I've noticed my interest in today;s music really slipping to not caring any more. Todays music seems bland or just chessey. In the 90's if you listemed to the type of music thats out today like in 1995 you would be laughed at for listening to that type of music. In 2004 the quality of music was not not that bad, todays music seems very low in quality to me. I'm to the point of content to listening to 80's, 90's or 2001-2005 music now that I grew up on. Current music seemed to get bad in March of 2007 when "Buy U A Drank" went to Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. What does everybody else think?

I don't like 99% of today's popular music.  I know I may be an old fart, but I try to keep an open mind.  It's all so derivative or diluted that it doesn't appeal to me.

It could be much better. The alternative rock/punk of today is trying, there is quite a bit of unique material coming from that genre, some original artists are there, making their own stuff, actually putting in an effort, AFI, Muse, The White Stripes, My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy (to an extent), any artists along those lines actually try. Some may not do a good job, but at least they try to be themselves.  Now as for mainstream stuff, its hopeless. Pop stars of today are only as lasting as their last hit for the tweens, and rap music is only about how good the bass will sound being bumped in a car. There is no lyrical substance, all that is rapped about is "how much money I have" or"I'm rollin on dubs" or whatever b***** the rapper in question wants to get in bed with, its not something that is suitable for anyone to listen to, especially not children, who are fast become a core audience for these people. Its pretty sick in my mind, teaching children to basically behave like unintelligent degenerates. Ok, my rant is over.  :o


Baby

Personally, I can't stand 90% of current music.  To me it either harsh sounding, bubblegum pop, or JARS (Just Another Rap Song).  I find myself listening almost exclusively to "Calssic Rock" or country because of this.

And I know a lot of others that are much younger then me that agree.  When I DJ, one of the complaints I hear most is that there is almost nothing made today that you can slow dance to.  At one time, almost every group made at least 1 song per album that was condusive to slow dancing.  Heck, even Kiss had a wonderful ballad called "Beth".

Now turn on your radio, and imagine slow dancing to anything made be Rage Against The Machine or Tool.

Most of it isn't that good, there's stuff that's ok but more annoying things right now than back in 04 or 05. I thought the music wasn't too bad until about late 2005, when it dove quite a bit. Last few years have had a few memorable songs but mostly were focused on forgettable one hit wonder pop rap style songs.

Sucks moosemeat.

There are some great artists out there, but they're not in the mainstream. 

Get ready for a lengthy, wall of text post.  I'm actually going to defend current music.  It's ok, but it could be better.  However, those saying that isn't good at all are wrong and I shall explain why in the folowing wall of text that I doubt people will actually read.

I think Rock music is in a very healthy state right now.  Bands like Muse and the White Stripes easily make up for Nickelback.  Also, we've still got some 90's holdovers like Foo Fighters and Red Hot Chili Peppers still doing very well this decade, along with Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails recently doing a revolutionary act by both self-releasing their albums through the internet, an action that may very well be the first strike in the battle between the record industry and the actual artists themselves.  Rock music does have its fair share of crap, such as the previously mentioned Nickelback, Emo, and Pop-Emo (see: Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic! At The Disco), but there is plenty of good to counter-act it.  Besides, Emo has not been nearly as popular as people make it out to be.  Pop-Emo seems to have surpassed it by this point, and to be honest, I haven't seen much of true Emo at all since I graduated high school.

Pop music is a mixed bag, which is what it has always been.  There are some catchy songs, there are some bad songs, the albums are usually bad.  I do think that the newfound popularity of Disney Channel stuff like Hannah Montana is very annoying, but I'm out of that age group anyway, so it doesn't affect me much.

Rap music is in it's Hair Metal phase.  Materialistic, all about the image, and while it does put out some catchy singles, the artists themselves are hardly artistically credible.  There has been a bit of reaction against this in recent years, with Nas recording "Hip Hop Is Dead", Jay-Z coming out of retirement to "save Hip-Hop", and both Lupe Fiasco and Common growing in popularity.  Unfortunately, I doubt Rap can be truly be saved.  "Low" being number one for 10 weeks shows that people still aren't tired of mainstream Rap yet and won't be until we're into the 2010s...if ever.  Mainstream Rap may be beyond salvation at this point because it has mostly crap since the late 90s.

