ryjan said:
(btw, cookie monster vocals have been in use since the late 80's ).
And much like disco, they sucked then, and they still suck! :lol: Of course there are some good newer bands. Just not in the numbers there used to be. Back in the 80's you had the real guitar heroes. Now 95% of guitarists play in drop C with the gain dimed so you cant barely make out what note is being played. Metallica, Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, Anthrax, Vai, (the list could go on forever) all managed to play heavier than anyone had before and were still melodic, had very complex song structures, great lyrics, and played the majority of their songs in standard tuning (used their bassists). I know this specific genre of music is not everyones cup o' tea but you cant deny the huge ammount of talent that came out of these 4 or 5 years. Much like the talent explosion in the later part of the 60's. There really hasn't been another wave of new musicians of this caliber in the last 15 years. Unless you include the alternative group (and I don't).
So you are going to exclude an entire musical movement because to include them doesn't support your argument!?
Basically, virtuosity went out of style in the 90s and it hasn't come back in yet. Just because music isn't extremely challenging doesn't make it good or bad. Simple and good can and does exist. Look at the Beatles. Sure, they may be underwhelming now but consider their place in history. I think if there is too much of an emphasis placed on chops, we run the risk of turning into a conglomeration of cork sniffing snobs, which is exactly what the classical scene has been for hundreds of years. Trust me, I have more than one foot in that world and the stench is starting to overwhelm me.
On one hand, we should be glad that there is less expectation on us. It makes life easier, trust me. On the other, virtuosity is inspiring and it is good to hear people who have a reasonable command of an instrument. Sure it is all fine to get stuck in a decade--most classical players are still stuck in the nineteenth century--but how should we go about moving music forward? Sure eye makeup, tight jeans, died black hair, and stupid thick framed glasses are absolutely ridiculous. Come one, massively oversized Jeans and mushroom cuts were also ridiculous, not to mention poofy hair and mullets. What about a bullseye painted on an excessively pointy guitar? It is rather absurd. We can make a simple assumption here, teenagers like stupid things. Popular music concerts are about entertainment and performers who are successful have larger than life personalities. They put on a bit of a clown show. It isn't fair to hate on this generation's clown show, just because it is foreign to you and you've moved on. Don't you guys think the pseudo opratic countertenor schtik is a little silly? (aka classic metal vocal) What about the 'growly angry voice' ca. 2,000 AD? They are all very poignant aesthetic statements but we really need to look past the surface crap to appreciate the art for what it is. My dad grew up in the 60s and he is stuck in that generation. I don't think I am off in my feeling that a lot of people who post here were in their formative years during the 80s. My experience was in the 90s. I was awkwardly trying to talk to girls and dressing 'cool' when Nirvana was big. Sure I though that music was awesome but I can't stand it now.
I guess it is slightly antagonizing to read post after post about all the 'terrible modern music' when I don't really hear any examples of why it is terrible aside from aesthetic preference. (what is complex about song form and standard diatonicism with pentatonically derived melodies? About five decades before this, Schoenberg was busy experimenting with 12 tone writing and several centuries before that, Beethoven was experimenting with form in his late string quartets) As some of you have pointed out, the popular music of every generation is absolutely terrible so you can't compare the good of the 80s with the bad of every other generation. Radio rock has always been crap! Sure the death of guitar virtuosity is tragic, but there has to be something more substantial than this. I have heard modern music that is very well done save for the gaping whole where there should be a guitar solo. Maybe it isn't in the metal genre but who cares.
Take heart though, all is not bad. There will be a generation of young players who sift through their dad's CD (or even tape) collections, rediscover the treasures of lost years and actually attempt to learn guitar.
I guess I think that we should take all music with a grain of salt, even if we don't 'get it'. My thoughts are that if someone manages to apply some of the virtuosity (skill) of older music with some of the aesthetic points of the present, there may be something entirely fresh that transpires as a result of it.
