September 22, 2007

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Sat Sep 22, 2007 10:02 am

Been listening to the current fight and thinking deep thoughts... turned on the radio for the first time on my drive home yesterday to hear what the "alternative" station was playing.

And boy, if that's what passes for "alternative", then the standard music, the top 40 must either be really really good, or amazingly bad.

By bad I mean, unchallenging, inoffensive, soulless product cranked out to appeal to the most people possible.

Yeah, that's the whole gestalt of the music industry, I know. Even the word "industry" subversively reinforces that imagery.

Which brings me back to the current fight. For the most part I'm just not enjoying it, even the fighters whom I normally enjoy. I can appreciate the skill applied, but the soul-moving passion seems to be lacking.

QOTDs: Is this the music that they want to make, that their heart of hearts sings to them 24 hours a day? Or are they modeling their desires on mass-produced, lowest-common-denominator fodder for 12 year old girls' allowances? Are these creations what gives them joy?

erik · Post by **erik** » Sat Sep 22, 2007 10:23 am

It's not like everybody has it in them to make good music. If I was a hack, and couldn't write good music, but people wanted to pay me alot of money to make whatever crappy music I was making, I'd be overjoyed.

jack · Post by **jack** » Sat Sep 22, 2007 11:15 am

good does not always equal commercially viable.

and for mainstream media, money talks and art can walk.

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Sat Sep 22, 2007 11:24 am

Ha, so true. I'd do the same erik. Everybody wants their works posted on the refrigerator doors of life.

And jack, also sadly true. The lowest common denominator rules.

I'm feeling idealistic today, heh.

I think there's multiple levels of "challenging" in making music, or any art. The technical...

like, playing the damned instruments competently, hitting the vocal notes you want, staying in time, brush pressure and shading, learning to type, becoming competent at communicating one's ideas understandably

...and the expressive, the infectious...

crafting of the melody, the hook, the lyrical turn that lodges in your brain and communes with you; the breathtaking painting that evokes more than mere pigment on canvas reflecting patterns of light and color to your eye; writing a character that grows before your mind's eye, that has your empathy and encouragement

...which rises above performance or production and becomes something more, something greater than the sum of its and your parts together.

So that's what I'm thinking about today. Art that pushes you toward something, opposed to art that merely is.

Billy's Little Trip · Post by **Billy's Little Trip** » Sat Sep 22, 2007 4:49 pm

I know the White Stripes have been out for a number of years. but I believe Jack White is doing what he wants and able to both please the alt listener and please the money machine.
As far as what is playing on KROQ the past couple week, my alt station, have been pretty good in my opinion. Serj Tankian's new stuff. I mean it just sounds like System of a Down, but that's OK, I like him in SOAD and I like his writing style. Plus Rabz, he likes to play that gismo you're always playing, check this out.

Here is this weeks 10 most requested at KROQ:
Serj Tankian - Empty Walls
Foo Fighters - The Pretender
Paramore - Misery Business
Beck - Timebomb
Angels & Airwaves - Everything's Magic
Serj Tankian - The Unthinking Majority
Flyleaf - All Around Me
Finger Eleven - Paralyzer
Kid Rock - So Hott
Linkin Park - Shadow of the Day

The 10 most played at KROQ:
Foo Fighters - The Pretender
Paramore - Misery Business
The White Stripes - Icky Thump
Linkin Park - What I've Done
Incubus - Dig
Serj Tankian - Empty Walls
Beck - Timebomb
Tool - The Pot
Rise Against - Prayer of the Refugee
Incubus - Oil and Water

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Sat Sep 22, 2007 7:43 pm

Pretty cool clip. And KROQ, more often than not, has been a truly alternative station... which has no few roots in their beginnings, broadcasting from hotel rooms through lo-power transmitters to the nearby area.

Fairly dead thread, heh. I should know better than to post questions of the day.

Off to see a punk show soon, '70s era Portland punks who are still making a joyful noise of their own. And on that thought, in San Francisco 31Oct-01Nov is the 30th year reunion show(s) of the old Mabuhay Gardens crowd. Met one of the reunionees at a Vibrators show last week here in town. Now I wonder what the next parallel to '70s punk is. Hmmm. Still in deep thoughts-land, me.

Paco Del Stinko · Post by **Paco Del Stinko** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 4:02 am

Well, the industry is struggling to stay alive but it's always pushed pap to the masses. But I'm sure that some artists feel as though they are baring their souls and others are plenty glad to put on the Johnny Bravo jacket. Personally, I have no soul and don't fit into the jacket. And I might feel a bit pretentious calling myself an artist.

Lord of Oats · Post by **Lord of Oats** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 4:24 am

Paco Del Stinko wrote:Well, the industry is struggling to stay alive but it's always pushed pap to the masses. But I'm sure that some artists feel as though they are baring their souls and others are plenty glad to put on the Johnny Bravo jacket. Personally, I have no soul and don't fit into the jacket. And I might feel a bit pretentious calling myself an artist.

Paco, you are certainly an artist. Trust me on this. I've got a rather populist view of art, but even if I didn't, I'd still think you were an artist, and a damn good one at that.

sausage boy · Post by **sausage boy** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 6:28 am

Paco, I have always thought of you as a small dog of some kind. Probably short haired, large ears and large eyes. So, a chiwawa or something, but also a lot like Speak from The Tick. Speak was a rodent, though, much to The Ticks denial.

