Is the quality of new music diminishing, or am I just getting old?

[SSwans2011]

When I was 23 contemporary artists were:
Nirvana
Soundgarden
Pearl Jam
Faith No More
Stone Temple Pilots
Alice In Chains
Rage Against the Machine
Oasis
Supergrass
the Verve
You Am I

To name but a few. A lot have things have got better this century. Music has bucked the trend.

I think it's kind of hard to compare, because the style of music that makes up the mainstream is so different. There's still quality rock bands, but mostly the interest isn't there. I would argue, however, that some of the most mainstream artists of the last decade have put out quality music:

Kanye West
Kendrick Lamar
Frank Ocean
Chance The Rapper
Justin Timberlake
Radiohead are still going strong
Beyoncé
Bruno Mars
Lana Del Rey
alt-J (they're as, if not more mainstream than some of those 90s bands listed were)
Lorde
The Weeknd (Starboy was pretty good, but I'm more so referring to his first 3 mixtapes)

Heck, even bands like The 1975 have put out quality songs. Then you have artists that aren't too far outside of the mainstream putting out quality music. For example:

Foals
James Blake
Glass Animals
Unknown Moral Orchestra
Danny Brown
Lykke Li
Chet Faker
Jungle
FKA twigs

Not necessarily a fan of all of those I listed. Just some names off the top of my head that are pretty major artists that have released quality works; be that LPs, EPs or singles.

 

[footyfan1978]

When I was 23 contemporary artists were:
Nirvana
Soundgarden
Pearl Jam
Faith No More
Stone Temple Pilots
Alice In Chains
Rage Against the Machine
Oasis
Supergrass
the Verve
You Am I

To name but a few. A lot have things have got better this century. Music has bucked the trend.

ha ha. Remember that time. Some of it was ok. Probably saw You Am I a few times back then. Not bad but never really thought great era.
Still remember stuff like Henry Rollins band of the time.

 

[JackOutback]

When I was 23 contemporary artists were:
Nirvana
Soundgarden
Pearl Jam
Faith No More
Stone Temple Pilots
Alice In Chains
Rage Against the Machine
Oasis
Supergrass
the Verve
You Am I

To name but a few. A lot have things have got better this century. Music has bucked the trend.

I'm not going to criticise the bands on that list; I was a teenager at the time and that music is the most defining of my life. But I don't look at that list and think music is getting worse, rather I see the decline of the studio industry. Those bands all had major labels behind them, funding recording, promotion etc. But as the bottom fell out of the music industry due to streaming, downloading etc, studios pulled back to those artists that would shift the most albums to the biggest market: teenagers. If Nirvana started today, they would probably be signed to a niche sub-label, get very little promotion and prove a reasonably popular but non-mainstream band.

Car Seat Headrest put out an album last year that would sit comfortably alongside those '90s grunge bands. Gang of Youths put out an album in 2015 that compares to some of Australia's best bands. In the past 10 years, bands like Arcade Fire, Alt-J, Glass Animals, Foals, Florence and the Machine, Vampire Weekend and many more have put out great albums. They didn't break through to the mainstream charts because they are not getting the push of years past.

I don't think music has gotten worse, I think people want good indie rock but presented in the easiest way to find. That doesn't happen any more, we have to work a little harder.

 

[footyfan1978]

Amusing to look back to the start of MTV here in late 1980's.
Before that in Australia Countdown and other shows like Rage was the few music outlets on tv. Mostly mainstream. Was the height of video era dominating music.

 

[rumply]

I actually think I got my first hardon watching Baboushka

haha, yeah Kate Bush & Stevie Nicks, oh man I fell hard for those two & that German chick that did Luftballons.

 

[RedmanWasHere]

Kate Bush can sing anything and everything as long as Wuthering Heights pisses off.

Likewise Stevie Nicks and 7 Wonders.

 

[Power Raid]

One thing I like about today's music industry and it's a by product of pirating.

Musicians have to tour again to make money rather than rely upon cd sales.

The negative is the also sell themselves and endorse everything.....including cash for politics.

 

[JackFlash]

It's all been s**t for the past 20 years with few exceptions.....

 

[SSwans2011]

It's all been s**t for the past 20 years with few exceptions.....

Nah, you just have s**t taste/are unable to research.

 

[RedmanWasHere]

Music has its ebbs and flows I feel.

Also, people's tastes generally change after so many years and eventually return to original tastes when the time comes.

Biased wise, music these days is s**t.
Objectively, it's evolving.

 

[Mootsy]

mainstream music is sh!t these days..

music in general is still pretty good, now you have a lot of crossover genres which blurs peoples opinions and confuses people ...

i would say that the great albums that regularly used to be a thing are not as common, simply because streaming music has diminished the concept of the time and effort involved in making "the album" as it was once such a key part of music, not it's all about streaming services, and a lot of people with ADD and all the distraction of technology...

people don't want to spend the time to make great records anymore..

not as much as in the past..

you could argue that in the 90s it was easier to make a great album, because it was simpler back then with less distractions, everything was analogue and you felt like you had more time and less stress to do that, and great albums were promoted and rewarded back then.

