Current Popular Music and Love

Post Reply New Topic

I've had it come to me in three waves. Earliest was when I was ten.

Well done, you big boy. Nice brag.

Thanks, I thought I was trying too hard

Current music? I don't know. But it seems the masses are into r&b (Beyonce, Chris Brown), rap (Soulja Boy, Chamillionaire) or androgynous "pretty-boys" who sing wimpy pop (Justin Bieber, Jonas Bros, Clay Aiken)...none of which I would be caught dead listening to. About the only current music I happen to like is Lights Poxleitner (girly electro pop) and Andrew W.K. (happy piano-driven hard-rock), both of whom most people seem to write off as complete jokes
Beyond that, I listen mostly to 70s-era progressive rock...basically the polar opposite of the ultimate musical aphrodisiac in most girls' minds, or so it seems...

Tim (aka the Slipperman)

You're 36. If you try to date a Justin Bieber fan you'll be arrested.

I think shared music interests are a plus for a young couple who go to a lot of concerts. If you both like wildly different things, you'll both be suffering through each others' concerts and it could be a problem. Or not, if neither of you mind going to a concert of a musician you don't particularly care for.

If you don't go to a lot of concerts, it shouldn't really matter. If it's just that neither of your ipod playlists have any overlap, I don;t think that matters- especially not once you reach your 30's and socializing around music is a thing of the past (if you ever did it).

Really. What hip things did you decide at age 6 just didn't matter to you?

You know, certain Saturday morning cartoons, that kind of thing. Of course, I'm exaggerating somewhat.

Why, aren't you impressed by my awesomeness? I did something before someone else, surely that makes me a better person than them, right?

That's how I feel. Music can be a way to find & meet other people thou. If you like a certain type of music or artist; hanging out of forums/sites for it can be really good sometimes. I'm 27 but I'm very immature in some ways & I'm more likely to be compatible with someone a bit younger so having a special interest in current pop music mite be good sense younger people tend to like it more

Aaaaaaahhhhh. It was a tweak not a jab. I retract my rolled eyes. Carry on.

I think it'd be nice to go out with someone who had a different music taste to yourself...it would give you a chance to experience new music, and share your favourites with someone else.

I listen to a fair bit of popular music (Lady Gaga for one), so at least there'd probably be some common ground.

I'm not into current music at all except for Paramore. The rest of the bands/musicans I like have either split up, dead or haven't released an album in years.

Look, I'm going to make this really simple, and FYI I'm 32 years old.

Nearly everything released after 1985 pretty much SUCKS. '89 is my cutoff year for anything worth listening to.

You really don't like one single album released in the last 20 years? I'm not talking about "popular". Most albums never become popular. But honestly, not one single one?

As long as you aren't too pushy about what you like, and especially about what you don't like, any sort of musical taste is fine. If you primarily like popular music from the 60s, 70s, or 80s many young people may be familiar with the most famous artists of that time, so that's even less of an issue than if you only listen to 19th century operettas.

Yeah, I find this hard to believe. I'm much the same as you, Angel, I predominantly like music from around 1920-1980 (excluding classical music of course, although even then I prefer more contemporary composers from the last century or so, such as Holst). However, there is always some music that is good in any decade. It won't be played on the charts, more often than not. People are still making music that harks back to the good old days of rock, folk, blues and jazz.

For example, what about THIS ALBUM? It's from 2008, yet it's basically the Beach Boys mixed with Simon & Garfunkel.

Note I said NEARLY everything. The newer things I do like are holdovers or direct/indirect influences from the 80's. To me, Nickelback is just another Metallica with maybe a little bit of a "smile." I even like the more recent Metallica, for that matter. I like Madonna, also, even the newer stuff, and my main criticism of Madonna is the sound of her newer material harks back too much to 1970's retro. Sure, analog synths get you that "fat" sound, but you have to understand there is a fine line between "fat" and "muddy" (I have a similar criticism of Les Paul-style guitar pickups in comparison with the Fender strat and tele sound). So when I had the opportunity to sink some money into good music-making equipment, I was torn between getting a vintage analog piece like the Prophet, an inexpensive yet equally awesome workstation like the Korg M1, or a vintage digital monster like the Synclavier or the Fairlight. For a long time I leaned in favor of the Fairlight, but I ultimately come to the conclusion that I'd be happier with the sound of the Synclavier. And in retrospect, I was amazed by how often the Synclavier was used by the artists/bands I enjoyed listening to the most--like Yes, Genesis (and subsequently Peter Gabriel AND Phil Collins), Madonna (of course), Depeche Mode, The Cars, Michael Jackson, Sting, and others.

