Music then and music now. Can you relate?

[Unit1]

Uh oh, it's a millennial posting this! What does he know about music ya might ask.

Relax there! I am lucky I know the Beatles, Queen, Pink Floyd, ACϟDC, Bob Marley, ELO, Boney M and some other musicians from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. I've heard them too.

I do want to shift the attention to something in particular however.

We can first start with Hip Hop and Rap.

Back then it wasn't so "infected" with... what shall I call it? Tastelessness. At least not to the same degree. You'll see what I mean in a moment. I recall some of the Hip Hop and Rap being rather of an art than a show off.

Back in 1995 Tupac Shakur released his song Dear Mama

OK, this one is a rather tame example. There was at that time more untamed and dirty Hip Hop & Rap but without the tastelessness. Some call it "What real Hip Hop used to be". Wu-Tang Clan, DMX, Eazy-E, NWA and even Tupac - They're all part of it and the dirty Hip Hop & Rap and these outnumber those, that aren't dirty. The following is Wu Tang Clan’s Method Man "Bring The Pain" from 1994.

OK now what do I mean when I say tastelessness in music now?

That is when rappers show off superficial things in their music videos with money, cars, luxurious properties and half naked gold diggers and boast in their lyrics like they're the apex kill leader. This is 6ix9ine "Gooba" from 2020

That one seems to me more like that rich teenager in high school using more profanity than actual vocabulary in order to feel like an adult.

One more example from little pump and Kanye West "i love it" from 2018

Lyrics are mostly dirty. The clean version of it sounds like only the instrumental version of the song. That's one more example of tastelessness in music.

Fortunately for modern Hip Hop and Rap it's not all doomed with tastelessness. I found examples from Drake, Travis Scott, Juice WRLD and NEFFEX (especially good at it) not infecting at least some of their work with tastelessness.

OK, enough with Hip Hop and Rap. What about Pop?

I found the reverse effect in Pop music. Some are probably gonna hate me for it but one opinion I sort of subscribe to is "The reason our generation is so screwed up is because of the media and pop music (around 2009) glorifying nudity and weirdness like Lady Gaga and her style and the youth absorbs this degeneracy". Reading that it's hard not to chuckle.

This is Lady Gaga "Telephone" from 2010

I mean sure, there were some good artists here and there (Rihanna did OK in my opinion). But the real good stuff I found appeared around somewhere in the 2010-range and onwards. And they appeared in much larger scales compared to the pre-2010 times.

In the modern music era we have plenty of good pop songs now. This is Axwell Λ Ingrosso "More Than You Know" from 2017

We got now lots of catchy songs from Dua Lipa, Fifth Harmony, Kygo, Zedd, Zara Larsson, Chainsmokers & Coldplay and some others.

OK, now what about Jazz?

Surprisingly I found Jazz remained true to it's origin. I mean it's Jazz, it's not like there's going to be too many varieties to it since it's mostly relaxing saxophone and tunes and piano. I found the old Jazz to be as good as the modern Jazz.

This is Dave Brubeck "Take Five" originally released on 1959 but replayed and recorded using modern instruments.

And here we have Nocturnal Spirits "That Second Kiss" from 2018

Of course there are different flavors of Jazz but my point remains - Jazz remained the same.

Rock?

It's fate is similar to Jazz but with some evolution compared to when Queen, Pink Floyd and AC/DC released their songs. Also Sweet Home Alabama!

Now I'm not too big on to Rock but the notable modern times musicians I feel did great are Imagine Dragons, Fall Out Boy and many other musicians released pretty good singles.

Now...

This article is getting somewhat too big to write it all out. I'd like to also mention how Metal was then and is today and also the emergence of new music genres like never before: Electric Drum & Bass, Dubstep and Videogame soundtracks.

If you think about it it's pretty crazy how we went from tribal music with tribal instruments such as flutes, maracas and drums to electric guitars, pianos, saxophones and now we also heavily manipulate tunes using computers and software up to a point, where we can generate sounds, that are not even replayable on any musical instrument.

[Aguysopinion4799]

... Music... Evolves and develops to suit the existing social personalities and I agree that in that evolution some music has taken a rather bad detour but some have also done well, it is hard... I actually couldn't watch the whole of the Gooba one, it was making me disgusted just watching it but also listening to such lack of talent in my opinion based on his lyrical choice agitated me.