 

[JackFlash]

Nah, you just have s**t taste/are unable to research.

Well done Kreskin. Man, i work with it everyday, it's all s**t with few exceptions. Producers and songwriters (if you can call them that) have worked out the exact formula for making a song drill its way into your brain like those slimy bugs from Star Trek 2 The Wrath of Khan! You remember that movie form 1982? The year "The Smiths" formed in Manchester? Do some research!
Most of the hit songs I hear "today" have some twisted undercurrent of neurosis and mental malaise. There used to be a thousand indie labels churning out the same clamorous bullshit, and ten thousand indie bands stabbing at their guitar pickups with screwdrivers to get them to make that perfect irritating hum. Thanks to these talent-less twats the industry has been killed off by these idiots.

Today’s popular music has been treated with a veneer of “sincerity” that’s about as convincing as Mel Gibson playing Larry David's best mate in the new season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm"!
I could go on all day about modern music without scratching the surface of all the crazy types of music you idiots listen to.
However, in the name of fairness my "research" leads me to this list!


Some good songs from 2016/17
01 STYGGO - DANDY WARHOLS
02 FEELS LIKE SUMMER - WEEZER
03 JEFF ROSENTOCK - FESTIVAL SONG
04 TY SEGALL - CALIFORNIAN HILLS
05 CALIFORNIA KIDS - WEEZER
06 MANNEQUIN PUSSY - EMOTIONAL HIGH
07 CAR SEAT HEAD REST DRUNK DRIVERS/KILLER WHALES
08 YAK - VICTORIOUS (NATIONAL ANTHEM)
09 BASEMENT - LOSE YOUR GRIP
10 VIOLENT SOHO - VICEROY
11 KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD - PEOPLE VULTURES
12 CAR SEAT HEAD REST - FILL IN THE BLANK
13 TURNSTILE - MOVE THRU ME
14 BLACK MOUNTAIN - FLORIAN SAUCER ATTACK
15 YOU ARE KILLING ME - DANDY WARHOLS
16 PLAGUE VENDOR - JEZEBEL
17 SKATING POLLY - PRETECTIVE BOY
18 JEFF ROSENSTOCK - WAVE GOODNIGHT TO ME
19 CRYSTAL FAIRY - DRUGS ON THE BUS
20 GROUPLOVE - TRAUMATIZED

 

[JackOutback]

Well done Kreskin. Man, i work with it everyday, it's all s**t with few exceptions. Producers and songwriters (if you can call them that) have worked out the exact formula for making a song drill its way into your brain like those slimy bugs from Star Trek 2 The Wrath of Khan! You remember that movie form 1982? The year "The Smiths" formed in Manchester? Do some research!
Most of the hit songs I hear "today" have some twisted undercurrent of neurosis and mental malaise. There used to be a thousand indie labels churning out the same clamorous bullshit, and ten thousand indie bands stabbing at their guitar pickups with screwdrivers to get them to make that perfect irritating hum. Thanks to these talent-less twats the industry has been killed off by these idiots.

Today’s popular music has been treated with a veneer of “sincerity” that’s about as convincing as Mel Gibson playing Larry David's best mate in the new season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm"!
I could go on all day about modern music without scratching the surface of all the crazy types of music you idiots listen to.
However, in the name of fairness my "research" leads me to this list!


Some good songs from 2016/17
01 STYGGO - DANDY WARHOLS
02 FEELS LIKE SUMMER - WEEZER
03 JEFF ROSENTOCK - FESTIVAL SONG
04 TY SEGALL - CALIFORNIAN HILLS
05 CALIFORNIA KIDS - WEEZER
06 MANNEQUIN PUSSY - EMOTIONAL HIGH
07 CAR SEAT HEAD REST DRUNK DRIVERS/KILLER WHALES
08 YAK - VICTORIOUS (NATIONAL ANTHEM)
09 BASEMENT - LOSE YOUR GRIP
10 VIOLENT SOHO - VICEROY
11 KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD - PEOPLE VULTURES
12 CAR SEAT HEAD REST - FILL IN THE BLANK
13 TURNSTILE - MOVE THRU ME
14 BLACK MOUNTAIN - FLORIAN SAUCER ATTACK
15 YOU ARE KILLING ME - DANDY WARHOLS
16 PLAGUE VENDOR - JEZEBEL
17 SKATING POLLY - PRETECTIVE BOY
18 TY SEGALL - DIVERSION
19 CRYSTAL FAIRY - DRUGS ON THE BUS
20 GROUPLOVE - TRAUMATIZED

'Hit' songs have long been s**t; however I have never been short of quality music to listen to. I have already bought three albums this year (Japandroids, Holy Holy and Methyl Ethel) and they are all very good to excellent. I remember my parents telling me new music was s**t while I was listening to Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Oasis etc.

 

[SSwans2011]

'Hit' songs have long been s**t; however I have never been short of quality music to listen to. I have already bought three albums this year (Japandroids, Holy Holy and Methyl Ethel) and they are all very good to excellent. I remember my parents telling me new music was s**t while I was listening to Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Oasis etc.

