[BBC]: "Has pop music lost its fun?"

[nctnico]

Proper stereo systems that groups of friends could enjoy together were replaced with personal masturbatory aids stuck in the ears, conducting musical garbage into their heads that makes Muzak look like a virtuoso performance.

I'm not sure whether that is a bad thing or a good thing. My teenage sons have no interest in having their own stereo sets in their rooms. It sure does wonders to limits the amount of noise. OTOH I overheard a few (about 15 years younger than me) people talking in the train the other day and one of them was going on about having a good stereo set and how listening to music becomes an experience. He did have a good point IMHO.

I had my own audio system in my room since I was 8 or so (mono because I had one speaker and an amplifier on which only one channel worked; gifted horse, mouth...). Ofcourse that got upgraded over the years.

[SilverSolder]

Proper stereo systems that groups of friends could enjoy together were replaced with personal masturbatory aids stuck in the ears, conducting musical garbage into their heads that makes Muzak look like a virtuoso performance.

I'm not sure whether that is a bad thing or a good thing. My teenage sons have no interest in having their own stereo sets in their rooms. It sure does wonders to limits the amount of noise. OTOH I overheard a few (about 15 years younger than me) people talking in the train the other day and one of them was going on about having a good stereo set and how listening to music becomes an experience. He did have a good point IMHO.

I had my own audio system in my room since I was 8 or so (mono because I had one speaker and an amplifier on which only one channel worked; gifted horse, mouth...). Ofcourse that got upgraded over the years.

My recollection is that we would hang out and listen to records together, which led to spontaneous parties, friendships, love affairs, etc. etc. -  the "one thing leads to another" principle.  Hard to see that kind of dynamic happening with headsets...

[German_EE]

I once visited a friend of mine in Switzerland, at the time he was living with a pretty blonde and they shared a love of music. As they lived in an apartment their stereo system had two headphone sockets and there were two pairs of headphones hanging by the side of the amp.

[james_s]

The "stereo system" is still a thing, it has just changed forms. Virtually everybody under the age of about 35 has at least one bluetooth speaker that gets paired to the mobile device of anyone who wants to play music. People still listen to music together and have parties and gatherings, none of that has changed.

I'm not going to knock headphones, I use mine on the bus all the time and I'm very thankful that others have embraced this as well. Does anyone remember the idiots who would lug their "ghetto blaster" onto the bus or train and force everyone to listen to whatever they were listening to? That era is pushing up on 40 years ago so it's not some newfangled trend either. The original Walkman was also released 40 years ago in 1979 so people listening to their own music through headphones is certainly not new.

[Jan Audio]

Pop music sucks.
Michael jackson is dead, then they come with a hologram.

People like music from they was young, so those old radio people still play the same shit.
By the time they all dead there is room, for new old people who push a bit newer music.

You can make anyone famous, just use the name in all TV channels, like they do, its all rigged.
Not a fair chance you get anywhere there near those illuminati shit artist.
Now we just have to wait until madonna is dead.

[nigelwright7557]

Most of the music these days sounds pretty much the same formula.
It also what I call black mans music with talk on it which is not a native English accent.

I haven't bought anything new for at least 10 years.

In the 1960/70's the charts were full of very good music and say 80% of the top 20 was good stuff.
Now its down to a couple of percent.

[james_s]

Every generation says that.

Don't you remember how in the 1950s-60s "rock and roll" was destroying music, Elvis and The Beatles were the devil, then in the 70s it was synthesizers that were going to ruin music, then rap, then...

This happens over and over and over. People get older and continue liking the music of their youth, and moan that whatever music is now popular is crap and everything was better back in the day. It's not like this is a new occurrence.

[Bud]

For some reason in grossery supermarkets they play 60-s through 80-s songs, not rap. I wonder why 

[james_s]

They play carefully curated music that has no cursing, no controversial or offensive topics, it is all very carefully selected to be bland, neutral background. There's a lot of high quality music of all eras that you'll never hear playing in a supermarket.

[SeanB]

Reading this, listening to LM radio, something from when I was younger, though I was more a fan of Capital Radio 604, at least after sunset, when you could get the sky wave in. was a big change from the dull as mud SABC, though there were some gems there in the radio shows.

