13 ms·

Why do you not think pop songs are artistically interesting?

nemo44x 6y ago
It’s all aesthetics to be sure but a lot of pop music doesn’t take risks. Song structures are formulaic as are chord progressions and the notes used for melodies. How many hit songs use the same I-V-vi-IV progression? It works is why but it isn’t interesting to a discerning listener. It seems like a lot of pop music is more like fashion than music. Image leads and after removing the stylistic facade you see the same underlying infrastructure. There are exceptions to the rule of course. Nirvana was an interesting pop music band because many of their songs used weird progressions. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” shouldn’t work according to therory, but it obviously does. And then of course how pop music is mixed and mastered today. Almost no dynamic range because of the “loudness wars”.
- Kaze404 6y ago
  That's fair criticism, but I don't think it makes pop music any less artistic. There's something to be said about music that goes beyond the listener's ears and also taps into fashion, make-up trends, viral dances and that kind of stuff. That's where the risk is, and while it's paid off in the past (like Lady Gaga, David Bowie, etc), there's also numerous cases where it didn't as much (Ava Max, Viktoria Modesta). I also believe there's artistic value in music that understands it's just ear-candy and doesn't try to be something else. In a world where so many people are trying to score a hit with the same chord progression for example, the ones that succeed stand out in other factors, and in my opinion it doesn't matter if it's some catchy verse on the refrain or something about the performer like Lady Gaga's provocative performances back in the early 2010s.
  - nemo44x 6y ago
    It is what it is - it is popular for a reason. It doesn’t require effort from the listener and as you pointed out it lets people identify with a culture, etc. there’s a reason most people stop seeking out new music in their mid-20’s. Popular music is mainly a youth product which lets each cohort draw cultural boundaries from previous generations. What’s great about modern info tech is it makes it easier to explore artists of your youth that you never knew about. You can get really deep which makes it feel like now music is still being made for you. It isn’t like there aren’t infinite other styles for people that want it. Jazz is a great example of “musicians music” - lots of interesting ideas get explored there and dissonance is used which you rarely find in pop. They actually have software that helps crank out hits nowadays. It’s an interesting time to be a songwriter in Nashville.

It’s all aesthetics to be sure but a lot of pop music doesn’t take risks. Song structures are formulaic as are chord progressions and the notes used for melodies. How many hit songs use the same I-V-vi-IV progression? It works is why but it isn’t interesting to a discerning listener. It seems like a lot of pop music is more like fashion than music. Image leads and after removing the stylistic facade you see the same underlying infrastructure. There are exceptions to the rule of course. Nirvana was an interesting pop music band because many of their songs used weird progressions. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” shouldn’t work according to therory, but it obviously does. And then of course how pop music is mixed and mastered today. Almost no dynamic range because of the “loudness wars”.

Kaze404 6y ago
That's fair criticism, but I don't think it makes pop music any less artistic. There's something to be said about music that goes beyond the listener's ears and also taps into fashion, make-up trends, viral dances and that kind of stuff. That's where the risk is, and while it's paid off in the past (like Lady Gaga, David Bowie, etc), there's also numerous cases where it didn't as much (Ava Max, Viktoria Modesta). I also believe there's artistic value in music that understands it's just ear-candy and doesn't try to be something else. In a world where so many people are trying to score a hit with the same chord progression for example, the ones that succeed stand out in other factors, and in my opinion it doesn't matter if it's some catchy verse on the refrain or something about the performer like Lady Gaga's provocative performances back in the early 2010s.
- nemo44x 6y ago
  It is what it is - it is popular for a reason. It doesn’t require effort from the listener and as you pointed out it lets people identify with a culture, etc. there’s a reason most people stop seeking out new music in their mid-20’s. Popular music is mainly a youth product which lets each cohort draw cultural boundaries from previous generations. What’s great about modern info tech is it makes it easier to explore artists of your youth that you never knew about. You can get really deep which makes it feel like now music is still being made for you. It isn’t like there aren’t infinite other styles for people that want it. Jazz is a great example of “musicians music” - lots of interesting ideas get explored there and dissonance is used which you rarely find in pop. They actually have software that helps crank out hits nowadays. It’s an interesting time to be a songwriter in Nashville.