Need to rant on
 

Most music today is completely horrible. Not all music, but most music. It makes it very difficult for a young musician, like me, to have any hope of ever making it in the music industry. Music is all I have and all I want to do with my life, but if the world will no longer accept certain types of music. If I don't play the type of music that is on the radio, I probably will never have success with my guitar.

My guitar teacher says that my friend and I are both amazing at our instruments. He tells us that we will make it in the music industry, but he's too old and doesn't realize what kind of music is played on the radio.

After my last year of high school, I'm going to a community college and then going to The Musician's Institute of Technology in Hollywood, Los Angeles.

The other day, I went with my sister to see Twilight and I was completely sceptical, because I thought it was just some chick movie with strange romance, but when I heard Claire De Lune and Bella's Lullaby it almost brought tears to my eyes.

I know it's a semi-long post, but what I'm trying to say is that it's sad how messed up the Industry is these days. I believe that music that is being create now, will not be remembered such as song like Claire De Lune or Fugue and the likes. I just hope that somehow I can make NEW music that will be remembered for many years to come. I'm willing to dedicate my life to music and hopefully, one day, be known for helping bring back music that you can FEEL.

P.S. I'm definitely not saying ALL music sucks today, I'm just talking about MOST songs we hear that give us no feeling. They have no emotion to them. They won't be remembered. People are earning money off of nothing, when there are people out there who really deserve respect for what they create.

Sorry if this is in the wrong forum. I thought this would be the best place.

Nobody needs to bring back music you can feel. It's all over the place already.

If you are any good you will be 'successful'. Depending on what your definition is though... Content with your own production and being able to touch anyone with your music is being 'successful' to many different people.

And you obviously didn't grow up listening to disco, 80's pop, copy after copy of alternative grunge over the last 3 decades. In those decades the radios were full of as much crap and money making generic pop as it is today. And it was even harder to find good stuff back then I presume.

Emotion is dependent on the listener. And would have to be one of the silliest arguments in regards to the quality of an era of music TBH.

I didn't realize radio was the only place music came from these days. Or that the Industry was somehow relevant in the Information Age. Who'da thunk it right??

If you intend to make music for the sake of simply becoming popular or to be remembered, then you haven't experienced enough of what lies out there below the surface to have a good enough reason to be making music in the first place.

I'm sorry, I probably made it seem like I only wanted to be popular. I meant that I want to produce music that will touch peoples' hearts the way it used to. And no, the radio was not relevent then, but it is now. I never said I wanted to become popular, although it WOULD be nice to be able to make enough money to live off doing what I love. I only want to help bring music that is able to create emotions within the listener. Achieving that alone is success in my eyes.

And again, I didn't say ALL music on the radio was bad. It's just that a lot of the "musicians" you hear on the radio don't deserve as much respect as they actually get. BY NO MEANS do i intend to say that all music on the radio sucks.

You're pointing out the obvious in saying the radio sucks and showing your ignorance by saying music isn't touching anymore. Stop looking to MTV for music and start looking at webzines and blogs.

:laughing:

While you are very correct, I have to disagree on the emotion being dependant on the listener. While in most cases that is true, some musicians have had such great writing ability that they could create emotion within listeners at will.

Haha you're right, I am being ignorant. All I'm saying is respect isn't being payed where it's due. Sorry for making another useless thread. Go ahead and lock it. :wave:

But I also didn't say that "Music isn't touching anymore." I'm saying that a lot of "respected" or "successful" people that are making livings off of their "music" don't even deserve what they are getting.

I get what you're saying here, and I dissagree with ethan when he says to stop looking at MTV and radio, because that is where most people get their music, that is the media which is most accessible. And it is unfortunate to see these being corrupted by crappy, poppy moneymakers.

I think the only way for good bands today is to tour, build up a reputation, have a homepage that is easily found and accessible and for the first few albums, let them get it for free, if you don't have a label that is. If you do of course the only way is still to tour, and the moment you have a following, they will spread the word, through personal and internet means.

And I'm telling you that while the radio is still a viable means to reach people, you'll generally have better luck reaching a far more tolerant audience via the Internet. People who are weaned exclusively on radio wouldn't really give a damn about your music unless its full of hooks and power chords anyway.

Just forget about the music industry and focus on making music that doesn't cater to the expectations of a worthless American Idol-suckling audience who worship Chris Brown and think Nickelback and 3 Doors Down are the saviors of rock n' roll.

Comus and ethan gave you good advice also; I'd take their words seriously if I were you. :)

Very true

Hmmm not really... I could count off so many jazz songs that people have no connection to. Just like I feel no emotional connection to most Beatles/Radiohead songs, which people like to quote in such discussions. Some may be better, but its hardly a universal factor.

Actually, you're probably right. The only music I've REALLY felt emotional over comes from a piano, classic guitar, or a really deep guitar solo.

And unfortunately there are hundreds of thousands of people, who when you put that music of will tell ya to turn that 'boring ****' off...

