BRITS awards

[BillyStubbsTears]

Christ up above but I felt old watching that last night.

See, when I were a bairn, British rock/pop music was about being edgy, sexy, arrogant, offensive, irreverent, cocky or revolutionary in style. T Rex, Sex Pistols, Buzzcocks, Clash, Jam, Joy Division, Specials, Smiths, Human League through to Jesus and Mary Chain, Happy Mondays, Stone Roses, early Oasis.

That bunch of pappy shite last night - if that is the best that the British music industry can produce, then God help us.

Coldplay? Leaders of their era in British music? Jesus wept. Middle class angst woven into Mogadon chords. The sort of stuff that your granny would say, \"Oooh, this sounds nice. And aren't they lovely nice boys?\"

Ed-f**king-Sheeran? He looks like the bas**rd love child of Matthew Hoggard and Boris Johnson, singing pappy little ditties about coming to terms with popping his cherry with some inoffensive lass. A twenty year old trying to sound like a sensible grown-up.

I was never a big fan of Blur, but chuffing hell. At the side of the rest of the no-marks, they looked like Gods from another age last night.

[keyser_soze]

To be fair the BRITs have always been about fat cats in suits quaffing champagne and slapping each other on the back.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Agreed keyser. But look back at past winners.

The Cure,
Oasis,
Blur,
Stereo MCs
Manic Street Preachers
The Verve

If the BRITS had been going in the 70s and early 80s, then without doubt the likes of T Rex, The Jam, Specials etc would have won awards too. There was always pappy shit, but there were also edgy, challenging stuff too. Those were given awards because edgy challenging stuff was mainstream and sold a shite-load of records. It's indicative of the state of current British music that a nice little boy who writes pappy songs about nothing more than the angst of being a nice little boy making pappy songs should be seen as a mega-star today. There was absolutely nothing whatsoever last night, Blur apart, that was in the slightest bit about what Rock music is supposed to be about.

[ditch_drfc]

As every new year comes, music changes. It's life. Rock music isn't going to stay popular forever is it?

There's nothing wrong with the people that were nominated last night. Just because you think ed sheeran doesn't look the part, does that make him a bad singer? The BRITs aren't just rock music you know? It's actually classed as an award for pop music... So saying that it's not what Rock music is about is wrong, because it's got nothing to do with rock...

[BillyStubbsTears]

Ditch. It's actually the award by the British Recording Industry. It's NOT specifically a pop music award. It IS a POPULAR music award. My point is that popular music in the UK, be it pop, rock or whatever has precious little edge to it today. Go back 20 or 30 years, and even the most popular of pop music frequently had either revolutionary style or a edge that marked out the younger generation as different from its predecessors. Think Soft Cell, Gary Numan, Depeche Mode, Human League. Think Acid House. Think Adam and the Ants. Christ, even Duran Duran and Wham with their in your face hedonism at least were enough to piss off sober older folk. Even a band as bland as Culture Club at least had a bit of dangerous sex about them.

These days, the likes of Ed Sheeran and Adele want to be sensible 50 years old when they are teenagers. Me, I find it deeply depressing that the most popular young singers, popular amongst young people, are so utterly and deliberately conformist. They make music that grown-ups can put on in the car and whistle along to without feeling embarrassed. That was never the point of the very best young British rock and pop stars.

[ditch_drfc]

Ok, I kind of see where you're coming from. But I guess the main reason for music these days being so toned down is because people complain about it. For example, if someone swears in a song, 100's complain. If someone dresses in hardly any clothes in a music video, 100's complain that their kids are basically watching soft porn. I think it's a no win situation. So people tend to make \"safe\" music. Music that is hard to complain about. Music that satisfies as many people as possible.

For me there are still people that set their own genre and do their own thing. Many might find some of the examples laughable but i'll give a few,

Jessie J - always wearing crazy outfits, and doing crazy videos. Her music is vocally amazing.

Muse - absolutely amazing band. Even better live

NDubz - 2 men, 1 woman, in a genre that hasn't really been looked at before. They perform great live, do all their own work. Bring style into the industry at the moment.

