The Christian music industry is dead. Cornerstone Festival announced this is its last year. (link) When I was younger I wanted to go to Cornerstone. I never did and I have no desire to go now, but I'm still sad to see it go.
I grew up in the 90s in the evangelical Christian sub-culture. Back then, a lot of Christians wouldn't listen to secular music, but they listened to Christian music. The Christian music industry thrived thanks to this. There were lots of charts listing Christian bands as “Christian alternatives” to secular bands. The bands themselves hated this, except for the few who saw themselves as the “safe” versions of secular musicians. The charts were pretty far off base too.
As a result, Christian artists gained a reputation as cheap knockoffs of secular artists. Sometimes this was true, but it often wasn't. There were a lot of bad bands from my childhood, but there were some good ones too. I still listen to some of them. And it ruined my musical taste forever.
Why did this happen? In the late 80s, popular music was very dirty. Your average rock album from 1989 is way dirtier than your average rock album from 1969 or 2009. This was the era of the Parents Music Research Council, the Parental Advisory sticker, etc. Parents want to protect their children. So we got an entire music industry designed as an alternative to one that some people think went off the deep end.
The Christian music industry did convert a lot of the more fundamentalist Christians who believed all popular music was evil. They had music with evil drum beats and guitars, but they're singing about Jesus! Nice things too. What do they do now? Some people bashed the Christian bands, but I think it made a lot of them more tolerant.
What killed it? One thing was commercial acceptance of Christian bands in the mainstream market. A few had big hits before, but not like the breakthru in the mid-00s. Another was that mainstream rock music got a lot less dirty after Marilyn Manson took shock rock as far as the mainstream would let him. By the way, Marilyn Manson was a marketing genius. All the parents complained about him, so he was one of the few secular artists I knew of when I was a kid. All the church kids knew: If you want to rebel, listen to Marilyn Manson. Back to the main topic...
Also, Christian music stopped being “safe” sometime in the past few years. Musicians start ed swearing and singing about controversial topics, e. g. Derek Webb. Christian music wasn't all G-rated any more. It wasn't all Focus on the Family approved any more. You couldn't be sure you'd agree with everything the music said.
Christian musicians will survive. We'll have new Christian musicians in all styles, but they won't be part of a separate market. I hope some of them better ones, such as House of Heroes, get the attention they deserve. I'll miss having Cornerstone around, but there's no need for a separate music market any more.
What I want to know is why almost all “heavy” Christian bands do hardcore or metalcore. There are so many styles of heavy music but Christian bands always go for -core music. Maybe they want to fight the image that Christian music is always mellow and pretty, so they scream over everything. Maybe there's less bias against Christianity in the -core world than in power metal or thrash metal. Maybe none of them can play guitar solos. Maybe it's like how third wave ska was huge in the Christian world for way longer than the secular world. The Christian music industry was usually a few years behind the secular music industry, but they were right on the ball with ska.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Monday, April 30, 2012
The World's Most Hated Bands
I read the article A Night With the World's Most Hated Bands by Chuck Klosterman. Pretty good article. A little snobby, but he does well considering he's a rock critic.
Klosterman says there's five bands it's "okay" to hate for no reason: Bush, Hootie and the Blowfish, Limp Bizkit, Creed, and Nickelback. He saw the last two of them play live the same night and dissected the reasons people hate them. He boils down the Creed hate to people thinking they were Pearl Jam ripoffs. He says Nickelback's hate is just because; there's no reason.
My take on the Nickelback hate: They're the most popular of a lot of similar bands. A lot of these bands are worse than Nickelback. Hinder, for one. Also Puddle of Mudd. Some of these bands are better - such as Shinedown. When people say they hate Nickelback, they mean "I hate post-grunge music". I don't like Nickelback, and I don't even care for Shinedown apart from a few songs. But I like Foo Fighters and Switchfoot. Before I got into Muse I thought they were another post-grunge band and now they're one of my favorites. I can't dismiss the whole genre.
I don't like Nickelback, but some of my friends do. I also don't like the Velvet Underground or the Pixies and some of my friends do. I'll leave any room where the Verve's "Bittersweet Symphony" is playing, but some of my friends like it. I don't know why, because it sucks and I hate it. But people have different tastes. I won't judge somebody based on that.
