OK. I’ve laid out, repeatedly, how shitty music is right now. (If you missed that, I’ll give you the Reader’s Digest version: it’s as shitty as it’s ever been, if not more so.) Things being cyclical, I have to hope that the Big Wheel will be turning soon, or at least before I die. But which way will it turn? That’s the question now, since good new music is so fucking scarce. (Do look into getting that Grinderman CD, though. You’ll thank me later.)
Given the nature of the current music scene – meek and mild, living on its knees, creeping about as quietly as possible so as not to scare anyone – it stands to reason that the backlash will be swift and loud and merciless. I certainly hope so, anyway. Then again, I’m hearing rumblings of prog on the horizon. Honestly, that wouldn’t really be the antidote to boredom one might hope for. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not a prog hater. I recently spent about two months listening to very little else, just to sorta refresh the ol’ memory and such. Here’s the thing: prog is exceptionally hard to do well. There really aren’t that many bands that could pull it off back in the day. King Crimson, Genesis (from time to time – even with Peter Gabriel on board they weren’t above the odd snoozer), and after that you have to start hunting pretty hard. Most of it was boring twenty-seven minute wankathons, just like the punks said it was. So a prog revival would have to incorporate something new and vital to make it any less somnolent than the acoustic pap on offer now.
There’s also been some talk of “heavy rock” returning to the fore. Which, again, is easier to say than to actually pull off. There is a bit of a neo-grunge thing going on here in Seattle, but so far what I’ve heard of it doesn’t really bring much that’s new to the table.
ARE YOU SEEING A THEME HERE? THE FLAW IN THE WHOLE REVIVAL GIG IS THAT YOU’RE REHASHING SOMETHING THAT’S ALREADY BEEN HASHED OUT AT LEAST ONCE. IT’S LIKE PRE-CHEWING DINNER FOR SOMEONE – MOST PEOPLE WANT IT FRESH.
Sorry about the shouting there, but it really does seem to be something that people aren’t hearing. (Plus I accidentally hit the capslock key – happy accident or divine intervention? You be the judge.) It’s not enough to go back and dig up something that’s worked in the past. You’ve got to reinvent, at the very least, or combine some elements that heretofore haven’t been served on the same plate. Better still, just make up something yourself. Otherwise, there’s not really much point, is there?
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