Is Devin Townsend a Knob?
 

Look, I like some of the guy's music, but he comes across more often than not as unutterably smug. He releases so much music at a time that much of the time it's on "special edition" compilations with titles like Stuff That Used To Be Stuff or whatever, which to me just seems to be saying "Look what I can do! Even when I don't try I'm still great!" Maybe I'm wrong here, but it seems to be like we're dealing with a massive, supermassive ego. Sure the guy has talent, buckets of it, but does he have to keep rubbing it in everyone's face every five minutes? Most of the unofficial stuff is usually pretty bad anyway, to me at least.

Am I on the wrong track here? Have I not listened to the right albums - Ghost, Ki, Epicloud, a few others so far, and bits from this or that on playlists - and if the latter, what should I be listening to in order to "get" this man?

Or is he just a massive knob?

.

He's not a bit cheesy but enormously cheesy. Epicloud is distilled and compressed cheese, first and foremost.

But I don't think he's a pretentious or self-satisfied person. From various interviews and this video where he composed an entire song live on cam, I got the impression that he's just somewhat mentally unstable and a very creative individual. The sort that ****s out new music because he'll go crazy if he stops. I do think he's calmed down a lot over the last decade or so.

I like a bit of his music, but not a lot.

I don't even want to know what his personality is like. The kind of person who thinks it's fine to do what he does is not somebody I need in my life.

his solo stuff is definitely cheese but the SYL discography still kicks major ass

Don't know and don't care about his personality but his music is boring and ridiculously overrated.

The thing is, I could understand thinking this if I didn't like any of his music. But I loved Epicloud (yeah yeah, I have no taste: go play on a runway). I just found some of the other stuff that came on my ipod randomly to be bloody awful. Much of it seemed like it was just thrown together, yet he still decided to release it anyway. I swear, he probably has a six-CD boxset of him taking a dump ready for release for Christmas! I mean, no matter how good (or bad) you are, is it necessary to release EVERY ****ING SINGLE THING you've ever recorded, as it seems he is doing?

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/LhwD7-QGjRs/hqdefault.jpg

:rofl:

I have Ocean Machine and dig it.

Can't hate on someone just because they are prolific. He reminds me of Stephen King. Dude wakes up everyday with the need to write something. Does he put out some stuff that's crap? Sure. But plenty of diamonds in the rough.

He's probably got a solid fan base who would answer with a resounding YES.

Keep reinventing the face of comedy my dude.

It's not how prolific he is, it's how dull and absolutely unengaging his music is. I suppose having more of it to dislike is not a good thing, but I'd still dislike him if he only released two albums.

Same could be said of your stuff.

Uh huh. Frantic and chaotic free jazz is dull. Right.

Second time I listened to that (recently) I was not quite as impressed as I was the first time.
Yeah but does King release his scribbled notes, character sketches, plot ideas every time he has them?
This I'd probably agree with. If all of his music was of the quality of Epicloud (yeah yeah I know: didn't I ask you to go play on the runway? Why are you still here?) I wouldn't mind. It's just that the stuff I've heard (literally called Stuff) has been pretty low quality and a lot of it sounds like rough demo, which is probably is. I really don't want to be listening to that. I sure wouldn't pay for it. I don't know anyone else who does this?

Whether you think that or not, at least Frown doesn't release all his ****ing demos, ideas, half-thought-out songs and noodlings on special edition albums. Do you? I can't believe I'm defending you. What kind of crazy mixed-up dimension have I stumbled into THIS time, Professor? :yikes:

isnt that exactly what frownland's music is

My first fivish albums would warrant that, but I've became wiser about my releases.

I love how often threads get derailed by talking about my music, I don't even kick off the convo half of the time.

And the real irony is that it was the one who hates your music the most who started it! :rofl: Oh, Chula! The monster you have created has turned upon ye!

It's why I maintain that he's a secret fan who is too intimidated by my greatness to admit it.

He does seem uncomfortably obsessed with it....
:shycouch:

I just dislike his pompous "If I don't dig it it must be ****" attitude.

Have you actually listened to Frown's "music"? I'd wager the majority of the **** he puts out is made up on the spot with almost no forethought whatsoever.

LOL. I'm going to run out and buy a harmonica. Then I'm going to download a drum loop and record myself "playing the harmonica" (which I can't) over it. I might even add some accent drones to spice things up as well as a random splash cymbal hit.