[Bud]

Bland and neutral do not invoke positive emotions. The music in the stores is crafted to create positive mood which is good for shopping both ways. The music from 40-50 years back era does that well. 

[nctnico]

They play carefully curated music that has no cursing, no controversial or offensive topics, it is all very carefully selected to be bland, neutral background. There's a lot of high quality music of all eras that you'll never hear playing in a supermarket.

That depends on where you are. When in New Zealand I noticed all songs where censored unlike in the Netherlands. I guess the US is mostly the same. And then there is the language barrier. Last year my wife and I where sitting in a restaurant in Luxembourg (where they speak mostly French and next to no English) and they played a rap song where a lady was singing about what her boyfriend should be doing with her genitals in great detail.

[TimNJ]

The main problem we have, is hearing 'modern' RAP crap!! I'm sorry, but that's not 'Music'. Why do
some 'lyrics' about drugs, mother-fu@#$%s, guns, & the Bronx in N.Y. have to do with life here??
Real songs are about true love, happiness & joy, a bit of fun, and the occasional blues/country.
Our music nights are happy, with sing-alongs & instruments, but that's just us... 

I don't endorse many of the recurring themes in (popular) hip-hop, but I think you are missing some of the interesting/different perspectives that hip-hop often provides. Again, not a fan of the derogatory treatment/objectification of women, violence, etc...But, it is interesting to view some of these "bad things" through the lens of the people who create it. And, I should mention, there is a lot of highly intellectual and introspective rap out there. It's just the big labels like to push the most derogatory stuff...big surprise.

A lot of rap/hip-hop is based on the hardships of urban life. Sure, "it doesn't have much to do with life there, if that's the attitude you want to have about it. But, there's always something to be learned about life (in general), when we listen to others. Don't we read books, fiction or non-fiction, to do something like that?

Again, there is a lot of crappy, popular hip-hop music which probably won't make you a better, more "worldly" person. But there definitely is some which can give you some perspective.

[SilverSolder]

They play carefully curated music that has no cursing, no controversial or offensive topics, it is all very carefully selected to be bland, neutral background. There's a lot of high quality music of all eras that you'll never hear playing in a supermarket.

That depends on where you are. When in New Zealand I noticed all songs where censored unlike in the Netherlands. I guess the US is mostly the same. And then there is the language barrier. Last year my wife and I where sitting in a restaurant in Luxembourg (where they speak mostly French and next to no English) and they played a rap song where a lady was singing about what her boyfriend should be doing with her genitals in great detail.

Yes, it's irritating with people that feel the need to talk/sing about it, instead of just getting on with the job!

[james_s]

Bland and neutral do not invoke positive emotions. The music in the stores is crafted to create positive mood which is good for shopping both ways. The music from 40-50 years back era does that well.

It does for some, not for others. Someone who is 30 today has no connection to music from 40-50 years ago aside from possibly being the stuff their grandparents listened to. Music like all other forms of art is subjective, everyone has different tastes and that's fine, at least in reasonably civilized parts of the world we all have the freedom to listen to whatever kind of music we like without having to care if someone else approves. I've never understood why anyone would care what music someone else enjoys listening to but some people do seem to have an innate need to validate their preferences.

I still don't think I know anyone who wants to listen to grocery store Muzak at home. I don't normally notice the background music other than when I notice they're playing Christmas tunes already in early November and grumble about it. Seems like it's usually bland easy listening, tolerable but not something I'd listen to by choice.

[SilverSolder]

It's not just rap music that can get a little, ahem, colourful.  (Requires min. 100W/channel or good headphones)

[Repeat: x10]
Thunder

I was caught
In the middle of a railroad track (thunder)
I looked round
And I knew there was no turning back (thunder)
My mind raced
And I thought what could I do (thunder)
And I knew
There was no help, no help from you (thunder)

Sound of the drums
Beatin' in my heart
The thunder of guns
Tore me apart
You've been thunderstruck

Rode down the highway
Broke the limit, we hit the town
Went down to Texas, yeah Texas
And we had some fun
We met some girls
Some dancers who gave a good time
Broke all the rules, played all the fools
Yeah, yeah, they, they, they blew our minds

I was shakin' at the knees
Could I come again please?
Yeah the ladies were too kind
You've been thunderstruck, thunderstruck
Yeah yeah yeah, thunderstruck

Yeah
Oh, thunderstruck, yeah
Now we're shaking at the knees
Could I come again please?

