Wondering out loud

[Panther]

I've been thinking about what is now iconic age of rock as we knew it and where the genre sits today. The music back then was powerful, grabbing, addicting. Hell, look at us on this forum for proof of that. No matter the group, it sucked us in and didn't spit us out until it was damned good and ready. I don't believe that all of us could have possibly been looking for words to script our lives or to feel as if they were speaking of us when they sang. Rather... I think it was the atmosphere that we dove into. We were glued to the radio, we flocked to the music marts, we bought the rags. All in hopes of staying in some form of contact with the whole scene, the "life" of rock, if you will. Many of us then took to the live music in the various incarnations from the largest of venues to the smallest. Some seemingly piggy backing the tour buses.

Then, somewhere in there a small seed was planted and those from the groups younger than us (most of us) turned to it, as they couldn't grasp the involved life and atmosphere of rock. Their music was less "in your face" and kid friendly, not to mention musician friendly. As we (as a whole unit) aged, we, too, turned down the volume on our involvement in rock life. When that happened, the musicians tried to change their sound (some of them - others kept an even keel) to draw us back to the life. I don't know why, exactly, but a whole lot of us didn't look back, didn't wait for them, just didn't keep breathing for that life of rock. That is when our rock began to fail by a large measure. They couldn't get the time on the radio, fill the seats, sell the songs. The kids weren't interested and it seems we weren't either. The bands dropped from the rolls one by one, as did their management, promoters and most of the rock life as we knew it.

This is where the kids took over. Their brands were diametrically opposed to the days of old. No need to feed the live dragon. Just pump out the one hit wonders, make a million and split. It worked. Hell, we weren't buying into our rock life, so why shouldn't this new stuff work?!

Every couple of years or so, we would see a tiny resurgance of the band GODS. Just a little blip on the screen. But now there seems to be a deep tremor running beneath the surface. The last three years have seen quite a few bands come back out of the woodwork. It's also seen a chunk of "turncoat" fans finally looking back and wondering where in the hell "our" music went. After all, it couldn't survive without us for all these years.

My thought is that NOW is the time to re-birth those glory days. NOW is the time for whatever is left out there from our fire breathing dragon days to put up or shut up. (I really hate to go here, but here goes) IF Azoff wants to play god figure, NOW is his time to step up and blow the roof off the music scene in a right fitting and proper manner. Bring back to life something along the lines of this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gz0H6uJ7qsQ





Somewhere central to the states. Make it a week to accomodate the bands needs and ahem.. our getting up in years. Bring in OUR rock gods (what is left of them). Infuse some of the newer rock (Porcupine Tree, JSSB, etc). And just let us live again, let us blow our collective brains with the music that ruled our world.

Okay, I'll put down the pipe and stop with the long ass postings. I just needed to get some of that out of my system.

[JH'sTXfan]

My daughter doesn't get it. A couple of weeks ago she came home from college for the weekend and I was going on about music to her in my usual way.
She said, "Mom, what is it about 80's music? It always has to be so EPIC! "

She loves music, but it's all 90's stuff. Tori Amos? Googoo Dolls?

Now, my son, I'm so proud, is all into classic and melodic rock. Chip off the old block. He's my best concert buddy.

[journeyrock]

That definitely would be the ultimate. A "Woodstock" sort of a thing. To have everyone and all the bands together in one venue would absolutely rock. Now that would be the concert of a lifetime and Azoff and his buddies would rake it all in in a matter of a few days. That would be BIG.

Great post, it got me excited just reading it.

[X factor]

My daughter doesn't get it. A couple of weeks ago she came home from college for the weekend and I was going on about music to her in my usual way.
She said, "Mom, what is it about 80's music? It always has to be so EPIC! "

She loves music, but it's all 90's stuff. Tori Amos? Googoo Dolls?

Now, my son, I'm so proud, is all into classic and melodic rock. Chip off the old block. He's my best concert buddy.

You know what the bad part is? 90's music IS epic - compared to the shit going around today...

[strangegrey]

I for one, never believe it will happen again. A few reasons.

Kids don't buy 'albums' anymore. They go to itunes and download a song or two. The packaging of the artist is different. On the sides of vinyl or a CD case, they were iconic. Records, tapes and CDs all had a smell to them that was as recognizable as a new car smell. WHen you got a new album that whole shrinkwrapped thing was something that stamped you. We, as a generation, read the liner notes. We look at all the pictures. (Some freaks here (I used to say BT in that spot) do more with those pictures ) We play the albums over and over and over again.

Kids these days just dont get any of that. Their music is just another form of 'entertainment'...in a world where we have entertainment overload. So it doesn't have the grandiosity that it did back in 1987.

Combine that with the fact that Artists are far more accessable. You can actually contact some of these artists these days. They've got blogs, posted email addresses, etc, etc. The wall of mistique has been broken down a good bit. It's not there like it was in the old days. If you want that wall of mistique, go to country music...it still exists there....but not in Rock.