I'm going to call it "Free Reed Experimental Jazz Swamp".

:rofl:

Frowny, put out something like this and then we can talk.

How much would you wager exactly? I could use some cash.

Have fun with that I guess. *shrug* This tells me that you've heard a very very small portion of my music.

I mean, no because it's not my goal as an artist to appeal to your whims, but here are some nicer tracks than the archetype of my music that you have in your head whenever you rag on it. I'm guessing you define my music by the heavier WISSK material that pissed you off so much in plug.

https://jesusthecarpenter.bandcamp.c...int-soundtrack
https://jesusthecarpenter.bandcamp.com/track/kerensa-2
https://jesusthecarpenter.bandcamp.com/track/mulftur
https://jesusthecarpenter.bandcamp.c...enter-the-foil

I do find it an odd phenomenon that many many threads that have really nothing to do with it end up being the latest battleground for the Chula V Frownland rivalry. Oh well...
I do too, but I've learned to live with it/ignore it/be amused by it
Some I have, yes, but in fairness you can't make that claim (your wager): for all you know, he spends hours, days or weeks crafting his "masterpieces". I think that's a little unfair (Who are you, and what have you done with Trollheart??) :yikes:

That's what you get when you have a bitter old man posting nonsense and a grumpy hipster willing to take him up on that nonsense.

Splain Lucy.

The bitter old man is you.

Whoa chill I'm getting off of your lawn! I just approached to answer your question.

Hey! I won't have that! I'm not bit ... oh. Carry on.
:shycouch:

Edit: Um, can I ask who are the three people voting that DT is a genius but don't seem prepared to come in here and back up that claim? Come on: you know who you are. I, however, do not.

Townsend is trying to make a living off of his music (and his persona helps sell it), so he'll sell anything he can and probably has some influential people advising him to do so. *shrug* So goes the way of the capitalistic world of the music industry.

Have you been keeping count of Bucketheads Pikes? Yoiks. He's up to 301.

These people need to sell their material in order to maintain their lifestyles regardless of what you think of their personalities, although some artists like to have an all inclusive persona that entices the consumer. It's nothing new.

As for the Chula/Frown bit... different strokes for different folks and all, but I'd like to hear Frown record something with a 4/4 beat. Something bluesy.

4/4
Bluesy and kinda 4/4

I forgot about Buckethead. What's a pike though, other than a fish or an ancient weapon? Mind you, to date anything I've heard from BH has been pretty damn good, whereas I can't say the same for DT. But anyone pretentious enough to release an album called Stuff That Was Stuff Before It Was Stuff (or something) deserves at least my scorn.

It's an album series.

Buckethead is a great example of overreleasing to the point of diluting the sound tbh.

Ask and ye shall receive. As long as you're proud of your work, **** a mother****er talking **** about it. Amirite?

Gross.

Talking about my music with a **** talker is still talking about my music. Props for the SEO assistance, Chula.

EDIT: ****, I think I gave away my strategy. What I meant to say was that I'm better than Jimmy Page.

I voted genius. I don't mean it in the most true sense of the word, but more like out of the 4 answer options, he fits the category of a very gifted musician and composer the most. I think he's very, very good at what he does and a unique mind. It's just that I don't like most of what he makes.

Why is genius posed as a separate category from being a knob? As far as I can tell, there's a positive correlation between the two.

*raises hand*

LOL!!!!




Re: Buckethead

The album he did with Michael Shreve (famous for his performance with Santana at Woodstock) and Jonas Hellborg is a masterpiece. So sublime.

I only chose those lyrics because the sheet music to that song was hanging up and I had no idea what to say. But ja I think they're funny too.

Yes, he is a knob because he likes to create music.

Lord forgive me and have mercy, but I enjoyed that second one. A little. :yikes:

He's far from pretentious, here's him talking about what his music means to him and touring life:



He's the "follow your heart", kind of musician. Writing music is a purely personal and emotional catharsis for him but obviously, it means a lot for many people (myself included).

I don't put his music on much nowadays but when I do, I always have that "Fu Ck yeah!" moment.

Regarding Epicloud/Sky Blue, I have mixed feelings with some tracks, though there are stand out powerful songs on there too. Transcendence had some powerful music too but feels like a transitional album from the "pop metal" into where he's heading now.

He has that symphony in the works, which I'm both really skeptical of but been eagerly and impatiently awaiting for years.