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Post by Kapitan on Feb 5, 2021 14:05:41 GMT
The reference, of course, is to this song, which was briefly popular in my youth.
But the thread isn't about that--unless by coincidence that song happens to be the one you hate the most. The thread is inspired by a question I saw on twitter, "do you have a most hated pop song from the past 50 years?"
I had a really, really hard time answering that question, because frankly I dismiss-to-dislike most of the pop songs I've ever heard. And whichever is getting a lot of airplay (especially if it's used in commercials or as the intro/outro music for sports leagues and shows) is bound to be my temporary choice.
But what about you? Do you have one song that stands out above (er, below?) the rest? One that you especially dislike? What, and why?
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Post by kds on Feb 5, 2021 14:25:39 GMT
Hmmm, I have a couple.
Iggy Azalea - Fancy - Thanks to the success of this song, Iggy Azalea's Aussie rap persona invaded the world in the summer of 2014. And, thanks to her appearing on some other pop tarts' songs, she wound up with something like 4 top 5 singles that summer. Her rapping vocals were extremely grating.
Imagine Dragons - Thunder - One of the funniest things I've read about music in the last decade was "about ten years from now, we're going to look back and be really embarrassed at how successful Imagine Dragons was." I think that thing I hate the most about this band - even more than the whisper screaming, white boy rapping, and earworm nature of their music - is that this band is for some reason considered rock. So, in addition to Top 40, they get regular play on active rock radio. Now, I don't like Nickelback or Greta Van Fleet, but I 100% understand why they're played on active rock. Imagine Dragons is rock music for kids who have no clue what rock is.
Miley Cyrus - Baby Talk - I mentioned on the SSMB when this song came out that this song would wind up lowering the bar for pop standards significantly. I got blown up for it. But, I think Miley's talking over a generic pop beat might've opened up a door to even worse stuff, even if this particular song didn't really catch on like some of her other hits.
Florida Georgia Line f/ Bebe Rexha - Ride With Me - Sort of along the same lines as Imagine Dragons, this crap is considered country. If your songs feature Bebe Rexha, there's a very good chance you're not a country artist. These guys aren't even country enough to qualify as bro country.
Billie Eilish - Bad Guy - This might be the worst pop song I've ever heard. And, I think what made it even more annoying was that Eilish was treating like she was some sort of genius for her whisper vocals over dumbed down EDM beats approach to pop. It was sort of the same treatment Lorde got a few years prior, but at least Lorde could sing. This Eilish song was everywhere. It even got regular play at Ravens games during the 2019 season.
In general, I think pop music has been pretty disposable since the 1990s. But, I could still see the appeal in the likes of N Sync, Christina Agulira (sp), Katy Perry, and even Taylor Swift believe it or not. These artists I've named here are artists whose appeal I cannot comprehend in the least. I could probably think of ten more songs, but the thought of is making me physically ill. I might actually have to listen to Van Halen III, Metallica St. Anger, and Stars and Stripes Vol 1 to cleanse my pallet.
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Post by Kapitan on Feb 5, 2021 18:38:57 GMT
I can understand the thought of most pop music being disposable as well, but I personally don't think it has a solid start to it... even the 60s had bad/mediocre music all over, but the thing is that no one talks about it. Of course, over the past two decades or so, irrelevant music kind of grown to be the rule and not the exception as it might have been some years ago (do I make sense here?) Without any kind of statistical evidence to back me up, I am speculating here, but I think your point that "golden era" (whichever era that is for different people, whether 1954, 1962, 1967, 1971, 1979, etc.) music is dead-on correct. I think nostalgia is as powerful in this as it is anywhere else: people forget the mundane, the annoying, the bad, and remember (and even exaggerate) the great.
The challenges current music will always have are:
1) People who remember older music tend to be nostalgic toward it, as that music is inextricably tied to their own experiences and emotions. (They say whatever you listened to when you're about 15-20 becomes important to you forever.)
2) You're inevitably comparing the memorable, established classics--the stuff that DID last--to the entire output of current material. It's like comparing the an all-star team from some past year against some normal team.
So yes, I am 100% certain there was a LOT OF CRAP in "the good old days."
That said, I am not arguing music always is of the same relative quality. There are other factors involved that affect things, whether commercial potential, market trends, consumption habits, the public's interest in the form in question (e.g. rock and roll is bound to be more interesting in, say, it's second decade, while it is still a young and vital growing form, than now, some 70 years into its life), and so on.