The music dictates the grandiosity of the artist. In my eyes, when an artist uses his fame to push something other than his music, he loses the flair. Cuntbags like Neal Young, Michael Stipe, U2, etc...that preach some political high-brow opinion, instead of concentrating on music....remove any of that mystique. Instead, they're just political figures who are subject to the 50% rule (you either hate em or love em based on whether or not they fall on your side of the political aisle). In *our* form of music, politics don't cross the line as much...and as a result, most of us have no idea what our artists feel about politics....and to me, that prevents a breakdown of mystique.

[X factor]

I for one, never believe it will happen again. A few reasons.

Kids don't buy 'albums' anymore. They go to itunes and download a song or two. The packaging of the artist is different. On the sides of vinyl or a CD case, they were iconic. Records, tapes and CDs all had a smell to them that was as recognizable as a new car smell. WHen you got a new album that whole shrinkwrapped thing was something that stamped you. We, as a generation, read the liner notes. We look at all the pictures. (Some freaks here (I used to say BT in that spot) do more with those pictures ) We play the albums over and over and over again.

Kids these days just dont get any of that. Their music is just another form of 'entertainment'...in a world where we have entertainment overload. So it doesn't have the grandiosity that it did back in 1987.

Combine that with the fact that Artists are far more accessable. You can actually contact some of these artists these days. They've got blogs, posted email addresses, etc, etc. The wall of mistique has been broken down a good bit. It's not there like it was in the old days. If you want that wall of mistique, go to country music...it still exists there....but not in Rock.

The music dictates the grandiosity of the artist. In my eyes, when an artist uses his fame to push something other than his music, he loses the flair. Cuntbags like Neal Young, Michael Stipe, U2, etc...that preach some political high-brow opinion, instead of concentrating on music....remove any of that mystique. Instead, they're just political figures who are subject to the 50% rule (you either hate em or love em based on whether or not they fall on your side of the political aisle). In *our* form of music, politics don't cross the line as much...and as a result, most of us have no idea what our artists feel about politics....and to me, that prevents a breakdown of mystique.

Well put...I wish it weren't the way you put it (in regards to the way kids view music) but I'm afraid it is.

However, I'm not so sure I'd refer to those folks as "cuntbags" for trying to promote a political aganda and affect change, but the point of breaking down the mystique is a good one.

[Panther]

I for one, never believe it will happen again. A few reasons.

Kids don't buy 'albums' anymore. They go to itunes and download a song or two. The packaging of the artist is different. On the sides of vinyl or a CD case, they were iconic. Records, tapes and CDs all had a smell to them that was as recognizable as a new car smell. WHen you got a new album that whole shrinkwrapped thing was something that stamped you. We, as a generation, read the liner notes. We look at all the pictures. (Some freaks here (I used to say BT in that spot) do more with those pictures ) We play the albums over and over and over again.

Kids these days just dont get any of that. Their music is just another form of 'entertainment'...in a world where we have entertainment overload. So it doesn't have the grandiosity that it did back in 1987.

Combine that with the fact that Artists are far more accessable. You can actually contact some of these artists these days. They've got blogs, posted email addresses, etc, etc. The wall of mistique has been broken down a good bit. It's not there like it was in the old days. If you want that wall of mistique, go to country music...it still exists there....but not in Rock.

The music dictates the grandiosity of the artist. In my eyes, when an artist uses his fame to push something other than his music, he loses the flair. Cuntbags like Neal Young, Michael Stipe, U2, etc...that preach some political high-brow opinion, instead of concentrating on music....remove any of that mystique. Instead, they're just political figures who are subject to the 50% rule (you either hate em or love em based on whether or not they fall on your side of the political aisle). In *our* form of music, politics don't cross the line as much...and as a result, most of us have no idea what our artists feel about politics....and to me, that prevents a breakdown of mystique.

That was one of my points. I know the kids aren't buying it, doing it. But what about us? I'm not speaking of the limited numbers who happen to post here or those, who despite the changes, stayed true to the sound. For a large chunk of our generation, when the mid-to-late twenties hit, they dropped rock and turned away from it. Think about the people you went to school with or saw at the concerts of the times. How many of them do you think even know that some of these bands actually put out albums and toured since that time? A very small fraction is my guess. Quite frankly, we dropped the ball and are part of the reason the "life" saw/is seeing the decline to death (I know, not that extreme).

Why does everything revolve around the kids. "They" are loading tunes, they like to contact their musicians. Where the hell are we in that equation? No where. "We" as a group stopped showing interest and the industry moved on to the group that wanted product.

My thought was, maybe if there was some of that old EPIC thing thrown back in the mix (with enough advertising to reach all of "us"), just maybe those who turned away would come back for the event and get hooked all over again.

Okay, so, we don't necessarily need to strip down to our string bikinis and such... but the freedom allowed at something like the US Festival could be a huge draw for those of us stuck in the everything revolving around family mode.