With all that said, I don't think music today is nearly as bad as it is made out to be.  Since it's the present, we tend to see both the good and the bad, with us emphasizing the bad (one thing the internet has taught me is that people complain more than they praise).  When we look at the past, we only see the good while ignoring or forgetting the bad.  There was plenty of bad music in the past, we've just forgotten it all.  I will admit that there is a higher ratio of bad to good these days, but that is mainly due to the popularity of mainstream Rap, a style I personally dislike.

People will always believe the past is better than the present.  Heck, you see that in this very thread, as I see some people saying music was still somewhat good in 2004 or 2005.  However, back in 2004 or 2005, I remember PLENTY of people saying stuff like "today's music is terrible" and that "music has gone downhill."  Also, I remember that there were plenty of people in 1999 or 2000 who hated the state of music at the time and that time period still got plenty of hate for years afterwards.  Now, I'm starting to see some nostalgia for the time period and how music was better then, even though people at the time sure didn't think so.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that 00s music isn't as bad as it is made out to be and that people have ALWAYS hated the current music scene (then, five years later, they'll be saying that "today's music sucks" and that "music was better five years ago") because we emphasize the bad over the good.  

Then again, what do I know?  I learned to ignore the bad music years ago and focus on the good.  It's a lot easier to have a positive opinion on current music when you stay away from all the crap.

Hm, this is not such a cut and dry question and can’t really answer that easily either.

On the surface, yes the scene pretty much sucks.

But there are some genuine good things that we may be missing.

The seemingly complete collapse of record label control on the music industry, no I’m not going to delude myself, they still have a huge hand in the industry, but Prince, Radiohead and NIN success in marketing their albums directly to the public via the internet is a great sign of change.

I believe now more than anything before we have a groundswell of genuine music ARTISTS coming up. They have more freedom than they had before, their access to the public is no longer limited to the old RIAA/Clear channel commercial radio way.

Now that we have real artists out there, and not just some producer looking to promote the latest boy band, or over sexualized pop diva to make a quick buck we may have some actual TALENT out there with something to show. The mega implosion of the lives of such super-popstars like Britney Spears and others has put a lot of labels and wanabe pop stars off. Maybe, just maybe a crop of inventive and innovative good MUSIC will come out of this kind of “flat” area that we’re going through.

I’m actually kind of excited, I’ve heard a lot of great sounds from up and coming artists and bands (Duffy, Gnarls Barkley, Vampire Weekend) via the internet, internet streaming radio, and some emerging less computer programmed broadcast radio that is very encouraging.

If you need proof, look at the Grammy’s, they actually nominated a few artists that actually DESERVED a nomination for once, that is saying a LOT, and in itself is a great glimmer of hope.

So the current scene may be less than exciting, but the future holds a lot of potential.

Get ready for a lengthy, wall of text post.  I'm actually going to defend current music.  It's ok, but it could be better.  However, those saying that isn't good at all are wrong and I shall explain why in the folowing wall of text that I doubt people will actually read.

I think Rock music is in a very healthy state right now.  Bands like Muse and the White Stripes easily make up for Nickelback.  Also, we've still got some 90's holdovers like Foo Fighters and Red Hot Chili Peppers still doing very well this decade, along with Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails recently doing a revolutionary act by both self-releasing their albums through the internet, an action that may very well be the first strike in the battle between the record industry and the actual artists themselves.  Rock music does have its fair share of crap, such as the previously mentioned Nickelback, Emo, and Pop-Emo (see: Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic! At The Disco), but there is plenty of good to counter-act it.  Besides, Emo has not been nearly as popular as people make it out to be.  Pop-Emo seems to have surpassed it by this point, and to be honest, I haven't seen much of true Emo at all since I graduated high school.

Pop music is a mixed bag, which is what it has always been.  There are some catchy songs, there are some bad songs, the albums are usually bad.  I do think that the newfound popularity of Disney Channel stuff like Hannah Montana is very annoying, but I'm out of that age group anyway, so it doesn't affect me much.

