MrBrau1 said:
I find it curious that as bands move to more song oriented material, more people scream they suck.
Songs really are the last thing on peoples minds when they listen to music. They need something wacky or flashy to hold their interest. Whether it be socks on penis or giant lemons. The songs bands write take a back seat to image and perception.
Well I suppose MTV is partially to blame for the image, the "wacky"/"flashy" part. (MTV pre-1989? or so, feels like it's been ages since MTV was only music videos. )
Oh and maybe the socks were to impress the ladies.
Technical prowess really only impresses other musicians, people who play instruments themselves, or have in interest in the instrumentation.
I'm not sure many teens went to see Britney Spears, or NSYNC for the instrumentals ye know. It was the image or whatever reason they went to see them.
There've been much better technical musicians than the Beatles, but who consistently gets named best band ever? Not like most Beatles songs are all that difficult to play.
I know there's plenty of better "technical" musicians than the members of U2, but does that always mean those songs will be better?
A 10 minute guitar solo can be quite impressive, but does it really add to the song, or is it just a time for the guitarist to show off? Does it add to the song or does actually take away from it?
Sounds like U2 are much more focused on the songwriting, the structure of the songs, than making them complicated to perform.
You don't have to write complex music to make a good song. Is "Hey Jude" a difficult song to play?
I've heard some of the songs off Stadium Arcadium, and it sounds like RHCP are doing the same. I read something from Flea saying lately he's more about the song rather than the flash, which seems to be what Adam has been doing consisently throughout his career. If nothing else, Adam is known for making his lines fit the songs. Playing to the song.
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GibsonGirl: I still shudder to think that people at Interference think Flea is a lesser bass player than Adam. Well, at least that's the way it seemed from that old Adam vs Flea poll...absolutely disgusting results.
I thought the poll was just a piss take, a joke really. I literally rolled my eyes when I saw it. I mean it's like an Edge vs. Jimi Hendrix thread. I think 50% or more the people who even vote in the polls are lurkers, probably just voting to get a rise out of people. If I was bored enough I'd probably have done so too.
The ironic thing though is that I read from another bassist who felt some of Flea's basslines on By the Way felt "Clayton-esque." Why is the better bass player taking an approach the 'lesser' bass player has been doing for awhile?
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Another person mentioned in his experience as well as people he knows, the more mature you get as a musician, the more you tend to play the song, than the instrument.
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Why is it that Chad Smith is the Will Ferrell lookalike and not the other way around?
I like RHCP, though not as consistently as other bands.