They are just a few. I did watch the BRIT's last night, and wasn't happy that Adele won a few, for me her attitude towards music is awful.

[MrFrost]

Arctic Monkeys should have won best band. Easily. They are probably the only band now who originally revinvents themselves with every album. Coldplay are the most over rated piece of shit I have ever heard.

I did think it was hilarious how they cut Adele off to go to Blur. Someone else who is massively over rated.

And Vaccines should have won best newcomer.

[Chris]

Good new music is out there, it just isn't in the charts or recognised on poxy award shows like the Brits.

I didn't watch the awards last night but I hear One Erection won 'Best Single'? Ridiculous if true.

[sedwardsdrfc]

all that music is too mainstream it is all about rap/hip hop and dupstep now. england is probably the best right now at both of those right now

[Sandy Lane]

Billy, I thought music reflected what playing out in society at the time. So during the 70 and 80's you had a tory government screwing the working classes and even during the time of impressionist art, they had impressionism music i.e. Ravel and Debussy.  So the music you (and I) love was just reflective of its time.  I don't know what musical era we're in now, but try to appreciate the angst of Adele or Ed Sheeran trying to figure things out for themselves.  Yes it's more introspective and less societal. But is that problematic?  Possibly.

But personally I always loved British music because you lot sang about more than girls and cars!  I learned a lot about British society listening to your music and I still love the Arctic Monkeys and even the Kaiser Chiefs to hear what they're thinking about and what society and life is like for them.  

But I think today less angst and more thoughtfulness does not make a bad band.  Also, can't there be 'middle class' angst?  Not as edgy for sure, but still human condition angst.

Overall, I know what you're saying and I agree, but try to appreciate other music as well.

[ditch_drfc]

To be fair Chris, although One Direction won best single, it's voted for by the listeners of Capital FM. They have a huge following of young teenage girls, and no doubt they will have voted several times. So it's not really a true award that one. For me anyway.

And as for artists dealing with social issues, that still happens in music today. A lot of grime artists rap/sing about social issues, pick up an NDubz album, and a lot of the music deals with big social issues, like teenage pregnancy, unemployment etc...

[BillyStubbsTears]

Sandy

Yes it's more introspective and less societal. But is that problematic? Possibly.

Very perceptive. I think it's the navel-gazing introspection that drives me up the wall, especially when it has no artistic or emotional merit in the music.

As far as I'm concerned, pop/rock music should make you want to do one of four things:
Cry
Dance
Shag
Go out on the streets and start a revolution.

Those responses can be either a rational response to the lyrics, or an irrational response to the music.

Back in the 80s, when we had economic conditions like this, we had God Save the Queen, Going Underground and Ghost Town at No.1. In the early 90s, when life was shit, we had acid house. All of these, genuine, youth culture responses to a world that was shit. All of them building a culture that either wanted something better than the day-to-day grind, or at least screamed against it. It was the same drive that had inspired the Rolling Stones or the Beatles or Elvis to want a lifestyle better than the stultifying boredom of their parents' generation. Along the way, they made people laugh, cry, dance, shag and think that life could be different.

Now, yes, we have marginal bands doing a similar thing. But they are marginal. Can you imagine the equivalent of the Sex Pistols getting to No.1 this summer during the Golden Jubilee with a song that slags off the queen?  The great music consuming public prefer to lap up introspective individuals making sappy songs about how shit it is to be a 20 year old pop star stuck on a tour bus.

And don't get me started on Coldplay. Spokesmen for a generation who have zero to say either intellectually or emotionally.

[jucyberry]

(Placing a comforting cyber hand on BST's shoulder...............) Welcome to the world of our parents, You have now officially morphed into the 'older generation' .. it's the start of a steady decline.. It begins with a true and honest conviction that they don't  make tunes like they did in my day, and ends with damp stains on the front of your trousers or tenna pads and nursing homes..        

Personally, I think it must be about six or so years since I even looked at a music channel...