Rap music is in it's Hair Metal phase.  Materialistic, all about the image, and while it does put out some catchy singles, the artists themselves are hardly artistically credible.  There has been a bit of reaction against this in recent years, with Nas recording "Hip Hop Is Dead", Jay-Z coming out of retirement to "save Hip-Hop", and both Lupe Fiasco and Common growing in popularity.  Unfortunately, I doubt Rap can be truly be saved.  "Low" being number one for 10 weeks shows that people still aren't tired of mainstream Rap yet and won't be until we're into the 2010s...if ever.  Mainstream Rap may be beyond salvation at this point because it has mostly crap since the late 90s.

With all that said, I don't think music today is nearly as bad as it is made out to be.  Since it's the present, we tend to see both the good and the bad, with us emphasizing the bad (one thing the internet has taught me is that people complain more than they praise).  When we look at the past, we only see the good while ignoring or forgetting the bad.  There was plenty of bad music in the past, we've just forgotten it all.  I will admit that there is a higher ratio of bad to good these days, but that is mainly due to the popularity of mainstream Rap, a style I personally dislike.

People will always believe the past is better than the present.  Heck, you see that in this very thread, as I see some people saying music was still somewhat good in 2004 or 2005.  However, back in 2004 or 2005, I remember PLENTY of people saying stuff like "today's music is terrible" and that "music has gone downhill."  Also, I remember that there were plenty of people in 1999 or 2000 who hated the state of music at the time and that time period still got plenty of hate for years afterwards.  Now, I'm starting to see some nostalgia for the time period and how music was better then, even though people at the time sure didn't think so.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that 00s music isn't as bad as it is made out to be and that people have ALWAYS hated the current music scene (then, five years later, they'll be saying that "today's music sucks" and that "music was better five years ago") because we emphasize the bad over the good. 

Then again, what do I know?  I learned to ignore the bad music years ago and focus on the good.  It's a lot easier to have a positive opinion on current music when you stay away from all the crap.




I agree. In the '70s everybody thought music was better in the '50s, then everybody thought that '60s music was better than '80s music, now it's come full circle with everybody thinking that '80s music is better than today's.

I will say that a good portion of it does suck, and overall I prefer music that came out in the '90s and up to 2004, but there's plenty of brand new songs that I do like. Most rap sucks, along with most pop, and at least the 'emo' type of rock music, even though I agree it's not quite as popular as it's made out to be.

Get ready for a lengthy, wall of text post.  I'm actually going to defend current music.  It's ok, but it could be better.  However, those saying that isn't good at all are wrong and I shall explain why in the folowing wall of text that I doubt people will actually read.

I think Rock music is in a very healthy state right now.  Bands like Muse and the White Stripes easily make up for Nickelback.  Also, we've still got some 90's holdovers like Foo Fighters and Red Hot Chili Peppers still doing very well this decade, along with Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails recently doing a revolutionary act by both self-releasing their albums through the internet, an action that may very well be the first strike in the battle between the record industry and the actual artists themselves.  Rock music does have its fair share of crap, such as the previously mentioned Nickelback, Emo, and Pop-Emo (see: Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic! At The Disco), but there is plenty of good to counter-act it.  Besides, Emo has not been nearly as popular as people make it out to be.  Pop-Emo seems to have surpassed it by this point, and to be honest, I haven't seen much of true Emo at all since I graduated high school.

Pop music is a mixed bag, which is what it has always been.  There are some catchy songs, there are some bad songs, the albums are usually bad.  I do think that the newfound popularity of Disney Channel stuff like Hannah Montana is very annoying, but I'm out of that age group anyway, so it doesn't affect me much.

Rap music is in it's Hair Metal phase.  Materialistic, all about the image, and while it does put out some catchy singles, the artists themselves are hardly artistically credible.  There has been a bit of reaction against this in recent years, with Nas recording "Hip Hop Is Dead", Jay-Z coming out of retirement to "save Hip-Hop", and both Lupe Fiasco and Common growing in popularity.  Unfortunately, I doubt Rap can be truly be saved.  "Low" being number one for 10 weeks shows that people still aren't tired of mainstream Rap yet and won't be until we're into the 2010s...if ever.  Mainstream Rap may be beyond salvation at this point because it has mostly crap since the late 90s.

