I’m frustrated with the musical state of things lately. Bands are profuse and accessibility is at a high, with the Myspace/iTunes generation (mine) using every piece of technology that is literally at their fingertips. So why, do you ask, am I frustrated? Despite this accessibility, I’m finding it harder and harder to find a band that truly moves me. A band that’s saying something real, a band that is genre-defying, a band that will change the course of music history.
Part of our problem is that with this new technology era everything has to have labels. Myspace bands are forced to use certain preset labels to describe themselves. iTunes places every band into a limited genre category. By naming something you force it into a box, you place it in a group. Band segregation is a major problem. Without a broad base of musical knowledge, and a creative leaning their is no musical innovation.
One of music’s great innovators, Bob Dylan grew up in a small town where different music was not extremely accessible. He pushed himself by listening not only to the popular music, but also artists like Woody Guthrie. He later joined a musically diverse community in New York City, became famous by writing and playing amazing folk music and then left a core audience behind by going electric. He’s considered one of the most distinguished and popular musicians of our time. Lately it seems too many bands are happy with mediocrity, too many artists are comfortable with stagnation.
Music is an exploration. A process of self-discovery. Almost every person I come across these days has thrown themselves into one of these music segregation groups. People don’t tend to travel outside of their preset genre, unless pushed by musically conscious friends. I am by no means saying that people should force themselves to listen to music that they hate, but before you decide to hate something take a listen, don’t just look at the genre.
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