[BillyStubbsTears]

Cheers Debs.

I'm consoling myself with the thought that we will be the first older generation who slag off the kids for making music that is not aggressive or sexy enough...

[jucyberry]

So very true., I wonder how much programms like the X Factor are to blame for the way music has lost it's edge? Let's face it we are blanket smothered by Syco and it's offerings for much of the year..They seem to be forced through the ranks without going through the hard graft bands in our youth had to put in.

Will we ever see another Queen, or Sex pistols? I doubt it, because it isn't just the sound that turns a band into a legend , it is the memories their music evokes...

 Like everything else music does evolve, thirty years from now it will be our kids turn to bemoan the state of the music today. That is the best consolation I can give you..


P.s, I agree, our music was way better...

[MrFrost]

If you want raw agnst ridden rock music, listen to The Cribs.

[rtid88]

There is absolutely shed loads of awesome music out there, you just won't very often find it in the charts and if you do it's sometimes not for long!

Get yourselves listening to Frank Turner (The best lyricist of the modern era IMO), The Gaslight Anthem, The Cribs, First Aid Kit, Elbow, Johnny Flynn, The Wombats, Mumford & Sons, Kasabian etc....

[vaya]

...or console yourselves with the fact Cud are touring again this year.

[RobTheRover]

There is absolutely shed loads of awesome music out there, you just won't very often find it in the charts and if you do it's sometimes not for long!

Get yourselves listening to Frank Turner (The best lyricist of the modern era IMO), The Gaslight Anthem, The Cribs, First Aid Kit, Elbow, Johnny Flynn, The Wombats, Mumford & Sons, Kasabian etc....

Got tickets to see him at Wembley in April (that will be the 5th time I've seen him live), and today I bought tickets to see Carter USM in Leeds in November (which dont go on general sale until tomorrow).

Having said that, I've also got tickets to see Boris and Hoggy's lad at the Dome, but they might end up on ebay yet!

[drfcdrfc]

To be fair Chris, although One Direction won best single, it's voted for by the listeners of Capital FM. They have a huge following of young teenage girls, and no doubt they will have voted several times. So it's not really a true award that one. For me anyway.

And as for artists dealing with social issues, that still happens in music today. A lot of grime artists rap/sing about social issues, pick up an NDubz album, and a lot of the music deals with big social issues, like teenage pregnancy, unemployment etc...

Urgh, N Dubz aint grime.

[keyser_soze]

Of course great music is still out there, but you just have to look a bit harder and not skim off the jetsam floating on the surface that is fed to you by Radio 1 and Simon Cowell.

Once the market was identified there has become a hell of a lot more commercial throwaway pop that people will buy because its easy and accessible. Like McDonalds for the ears. Tastes like shit and you know how bad it is for you but its easy and cheap. In 1995 the Spice Girls had only just been invented and the industry were only just realising they could get away with creating these 'groups' and that people would buy the crap. All you're seeing today is a totally cynical natural extension of that.

One Direction are utter utter toss, 5 pretty boys who can't even carry a tune, the songs they've been given are meaningless crap but it doesn't matter, the phenomenon that are teenage girls will always buy their music. Until they hit puberty anyway.

[RedJ]

Or work out how to illegally download it.

[rtid88]

There is absolutely shed loads of awesome music out there, you just won't very often find it in the charts and if you do it's sometimes not for long!

Get yourselves listening to Frank Turner (The best lyricist of the modern era IMO), The Gaslight Anthem, The Cribs, First Aid Kit, Elbow, Johnny Flynn, The Wombats, Mumford & Sons, Kasabian etc....

Got tickets to see him at Wembley in April (that will be the 5th time I've seen him live), and today I bought tickets to see Carter USM in Leeds in November (which dont go on general sale until tomorrow).

Having said that, I've also got tickets to see Boris and Hoggy's lad at the Dome, but they might end up on ebay yet!

Yeah I have got tickets for his Wembley gig and I saw him at the Apollo in Manchester last year! Quite simply the best gig I have been too to date!! Can't wait for Wembley!!