With all that said, I don't think music today is nearly as bad as it is made out to be.  Since it's the present, we tend to see both the good and the bad, with us emphasizing the bad (one thing the internet has taught me is that people complain more than they praise).  When we look at the past, we only see the good while ignoring or forgetting the bad.  There was plenty of bad music in the past, we've just forgotten it all.  I will admit that there is a higher ratio of bad to good these days, but that is mainly due to the popularity of mainstream Rap, a style I personally dislike.

People will always believe the past is better than the present.  Heck, you see that in this very thread, as I see some people saying music was still somewhat good in 2004 or 2005.  However, back in 2004 or 2005, I remember PLENTY of people saying stuff like "today's music is terrible" and that "music has gone downhill."  Also, I remember that there were plenty of people in 1999 or 2000 who hated the state of music at the time and that time period still got plenty of hate for years afterwards.  Now, I'm starting to see some nostalgia for the time period and how music was better then, even though people at the time sure didn't think so.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that 00s music isn't as bad as it is made out to be and that people have ALWAYS hated the current music scene (then, five years later, they'll be saying that "today's music sucks" and that "music was better five years ago") because we emphasize the bad over the good. 

Then again, what do I know?  I learned to ignore the bad music years ago and focus on the good.  It's a lot easier to have a positive opinion on current music when you stay away from all the crap.



I actually kinda like "Low", it's catchy and has a good pop hook. Well at first I said this sucks, but started listening to it more, now find it a catchy hip-POP song. Is it a quality song? of course not, but it's supposed to just be a stupid song, which I think it does a better job than Crank That at lmao. It is good to see Lupe Fiasco really having a hit this year, which gives me some hope for 2008. I like today's music, it could be better but it still can be ok, of course I like older music as well. I strive to be very open minded and enjoy hip-hop AND rock AND pop/r&b, etc. I think most music offers some value, whether it is pure entertainment value or actual artistic value. I'm sure today will seem better in 2011 or 12, who knows what will be on the charts then.  :o ;D

It could be much better. The alternative rock/punk of today is trying, there is quite a bit of unique material coming from that genre, some original artists are there, making their own stuff, actually putting in an effort, AFI, Muse, The White Stripes, My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy (to an extent), any artists along those lines actually try. Some may not do a good job, but at least they try to be themselves.  Now as for mainstream stuff, its hopeless. Pop stars of today are only as lasting as their last hit for the tweens, and rap music is only about how good the bass will sound being bumped in a car. There is no lyrical substance, all that is rapped about is "how much money I have" or"I'm rollin on dubs" or whatever b***** the rapper in question wants to get in bed with, its not something that is suitable for anyone to listen to, especially not children, who are fast become a core audience for these people. Its pretty sick in my mind, teaching children to basically behave like unintelligent degenerates. Ok, my rant is over.  :o


Baby


Damn fine rant.....and accurate!

I actually kinda like "Low", it's catchy and has a good pop hook. Well at first I said this sucks, but started listening to it more, now find it a catchy hip-POP song. Is it a quality song? of course not, but it's supposed to just be a stupid song, which I think it does a better job than Crank That at lmao. It is good to see Lupe Fiasco really having a hit this year, which gives me some hope for 2008. I like today's music, it could be better but it still can be ok, of course I like older music as well. I strive to be very open minded and enjoy hip-hop AND rock AND pop/r&b, etc. I think most music offers some value, whether it is pure entertainment value or actual artistic value. I'm sure today will seem better in 2011 or 12, who knows what will be on the charts then.  :o ;D


You know, I do agree with you that "Low" is a very catchy song that sticks in your head.  It certainly isn't a particularly good song, but I must admit they did a damn good job of making sure it sticks in your head.  As you said, it's better than Crank That.  Than again, pretty much anything is better than Crank That.

With that said, the main reason I dislike Low is because it was #1 for so long, thus proving that mainstream Rap in its current "Hair Metal" state isn't going away anytime soon.  I guess I hate the song more for what it symbolizes (continued popularity of materialistic, cheesy mainstream Rap) than the song itself.  Now that "Love In This Club" by Usher is number one...I kind of want Low back.  Love In This Club is just terrible.

