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What modern music (today) is considered to be both pop AND intellectual?
TaoPhoenix:
I wanna stress a brand new angle that hasn't been possible until very recently.
One of my quiet little hobbies is taking a song that feels "promising" but not quite right for me, and doing about one to three easy mods to it, such as chopping out an annoying part, then fiddling with the tempo and pitch. I end up with "my song". No once else has to agree with the result, though I'm sure seven people in the world would. Because once the song is given to me, I get to share in the experience. I get the artist's vision, but then their control leaves.
TaoPhoenix:
That's why we turned them into rules - sort of a crutch for the creativity impaired.
-Vurbal (June 05, 2014, 11:37 AM)
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FWIW I think some "rules" are actually liberating. And creativity by itself is vastly over-hyped in my opinion. A musical idea is cheap. Most of us can crank out a dozen or more on demand. Finding one that's worth doing something with, and knowing how to do something with it, is an altogether different thing. Therein lies (to me) the difference between creativity and art. Creativity is just the raw material - not the finished piece. Or the process leading to it. You need both. But music isn't just about being creative.
-40hz (June 05, 2014, 02:05 PM)
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I'll give you an easy rule.
Of course there are thunderous tons of exceptions, but if your melodic singing contains less than five notes, be very careful unless you're sure you know you have it down. This is why I have trouble with lots of those D list garage bands - I can't focus on the instruments if the singer is tanking it. Rap is tight-pitched, but it's a special case. It's that droning anti-shoegaze turkey gravy style of singing I can't stand.
superboyac:
That's why we turned them into rules - sort of a crutch for the creativity impaired.
-Vurbal (June 05, 2014, 11:37 AM)
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FWIW I think some "rules" are actually liberating. And creativity by itself is vastly over-hyped in my opinion. A musical idea is cheap. Most of us can crank out a dozen or more on demand. Finding one that's worth doing something with, and knowing how to do something with it, is an altogether different thing. Therein lies (to me) the difference between creativity and art. Creativity is just the raw material - not the finished piece. Or the process leading to it. You need both. But music isn't just about being creative.
-40hz (June 05, 2014, 02:05 PM)
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Another good one. :up:
CWuestefeld:
Most of the music cited dates back to the 70s, plus or minus, and I'm not sure that qualifies as "modern", unless you mean that in contrast with classical. Certainly some of them are great examples of a thinking/feeling balance at the time (I'd call out Al Stewart and Jethro Tull from those mentioned earlier).
The power metal genre was mentioned, but as much as I enjoy that (although I prefer the American side to the Euro), I think it's actually kind of sophomoric when analyzed closely.
When I want something today that's both interesting and catchy, the current stuff I go to are Rush (which may be cliche, but they've certainly learned balance over the years), and a few newer prog bands like Big Big Train.
I explain the difference between a good and great musician this way. A good musician plays the notes you expected to hear - or one of the readily anticipated options. A great musician plays notes that wouldn't have occurred to you but somehow they're still the right notes.-Vurbal (June 05, 2014, 11:37 AM)
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I strongly agree with this statement, and in fact have thought the same thing frequently. But (and I'm sure you meant this) don't limit yourself to notes. This obviously applies to rhythms, progressions, and even timbres and dynamics.
And especially Lori Anderson! :-* :-* :-*
-40hz (June 04, 2014, 08:58 PM)
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If you're a fan, take a look at this... http://youtu.be/ZVuiYhAVgFE?t=1m23s
The guy wandering around the background there is a good friend of mine, who has worked with her a bit. He's a researcher at RPI's Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center.
40hz:
a few newer prog bands
-CWuestefeld (June 05, 2014, 04:30 PM)
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Liking prog invites stares and condescending snickers where I live. Annoying because I place at least half my musical roots firmly in the psychedelic and prog rock camp.
Excellent 1hr+ BBC Rock Britannia documentary on prog can be found on YT. It gets the details correct. Where it began, how it grew, and also pretty convincingly discusses how prog ran off the rails for awhile. I suggest either watching it fairly soon or downloading (315Mb in medium MP4) if interested. Because it keeps getting pulled.
Nice to see some of these old men still have what it takes to do real prog: ;D :Thmbsup:
Go Chris! :Thmbsup:
Oh yeah - additional intellectual groups and artists: Pink Floyd. Brian Eno. Allan Holdsworth. And Julie Cruise's epic Floating Into the Night album.
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