Yes, I'm a keyboardist and synthesist!

But I also LOVED bands like G'N'R, Winger (I don't care what Beavis and Butthead said), Warrant, Whitesnake, Great White, Cinderella, Slaughter, Motley Crue, Van Halen/Van Hagar (HELL yeah), Bon Jovi--I could just keep going on all day... And even guys like Huey Lewis and the News--I mean, MUSIC. I even liked guys like Pantera, Black Label Society, and Pearl Jam. I even liked that ONE song by Nirvana ("Smells like Teen Spirit"). Everything went to crap with Nirvana, though, and the party was over after that.

So yeah, things have started picking up in the last decade, but it's been slow going. Whatever happened to Creed/Scott Stapp? Linkin Park? Evanescence/The Fallen? We need more people like Velvet Revolver. Nickelback. NIN. Hell, I didn't even mind people like Debbie Gibson and Tiffany back in the day. WHERE ARE THEY???? And who are these teenage sluts like Britney Spears? Go home. Miley Cyrus, get the hell off my TV. Believe it or not, I actually DO like Taylor Swift. What about Leann Rimes? I LOVED her in Coyote Ugly, even if it wasn't more than a cameo appearance. Where's the talent? Why aren't people like Rimes and Swift working on genuinely GOOD music and getting more crossover appeal? WHY????

People in the recording industry are all running around wondering where it all went wrong, why record sales are down, why it's all going to hell in a handbasket. IT'S BECAUSE YOU IDIOT'S DON'T KNOW HOW TO HOLD ONTO A GOOD THING WHEN YOU HAVE IT!! !! !! Is this really the way it's going to be from now on? Is THIS what we're reduced to? For crying out loud, the only way to get hear GOOD music anymore is to take a plane to Japan or Sweden. I count my blessings that I got to hear Van Hagar the last time they were on tour.

Another problem is we've dropped our f*cking standards. Will somebody PLEASE call Mutt and tell him to get his head out of his @$$, to stop sitting on his thumbs and start making good music again! See, Mutt and Shania was one of the worst things that ever happened to the industry. It was the beginning of the end. Did we not learn any lessons from John and Yoko????

It doesn't HAVE to be this way!! ! I've already pointed out a few 80's-influenced bands as well as some true innovators in the industry. We can come back from this. We need to get back to our roots. Start listening to some Pink Floyd. Get the Led out. Play some Skynyrd. Isn't even Kid Rock trying to do this? Learn how to play like the Nuge, and get some meditation exercises in while you're bow-hunting. 38 Special. Kansas. America. Europe ("Final Countdown," remember?). Journey. Survivor. Kentucky Headhunters. AC/DC. Aerosmith.

Am I reaching anybody here? Can you feel me? All of you who have chronicled your lives in song lyrics, hearken unto my voice! Return to your first love! Redemption draweth nigh! Swing your axes like the mighty warriors of old so that you may stir the hearts and minds of your people! These go to eleven!



I like other music as well, but 80's music has a very special place in my heart. I just couldn't take listening to the radio anymore after about 1992. It hurt my heart how screwed up things got. I took piano lessons briefly in 5th grade, took up clarinet the next year, and spent most of my time listening to classical music, New Age, space and ambient. It was a good time then, too, because you could still listen to people like Tangerine Dream and Shadowfax. Later on I put more emphasis on learning music theory, returned to taking piano lessons, made the rounds among the more prestigious instrumental ensembles in Mississippi (Lion's Club All-State Band, various college honors bands), and went on to get my bachelor's degree in music education. That nearly burned me out of both jazz and classical music, considering how all I really wanted to do was write music and play clarinet all day. I was ready to give it all up when I heard Eric Mandat perform and then met Paul Steinberg. My master's degree work was the first time I'd ever had formal training in composition, but it really shaped my attitudes towards music.

And just to show how far I've come, I play in one rock band and am trying to pick up a few more gigs by joining another. I teach piano lessons (of course) and write during the day, but MOST of my time lately has been spent in Christian music. Our church has a "blended" worship style, but the prevalence of CCM in our worship has really been liberating for me. So when I DO listen to the radio, I'm typically listening to guys like Chris Tomlin, Paul Baloche, Sarah Reeves, Laura Story, Mandisa--you get the idea. As part of my Synclavier work, I'm writing arrangements for handbells duo, something I've taken up with my wife since our church hasn't had a ringing choir in some time. It seems a shame to let all that bronze go to waste. You know... Like 80's music.