In summary: Imagine Dragons is truly awful.
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Post by kds on Feb 5, 2021 18:43:58 GMT
I agree, kds. I'd go as far as saying that Imagine Dragons is one of the most disgusting thing to come out of pop music in a long time... overly dramatic vocals and production, terrible lyrics and every song of theirs sounds the same. And it sells like water in the desert. I can understand the thought of most pop music being disposable as well, but I personally don't think it has a solid start to it... even the 60s had bad/mediocre music all over, but the thing is that no one talks about it. Of course, over the past two decades or so, irrelevant music kind of grown to be the rule and not the exception as it might have been some years ago (do I make sense here?) There's always been crap pop music. But, I really feel like there was more talent in the 60s, 70s, 80, and even 90s. Michael Jackson is a great example. I'm not a fan of his music for the most part, but he mastered the craft of pop music.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Feb 6, 2021 15:39:05 GMT
There's always been crap pop music. But, I really feel like there was more talent in the 60s, 70s, 80, and even 90s. Michael Jackson is a great example. I'm not a fan of his music for the most part, but he mastered the craft of pop music. Thanks, kds! I was trying to think of an example to post about, and you reminded me of one - Michael Jackson. The funny thing is, I really like(d) most of the early Jackson 5 stuff. I was a big fan of their AM radio hits in the early 1970's, however, I just couldn't get into Michael Jackson's solo music. Maybe it was the strange persona he was becoming, but also it wasn't my kind of music. I do recognize it as being extremely well-produced and performed, but, frankly whenever it "comes on", I turn it off. I do like the opening/beat to "Billie Jean", but eventually get bored.
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Post by kds on Feb 6, 2021 17:02:25 GMT
There's always been crap pop music. But, I really feel like there was more talent in the 60s, 70s, 80, and even 90s. Michael Jackson is a great example. I'm not a fan of his music for the most part, but he mastered the craft of pop music. Thanks, kds! I was trying to think of an example to post about, and you reminded me of one - Michael Jackson. The funny thing is, I really like(d) most of the early Jackson 5 stuff. I was a big fan of their AM radio hits in the early 1970's, however, I just couldn't get into Michael Jackson's solo music. Maybe it was the strange persona he was becoming, but also it wasn't my kind of music. I do recognize it as being extremely well-produced and performed, but, frankly whenever it "comes on", I turn it off. I do like the opening/beat to "Billie Jean", but eventually get bored. I can see that as the J5 are more in line with the sounds of Motown. But, MJ as a solo artist is more beat based pop. While its not my thing, I feel like the absolute shit show of pop of the last decade has lead me to at least appreciate Jackson more as his music had real melody, structure, and vocal talent. If I hear MJ at a bar I don't want to stick needles in my ears like I do if Ariana Grande gets played. And, Thriller has cracked my Halloween playlist.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 20, 2021 14:43:10 GMT
Step aside, Cardi B and Megan Theeeeeeeeeeee Stallion: Peaches has one-upped you with the stupidest, most adolescent song of all time. I'd assume it will win a Grammy and land her on the cover of the NY Times as a feminist icon.
As usual, I'm not offended by the content. But I am confused as to why putting out music (or lyrics anyway) that an 12-year-old might have written is somehow seen as legitimately valuable.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 20, 2021 14:54:26 GMT
Not comparing Drake to Cardi B, Megan The Stallion, or Peaches - I wouldn't even know how - but I was watching ESPN yesterday, and one of the hosts made a one-liner comparing Drake's men's basketball team to the artist, Drake. The host mentioned that Drake currently had the top three songs on the Billboard singles chart. Huh? So, I checked it out and I'll be darn, he does. And you know what? I never heard of any of them! Then I went down the entire singles chart and realized that I didn't know a single song. Not one. Hey, I know I'm old, out of touch, and have no desire to catch up, but, having been such a big fan of music for so many years, I never imagined I would become so...clueless.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 20, 2021 14:58:53 GMT
It's very enjoyable to be casually, comfortably out of style.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 20, 2021 15:03:55 GMT
OK, this headline made me laugh. (The Babylon Bee is an Onion-style humor publication that skews conservative and I think Christian.)
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Post by kds on Mar 20, 2021 17:30:15 GMT
I remember when Christina Agulira released her song Dirrrty, and people said "she's too talented to stoop to this level." I guarantee nobody is saying that about Cardi B or Meghan Thee Stallion.
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