I think underground Rap is currently gaining in popularity just like how more serious rock bands started to gain popularity in the late 80s.  While rock music was dominated by the hair bands in the late 80s, you also had bands like U2 and REM becoming popular, yet were unable to rid us of the hair bands.  While rock music wouldn't become more serious and less cheesy until the 90s, I'd argue the process began in the late 80s.  Hopefully, the increasing popularity of artists like Lupe Fiasco and Common (his album debuted at number one last year!) means that Rap music will follow a similar path.

You know, I do agree with you that "Low" is a very catchy song that sticks in your head.  It certainly isn't a particularly good song, but I must admit they did a damn good job of making sure it sticks in your head.  As you said, it's better than Crank That.  Than again, pretty much anything is better than Crank That.

With that said, the main reason I dislike Low is because it was #1 for so long, thus proving that mainstream Rap in its current "Hair Metal" state isn't going away anytime soon.  I guess I hate the song more for what it symbolizes (continued popularity of materialistic, cheesy mainstream Rap) than the song itself.  Now that "Love In This Club" by Usher is number one...I kind of want Low back.  Love In This Club is just terrible.

I think underground Rap is currently gaining in popularity just like how more serious rock bands started to gain popularity in the late 80s.  While rock music was dominated by the hair bands in the late 80s, you also had bands like U2 and REM becoming popular, yet were unable to rid us of the hair bands.  While rock music wouldn't become more serious and less cheesy until the 90s, I'd argue the process began in the late 80s.  Hopefully, the increasing popularity of artists like Lupe Fiasco and Common (his album debuted at number one last year!) means that Rap music will follow a similar path.
Id say "Low" is like the "Winger" or Ratt(hairbands) of Glam rap music while 50 Cent was/is "The Poison("the Hair Metal Band") of rap music.

I haven;t heard "Love In This Club" by Usher yet.

I think it depends on what scene you mean. The radio sucks, generally speaking. Not much into what's really popular these days. But there are indie scenes around the world that are doing really well, and I know I'm biased - but Canada's indie music scene is one of the best ones out there.

radio3.cbc.ca

I like alot of the current music.  Lately I like Sara Barellies.  She sings well and looks hot.  Yeah I'd...  Well you know...  :P

But I also enjoy some good party music too, so hearing guys rap about "rolling on dubs" or "tokin on a blunt", well I'm hip to that jive as long as it is not overdone.

Just the other day I was listening to "Come on ride the train hey ride it woo woo…Come on ride the train hey ride it woo woo" on the radio and I was into a full-tilt boogie.  :)

On the whole I love a lot of '00s music, I point out when it's weak a lot, but it is strong as I said in the fun/entertainment aspect IMO, it gets a bad rap from a lot of people but a lot of it isn't as bad as made out to be. Of course you know music taste is the most subjective thing in the world, I see music flame wars all over the internet all the time and I've had well debates with friends about things. I don't like when people call people "idiots" or something for liking a catchy pop song, don't they realize that there may be people that happen to like pop but also maybe happen to like a lot of other stuff (like me for example I like some metal and grunge (some Metallica and Soundgarden for example) and also enjoy stuff like Rihanna or Ciara).

its ok...some gets annoying but most is ok!

I'll have to expand on this later, but pretty much I agree with Sonikku's post. Things always tend to seem better once they're about 5-6 years in the past, because when we're looking back on a time, we think usually of positive personal memories (if we were there), or what we like about it and wished we could've experienced (if we weren't).

I guess it's also because we're surrounded by the present, so it's kinda like our everyday routine that's nothing special, so we notice the bad stuff more. Just like we tend to want a vacation from our jobs, school or anything else in daily lives...we look at the past as a way of escaping the present. So since it seems better, we nostalgize it. I do this all the time too, even unintentionally, it's just our nature (especially old-school minded folks like me! ;) ).

As for the OT though, I don't love current music the way I like '80s and early-mid '90s stuff, and there's certainly some crap and probably generally less variety in the mainstream...but I'd rather focus on what I do like, even if it's admittedly a smaller percentage. I'm more into pop/rock like "Makes Me Wonder" by Maroon 5 or anything by Fountains of Wayne...or dance/pop like Gwen's solo material.

