|
Post by kds on Jul 29, 2019 14:12:56 GMT
Vedder appeared with Waters at the Hurricane Sandy benefit in 2012, and attempted to sing David Gilmour's vocal lines on Comfortably Numb. Attempted? I can tell you weren't impressed. Hey, I can't make you like Eddie. Not gonna try. But...The Doors, The Who, Pink Floyd, Neil Young, and I've heard him cover Dylan...you gotta admit the guy has good taste. He has good taste, I'll give him that. But, I've never thought he was a good singer.
|
|
|
Post by Kapitan on Jul 29, 2019 14:16:23 GMT
I thought about some of those too. Funny, while we have our unique tastes in “likes,” we sure dislike a lot of the same artists. Ha. That's funny. I don't even necessarily dislike all of the artists I mentioned. I actually really like 80s U2, but I'm baffled at how they can still fill stadiums. And I've seen them live before, in 2005, and found them to be very underwhelming live, especially when they're considering to be such a great live act. Actually, I guess they're the only one. Save for a couple Green Day songs, I'm not really a fan of anyone else in my top 9. I TOTALLY agree that U2 were a great band. It’s just that “were” is the key word, I suppose. I actually remember my sister, 9 years older than me, introducing me to their music very early on, I’m guessing around War or maybe Unforgettable Fire. I enjoyed it as a little kid, and then of course Joshua Tree was just everywhere, an album full of hits. I can imagine some people might have burned out on it because of its saturation of the culture, but it was really a great, fresh sounding album with undeniably great songs. Achtung Baby still had some good things, and even Zooropa wasn’t horrible, but I was pretty turned off them by then. I did see them live on the Pop tour around 1998, and I have to say that while I wasn’t a big fan of their new music at that point, I still think it was one of my favorite shows ever. I found Bono tremendously charismatic and not so annoying as I do now (though he was playing a megalomaniac character in those days, I think “Fly” or something?) … which in hindsight is just Bono, I think. Great show though, despite being in the old Metrodome and me being in I think the second-to-last row. Right after then was when they started having “back to form” albums, and as is usually the case with those, nothing feels as inspired as the first go-round; instead, at best they seem to be doing decent imitations of themselves. That’s a movie we’ve all seen before with legacy artists including BBs, Dylan, McCartney, Lou Reed, etc.
|
|
|
Post by kds on Jul 29, 2019 14:31:08 GMT
Ha. That's funny. I don't even necessarily dislike all of the artists I mentioned. I actually really like 80s U2, but I'm baffled at how they can still fill stadiums. And I've seen them live before, in 2005, and found them to be very underwhelming live, especially when they're considering to be such a great live act. Actually, I guess they're the only one. Save for a couple Green Day songs, I'm not really a fan of anyone else in my top 9. I TOTALLY agree that U2 were a great band. It’s just that “were” is the key word, I suppose. I actually remember my sister, 9 years older than me, introducing me to their music very early on, I’m guessing around War or maybe Unforgettable Fire. I enjoyed it as a little kid, and then of course Joshua Tree was just everywhere, an album full of hits. I can imagine some people might have burned out on it because of its saturation of the culture, but it was really a great, fresh sounding album with undeniably great songs. Achtung Baby still had some good things, and even Zooropa wasn’t horrible, but I was pretty turned off them by then. I did see them live on the Pop tour around 1998, and I have to say that while I wasn’t a big fan of their new music at that point, I still think it was one of my favorite shows ever. I found Bono tremendously charismatic and not so annoying as I do now (though he was playing a megalomaniac character in those days, I think “Fly” or something?) … which in hindsight is just Bono, I think. Great show though, despite being in the old Metrodome and me being in I think the second-to-last row. Right after then was when they started having “back to form” albums, and as is usually the case with those, nothing feels as inspired as the first go-round; instead, at best they seem to be doing decent imitations of themselves. That’s a movie we’ve all seen before with legacy artists including BBs, Dylan, McCartney, Lou Reed, etc. I think I could compile a pretty good single disc comp of U2's post Joshua Tree material. I remember when they released All That You Can't Leave Behind in 2000, I was initially relieved that U2 at least sounded like U2 again, unlike much of their material from the later half of the 1990s, but overall the songs on that album were pretty blah. Same with 2004's How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb which was highly praised as a return to the classic U2 sound. I can only assume the fans and critics saying that never actually listened to Boy, War, or The Unforgettable Fire.
