[afterthefact]

I guess downward spiral is the wrong phrase, but maybe "fall in popularity."

http://www.slate.com/id/2186341/

[Rob Instigator]

it is true.
and the more that is being said in these songs the less that is actually conveyed by these fucking losers

[afterthefact]

Originally Posted by Rob Instigator

it is true.
and the more that is being said in these songs the less that is actually conveyed by these fucking losers

Exactly, I like the comparison between Gershwin's "Summertime" and Will Smith's. Gershwin, using melody and only a few words, was able to remind you of how great summertime can be, while Will Smith, with his many words, was only able to tell how great HIS summers can be, not caring too much if you can relate or not.

[Everyneurotic]

they should see how many poser post rock bands spring out of nowhere daily.

[uhler]

yeah post rock is a crap term and a mostly crap genre.

[afterthefact]

Originally Posted by Everyneurotic

they should see how many poser post rock bands spring out of nowhere daily.

True. I like a lot of "post rock" if you want to call it that, but there is a lot of crap.

The article wasn't saying though that instrumental music is all-in-all better, if you read it, but it was pretty much saying that there are just too many words now. Musicians used to let the melodies have a part in conveying the intended emotion while now they tend to lean almost fully on the lyrics to do the work.

Is that to say all music does this now? No; you are right, there are a plethora of poser post rock bands for every real one out there. But the same applies to every genre. You could say the same for hip-hop, that for every good hip-hop artist there are myriads of wannabes. The point? The wannabe rappers a lot of time make it to the radio. Listen to your local rap station and wait for them to play Soulja Boy and you will se what I mean (and you won't have to wait long). As far as the wannabe post rockers go, you will never hear them get radio play, minus a non-profit college station. And to go even further, you won't even hear the good post rock music get air time.

Now I don't think this is all due to the lack of lyrics. Poplular music has taken a fall in every aspect be it lyrics, melody, themes, what have you. But when you see a collective group of music that, despite genre, have little to no words be almost completely wiped off of the radio, it only can make you think that maybe the lack of lyrics plays a part, and it makes you wonder where and when people's appreciation for a well written piece of music died off.