No, though there's a very few artists I enjoy like Natasha Bedingfield and Fergie. Sarah Bareilles is OK and listen to some emo/alternative like White Stripes and The Killers. Also don't mind some Black Eyed Peas. Though I prefer the 1980's & 1990's better, though I was more into Ninja Turtles than Nirvana in the early 1990's.

Rap music hasn't been good since the early 1990's. Now it's all about profanity (a certain word that's been in the news lately  >:( ), glamorizing gang violence, hate, etc.  8-P

I thought I'd throw in another one of my opinions here.

I think the reason a lot of people dislike the current music scene, and why it is not perceived as being as good as previous ones, is the prevalence of Rap music and its influence.  Rap music was the absolute dominant style of music from 2003-2005 and, while it died down a bit in 2006 and 2007 from its 2003-2005 high, it still remained extremely prevalent.  Not only that, Rap's influence has now spread to other styles of music.  A lot of R&B is so similar to Rap now (Chris Brown's "Kiss Kiss" is technically R&B) that the only difference is that it's sung, not rapped.  Also, the big Timbaland Pop-Dance (or whatever the name is) trend of 2006 and 2007 was still influenced partially by Rap music.  As such, while Rap music is not as popular as it was a few years ago, its influence on other genres is still great.

As a big fan of music from all around the globe, I notice the music scene seems to be healthier and more varied in countries where Rap music, while popular, is not nearly as prevalent as it is in American culture.  Canada seems to have a lot of more "adult" music on its charts than the US does.  Britain has a very eclectic mix of rock, dance, and several other genres.  Rap music is popular in these countries, but it isn't as prevalent, resulting in a more varied music charts.  It seems that a prevalence of Rap music kills variety.  

The only exception to this rule is Japan.  Japan doesn't have a prevalent Rap scene and it didn't experience an "alternative rock revolution" in the 90s (like Grunge in the US or Britpop in Britain).  Perhaps as a result, Japanese music seems to be overwhelmingly dominated by pop music (even the rock bands now like to include electronic pop beats) and also seems to be stuck in a sort of hyper-evolved 80s timewarp at times (heavy metal bands in Japan still rock big 80s hair, for example.  They just dress gothic now.).  Whether thats good or bad depends on your point of view.

Overall though, it seems like Rap music and its prevalence is the main reason for lack of variety in current US mainstream music.  

^I would agree with that. I'm sure rap is at least somewhat popular across the world, but it seems to have more of a footing in the US than anywhere else. Yeah, Britian does seem to be more dance-pop oriented. They also always seem to be ahead of the US by about 2 years trendwise. For instance, the Beatles hit over there first before their 1964 Ed Sullivan appearance in the states.

Sonikku, would you say that the biggest thing that differentiates the '90s from the '00s (yeah, I know that's an age old debate around these parts!) is that far more music genres were simply untouched by hip hop? That made it much easier to avoid if you didn't like it. Sure, it's pervasive in both decades (musically as well as culturally and in fashion), but there were more choices for different types of mainstream music then. For instance you had purely R&B groups like TLC and Boys II Men. Like you pointed out, that doesn't truly exist anymore, because rap is more ubiquitous in terms of mixing with different styles of music now. I never quite thought of modern R&B as being rap with vocalizing, but that's a good way of putting it. There's less musicianship on the songs, for instance.

Heck, I'd say the only mainstream genres that have absolutely no hip hop influence are country and AC! And even the former isn't that popular anymore. Now it's usually just really slow songs like "You're Beautiful" or that Snow Patrol song "Chasing Cars". The more melodic AC with variety from other genres kinda died around 2001 I think.

There's lots of pop/rock (actually that's my favorite style, regardless of era) that is totally free of any rap sound, but not all of that is popular in the sense of being all over the radio. Like Fountains of Wayne, Rooney and the Killers (they were big around early '05 but even then were never quite on the level of, say Nickelback).

If it's Dance or British Rock, then yes, I like today's current music scene
If it's the stuff you hear on Top 40 radio, then no, I don't like today's music scene