I don't think I like music...

[Vacant Horizon]

I feel compelled to respond to this - especially the last couple of sentences. It is so true - I can't imagine a self-confessed 'family guy' like Jeff (or John or Glenn now, for that matter) gets a big kick out of dragging the fam all over hell's half-acre most of the year. Or maybe they do, I have no idea.

 

The best example of touring making more bucks than record sales has to be the Dead (y'all knew I was gonna mention that ). Until "In The Dark" those guys NEVER sold a million records, not even close. But they continued to play shows year after year to large crowds. There is something kind of romantic about the idea of the wandering troubadours, but sleeping in strange beds, eating shitty hotel food, etc. has to be taxing.

 

OK, that said, I don't really listen to a lot of new music. For me, it's about 90% jazz or Dead. That's keeps me pretty stoked.

 

that was me for about 15 years. jazz and dead and phish. in the car, it was the classic rock station. unfortunately, these days i cannot stomach phish or the dead. i wish i could, but i am just sick of it. it's neil young now. but i'm so busy looking for the next big thing, i don't listen to much neil!! god dammit!

 

i feel sorry for bands that have families and have to tour. however, i wonder how much is actually about making ends meet and more about financing an institution and making more money. i mean, what's the standard of living for these guys. does wilco really need to tour that much? touring killed jerry. they really didn't need to tour as much in the 90s. 10 nights on the east and west coast would've been fine. jerry would've lived much longer if he'd been able to live at david grisman's house and play with jerry band more. now, i feel like listening to the dead. go figure:)

[Basil II]

You all need to go out and purchase "A Place In The Sun" by Friends Of Dean Martinez

 

when I get ta funk...... I play this record........reinvigorates my hunger for new stuff every time....

 

 

-robert

[Beltmann]

You all need to go out and purchase "A Place In The Sun" by Friends Of Dean Martinez

Done. Listening to the first track right now. This better be good, dude.

 

EDIT (four minutes later): It already is.

[CortezTheKiller]

Familiarity really does breed comtempt.

 

Too much of a good thing IS bad.

 

Ease of access has taken away the specialness, the allure.

It is all commonplace and leads to ennui.

To a certain extent I agree with this. However, in the grand scheme of things, most of the music discussed here is not exactly widely-embraced, let alone known by most folks who happen to listen to popular music in the first place.

[people are leaving]

Many good points all around. Lately, just trying to enjoy music has given way to the business of computers, external hard drives and becoming an administrator of my own record collection. As my wife calls it, doing all that "music garbage"

[Littlebear]

I don't like music the way I used to either. I like it way better now. And probably will better tomorrow. And maybe better again after my death.

[Synthesizer Patel]

There is buzz about certain bands and then that buzz stops because those bands stop making great music. Bands that actually continue to make great albums continue to get a lot of press. It's as simple as that. The fact that people stop talking about Ryan Adams or blah blah blah is because they haven't made a good album in years, but that doesn't mean to say these same people that aren't talking about him anymore don't think his good albums aren't good anymore.

 

Likewise, people will only forget about Wilco if they stop touring based on their current form of albums, because they aren't very good. If they stopped touring and started making good albums then they'd be in the press again, and the buzz would start. Nobody talked about Bob Dylan through most of the 80s and the 90s - he was touring, but his albums were shit. Then he started making good music again, and he's back in forum threads again.

 

As for the other original discussion, I'd recommend checking out Ys (Joanna Newsom), Bitte Orca (Dirty Projectors), Feels (Animal Collective), Rings Around The World (Super Furry Animals) for a start - that's 4 fairly recent albums, from artists that are doing interesting/exciting things with music, and are still likely to be doing so in the future. And make sure you buy them on vinyl or cd, cos nothing sounds good on mp3 anyway.

[Vacant Horizon]

There is buzz about certain bands and then that buzz stops because those bands stop making great music. Bands that actually continue to make great albums continue to get a lot of press. It's as simple as that. The fact that people stop talking about Ryan Adams or blah blah blah is because they haven't made a good album in years, but that doesn't mean to say these same people that aren't talking about him anymore don't think his good albums aren't good anymore.

 

Likewise, people will only forget about Wilco if they stop touring based on their current form of albums, because they aren't very good. If they stopped touring and started making good albums then they'd be in the press again, and the buzz would start. Nobody talked about Bob Dylan through most of the 80s and the 90s - he was touring, but his albums were shit. Then he started making good music again, and he's back in forum threads again.

