhile, I'll skirt the edge of popularity. But really, I find little use for it.

So, yes, I would say that music these days is at a low point, even compared to pop music from past decades. There is good music out there, but it is nearly all underground.

[Linksquest]

Every now and then a good song/artist will appear... but more often than not we get stuck with some pretty mediocre stuff that we have to listen to because all the other awesome singers are hiding their talent!

[Eric]

There is a lot of great music out there, but like it has been stated in here, the great majority of it is underground or at least not commonly known, since there are bands on some large labels like Century Media and The End Records and the like that noone really knows about. Also, certain genres aren't very well-known, like avant garde, progressive, neo-classical, ambient/dark ambient, the entire post-industrial scene (i.e. noise, militant, power electronics, technoid, electronic body music), metal (there are very few good mainstream metal bands); also, music that is very experimental tends to not be popular (i.e. Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, etc.).

If you are in need of any recommendations, I'd be more than happy to help you out.

[ShiroiHikari]

Ever heard of payola? It happens all the time nowadays. Look up the term and you'll understand a little better why the radio spews out such tripe nowadays.

[Tenshi no Ai]

I am so sick of all that poppy crap filled with women with way to little clothing on!

2 words: Pussycat Dolls. If you've never seen their viedos, don't^^ There's nothing more suggestive than them wearing by far the LESS I've seen on any video and dancing... >_< The song Beep was amusing in a sense though, being a very bad song, but without actually saying anything :/ Still indirectly VERY bad! My friends and I played fill in the blanks with that using unanimate objects.

But oy if the trend goes like that, things are going to be MUCH worse I can see it in the future... music videos with ratings on them... most 18+ :/

[Eric]

It's kinda pointless to complain about the state of mainstream music. Let them do as they please. I'd much rather spend my time and effort introducing people to new music.

[Lyrical]

I think the popular genre these days is rnb. And yes, I agree on you all saying that music videos have become a medium for obscenity. I can't take it anymore. First, the magazines, then the tv, then the internet, THEN music?!! WAAHH!!!!

[Arnobius]

10-11 Chords? Well that's 7 or 8 more than the Ramones had

I guess what I hate is the trend to play the bass so loud that I can hear it through allegedly 'soundproof' walls or while in my car with the radio turned up (Here's a clue... if I can hear your radio louder than I can hear my own, it's too loud)

[Hitokiri]

I like mainstream pop but, yeah, the sex appeal is way overdone even for me.

What irks me as of right now is the emo kiddies that have the urge toe xpress every political opinion in thier music and then have it sell to every kid who wan't to be like them (i.e. Greenday). Pop >>>>> emo by far.

[Htom Sirveaux]

I like mainstream pop but, yeah, the sex appeal is way overdone even for me.

What irks me as of right now is the emo kiddies that have the urge toe xpress every political opinion in thier music and then have it sell to every kid who wan't to be like them (i.e. Greenday). Pop >>>>> emo by far.

Oh my goodness, yes. Memo to all pop/rock/emo/whatever bands: You are entertainers! No one cares about your political opinions! So before you step up to the mic, for gosh sakes get down off your soapbox!

Also, I saw that new American Idol contest winner (whatsisname, something Taylor?) doing a Ford commercial and I thought to myself "Wow. It's amazing how fast this guy went from national celebrity to corporate sellout." But shoot. Make that dough while you can, buddy, cuz in 2 years' time you'll be all but forgotten.

Lastly, using only a few chords per song isn't such a bad thing. To those who doubt, I have one question for you: "How you want cooku your steak!? How you want cooku your steak!?" The answer of course is: "Medium raarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre!!" Why? "S-T-O! I don't know! S-T-S! I don't care!"

[Knives]

I am so sick of all that poppy crap filled with women with way to little clothing on! I mean the artists that america's youth listen's to nowadays are just not that talented! I mean what happened to the day when guitar was a skill! Now 16 yr old punks come out and think they're great when in reality they now 10-11 cords. It just seems like the bar set for music now adays is below my feet! Anyone else feel like that?

I would agree for the most part. Most artists right now, are ok, not horrible, but not anything great. At least in the rock scene. In the pop scene, most of the artists have almost no talent!

"10-11 Chords? Well that's 7 or 8 more than the Ramones had

I guess what I hate is the trend to play the bass so loud that I can hear it through allegedly 'soundproof' walls or while in my car with the radio turned up (Here's a clue... if I can hear your radio louder than I can hear my own, it's too loud)

Lol, and the ramones were good, even though they only used a few chords and had simple songs.
As for the sex thing, well, sex sells. People want their cds to sell because that is how they get money...

