• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join freeLog in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Why does mordern pop music suck?

Lol. When all that music came out, old people said it sucked as well... ; )


It's easy to say that it's all relative and we only remember the best stuff, but take an honest look at the quality of what's being put out there. For example, look at the Billboard Hot 100 chart from 1980 versus the same chart from 2010.

Sure, there are plenty of throwaways and one-hit wonders on the 1980 chart, but I can't help but see a stark contrast between the quality (somewhat subjective) and staying-power (more objective) between the artists and bands listed. Even comparing the top 20 names, it don't think anyone over 25 years old would think it's even a contest...
1980:
Blondie
Pink Floyd
Michael Jackson
Queen
Paul McCartney
Billy Joel
Elton John
The Spinners

All still in heavy rotation and loved by people across the globe. Whereas the top 20 for 2010 has only a few artists (very few bands) that will be remembered, much less played, in 30+ years. Maybe Usher, Eminem, and Lady Gaga, and even they will probably not be held in such high regard as the ones I listed for 1980.

I think that's about as apples-to-apples as it can be. Granted, we won't know how the modern artists will age, but my money would undoubtedly be on the older ones.

My pet theory is that the surge in purchasing power of younger teens and tweens is a contributing factor to the degrading quality of popular music. In the 90s, boy bands became huge because parents would give their kids money to buy CDs and pay $100+ for concerts. In the mid 2000s when those age groups got cell phones, so popular music was about creating a hook that would make a good ringtone (Crank Dat Soulja Boy, anyone?), and it kept going down that path where every kid has a smartphone, and hence access to a music store in his/her pocket. As mentioned already in the thread, the industry chases dollars and that's coming from the lowest common denominator.

It's not just the artists themselves. Look at all of the top 20 songs in 2010. Think about who this song is targeted towards. Almost every single one of them is aimed squarely at the young (under 25) female demographic. The top 20 songs and artists from 1980 were much more diverse in their audience and more universal appeal, imo.

Definitely agree that there's plenty of good music out there. Love those NPR Tiny Desk Concerts, and there are a few instances of cream rising through the charts, but overall, I think it's more complicated than to just say that it's all relative and we only remember the good stuff. That said, there are some great, older acts still touring, or going back on tour because people are realizing what great music they make. One thing that would help is for older people to spend money on good music again, so the industry will chase after those dollars more than the aforementioned demographic, and I say that as an old millennial.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GregC
I'll echo that music began to suck when people stopped buying it. As much as people seem to hate on producers, they can turn coal into diamonds. Hell, they were smart enough to also hire great studio musicians, which allowed Pino to make a bunch of 80's pop have sweet bass parts.

The only music that sells is basically songs that are all chorus.
 
  • Like
Reactions: murphy
Music was good when you were young because:

1) You spent more money at concerts and on records than your parents. So the artists made music you liked.

2) If your parents hated it, it got bonus points from you. Artists also worked to achieve this.

Music isn't good now because:

1) Your kids spend more money at concerts and on records (downloads) than you. So the artists make music they like.

2) If you hate it, it gets bonus points from your kids. Artists also work to achieve this.
 
I don't agree with the "all new music is rubbish" theory. You've got to accept that the commercial radio demographic is probably not us. I gave up commercial radio years ago. In Australia, with the exception of one or two private/government/internet stations, the same short list of forgettable songs is played by the short list of low IQ DJ's. Fortunately there's still plenty of good music available to download if you know where to look, and that's where recommendations from bass forums/sites come in:thumbsup:
 
The oldest known writings seem to depict music as a gift to humanity from her creator. Popular music has been shedding its musical aspects since before the beginning of radio days. The American music industry adopted an informal standard of A4 = 440 Hz in 1926. The ancient Tibetan healing powers of 432 Hz, called ‘Scientific Tuning’ because of its correlations with mathematics, nature and the universe, had finally been ousted by the initial efforts of the invasive 26th Egyptian dynasty. With a slight increase in frequency, to make the same songs sound a little brighter, how many would have perceived a detrimental change in human music?

Going back to the beginning of consumer electronic recording in the 1930’s, most of the Top Ten radio hits had my favorite musical aspect; Harmony (not human voices, but rather chromaticism~ as in nature). When the background chord structure uses all twelve notes, the potential melodies are naturally free. Along with downsizing bands, for production profits, producers started promoting simplified harmony. By the 1950’s, most of the hits had adopted a three chord (single key) structure. A gifted soloist will always be able to play all twelve notes over a confined harmonic structure, but the song has lost most of its ability to emotionally move me.

Today, hit songs require neither harmony nor melody. As long as there’s still a danceable beat, it can sell. So many of these rhythm tracks are built using sequenced electronic sounds, that the rhythm itself lacks a continuous (live) development. If a person is immune to lyrics, then any reciprocating machine can produce an equally valid composition.

In the early days, the top ten hits were determined by public vote. Not a fair version, but different than using ‘programmers’ to determine popular songs. As a boy, I was always able to predict the number one song of the year. Imagine my surprise on New Year’s Eve of 1978 when WLS of Chicago didn’t announce Starbuck’s hit as number one!

If music can actually strengthen our defenses and bolster our life, then why would the powers that be want to remove this from our reach?



"A commitment to The truth never depends upon its revelations".

(self-defined truth)
 

Latest posts