I also like a lot of music the critics hate. I like a lot of prog rock, which many music nuts dismiss with the wave of a hand. However, prog rock gets a lot more respect than Nickelback or Creed on sites like Rate Your Music.
Klosterman says there's five bands it's "okay" to hate for no reason: Bush, Hootie and the Blowfish, Limp Bizkit, Creed, and Nickelback. He saw the last two of them play live the same night and dissected the reasons people hate them. He boils down the Creed hate to people thinking they were Pearl Jam ripoffs. He says Nickelback's hate is just because; there's no reason.
My take on the Nickelback hate: They're the most popular of a lot of similar bands. A lot of these bands are worse than Nickelback. Hinder, for one. Also Puddle of Mudd. Some of these bands are better - such as Shinedown. When people say they hate Nickelback, they mean "I hate post-grunge music". I don't like Nickelback, and I don't even care for Shinedown apart from a few songs. But I like Foo Fighters and Switchfoot. Before I got into Muse I thought they were another post-grunge band and now they're one of my favorites. I can't dismiss the whole genre.
I don't like Nickelback, but some of my friends do. I also don't like the Velvet Underground or the Pixies and some of my friends do. I'll leave any room where the Verve's "Bittersweet Symphony" is playing, but some of my friends like it. I don't know why, because it sucks and I hate it. But people have different tastes. I won't judge somebody based on that.
I also like a lot of music the critics hate. I like a lot of prog rock, which many music nuts dismiss with the wave of a hand. However, prog rock gets a lot more respect than Nickelback or Creed on sites like Rate Your Music.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Trayvon Martin
Wikipedia: Shooting of Trayvon Martin
Huffington Post: The Trayvon Martin Tragedy
THIS is why racism's not dead. From everything I read, Trayvon Martin, a black teenager, walked thru a neighborhood unarmed in Sanford, FL. He committed the crime of Walking While Black. George Zimmerman, a Neighborhood Watch captain, security guard, white Hispanic, and racist idiot, killed him for looking "suspicious". He broke all the Neighborhood Watch rules. The Sanford police department didn't arrest or charge Zimmerman because of a stupid Florida law about self-defense. So, Martin's family took this to court. I hope they arrest Zimmerman. I hope they kick his ass. I hope they throw him in jail.
I had two dentist's appointments a few weeks ago. There was an hour between them and they told me I could run some errands. There's a bank a half mile away, so I walked to the bank and back. I'm white so nobody thought I was gonna shoot up the neighborhood. If I was black I wouldn't have that luxury. People assume if you're black and walking on a sidewalk, you must be a criminal. They don't say that if you're white.
Also interesting when it's one minority against another.
Dunno if this petition will do anything, but I signed it. Which means I'll get way more email.
Huffington Post: The Trayvon Martin Tragedy
THIS is why racism's not dead. From everything I read, Trayvon Martin, a black teenager, walked thru a neighborhood unarmed in Sanford, FL. He committed the crime of Walking While Black. George Zimmerman, a Neighborhood Watch captain, security guard, white Hispanic, and racist idiot, killed him for looking "suspicious". He broke all the Neighborhood Watch rules. The Sanford police department didn't arrest or charge Zimmerman because of a stupid Florida law about self-defense. So, Martin's family took this to court. I hope they arrest Zimmerman. I hope they kick his ass. I hope they throw him in jail.
I had two dentist's appointments a few weeks ago. There was an hour between them and they told me I could run some errands. There's a bank a half mile away, so I walked to the bank and back. I'm white so nobody thought I was gonna shoot up the neighborhood. If I was black I wouldn't have that luxury. People assume if you're black and walking on a sidewalk, you must be a criminal. They don't say that if you're white.
Also interesting when it's one minority against another.
