[Decayed Rhapsody]

n'ik's post is A+++++. Pitchfork, at the end of the day, is a business. They are part of the culture-industrial complex. There is a need among a rather large, drab demographic of people to be spoonfed packaged tidbits of marketing hype so they can feel great about their capitalistic consumption. Pfork is Fox News.

I WISH Mayyors would be fucking covered on that site but 99% of the people wouldn't give a shit. I think NPR actually wrote them up! Unbelievable, cuz NPR is rpboably even more boring and safer than P-fork: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...ryId=121478971

[Jeremy]

Originally Posted by atsonicpark

I'm excited, too! It'll be the most fun album of the year. Because it's always hilarious to see two boring musicians who haven't done anything particularly noteworthy in about 15 years, about to make some boring, bland, predictable poo in the hopes that they'll both be able to afford a nice new mansion by appealing to people who want more of the same. REJOICE!

Pitchfork rating: 8.3 (their record companies bought tons of ad space for the month)

Also..
MTV.com?

Brainwashed.com.

Blastitude.com.

Also, this is somewhat unrelated, but I often wonder this.. we live in the most exciting time for music ever. We live in the most exciting time for HEARING music, with soulseek and torrents which have been around forever -- but also for blogs with tons of great posts, shoving out brilliant, obscure music with great descriptions and such. Every band EVER is a click, and a 5 minute download away. Yet people still cling to the same heroes of yesteryear. It's really a mystery to me. Not directing this at ANYONE in this thread, by the way. People like what they like -- whatever. It's just kinda odd to me, how few people really ever search out music.

I can see where you are coming from, but you recently started a thread about getting excited for the new Limp Bizkit album. Does that mean you don't search out new music, and instead are relying on old favorites? No; You are simply excited about a band you enjoy releasing a new album, simply because you enjoy their music.

Isn't that what this thread is? People getting excited about a new Malkmus record because they like his songwriting? It doesn't mean they don't search out new music; They just find him to be a reliable songwriter and are showing interest in his work; Doesn't mean they aren't discovering some new band in Europe who has 34 guitarists and a drum machine, you know?

I'm always looking for good bands, regardless if they're brand new or some obscure 80s band who released one album on a extremely small label and maybe 15 people heard it at the time. But while searching for these bands, I'm going to ALSO want to listen to an artist, say Stephen Malkmus (Who has been around for over 20 years) who I can enjoy, for the primary reasons a) I enjoy his music thoroughly, b) he's a reliable listen and c)new material from him grabs my interest. It's all music; Some like to listen to new bands all the time, others cling to the same bands they did when they were in middle school. In the end though, we listen to it for the enjoyment we get out of that band/artist. Different strokes for different folks.

~Jeremy~

[atsonicpark]

Note the part of my post saying I wasn't directing that statement at anyone in this thread, in particular. My statement probably deserved its own thread -- I just don't understand this pitchfork reviews-based-on-how-much-ad-was-bought culture, and I wonder why so many people have the exact same tastes -- it's because their opinions are formed for them.

As for Limp Bizkit, I can appreciate all sides of music, from the most mainstream shit ever, to the most "Avant garde"; I just like sound. I don't care who likes Beck or Malkmus, I just personally think their best days are behind them.

As for me (?I guess me?) trying to be holier than thou... well, I'm quite knowledgable on most facets of music, but I certainly don't think my opinion matters more, or that I'm better than anyone else here. I mean, I've pretty much given up listening to most music -- since it doesn't excite me much anymore -- and pretty much only listen to electronic music. So, if I come off as a bit jaded, perhaps that's why... I can't help it that I feel like almost every sound I hear is unexciting, and a version of a tribute of an homage to something White Noise did on A Electrical Storm; or Captain Beefheart did; or Zappa did; or something. Music, movies, art, CULTURE simply used to be a lot more exciting than it is now.

