RossWe live in an age abundant with new music brimming with the talent of thousands of underrated artists. Without fail, I can always find a band playing a gig somewhere nearby that I would happily attend. And, with social media, people with similar musical tastes can share new music with others, or even enlighten those who have only stretched their musical horizons to the tunes that we frequently hear in clubs.
So why, when I turn on the radio in the car, can I only hear the same untalented dross on every station? The kind of music that requires no real musical ability, nor vocal skill, but only a chorus and a heavy dance beat in the middle fills society, and brainwashes those who are unwilling to delve deeper into Spotify into thinking that this is the best our generation has to offer.
Of course when I go to clubs, or someone plays one of these “songs” at pre-drinks, I enjoy it. (Though I find it a coincidence too hard to ignore that on both of these occasions my enjoyment level is paralleled with the amount of alcohol I’ve had to drink.) However, we, as students and young adults, should be expanding our music tastes, rejecting this overrated and commercialized “music”, and preparing ourselves to be able to bestow a decent portrayal of our generations music onto younger generations. When I listen to my dad’s music, I can appreciate it, as eclectic as it is (varying from The Moody Blues, to Sex Pistols, to Sylvester). How could I possibly look my future son in the eye, and solemnly tell him, “Listen to this son, this is Jason Derulo. Listen to how he says almost nothing at all save for when he mentions ‘Butts’, and someone in the music industry has managed to work in a catchy little loop made by an instrument that only appears for the ‘chorus’”?
The ship has well and truly sailed for saving the lost souls of our musical generation, but something can still be done for those young enough to still be impressionable. In the words of the great Robert De Niro when he plays Jack Byrne in Meet The Fockers, “A [child’s] mind is like a sponge.” We should be encouraging them to soak up talented vocals, guitar virtuosos and poetic lyrics, not subjecting them to tone deaf singers birthed by the money grabbing entity that is today’s Music Industry.
And if my diatribe isn’t enough, I’ve located a Youtube video that details exactly how much “skill” goes into the production of today’s chart toppers. Enjoy. And remember, if ever you find yourself about to turn on Capital radio in the car with a baby, you’re encouraging a future generation to carry on the habit of funding commercialized muck. Put on a CD instead. I’ve heard the Royal Blood album is supposed to be pretty good.