Dunno if this petition will do anything, but I signed it. Which means I'll get way more email.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Another Election Year
The Republicans are going to lose. This is not opinion, this is fact. I like Ron Paul pretty well, I'll probably vote for him, but he won't win the nomination. He's too far from the Republican establishment. Mitt Romney's too close to the Republican establishment for most people. Plus he's Mormon, and Mormons face a ton of prejudice. Every other Republican candidate's an idiot. It's like the Republican party isn't trying to field a good challenger to Obama. They had McCain last time. It reminds me of 2004. Everyone hated Bush then like everyone hates Obama now. People always hate the incumbent. But every Democrat candidate sucked, so they went with the least worst, Kerry, who nobody hated but nobody liked either. Romney's going to win the nomination because he's got standard Republican views and some connection to reality. But nobody likes him. He's everything the Republicans want to get away from.
Meanwhile, most Obama supporters try to see how annoying they can be. You get the occasional nice liberal, but most of them are snobby assholes. Usually it's the Republicans who hate random people - this time it's the Democrats. I don't want a thing to do with the Democrats. If you're too polite the Democrats mock you. Hell, the Democrats I know mock people more than they offer any solutions. Or they offer their solutions, then mock you if you disagree. Obama doesn't come across like this. What is it about Obama that attracts stuck-up pricks? Ron Paul gets this too, but not as bad as Obama. I have a little respect for most conservatives I know, but none for most liberals. If a conservative says they care about others - and most of them don't - they're honest. If a liberal says they care about others, 9 times out of 10 they only care about themselves. It's a smokescreen.
Everything comes down to idiots vs. assholes. Should I leave my ballot blank this year? Probably not. It's like this every four years. The only reason they put elections in leap years is so we get an extra day of political torture.
EDIT: I'm harsh on here a lot, but this post was harsh even for me. I'm sorry for stereotyping. I saw about five annoying left-wing Facebook posts in a row, got real pissed off, and wrote this post. A lot of Democrats are very nice people who really do care. However, a lot of them aren't. I thought about writing a similar post about conservatives but I decided not to. Once again, I'm sorry.
Meanwhile, most Obama supporters try to see how annoying they can be. You get the occasional nice liberal, but most of them are snobby assholes. Usually it's the Republicans who hate random people - this time it's the Democrats. I don't want a thing to do with the Democrats. If you're too polite the Democrats mock you. Hell, the Democrats I know mock people more than they offer any solutions. Or they offer their solutions, then mock you if you disagree. Obama doesn't come across like this. What is it about Obama that attracts stuck-up pricks? Ron Paul gets this too, but not as bad as Obama. I have a little respect for most conservatives I know, but none for most liberals. If a conservative says they care about others - and most of them don't - they're honest. If a liberal says they care about others, 9 times out of 10 they only care about themselves. It's a smokescreen.
Everything comes down to idiots vs. assholes. Should I leave my ballot blank this year? Probably not. It's like this every four years. The only reason they put elections in leap years is so we get an extra day of political torture.
EDIT: I'm harsh on here a lot, but this post was harsh even for me. I'm sorry for stereotyping. I saw about five annoying left-wing Facebook posts in a row, got real pissed off, and wrote this post. A lot of Democrats are very nice people who really do care. However, a lot of them aren't. I thought about writing a similar post about conservatives but I decided not to. Once again, I'm sorry.
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Maximalist Rock and Minimalist Rock
Zaragon, an Internet music critic, says there are two main "camps" in rock music, maximalism and minimalism. If you got a few minutes, read thru this link from his blog. If you got a bit longer, try this one. These two articles he wrote explain the differences between maximalism and minimalism. If his writing style confuses you, the maximalists build on the basic elements of rock while the minimalists deconstruct them. In short, it's the difference between the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the Velvet Underground's The Velvet Underground and Nico. Both albums pushed the boundaries of rock, but they did it in very different ways.
As you can tell, Zaragon's biased toward maximalist bands. I would complain, but most rock critics are biased toward minimalism. I share his bias anyway. Here's his list of minimalist bands:
Most of those are critics' favorites. And he really hates Nirvana. I kind of like them but I won't push the matter either. It's a diverse group but there's something a lot of those artists have in common. A lot of indie fans have that taste. Now look at his list of maximalist bands:
Most of these are bands critics hate. There's progressive rock, hard rock, jazz-rock/fusion, and the technicolor pop the Beatles launched, along with a handful of new-wavers that critics also hate. And U2. A lot of prog fans like the non-prog artists on this list.