But we live in an age where there's this immediacy, this urgency, this simplified formula, meant to get in and get out... the only thing that sells is what's simple, what appeals to the lowest common denominator. I remember when The White Stripes came out and I said, "No way will this band be popular." Well, I was wrong. But why are they popular? They're boring, WAY too simple; shitty riffs, shitty melodies, shitty beats, shitty structures. But it gets in, does its thing, then gets out. And that's most of the music that's popular. Because everything, especially advertising, and payola, costs SO much money now. They have to rely on proven formulas.

There's just TOO MUCH INFORMATION now. Too much to take in. Not only do we have all the present, we have all the past. So, hey, what do they do to give us the best of the past and present? REMAKE THE PAST FOR THE PRESENT!

Seriously, compare songs from the 60's/70's -- mainstream "Hits" -- to songs of today. Worlds of complexities, melodically and in the arrangements, you just don't hear that today. And even these "indie" bands have learned from their mainstream peers, knowing that they can just play simple shit riffs with simple shit melodies and get popular.

Look at a song from the 80's..I'LL STOP THE WORLD AND MELT WITH YOU. Awesome keyboard lines, tons of neat little structural asides and fills, that accapella part, that weird dark "the future's open wide" or whatever the fuck the line is part. Jesus! That songs sounds like the most insane shit ever, from another fucking planet, compared to whatever the fuck is popular nowadays.

Obviously, I like big dumb rock, like Bizkit and KoRn, but that shit at least has some interesting creative guitar playing, or something.. SOMETHING to cling my ears onto.

I dunno. I'm just ranting. I just wish everyone I met didn't have the same exact tastes. But you know, it's odd... cuz I have a lot of DUH HAH FACEBOOK friends, right? And I noticed something odd. If I go to facebook profiles of people in America, their tastes in music are pretty much exactly the same -- every one of them. For people in the UK, the tastes are quite diverse, far-ranging, and sometimes bizarre. Why is that? I've never lived in the UK so I wouldn't know. But that's interesting.

So yeah. American INDIE INTERNET CULTURE is so safe and boring.

[ni'k]

i still don't get why you don't like hairdryer peace. i really think you would like it if you engaged with it on a good soundsystem. like to me its up there as one of those whoa everyone else has to catch up with this now albums.

[atsonicpark]

Oh, uh, I like it, but it gives me a headache to listen to it. Something about the non-production... I dunno. It's just a tiring listen, which I suppose is probably the point. I think it's the only album I have these conflicting feelings on, so it definitely accomplished something. It's a pretty extreme album, without just being "power electronicz bro" or something. It's odd.

[ni'k]

there is a remastered cd version that i really want to track down.

i think you're just understandably a bit burnt out.

when i was in heavy drug pyschosis hell i was quite creative but never got much actually done. i didn't really enjoy music at that point, just sorta used it or suffered thru it a lot.

now ive been sober for ages i actually enjoy music again. it was funny cos i thought back then "oh if i get off drugs i'll like loose my edge or my creativity or some shit" total crappy illusion brought on by the drugs. i went thru a long while not listening to music. now its totally different and i enjoy it like i used to when i was younger, i just dont have that totally pyscho attachment to it. which is good cos i can actually get shit done now, like finish my ep and learn instruments and stuff. its funny cos i had this like really strong attachment to it but it just wasnt working, hard to give up on that. but once it got all better.

everyone goes thru stages when what they are into isnt working anymore and it isnt helping them to grow as a person. no big deal, just time to detach and do somethin else for a while.

like i know a guy whose going thru some pretty bad mental illness shit right now. when i was going thru it i was partying with him a lot. now its his turn. its inevitable if you do a lot of drugs. he'll eventually be able to go sober and he'll be ok, no big deal. but you can tell he doesnt enjoy music anymore, he's just kinda punishing himself with it. some of the music he's making is good but he can't last at that velocity. also he cant realise that he desperately needs someone to collaborate with. im sure when he gets sober he'll work that part aswell.