|
|
|
Post by Kapitan on Sept 25, 2019 0:04:29 GMT
First, I think that was the first time it struck me that we're ending a(nother) decade! And second, this puts us at 20% through the century, which is astounding for someone who still thinks of the '90s as current (or at least recent).
Anyway, I was trying to think of my Top 10 albums and songs from the 2010s, and then also expanding into this first quintile of the century. I have no results for you (and most of my choices wouldn't be especially popular among this group), but it's a fun way to spend an evening, especially when compared to, say, following the news. I've done annual best-of playlists from 2012 onward, so to begin I'm just revisiting those. There are songs I literally forgot about entirely even though they're that recent! I'm really happy to say that for the most part I'm enjoying these songs more than I'd have guessed, as opposed to being embarrassed at my own past taste. I love that; I wish I enjoyed everything. (It's the thing about elitism that makes no sense: how happy can you possibly be always being disappointed?)
Hopefully I'll end up with some lists for you all, be they submissions to Pitchfork or just things that occurred to me in the interim. Mostly this was just a chance to listen and babble about it.
|
|
|
Post by kds on Sept 25, 2019 12:24:51 GMT
Not surprisingly, my list of top anything from the 10s would be filled mostly with bands that originated well beforehand. For the most part, I think this decade sucked musically. And, with more and more of the greats either calling it a day or passing on, I don't see the 2020s being any better.
But, here are my top albums of the 2010s.
1. Ghost - Infessisumam 2. The Beach Boys - That's Why God Made the Radio 3. Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier 4. Alice Cooper - Welcome 2 My Nightmare 5. Purson - The Circle and the Blue Door 6. Van Halen - A Different Kind of Truth 7. David Gilmour - Rattle That Lock 8. The Darkness - Last of Our Kind 9. Ghost - Meliora 10. Deep Purple - Now What?
|
|
|
Post by Kapitan on Oct 7, 2019 17:50:20 GMT
|
|
|
Post by kds on Oct 7, 2019 18:46:40 GMT
Wow, I know this has been a shit decade when it comes to music, but there was not one song in the 200 "best" that I can say I heard and liked. The ones I haven't heard, I can fairly assume I wouldn't like them.
|
|
|
Post by Sheriff John Stone on Oct 7, 2019 19:11:45 GMT
I'll abstain because I don't know any of 'em.
|
|
|
Post by kds on Oct 7, 2019 19:30:11 GMT
I'll abstain because I don't know any of 'em. Consider yourself lucky.
|
|
bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
|
Post by bellbottoms on Oct 7, 2019 22:57:59 GMT
Once upon a time, teenage me declared I would never get off the current popular music train. As in, I actually remember saying words to that effect out loud. And now here I am looking at that list and I have no idea what 98 % of those songs are. I’m also pretty cozy with the idea of never going out of my way to try listening to them.
I honestly don’t know whether to be proud or ashamed of myself. I think it's a little of both.
|
|
|
Post by Kapitan on Oct 7, 2019 23:18:47 GMT
Once upon a time, teenage me declared I would never get off the current popular music train. As in, I actually remember saying words to that effect out loud. And now here I am looking at that list and I have no idea what 98 % of those songs are. I’m also pretty cozy with the idea of never going out of my way to try listening to them. I honestly don’t know whether to be proud or ashamed of myself. I think it's a little of both. I was an old crank ahead of my time and almost completely gave up then-modern music from the time I was about 16-24. During those years I dug into the classics and insisted there was nothing new that was any good.