 

As for the other original discussion, I'd recommend checking out Ys (Joanna Newsom), Bitte Orca (Dirty Projectors), Feels (Animal Collective), Rings Around The World (Super Furry Animals) for a start - that's 4 fairly recent albums, from artists that are doing interesting/exciting things with music, and are still likely to be doing so in the future. And make sure you buy them on vinyl or cd, cos nothing sounds good on mp3 anyway.

 

 

mp3s are not bad. its a myth. research has been done showing that even 128kbs is indiscernable compared to lossless on most audio equipment. in addition, joanna newsom is utterly unlistenable and a good example of buzz being about nothing at all. NOONE would've listened to joanna newsom if not for the buzz.

[bleedorange]

mp3s are not bad. its a myth. research has been done showing that even 128kbs is indiscernable compared to lossless on most audio equipment. in addition, joanna newsom is utterly unlistenable and a good example of buzz being about nothing at all. NOONE would've listened to joanna newsom if not for the buzz.

 

I agree about Joanna Newsom. The shine wore off that album almost immediately.

 

I go in spurts as far as new listening goes. There will be months where my appetite for new music cannot be satiated. Some weeks I can't stop listening to one or two albums, and then others where I'm just tired of the whole process.

 

The disposable nature of most new music (hell, most new anything - movies, books, television, etc.) gets frustrating at times, but I'm always able to find a few gems that makes it all worthwhile. Were it not for my desire to listen to anything I could find, I would never have discovered The National, The Hold Steady, Califone, Why?, Animal Collective, Wolf Parade, Spoon...the list goes on and on.

[Atticus]

I enjoy music now more than ever

 

I've never heard the music of bon iver, pernice or st. vincent

[Dude]

The Hold Steady

 

Strange, I can far more see the appeal of a gifted harpist and songwriter who happens to have a nails on a chalkboard voice than I can see the appeal of a overweight middle-aged obnoxious white New Yawker ranting over Smithereens riffs.

[bleedorange]

Strange, I can far more see the appeal of a gifted harpist and songwriter who happens to have a nails on a chalkboard voice than I can see the appeal of a overweight middle-aged obnoxious white New Yawker ranting over Smithereens riffs.

 

Yes. That's probably why you like Joanna Newsom better than I do and I like The Hold Steady more than you do.

[Dude]

Yes. That's probably why you like Joanna Newsom better than I do and I like The Hold Steady more than you do.

 

I stand corrected on Hold Steady lead singer guy, he's from Minnesota originally, and he's only 37. Stereotyping is fun.

[bleedorange]

I stand corrected on Hold Steady lead singer guy, he's from Minnesota originally, and he's only 37. Stereotyping is fun.

 

Yeah, I didn't feel it was necessary to correct you.

[myboyblue]

I stand corrected on Hold Steady lead singer guy, he's from Minnesota originally, and he's only 37. Stereotyping is fun.

He's actually reasonably thin and a great songwriter too but who's counting?

[LouieB]

mp3s are not bad. its a myth. research has been done showing that even 128kbs is indiscernable compared to lossless on most audio equipment. in addition, joanna newsom is utterly unlistenable and a good example of buzz being about nothing at all. NOONE would've listened to joanna newsom if not for the buzz.

Who are you?? Finally someone willing to stand up in the face of the ongoing dispute over digital vs analog music and telling people it is nearly impossible to hear the difference (there are other reasons for liking analog music however...)

 

I have seen a number of the bands mentioned and none of them have stayed with me. Joanna Newsome I have seen and she is more interesting in person than on record. She has also disappeared off the scene. I bought her live album two years ago and have yet to crack the plastic wrap. I saw the Dirty Projectors and while they are interesting there was nothing to bring me closer to them and Animal Collective I saw at Pitchfork a year ago and their album was all the rage this spring; what happened to it? Is it still at the top of people's lists? Just wonder.

 

I know I am getting old since I am majorly coveting a huge box set of Artie Shaw put out by Mosaic Records. In my youth Shaw would never have been given a second listen by me, now he seems too good to pass up. (and most people here would not listen to him or even know who he was.)

 

LouieB

[LouieB]

I enjoy music now more than ever

 

I've never heard the music of bon iver, pernice or st. vincent

Time to get with it comrade..1!!

(Have you heard Artie Shaw??)

 

LouieB

[bleedorange]

Who are you?? Finally someone willing to stand up in the face of the ongoing dispute over digital vs analog music and telling people it is nearly impossible to hear the difference (there are other reasons for liking analog music however...)

 

I have seen a number of the bands mentioned and none of them have stayed with me. Joanna Newsome I have seen and she is more interesting in person than on record. She has also disappeared off the scene. I bought her live album two years ago and have yet to crack the plastic wrap. I saw the Dirty Projectors and while they are interesting there was nothing to bring me closer to them and Animal Collective I saw at Pitchfork a year ago and their album was all the rage this spring; what happened to it? Is it still at the top of people's lists? Just wonder.