Ya, I was listening to Moonlight Sonata today and my brother comes in the living room and tells me to turn it off. :confused:

What's on the radio and MTV is what's popular to a vast number of people, who are very casually into music. That doesn't make it soulless or other rather vague pejoratives. It's like saying that you're saddened by all the soulless restaurants like Olive Garden or Cheesecake Factory, because they don't have chefs who make the most unique, creative dishes. Those restaurants are popular because they make accessible food that a lot of people like without having to put effort into it. That's a perfectly valid segment.

It's great if you prefer classical or indie or whatever you consider "emotional." Like what you want. I just don't see much point to decrying a part of the industry that is unapologetically making something that many, many people want and are happy to get.

I just hate the fact that major record labels are signing bands and musicians based on "marketability" instead of raw emotion, talent, or creativity. And I wasn't really talking about music that is "emotional". I was talking more about any genre of music that makes you feel certain ways when you listen to it. The type of music that, at times, makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up.

"Marketable" boils down to "stuff lots of people will like." If lots of people will like it, why wouldn't they sign bands like that?

This is true of every industry; 75-90% of the industry is aimed at the casual consumer of that industry, because that's the vast majority of their customer base. If you want something more, you have to do the legwork to find that remaining "specialty" percentage. And if you want to be that "something more," you have to work harder, because people who want something more aren't easily satisfied.

I don't see anything inherently wrong with that.

Thats what they've always done though... May as well lambaste them for their 70s/80s/90s work as well...

That's not a new thing though, it's been going on for as long as there have been record labels. Do you really think people like Frank Sinatra or Elvis Presley would've got the record deals they got if they were ugly slobs with no sense of style and no sex appeal?

Well a lot of times it's not just the music they make, they even base marketability on how whoever they're signing looks. But yeah, you're right. Most people don't care how creative the music is. Oh well, I'll be forced to try and create great music for myself, but I most likely won't be able to make a living off of it. I'd probably only be wasting my time if I was attempting to make music and live off of it.

Well, it always been hard to make as an artist. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try.

True. I still am going to try, I can't imagine myself doing anything else with my life.

Talent doesn't always mean good. It is possible that your music/style of music just flat out sucks.

Ever heard someone play and you just cringe but someone else, usually the player, thinks it's great? It's uncomfortable.


Before blaming the entire music industry and its customers (REALLY broad stroke), look at yourself.

I honestly can't imagine that it's ever been easier for someone to live off of the music they create than it is today, with the wide array of distributional channels that exist outside of those controlled by the big record labels.

15 years ago you were pretty much **** out of luck if none of the major labels would give you a go, because they controlled every viable channel of distribution, whereas today in the digital age, if you are hardworking and make music that appeals to "someone", you can pretty much make a living completely only your own. Additionally there are a lot of smaller independant labels and subsidiaries of the bigger ones that will help you out with the promotional part if you have any sort of talent.

Even though I've only been alive for so long, I think music couldn't possibly have been any better than it is today, because I have so much music to choose from, and it makes it so much more likely that I'm able to find something that appeals to me and I'm able to connect to on an emotional level. I don't have to be labelled by the categorical definitions of the major labels and listen to what they think appeals to me, and that's absolutely amazing in my opinion.

If you think that there aren't anyone out there making good, meaningful music, you haven't exactly gone out of your way to find it. There are thousands of bands and artists out there making music because they love it, and working hard on writing and touring 300 days a year to make the wheels go around, all because they love music.

As for what's actually being aired in the various media outlets, well that's a completely different story, and I would be more than inclined to agree with your sentiments about that. Luckily we're not confined to it anymore!

I concur with the previous post (lolliot). The mistake is thinking that the music business is like high school, where there's a small, easily reachable population and official channels (e.g. the music dept, organized school events) to get recognized. Capitalism is a free-for-all, and you need to work very hard to get what you have to offer hooked up with people who will even look at it, let alone enjoy it or pay for it. People suffer a glut of media and are wary of anything that smacks of marketing. They're used to local things, like bands they can actually go see for $3 and sit right in front, as being crap for the most part, and are not tolerant of things recorded at anything less than a totally professional level. So, expect to work VERY hard, to have to devote as much time to business as to perfecting your playing/writing, and really, you should probably anyway not expect to make a living off of it, as even professional-quality players have a hard time doing that, especially doing original music.

There are so many styles of music an so many different goals to shoot for as far as style goes that most musicians think that most other music besides theirs and their idols is crap. I think this is profoundly misinformed. Most people don't think THEIR music is crap, or they wouldn't bother to make it and suffer for it. Hint: they're probably not all idiots to think this. Any music that connects with people is, by definition, effective at making a connection, which is not to say it isn't lowbrow, or technically simple, or violating whatever standard of quality you might use for your own music. Moreover, chances are even cheesy professional music (e.g. background players on American Idol or people recording commercials) are actually WAY more technically proficient than you'd imagine, as they're actually professionals and practice all freaking day for 20 years.

So, while I think the attitude expressed by the original post is not uncommon, it's pretty unfairly dismissive of others' efforts and seems like a setup for disappointment.