The End of Music

I will readily admit that I am 35 and a parent.  But has anyone recognized that new music has taken a turn for the creative worse?

Modern music has for the most part come from the roots of Jazz and Rhythm & Blues.  This includes rock, country, gospel, Christian contemporary (all forms) pop, and rap.

When I was growing up my parents listen to a lot of religious music and few secular songs.  I wasn’t so limited.  There was a separation of musical styles and it’s intended audience.  For the most part, R&B and country were focused on the blue collar worker and his problems.  Rap represented the inner city and a cutting edge musical style.  Rock-n-roll represented the angst and problems of the teenage and 20-somethings (for the most part).  Pop was pop and was mainly sugar coated music aimed at anyone who would listen.

The artist all had a message they wanted to get across, either explaining situations or trying to make a difference.   You didn’t always agree with the message, but at least they were expressing themselves about something that meant something to them.

Now there is a movement of fusion in music.  And I’m not against that.  Country with rock overtones is here to stay, and Southern Rock (rock with a country flair) was perfected by ZZTop.  There are so many different forms of jazz that have come from the fusion movement it isn’t funny.  Rap samples and mixes all types of music, it is actually interesting to listen to it.

But with the fusion, another movement is happening.  It is driven by consumerism.  The marketing people are putting consumer driven songs in front of the artists and asking them to record it.  Going the way of the dodo bird are the songs detailing the life of the hardworking man familiar in the past songs of R&B, gone are the songs detailing the  angst of the college generation discontented with a society they see has failed in rock-n-roll.  Jazz which use to be sensuous in its vocals and music is now being sung so that couldn’t interest a nymphomaniac.  And rap has been taken over by the bling bling and rims crowd and talk about nothing more than this and treating their women like whores.

I’m all for musical evolution, but let’s keep the messages in the songs, whether or not you always agree with them.  Give them a solid message, because even if you don’t agree it can provoke you into action.  Any message is better than no message.  Proof is in the pudding.

Take the 80s.  There were hundreds (literally) of artists, from groups to individuals.  The 80s were very consumer driven.  And a lot of these artist wrote songs to meet that need.  Of the 80s musicians whose left?  I can think of two groups both who sang about what they new.  These groups evolved with their generation and their generation hasn’t deserted them.  The groups?  Bon Jovi and U2.  Both have not only updated their sound, they have updated their message to go along with what has changed in their lives.  They meet a musical need and they haven’t sold out to commercialism.  Plus both groups have taken sociological interest to better the world.

All’s I’m asking is that the artist get back to their message rather than consumer driven content that doesn’t meet a need.  Just ask Madonna about selling out and where it get’s you.

November 12, 2006 | Filed Under Music, Rants 

Comments

Got something to say?





  • Blogroll