Thunderstruck, thunderstruck
Yeah yeah yeah, thunderstruck
Thunderstruck, yeah, yeah, yeah

Said yeah, it's alright
We're doing fine
Yeah, it's alright
We're doing fine
(So fine)

Thunderstruck, yeah, yeah, yeah,
Thunderstruck, thunderstruck, thunderstruck
Whoa baby, baby, thunderstruck
You've been thunderstruck, thunderstruck
Thunderstruck, thunderstruck, thunderstruck
You've been thunderstruck

Songwriters: Angus McKinnon Young, Malcolm Mitchell Young
© BMG Rights Management
For non-commercial use only.

[Synthtech]

Everything I hear playing in inner city cafes now sounds like Autotuned autism.

[Ed.Kloonk]

It's not just rap music that can get a little, ahem, colourful.  (Requires min. 100W/channel or good headphones)

Bon was better. Sorry.

Actually, not sorry. Bon was better.

\~/    \~/

[Alex Eisenhut]

don't care
katy perry hot

[VK3DRB]

Justin Bieber certainly isn't the worst vocalist around these days.

But he is the worst behaved.

[jonovid]

music reflects the level of moral degradation & violence in the communist-unity or community,
as we are no longer called a society.

[james_s]

music reflects the level of moral degradation & violence in the communist-unity or community,
as we are no longer called a society.

I'm not even sure what that means.

Most of this thread just sounds like old geezers moaning about the same thing old geezers have moaned about since the dawn of time, those stupid young folks and their newfangled <insert thing here>, back in my day everything was so much better, yadda yadda.

Much of the "new" music being complained about is literally decades old at this point. Rap appeared nearly 40 years ago and peaked in popularity 20-30 years ago. It's older now than the 1950s music was when I listened to it on the oldies station when I was a kid.

[eti]

music reflects the level of moral degradation & violence in the communist-unity or community,
as we are no longer called a society.

I'm not even sure what that means. **

Most of this thread just sounds like old geezers moaning about the same thing old geezers have moaned about since the dawn of time, those stupid young folks and their newfangled <insert thing here>, back in my day everything was so much better, yadda yadda.

Much of the "new" music being complained about is literally decades old at this point. Rap appeared nearly 40 years ago and peaked in popularity 20-30 years ago. It's older now than the 1950s music was when I listened to it on the oldies station when I was a kid.

** Really? Well then, that's VERY alarming, and shows a distinct lack of discernment and wisdom (not a cricitism, an observation) - you don't see a huge degradation in the moral fibre of western society over the last 20-30 years? 

Wow... you must be very young, or walk around eyes closed, or don't care (the latter would be very sad indeed, and frankly, I fear for you greatly.)

[alpher]

https://www.youtube.com/embed/FN7r0Rr1Qyc

[SilverSolder]

music reflects the level of moral degradation & violence in the communist-unity or community,
as we are no longer called a society.

I'm not even sure what that means. **

Most of this thread just sounds like old geezers moaning about the same thing old geezers have moaned about since the dawn of time, those stupid young folks and their newfangled <insert thing here>, back in my day everything was so much better, yadda yadda.

Much of the "new" music being complained about is literally decades old at this point. Rap appeared nearly 40 years ago and peaked in popularity 20-30 years ago. It's older now than the 1950s music was when I listened to it on the oldies station when I was a kid.

** Really? Well then, that's VERY alarming, and shows a distinct lack of discernment and wisdom (not a cricitism, an observation) - you don't see a huge degradation in the moral fibre of western society over the last 20-30 years? 

Wow... you must be very young, or walk around eyes closed, or don't care (the latter would be very sad indeed, and frankly, I fear for you greatly.)

Consider that you, as a person, have changed too, over the last 20-30 years.  It can be very hard to isolate what is actually changes in you, versus what is changes in society.