Pop, is it corporate garbage or does it have it's merits? (metal, pop)

Rainard Jalen · 04-02-2008, 01:19 AM

Oomph. You say the music is stripped of emotions. That is strictly interpretational. How the hell are you supposed to gauge whether or not the artist is sincere with regard to the content he/she is conveying in the lyrics? Also, musical sounds do not contain emotion. Whether or not they convey the emotion of the artist is, once again, entirely interpretational.

Ok, fair enough. If the music and lyrics are entirely generic then we can probably guess that there wasn't much artistic integrity or sincerity involved at all. But "generic", while it may accurately describe the majority of modern chart music, does not describe pop music of all times and all places.

Compare the concept of the "generic pop act" to a band like The Beatles, who had a couple of songwriters who were continuously engaged in trying to outdo one another and write superior songs, come up with more innovative ideas, and ultimately be the greater artist. They were pop, but their pop was sophistiated and continuously evolving/expanding. Just because a band is trying to be successful doesn't negate that they are also trying to write good music. There was a time when being successful actually meant writing better songs than other bands, otherwise you simply wouldn't be met with much sustained success.

04-02-2008, 01:19 AM	#11 (permalink)
Rainard Jalen Music Addict Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 2,219	Oomph. You say the music is stripped of emotions. That is strictly interpretational. How the hell are you supposed to gauge whether or not the artist is sincere with regard to the content he/she is conveying in the lyrics? Also, musical sounds do not contain emotion. Whether or not they convey the emotion of the artist is, once again, entirely interpretational. Ok, fair enough. If the music and lyrics are entirely generic then we can probably guess that there wasn't much artistic integrity or sincerity involved at all. But "generic", while it may accurately describe the majority of modern chart music, does not describe pop music of all times and all places. Compare the concept of the "generic pop act" to a band like The Beatles, who had a couple of songwriters who were continuously engaged in trying to outdo one another and write superior songs, come up with more innovative ideas, and ultimately be the greater artist. They were pop, but their pop was sophistiated and continuously evolving/expanding. Just because a band is trying to be successful doesn't negate that they are also trying to write good music. There was a time when being successful actually meant writing better songs than other bands, otherwise you simply wouldn't be met with much sustained success.