[shojoiscool2]

I have to agree with you the current music scene is kind of old, especially now what is popular is rap or this rock/alternative stuff. (I'm not sure how to classify it). The stuff they show on MTV. I hate to admit it, but I loved the whole pop era when I was in middle school. There is so much more music out there to choose from than just what is popular. I like some American stuff, but there is so much good international/underground music out there that most people don't know about.

[dyzzispell]

I've never really liked mainstream music, but there is one thing that annoys me about what's popular. The stuff I do like gets forced way underground so that sometimes it even becomes hard to find... iTunes can be kind of limited in that way too...
And then there's the fact that I love Japanese anime/game music soundtracks. Sure I can buy them at places like Game Music Online or AnimeNation, but I can't preview them at places like iTunes or anything, because it just isn't what's popular. And those soundtracks, being they are imported, just aren't cheap!

[Radical Dreamer]

Also, I saw that new American Idol contest winner (whatsisname, something Taylor?) doing a Ford commercial and I thought to myself "Wow. It's amazing how fast this guy went from national celebrity to corporate sellout." But shoot. Make that dough while you can, buddy, cuz in 2 years' time you'll be all but forgotten.

Like Billy Joel said (sang?) in his song, The Entertainer...

"Today I am your champion, and I may have won your hearts
But I know the game
You'll forget my name
And I won't be here in another year
If I don't stay on the charts."

XD Now that's a great song. I agree with you all on the whole mainstream thing, though]does[/i] lie outside of the mainstream's flow, so if you want to find something good to listen to, you're going to have to broaden your horizons.

What irks me as of right now is the emo kiddies that have the urge to express every political opinion in thier music and then have it sell to every kid who wan't to be like them (i.e. Greenday). Pop >>>>> emo by far.

I agree with you on that; however, while I really don't like Greenday's lyrics or their stock-image followers at all, they are quite musically talented, and have been around for a while, long before this whole emo kid/scene kid fad came into play.

I do remember when Mae won for best band of the month or something on Yahoo.com...Yahoo had this advertisement that read something like, "Click here 4 more Mae emoPix!" Yeah. Just no.

[Angel37]

What I can't stand is rap. Rap involves no musical talent and isusually full of "oh this weed was great" or "oh I wanna do her" or "oh let's make some money" or "i'm gonna beat you to a pulp". It's disgusting! And it's all the rage especially where I went to high school.

[Authority3000]

I am so sick of all that poppy crap filled with women with way to little clothing on! I mean the artists that america's youth listen's to nowadays are just not that talented! I mean what happened to the day when guitar was a skill! Now 16 yr old punks come out and think they're great when in reality they now 10-11 cords. It just seems like the bar set for music now adays is below my feet! Anyone else feel like that?

It isn't to fair to stereotype an entire industry (which is, in this case, the popular music industry) in my opinion.

Although much of the music played on such channels as MTV (which is pretty much pop culture's portal) is nonsensical "rubbish" indeed, there are generally two ways that positive music makes its way into pop culture: One would be current MTV-popularity bands such as Switchfoot (who professed to be Christians on an MTV interview, and have consistently positive music with excellent morals), these bands might not shout out God's name every millisecond (which can easily turn into disrespectful misuse) but they do produce productive, positive music indeed. Two, would be occasionally productive songs from usually destructive artists, a perfect example of this would be The Black Eyed Peas - although their music usually fits the description "...poppy crap filled with women with way to little clothing on..." almost perfectly, they just last year released a song titled "Where Is the Love?" which contained a very positive message indeed, and of course, no visual or audible obscenities of any kind.

The point is, it's not really fair IMO to simply call the entire pop music industry "poppy crap" as doing so would be classifying many songs that are definitely not, as such.


Supplementaly, as irrelevant as it is, don't forget that all current pop artists have varying degrees of "badness" (and skill) e.g., the average Backstreet Boys song would song like pure worship when compared to the average song from 50 Cent or Snoop Dog.

[revolution]

What I can't stand is rap. Rap involves no musical talent and isusually full of "oh this weed was great" or "oh I wanna do her" or "oh let's make some money" or "i'm gonna beat you to a pulp". It's disgusting! And it's all the rage especially where I went to high school.