QOTD: Do you mean 'they' as in, pop stars and the like? Or do you mean SFers adopting styles that they think will win them votes? I assume you mean the former, as there are no 12 year old girls here (just 45 year old guys pretending to be 12 year old girls). Honestly, I would say its a kind of 50/50 split. I am sure there are some who are in it to write their songs and sing them, while some are just there because they can be (Paris Hilton, for example, perhaps!?).

Rabid, it sounds like you need a dose of TISM's ARIAs acceptance speech. When TISM won the ARIA for Best Independant Album, they had the SBS Sports presenter Les Murray come up and do the acceptence speech. It was entirely in Hungarian, and (through the marvel of later added subtitles) he calls the music industry a septic boil on the buttocks on humanity. Then says he hopes they (the attendees) all die a horrible, horrible death. And they all smile and applaude. Its great.

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 11:34 am

Always pictured him as more of a Puli, myself.

Though Speak works, too.

"They"... pop stars, mediocre music robots on the air, fighters on here... chose the more passive "they" over the generic and all-encompassing (and slightly more direct) "you", of which I include myself, to be a little less confrontational in tone. Specifically, "what (insert the color words of your preference) are you thinking, making that?" Guess that's the last of the deep thoughts for a while.

ION: Went to the show last night. Mrs. & I left a little early as she was a little more than drunky, and I was getting tired of drinking Shirley Temples. We're outside the venue and a voice calls out "Rabid Garfunkel"!

Which is a pretty weird experience. Was myspace associated, the punk from my previous post (Rozz Rezabek) who saw us leaving and wanted to say hi and chat with us (which we enjoyably did--he's a neat and entertaining guy), but still... never expected to hear that outside of a songfight show.

Billy's Little Trip · Sun Sep 23, 2007 12:16 pm

Rabid Garfunkel wrote:Mrs. & I left a little early as she was a little more than drunky, and I was getting tired of drinking Shirley Temples. We're outside the venue and a voice calls out "Rabid Garfunkel"!

Which is a pretty weird experience. Was myspace associated, the punk from my previous post (Rozz Rezabek) who saw us leaving and wanted to say hi and chat with us (which we enjoyably did--he's a neat and entertaining guy), but still... never expected to hear that outside of a songfight show.

That is really weird..............You were drinking Shirley Temples?

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 12:30 pm

Heh. Yeah. Yum!

Billy's Little Trip · Sun Sep 23, 2007 12:35 pm

Couldn't you have gotten a club soda and lime, or something less gay?

erik · Post by **erik** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 1:21 pm

Gay dudes don't drink Shirley Temples.

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 1:26 pm

sausage boy wrote: When TISM won the ARIA for Best Independant Album, they had the SBS Sports presenter Les Murray come up and do the acceptence speech. It was entirely in Hungarian, and (through the marvel of later added subtitles) he calls the music industry a septic boil on the buttocks on humanity. Then says he hopes they (the attendees) all die a horrible, horrible death. And they all smile and applaude. Its great.

I ddn't know that. That's beautiful!

Billy's Little Trip · Post by **Billy's Little Trip** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 5:02 pm

erik wrote:Gay dudes don't drink Shirley Temples.

I never said they did.
......Ah see, I gotchya!

j/k

sausage boy · Post by **sausage boy** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 7:31 pm

Caravan Ray wrote:
sausage boy wrote: When TISM won the ARIA for Best Independant Album, they had the SBS Sports presenter Les Murray come up and do the acceptence speech. It was entirely in Hungarian, and (through the marvel of later added subtitles) he calls the music industry a septic boil on the buttocks on humanity. Then says he hopes they (the attendees) all die a horrible, horrible death. And they all smile and applaude. Its great.
I ddn't know that. That's beautiful!

I have a 'backup' copy of Gold! Gold! Gold! (which this is on) somewhere. I was surprised that this wasn't on YouTube already. I might have to dig it out and post it up on there. TISM do great acceptance speeches. I can remember the one they did when they originally won battle of the bands back in 81.

All 7 TISM guys come out, all in black with the balaclavas, 6 carry bouques of flowers. Ron takes the microphone, while the other 6 with the flowers stand behind him, with one also holding the Battle of the Band trophy. Ron speaks.

"We come here today, to accept this award, on behalf of Wawanee."

At this point, the member holding the trophy throws it on the ground, and the six start to hit it with their flowers. Ron keeps speaking.

"Who taught us that originality is the flower of invention. And they would also like to state their support for senseless nuclear holocaust. Irradiate, thats what they say. Die in a senseless automobile accident, thats what they say. Lets have more industrial espionage, thats what they say. We will treasure this award, and take it to our sordid graves."

and then they walk off.

Lord of Oats · Post by **Lord of Oats** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 7:42 pm

What's TISM?

sausage boy · Post by **sausage boy** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 7:55 pm

Lord of Oats · Post by **Lord of Oats** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:02 pm

Oh, it's another Australian thing. Well, thanks.

But I still don't understand what a ute is.

sausage boy · Post by **sausage boy** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:04 pm

Its what you use to hit roos, and pommies.

Lord of Oats · Post by **Lord of Oats** » Sun Sep 23, 2007 8:14 pm

sausage boy wrote:Its what you use to hit roos, and pommies.

Roos, like kangaroos? What are pommies?

It's a vehicle you drive around to run over animals?