I know these thoughts are like smoke from the bong, but the thought intrigues me all the same.

[TRAGChick]

I for one, never believe it will happen again. A few reasons.

Kids don't buy 'albums' anymore. They go to itunes and download a song or two. The packaging of the artist is different. On the sides of vinyl or a CD case, they were iconic. Records, tapes and CDs all had a smell to them that was as recognizable as a new car smell. WHen you got a new album that whole shrinkwrapped thing was something that stamped you. We, as a generation, read the liner notes. We look at all the pictures. (Some freaks here (I used to say BT in that spot) do more with those pictures ) We play the albums over and over and over again.

Kids these days just dont get any of that. Their music is just another form of 'entertainment'...in a world where we have entertainment overload. So it doesn't have the grandiosity that it did back in 1987.

Combine that with the fact that Artists are far more accessable. You can actually contact some of these artists these days. They've got blogs, posted email addresses, etc, etc. The wall of mistique has been broken down a good bit. It's not there like it was in the old days. If you want that wall of mistique, go to country music...it still exists there....but not in Rock.

The music dictates the grandiosity of the artist. In my eyes, when an artist uses his fame to push something other than his music, he loses the flair. Cuntbags like Neal Young, Michael Stipe, U2, etc...that preach some political high-brow opinion, instead of concentrating on music....remove any of that mystique. Instead, they're just political figures who are subject to the 50% rule (you either hate em or love em based on whether or not they fall on your side of the political aisle). In *our* form of music, politics don't cross the line as much...and as a result, most of us have no idea what our artists feel about politics....and to me, that prevents a breakdown of mystique.

BINGO!!

I've thought the same thing as the highlighted part ~ for the last few years now.

But, I've often wondered - is it because:

a) The age we-all were, back in the day...for me, in 1979 I was 12; in the "heyday" of Arena Rock, I was a Teenager....and EVERYthing was SOO much "larger than life"....y'know??

OR,

b) Would we react the same way back then, as we do right now ~ if we were in our 30s, 40s, etc. back then ~ and more "cynical / impacted" by Life?

PS ~ Funny you should mention the "Breakdown of the Mystique" ~ because Pat Benatar, one of my Childhood HEROES, accepted my MySpace "friend" invite.

Talk about surreal.

[7 Wishes]

The wall of mistique has been broken down a good bit. It's not there like it was in the old days. If you want that wall of mistique, go to country music...it still exists there....but not in Rock.

I agree with the rest of your post, but hmmmmm??!!! WTF? "Mystique" has about the same relevance in country music as "humility" does to the French. The "new country" is the most bland, predictable, and uninspiring crap in the history of music.

[mistiejourney]

Kids don't buy 'albums' anymore. They go to itunes and download a song or two. The packaging of the artist is different. On the sides of vinyl or a CD case, they were iconic. Records, tapes and CDs all had a smell to them that was as recognizable as a new car smell. WHen you got a new album that whole shrinkwrapped thing was something that stamped you. We, as a generation, read the liner notes. We look at all the pictures. (Some freaks here (I used to say BT in that spot) do more with those pictures Rolling Eyes ) We play the albums over and over and over again.

Geeze, did you hit the nail on the head! I used to know who played on what album, who wrote what, all the lyrics - it was great. I miss albums. Even the CDs aren't as good with the liner notes (or I'm getting to old to read them.... )

[X factor]

The wall of mistique has been broken down a good bit. It's not there like it was in the old days. If you want that wall of mistique, go to country music...it still exists there....but not in Rock.

I agree with the rest of your post, but hmmmmm??!!! WTF? "Mystique" has about the same relevance in country music as "humility" does to the French. The "new country" is the most bland, predictable, and uninspiring crap in the history of music.

True enough, 7- but I think Strangegrey may have been refering to the fact that there are still high profile "stars" in country music...your Tim McGraw's and Kenny Chesney's and you Faith Hill's etc...they still have the "mystique" that today's "rock stars" (ARE there actually any of these? ) don't really have. Not to speak for you SG...just the way I interpreted the post...

[Perrydise]

Kids don't buy 'albums' anymore. They go to itunes and download a song or two. The packaging of the artist is different. On the sides of vinyl or a CD case, they were iconic. Records, tapes and CDs all had a smell to them that was as recognizable as a new car smell. WHen you got a new album that whole shrinkwrapped thing was something that stamped you. We, as a generation, read the liner notes. We look at all the pictures. (Some freaks here (I used to say BT in that spot) do more with those pictures Rolling Eyes ) We play the albums over and over and over again.

Geeze, did you hit the nail on the head! I used to know who played on what album, who wrote what, all the lyrics - it was great. I miss albums. Even the CDs aren't as good with the liner notes (or I'm getting to old to read them.... )

Bingo - all of that is gone. They dont care about any of that.

I remember taking my daughter to Pine Knob to see Alanis Morissette (sp), The Jagged Little Pill tour, and she knew all the liner notes from the CD. Now all she does is download