But I mean, I like stuff that is very old but also like very modern things, for example...https://www.youtube.com/embed/0x4U1NiJ7PIhttps://www.youtube.com/embed/GN6SI1-SuPkhttps://www.youtube.com/embed/Bh0QZvHdSKoI like these a lot but I also like things made in the 2000's such as Milky Chance- Stolen Dancehttps://www.youtube.com/embed/iX-QaNzd-0Y

[anmari2001]

I don't know man you just show some really good examples from the past and really the worst from the presence
I can't say if music is generally worse or bad
Music production is better nowdays for sure but it is about individual taste, dont think you can generalize it with a few sinhs as examples
Me just like you vibe more with old music, hip hop from 90s and old jazz from the 50s

[Nick568]

This is textbook cherry-picking. You picked really good songs from the past and trash songs from today. You could easily reverse this by comparing great modern artists like Kendrick Lamar or Tyler the Creator and comparing it to a trash artist or song from the past such as "I'm Too Sexy" by Right Said Fred or "Blue" by Eiffel 65.

[drummerdude25]

I feel like we live in very strange times when it comes to the state of modern music lol.

On one hand we live in an extremely formulaic and algorithmic based world, where you do get a lot of stuff that sounds the same for the sake of selling the most records, and I think that's more apparent than ever... and in my opinion, that's sad because you're taking an ultimately creative medium and art form, with the ability to really drive culture and usher in new movements and trends and ways for people to come together and relate to each other, into this bland, commercialized "thing" that really just serves as entertainment and nothing more... largely stifling new ideas, it's watered down, has little of value to say... it merely entertains.

Then you have an increasingly present movement where it's like "let's just make the boldest, wildest, almost 'post-music' type of thing possible," where it defies so many preconceived notions as to what good music is, or even what music is, and sure, it's this really genuine and authentic "from-the-artist" type of thing... no label is jumping in and saying "yeah we totally want you to go in a this wild, experimental direction that (the masses) are totally NOT going to get lol... and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't... sometimes it's some of the coolest stuff you've ever heard, but to the majority of people that don't really keep up with what's going on, they'd hear something like this and they'd hear noise... "ahh, WTF is this trash?"

Either way, it provokes a strong reaction from the listener, which is great. in my opinion, we need more of that... It's like, when I was younger, and started getting into what was the beginnings of modern metalcore and post-hardcore, and my parents reacted to it the very same way. I've heard this numerous places and think it's very true in many ways, "if you're not pissing off the previous generation with your music, you're really not doing anything to move the needle forward."

Then of course, there are those old, (once new and exciting) scenes and genres of music, or movements, that are now just kind of dying a slow and painful death... nothing about them is particularly exciting anymore. They still have their die-hard fans and community behind them, but its like, having been there in some cases, and largely moving on from particular scenes myself, it's like personally, I think if they were being honest with themselves, they'd see the relevancy of their scene being very limited or have to admit to themselves that they're getting bored with it. And if they're not, more power to them... that's cool, I just don't expect them to be particular eager to latch on to the next, wild new thing either, or understand it. People shift and change when they are ready to...

It's all very hard to articulate... but I feel it lol.

[abc3643]

You need OLD school rap...

Let's dial the Waybac machine to 1979...
You don't have rap as is today without this song...https://www.youtube.com/embed/rKTUAESacQM

[AlphaGhost]

I would agree with you on some points but I am coming from totally different place and area of world, you can call one of music ancestors and to be honest with you. The auto-tuned shit sounds atrocious we have some very good vocalist here.
The Western repetitive shit with extremely bad lyrics has managed to penetrate but this is land of Sufism and everybody knows about old stuff and somehow, they have evolved into Modern music with everything.
I would say everybody is different and have their own unique taste but I can give you examples and there is not a single vocalist of their caliber in entire West, I have tried to reason with my Vocal couch friend and he tried to justify it by pointing out relative significance of area for Music.
You guys kinda lack that soft touch in music and modern singers are not capable of even reaching those notes and I would say Ariana is someone that tries to do something new but She is Noob...
I would try to give you example with subtitles if you want it..