 

I know I am getting old since I am majorly coveting a huge box set of Artie Shaw put out by Mosaic Records. In my youth Shaw would never have been given a second listen by me, now he seems too good to pass up. (and most people here would not listen to him or even know who he was.)

 

LouieB

 

 

I've often wondered if there is an inevitable point in time for every individual where all new music is a lost cause. I have a friend that listens to nothing but Tom Petty and Pearl Jam and Counting Crows. He'll never get out of his early-to-mid-90s rut.

[Atticus]

Time to get with it comrade..1!!

(Have you heard Artie Shaw??)

 

LouieB

 

I haven't heard Artie Shaw. Should I?

 

right now I have a song by the Avett Brothers stuck on repeat in my car. I've been listening to that, Amy Winehouse's Back to Black, and the new Wilco (mostly Solitaire, Wilco, Bull Black Nova and One Wing)

 

I am certainly open to suggestions. I'm sure there is a lot of great music out there I haven't heard yet. I just don't know what to try out since most music "critics" seem more bent on coming up with new combinations of adjectives and strained metaphors then actually telling me if something is original and worth trying.

[Synthesizer Patel]

mp3s are not bad. its a myth. research has been done showing that even 128kbs is indiscernable compared to lossless on most audio equipment. in addition, joanna newsom is utterly unlistenable and a good example of buzz being about nothing at all. NOONE would've listened to joanna newsom if not for the buzz.

 

that's actually not true. mp3 cuts off high end and low end frequencies to make the file smaller. saying that people can't tell the difference, as such, doesn't mean to say that there isn't a difference. it's like making a meal with different ingredients, although at the end you can't pick out every flavour doesn't mean that every ingredient isn't important. equally some people just don't have the pallet to taste things properly in the first place. the point i was actually making about mp3's was actually the fact that they are easily skipable, i rarely listen to a whole song on my computer - i fast forward to the good bits, play a bit, and find something else. that's what i meant by mp3's being bad. they are also not as good in terms of sound, but that wasn't what i meant at the time.

 

if joanna newsom is unlistenable that should perhaps give you a clue to the fact that it is fairly important from the point of view of originality. i'd imagine that your parents would have called David Bowie unlistenable, whilst being ok with David Essex. there's a lesson to be learnt from that! it's stuff like her music, that people either say they love or they hate, which is the areas of the music world where you're going to find the next big thing you'll fall in love with. my advice is stay away from the middle.

[Synthesizer Patel]

Who are you?? Finally someone willing to stand up in the face of the ongoing dispute over digital vs analog music and telling people it is nearly impossible to hear the difference (there are other reasons for liking analog music however...)

 

I have seen a number of the bands mentioned and none of them have stayed with me. Joanna Newsome I have seen and she is more interesting in person than on record. She has also disappeared off the scene. I bought her live album two years ago and have yet to crack the plastic wrap. I saw the Dirty Projectors and while they are interesting there was nothing to bring me closer to them and Animal Collective I saw at Pitchfork a year ago and their album was all the rage this spring; what happened to it? Is it still at the top of people's lists? Just wonder.

 

I know I am getting old since I am majorly coveting a huge box set of Artie Shaw put out by Mosaic Records. In my youth Shaw would never have been given a second listen by me, now he seems too good to pass up. (and most people here would not listen to him or even know who he was.)

 

LouieB

 

Joanna Newsom has apparently got a double album coming out later this year. She's never made a live album. I think the thing is that you go and see these bands live, and use that as a gauge as to how good they are. I don't think most bands are that great live nowadays, because the music they make is a bit to complicated to play live, and also the people just aren't good enough to play it live. It's a different culture than the 50s and 60s. You don't need to be a virtuoso to make music that is like a virtuoso. Saying that, I think modern musicians are far more interesting on record than they have been for some time - certainly better than the guitar bands of the 90s and the late 80s. So that is where you'll find great music, rather than live.

 

Also, I still listen to far more old music than modern music, and I'm young - but, that doesn't mean I don't find one or two great albums a year that I know I'll be listening to in years to come.

[Dude]

He's actually reasonably thin and a great songwriter too but who's counting?

 

[CortezTheKiller]

Seems reasonably thin to these eyes.

[Dude]

Yeah, I mean he's no Frank Black / Black Francis.

[myboyblue]

Yeah, I mean he's no Frank Black / Black Francis.

You,sir, are a weightist.