I used to wonder why punks went into singer-songwriter territory and metal bands went into progressive territory. This explains it. Most singer-songwriters are minimalists and most metal is maximalist. With lots of exceptions of course.
Where I disagree with him is he thinks maximalism ended in the 1980s. It's alive and well today. Modern maximalists include: Radiohead, Muse, Coldplay, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Flaming Lips, Blur, Porcupine Tree, Sigur Rós, The Mars Volta, Dream Theater, and Faith No More among many others. Some of these are questionable but so are some of Zaragon's picks.
I like a few minimalists like Kraftwerk and Brian Eno, but most rock artists I like are maximalist. There's more possibility there. There's more emotion. There's more extremes of beauty and ugliness. There's more power. There's a lot more color - the minimalists are so gray-toned. I like complex things better than simple things.
It's a simplistic view of rock music. A lot of artists fit in both categories. A lot fit in neither. But it makes sense to me. And if "maximalist" artists between the mid-60s and mid-80s interest you, check his Rate Your Music page. It includes best album lists for every year from 1967 to 1985. Be warned: He hates modern music. He ignores 99% of everything made after the mid-80s. He dismisses lots of albums solely based on their release date. If you can deal with that, check it out.
As you can tell, Zaragon's biased toward maximalist bands. I would complain, but most rock critics are biased toward minimalism. I share his bias anyway. Here's his list of minimalist bands:
The Stooges, The Shaggs, The New York Dolls, T.Rex, Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers, Neil Young, Graham Parsons, Nick Drake, Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, Faust, Can, Patti Smith, The Ramones, Pere Ubu, James Chance & the Contortions, The Buzzcocks, Joy Division, The Smiths, Wire, Bauhaus, Gang of Four, AC/DC, Nerdvana (sic), Violent Femmes, Suicide, Throbbing Gristle
Most of those are critics' favorites. And he really hates Nirvana. I kind of like them but I won't push the matter either. It's a diverse group but there's something a lot of those artists have in common. A lot of indie fans have that taste. Now look at his list of maximalist bands:
Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Emerson Lake & Palmer, The Who (post-1968), Jethro Tull, Chicago, Earth Wind & Fire, Deep Purple, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Mike Oldfield, PFM, Tangerine Dream, Magma, Harmonium, Supertramp, Al Stewart, Boz Scaggs, Rupert Holmes, Queen, Electric Light Orchestra, Steve Harley, 10cc, Styx, Kate Bush, The Stranglers, Ultravox, Magazine, Japan, U2, Simple Minds
Most of these are bands critics hate. There's progressive rock, hard rock, jazz-rock/fusion, and the technicolor pop the Beatles launched, along with a handful of new-wavers that critics also hate. And U2. A lot of prog fans like the non-prog artists on this list.
I used to wonder why punks went into singer-songwriter territory and metal bands went into progressive territory. This explains it. Most singer-songwriters are minimalists and most metal is maximalist. With lots of exceptions of course.
Where I disagree with him is he thinks maximalism ended in the 1980s. It's alive and well today. Modern maximalists include: Radiohead, Muse, Coldplay, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Flaming Lips, Blur, Porcupine Tree, Sigur Rós, The Mars Volta, Dream Theater, and Faith No More among many others. Some of these are questionable but so are some of Zaragon's picks.
I like a few minimalists like Kraftwerk and Brian Eno, but most rock artists I like are maximalist. There's more possibility there. There's more emotion. There's more extremes of beauty and ugliness. There's more power. There's a lot more color - the minimalists are so gray-toned. I like complex things better than simple things.
It's a simplistic view of rock music. A lot of artists fit in both categories. A lot fit in neither. But it makes sense to me. And if "maximalist" artists between the mid-60s and mid-80s interest you, check his Rate Your Music page. It includes best album lists for every year from 1967 to 1985. Be warned: He hates modern music. He ignores 99% of everything made after the mid-80s. He dismisses lots of albums solely based on their release date. If you can deal with that, check it out.
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