That's exactly it. Chart music has been predominantly s**t for a long time, with the occasional exception. Today more than ever, though, we have access to so much quality music that there's really no reason to think current music is s**t.

If you think current music is too formulaic, browse Bandcamp. You're bound to find something unique that you will enjoy.

03 JEFF ROSENTOCK - FESTIVAL SONG
18 JEFF ROSENSTOCK - WAVE GOODNIGHT TO ME

Check out that whole album if you haven't already, one of the best I've heard in a long while.

12 CAR SEAT HEAD REST - FILL IN THE BLANK

Probably the worst song on that album, to be honest. The album likely wouldn't be in my top ten of last year, but give it a listen if you get the chance and enjoy those singles.

You have listed a fair amount of music there. Plenty to listen to, plenty to find that's similar to it. Chart music clearly isn't the be all and end all.

 

[JackFlash]

That's exactly it. Chart music has been predominantly s**t for a long time, with the occasional exception. Today more than ever, though, we have access to so much quality music that there's really no reason to think current music is s**t.

If you think current music is too formulaic, browse Bandcamp. You're bound to find something unique that you will enjoy.



Check out that whole album if you haven't already, one of the best I've heard in a long while.



Probably the worst song on that album, to be honest. The album likely wouldn't be in my top ten of last year, but give it a listen if you get the chance and enjoy those singles.

You have listed a fair amount of music there. Plenty to listen to, plenty to find that's similar to it. Chart music clearly isn't the be all and end all.

"Worry" is a great album, i just don't find chart stuff at all satisfying, i'm older so i still like Weezer and the Dandy's.

 

[JackOutback]

"Worry" is a great album, i just don't find chart stuff at all satisfying, i'm older so i still like Weezer and the Dandy's.

Neither of those bands were chart toppers either. In time, the s**t chart music falls away and the oldies stations start playing the quality songs that hold up well.

 

[Mootsy]

'Hit' songs have long been s**t; however I have never been short of quality music to listen to. I have already bought three albums this year (Japandroids, Holy Holy and Methyl Ethel) and they are all very good to excellent. I remember my parents telling me new music was s**t while I was listening to Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Oasis etc.

well, i'd say Blondie's hits in the 80s were better than most of the mainstream hits you hear these days, and Blondie weren't the only good band making hits back then, they tick certain boxes that modern songs don't, same in the 90s, certainly more so in the 60s/70s, in terms of mainstream. As for Blondie as an example...what did they have that we don't see much of these days.

- a very memorable melody and chorus, a great track, usually in the classic pop sense.
- organic vocals (i hate saying organic, but i just mean, from a real person who is singing for the musicality, not complicating anything, just raw vocals)
- most importantly, the musicianship, band members are playing guitars well, keyboards, drums, and very well, again for the musicality...
- lyrics are always going to be easily comparable and hard to compare, but coherent lyrics are good that hooks you in deeper to the song.
- a certain classiness and coolness for the music and coolness factor first, before the selling an image comes into it, before the "sexy" sells marketing comes into it and so forth.(which is ruining music in modern times)
- there was no shock value or narcissistic, satanic music video with a sh!t ton of CGI to try and sell the image before the musicality....

so i can easily say from my stand point, that the mainstream is not like that these days. We don't have musicality/bands/coolness/classiness before all the other stuff. I mean, it's obvious to anyone who has eyes and ears and is just a rational observation. But only those who remember the other decades will have something to compare it to.

 

[QuietB]

 

[The Lemon]

Finding new music is hard, so i am discovering old music i missed

 

[La Dispute]

Finding new music is hard, so i am discovering old music i missed

How is it hard? Discovering new music is easier than ever before with streaming services like Spotify and so many music websites and blogs dedicated to finding new gems.

No doubt it is good going back and finding decent bands, but there is so much scope in the modern era for chasing up new sounds.

 

[The Lemon]

How is it hard? Discovering new music is easier than ever before with streaming services like Spotify and so many music websites and blogs dedicated to finding new gems.

No doubt it is good going back and finding decent bands, but there is so much scope in the modern era for chasing up new sounds.

More so filtering through the s**t that sounds the same for something I like.

It's hard but I'm getting there. I find a few things occasionally

 

[JackOutback]

More so filtering through the s**t that sounds the same for something I like.

It's hard but I'm getting there. I find a few things occasionally

Not that I do it often, but just listen to a favourite band on Spotify and let it start to play similar sounding bands. It's usually not too bad.

 

[The Lemon]

Not that I do it often, but just listen to a favourite band on Spotify and let it start to play similar sounding bands. It's usually not too bad.

I've been wikipediaing bands, then their producer and the finding bands produced by said producer. Working well too

 

[La Dispute]

Not that I do it often, but just listen to a favourite band on Spotify and let it start to play similar sounding bands. It's usually not too bad.

Or chuck a Daily Mix playlist on.

Always a few good bands on there

 

[superfraser]

Don't discount going back and listening to old bands though.

There's a lot of stuff worth listening to that isn't played on golden oldies stations. A lot of albums that are great from start to finish that many of the younger generations haven't heard.