I definitely agree with you. I used to listen to rap hardcore back in high school but when I came to the Lord I realized that rap was my number one enemy because of how women are viewed as objects and other names that I will not mention. I was convicted and refuse to hear any of it. It is downright disrespectful

[GrubbTheFragger]

What I can't stand is rap. Rap involves no musical talent and isusually full of "oh this weed was great" or "oh I wanna do her" or "oh let's make some money" or "i'm gonna beat you to a pulp". It's disgusting! And it's all the rage especially where I went to high school.

Me either. I hate rap almost as much as pop. I totally agree no talent but the talent to talk fast. *listens to Staple*

[dyzzispell]

What I can't stand is rap. Rap involves no musical talent and isusually full of "oh this weed was great" or "oh I wanna do her" or "oh let's make some money" or "i'm gonna beat you to a pulp". It's disgusting! And it's all the rage especially where I went to high school.

I have to disagree - to an extent. While most of today's rap is like that, there was a time, back in the 80's, when it actually involved a good bit of talent. Back before they started making up terms like "fashizzle" because they can't seem to (or don't care to) rhyme using real words. Musically for the most part, it requires little to no talent. Lyrically, back then, it required quite a bit.

My husband used to freestyle rap, using only real words. He grew up in the Bronx NY and they used to compete with each other doing freestyle. I've heard him do it, and it is incredibly impressive. Back then, it was a real art form, and it did require a bit of talent.

AND, back then, there were actually a decent amount of songs that weren't focused on sex and drugs! Certainly not like today. (Ah, nothing like pointing out just how OLD I am!! )

I myself hate hate hate rap, but I'm just saying...

[Zilch]

Hey, easy guys, all the thugs are gonna bust a cap in us if we keep dissin' the rhymes, yo, f'real!

I'm starting to move my way off the mainstream, but the problem is that the bands I get into suddenly run into the mainstream (i.e: Flatfoot56 getting on Flicker Records, which is a good and bad thing, Far-less getting a national release, Family Force 5 becoming an icon, ), making me look like a crowd following luser, when I was just into the band before everyone found them. But I also like a lot of fairly obscure bands, like Tourniquet, Flee The Seen, Kill Ketura, Soul Embraced, and Red Umbrella. So it's a matter of perspective, I suppose. I say, if a band's good, listen to them, whether the world listens with you or not. Just don't be a poser and like it just to like it, like it because it's your music, j00 know?

[Eric]

Hey, easy guys, all the thugs are gonna bust a cap in us if we keep dissin' the rhymes, yo, f'real!

I'm starting to move my way off the mainstream, but the problem is that the bands I get into suddenly run into the mainstream (i.e: Flatfoot56 getting on Flicker Records, which is a good and bad thing, Far-less getting a national release, Family Force 5 becoming an icon, ), making me look like a crowd following luser, when I was just into the band before everyone found them. But I also like a lot of fairly obscure bands, like Tourniquet, Flee The Seen, Kill Ketura, Soul Embraced, and Red Umbrella. So it's a matter of perspective, I suppose. I say, if a band's good, listen to them, whether the world listens with you or not. Just don't be a poser and like it just to like it, like it because it's your music, j00 know?

Those aren't really obscure bands. For instance, Tourniquet's video Ark of the Covenant was played regularly on MTV a long time ago.

[GrubbTheFragger]

Those aren't really obscure bands. For instance, Tourniquet's video Ark of the Covenant was played regularly on MTV a long time ago.

0.o really sweet. But i am thinking he means obscure know

[Kkun]

I think the big question is this...are you ready for it?

Who cares?

I mean, seriously. I like what I like. Whether other people think what I like is awful, or whether they think it's too popular, or whatever they think doesn't concern me in the least bit. One of my favorite bands is Weezer. Do you all know who Weezer is? I know you do. Weezer has been making music for a long time now, and honestly, I don't care that they're popular. I listen to Weezer because I like Weezer, not because of some false sense of musical eminence that they bestow upon me, and I don't NOT listen to Weezer because it would make me look like I'm following a crowd. Zilch was right on. Listen to what you enjoy, people. You'll be much, much happier.

[GhostontheNet]

The real question, probably for another thread, is what would you like your music to sound like, and if so, can you find it if you look hard enough?

[Kkun]

The real question, probably for another thread, is what would you like your music to sound like, and if so, can you find it if you look hard enough?

That's an interesting question. Honestly, I don't completely know what I want music to sound like anymore. I get bored listening to the same kind of thing in the same genre over and over because it all starts to sound the same. That's just me, but I'm sure other people who go looking for their ideal of music would get bored eventually, too. Variety is the spice of life and there's something to be said for trying new things rather than setting your mind to one ideal kind of music and then trying to find other music that fits inside your paradigm.