[Brainsbeforebeauty]

Great take!! And it's better coming from a millennial, cuz if I were to write this I'd be that "old" person or "boomer" (even though I'm not old enough to be a boomer 😂) who can't get with the times lololol
I agree that music was more about the instruments used to create them awesome sounds than now, where it's more digital and back then groups sounded more the same live as they did on the radio, then some groups these days can because like you said they "generate sounds, that are not even replayable on any musical instrument."

[TayTay21]

I listen to music from all eras. One of my favorite albums is Urban Hymns by The Verve from like 1996. I also love the song Dear Mama, because it's really sad, this guy talking about wanting to take care of his mother. I lost my mom a few years ago, so that makes me cry. I also listen to a lot of country music from the '70s because country from today suuuuuuuuuuucks lol

[Toast792]

For some good newer rap, NF, Mike shinoda, and Twenty One Pilots all have some good stuff. But yeah, for the most part, rap nowadays is pretty nasty. It's actually pretty sad. Cool mytake.

[ChaoticVortex]

Music like all things is a matter of opinion and perception. I used to like old Kanye. But new Kanye is not my cup of tea, coolaid or hell, water! But that's just me. Tasteless essential in music sells nowadays. While you may not like 69, his music is purchased world wide. He makes money. And thats the whole thing. Money. If you make money, you are a creator whether you are creative or not. I dont like Billie Eilish, I think she is too moody and grim and well... psychotic in her music to be a good creator. But people like her. My ex likes her. She digs the moody crazy vibe. It's all in who wants what. If what's hip don't make you hop and what's hot dont make you pop? Then that's your frame of perception. Honestly. I stick with Sean price, classical music and dubstep. Dubstep can make just about any crappy song sound like a banger. Like what you like, hate what you hate. But never stop the beat and that was Grand Master Flash who taught me that.

[kespethdude]

Ok Boomer. JK, lol.

Seriously, though, this is awesome. You have good taste in music!

[lilyanony1]

I like this post, it's made me like you just a bit more, 😋

[Massageman]

I like the standards and learned quite a few of them when I took organ lessons, 50/60's rock, 80/90's CW, almost anything from Antonio (Girl from Ipanema) Carols Jobim, and assorted one-of-a-kind and "novelty-sounding" songs (Taco's cover of Puttin' on the Ritz, Trainor's All About the Bass, almost anything from Spike Jones, etc)

[Mia-Wallace]

I like heavy metal and classical. Classical music somewhat can't get degenerated, because it needs professional musicians. TSFH and Thomas bergersen's works is a nice example of a smooth evolution. I think most of their works are Neo classical/ Instrumental-core. https://www.youtube.com/embed/6vCxBQy2SOkAs for heavy metal, the American scene is more or less full if crap now. But there are still some European/northern European bands that are strong and innovative. https://www.youtube.com/embed/suG-c_i2fBQ

[ftewolde]

I completely agree. Thank you for speaking up about this!

[Curiousnesshmmm]

Well it’s because the music business has changed and artist only make money from touring not albums. So unless you get really big it’s difficult to survive so everyone’s selling out. Bet these people aren’t artists they’re entertainers, big difference between the two I’ve been in the music business 20 years and came to the realization it is nothing it’s all cracked up to be. Used abuses and kicked to the next flavor of the month. Most artists are so broke it’s shocking, music labels gives em 1.5 million up front and makes artist pay for everything hung on all tours everything. They come home after a massive tour to only have 1-3 tours paid off

[Daniel_Dano]

Quality of songs and music are awful nowadays , things like Rap make my ears bleed every time I hear them, why do people even consider such bullshit as Art? Just compare 80s songs with current ones and you will understand

[HiveBee]

I feel like when it comes to the rap/hip hop world, people dont want skills and lyrics. They want a feeling. That's all the new stuff is, is trying to be fun or hard or whatever. Completely neglecting any need for expertise and instead aiming to hit a certain button people want pressed. The sex button or drugs button or party button. It's all about relating to some feeling.

I dont like it at all. But that's how I see it. The mumble rappers and all that. They are obviously lacking talent and skill and intelligence in many ways. But they hit that button people like and they know how to do it.

[NathanDavis]

This is quite an unfair and incomplete comparison...
But I get your point.

[psychoticanimaIIover]

https://www.youtube.com/embed/y6y_4_b6RS8Ahhh, the noughties.

[SavageGirl101]

"More than you know"is suchhh a good song and the lyrics in 90% of songs are dirty so what?😂