Thursday, August 30, 2007

Generic Music Rant

Josh writes:

I don't know music, but I know what I like. I just don't know why a lot of the time.

I mean, apart from the usual trouble I have formulating a reply when people say "What sort of music do you listen to?"* -- "I dunno, a bit of everything... um" -- I'm not even sure what it is about individual songs in some cases.

The collected works of Timbaland for example -- there are very few numbers he's had a hand in that I haven't hated instantly, then grown to really like after repeated airplay. While my sense of grammar recoils at "The Way I Are", and its lyrics are at best questionable ("Don't have a motor boat but I can float your boat" -- that's just bad) I can't get the fucker out of my head, and I find myself not minding at all. See also Regina Spektor's "Fidelity" (the "it breaks my hea-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-art" one) -- bugged me at first, but it ended up on the playlist at my Civil Union, right alongside Timbaland-produced "My Love".

And then there are the ones that go the opposite way: like it on first hearing, get sick of it right quick after a few more. I actually liked "Hey There Delilah" for a while -- the lyrics were abysmal, but the melody had a nice old school Simon and Garfunkel feel. It didn't take me long to lose interest though -- maybe the lyrics just got the better of me. Current offender is "Konichiwa Bitches" -- I liked its moxie to begin with, but somewhere around the fourth time I heard it on C4/Juice in a single Saturday morning familiarity started to breed some serious contempt. And there should be a comma in the title.

Fergie's "Big Girls Don't Cry" though, is utter shit and always will be. Always.


* And seriously, who really does have a succinct reply to that question? How many people would really classify their musical tastes as purely "hip hop/R&B" or "Future Industrial EmoPopWave" or "FUCKEN METAL \m/ \m/"?

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Perhaps a year ago you may have liked Konichiwa Bitches. Thats when Bfm were playing it, now it's surrounded by over-rated, over-played commercial hype artists like Timberland.
Back then she was as obscure as Joanna Newsome.

Apathy Jack said...

I define my music tastes as Fuckin' Metal! Because Christina Aguilera is Fuckin' Metal, and no two ways about it.

I could never like Hey There Delilah because it was done by the Plain White T's whose first single featured the chorus: "Hate is a strong word but I really really really don't like you".

Every time I heard it I visualised the entire band hanging off Henry Rollins' elbow because he had punched through all their chests in one rage-fueled blow!

But maybe that was just me...

I find Konichiwa Bitches to grate, but, for reasons I don't fully understand, I'm pretty sure it's the future of music.

Oh, and Joanna Newsome can't be obscure - anyone mainstream muggins here (that would be me) has heard of) must have penetrated the MOR zeitgeist to a pretty significant degree...

That Morthos Stare said...

Can I just say, as it's vaguely on topic, that 'The Shins' 'Australia' (off of 'Wincing the Night Away') has not one but two clever pieces of lyrical poetry ("Faced with the dodo's conumdrum; felt as if I could just fly but nothing happened everytime I tried" and "Faced with the android's dilemna;felt as if I could just cry but nothing happened everytime I tried"). 'The Shins' are almost clever; they get so, so close and that's why I love them.

Also, Henry Rollins is an evil, misogynistic bastard and deserves to die.

RSJS said...

and answer to musical taste these days is "check out what's playing in the background of my Myspace page".

What disturbs me is the Nelly Retardo evolution from aw-gee-shucks type to flashing-eyed vamp. Mostly because I remember mocking her reinvention until suddenly I... just kinda stopped takin the piss and started liking her new material. I blame big business.

Matty, I refer you to "A Rollins in the Wry" for Mr Rollin's opinions on lay-dees - that they're a HELLUVA lot smarter than guys, who are, in comparison, unevolved buffoons. Including himself.

He shouldn't die, he should KILL.

Josh said...

Ah yes, Ms. Furtado -- the hole in my Timbaland theory. I've never come to like her, no matter how over-played she is. I still find her embarrassingly crap.

paul [silentsanta] said...

Josh:

The chosen one is not dispensed with so easily...

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10462256&ref=rss

paul [silentsanta] said...

fixed link

Josh said...

Yes, I saw that. The Giant Blue Triangle smiles on him once more.

paul [silentsanta] said...

So what you're trying to say is that the plain white Ts need some better lyrics?


Hey there Delilah
what's it like in Gaza City?
I'm a thousand yards away but girl
tonight you look so pretty
yeah, you do
A flare can't shine as bright as you
'Cause you're a Jew.

Hey there Delilah,
I've got so much ammunition..

(Somebody want to help me out here?)


P.L.O, it's what you do to meeee..