In the end, the joke was on me. I've actually gone back into first indie rock and pop, but over this past decade even just pure pop sometimes. So I'm not near (for example) KDS on this stuff ... but that said, it is increasingly obvious to me that while I might be open to new music, new music is less open to me. It's just not meant for me, which I guess is fine.
|
|
bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
|
Post by bellbottoms on Oct 8, 2019 12:55:32 GMT
I was an old crank ahead of my time and almost completely gave up then-modern music from the time I was about 16-24. During those years I dug into the classics and insisted there was nothing new that was any good.
In the end, the joke was on me. I've actually gone back into first indie rock and pop, but over this past decade even just pure pop sometimes. So I'm not near (for example) KDS on this stuff ... but that said, it is increasingly obvious to me that while I might be open to new music, new music is less open to me. It's just not meant for me, which I guess is fine.
I know what you mean about a lot of new music not being open to you - I think I feel that way, too. Excluded, in a sense, like I'm not invited to the party. And of course I'm not invited to the party, I'm old, LOL. There IS some good new music, it's just not popular (and by "good" I guess I mean music that I'm open to). The trouble is that I don't really put forth the effort required to find new good stuff. There are a few current artists I've learned about through friends or who are opening acts to bands I've gone to see who are putting out great music, and I support them fiercely. It's funny though, looking at my listening habits it's sooo much vintage, with a light smattering of the new stuff that you can't find on the radio.
|
|
|
Post by kds on Oct 8, 2019 13:08:42 GMT
With each passing year, I grow more and more confident in the "modern music is crap" stance that I've had since around 1993. To me, it's just not worth the time and effort to dig around looking for new acts like I used to, most of which would wind up disappointing me in the end by either changing their sound, running out of good material, or breaking up altogether.
Nope, I find myself increasingly happier living in my 60s, 70s, and 80s bubble, and the time I used to waste looking for new music is now spent revisiting music I love, or finding gems I was previously unaware of.
|
|
|
Post by Kapitan on Oct 8, 2019 13:08:45 GMT
I still scan the new releases almost weekly on iTunes, allmusic, and Pitchfork, but I’ve noticed increasingly how much of my “new” music favorites are actually getting up there too. I think I did a thread about that, “contemporary” bands that in the blink of my eye have 20-year careers already.
It’s fine. When I was 15, or 25, I don’t know how positively I’d have reacted to a 43-year-old sharing my tastes. So I don’t get the appeal of Drake, CupcakKe, or Clairo. Oh well.
|
|
|
Post by Kapitan on Oct 8, 2019 21:58:58 GMT
So going back to the premise of that Pitchfork post a while back, they were doing the best songs and albums of the '10s. I didn't QUITE go that far in terms of ranking, but for some friends I did put together some rough groupings. First, here are some albums I like from that time period.
Vampire Weekend, Father of the Bride (2019) The Mountain Goats, Beat the Champ! (2015) David Bowie, Blackstar (2016) Courtney Barnett, Sometimes I Sit and Think, Sometimes I Just Sit (2015) Kacey Musgraves, Same Trailer Different Park (2013) Joanna Newsom, Divers (2016) Parquet Courts, Human Performance (2016) The Beach Boys, That's Why God Made the Radio (2012) Beyonce, Lemonade (2016) HAIM, Something to Tell You (2017)
Of Montreal, Lousy With Sylvianbriar (2013) Fiona Apple, The Idler Wheel... (2012) Bruce Springsteen, Western Stars (2019) Cotton Mather, Wild Kingdom (2017) Tom Waits, Bad As Me (2011) The New Basement Tapes, Lost on the River (2014) Jeremy Messersmith, The Reluctant Graveyard (2010) Of Montreal, False Priest (2010) Vampire Weekend, Contra (2010) Kacey Musgraves, Pageant Material (2015)
|
|