Your controversial opinions/thoughts on music

[Ruba]

I am not the same person as I was in my 20's and I'll bet that goes for most people including Rock Stars.

That's definitely true and for most part it's about what you do with what you got. If you can't belt it like you used to, tune it down or work with your lower register. I listened to Fates Warning's latest album yesterday and I honestly prefer Ray's current vocals to what he did 30 years ago.

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

Controversial: Tool is bad, Maynard isn't special, the rest of the band is talented but the music is ultra boring

Somewhere in the distance, Puppies_On_Acid just screamed in a rage. 

[Ruba]

Feel you brah. 

[Ninjabait]

Here's a hot-take, music education version:

Music theory and music education focuses WAY too much on harmony, which is comparatively one of the least important aspects of most kinds of music. Especially in comparison to say, melody and form which are two of the most important aspects of music regardless of genre. The only lipservice melody gets in conventional theory texts is a brief description of what a period and sentence are, and maybe a mention of motifs. You cover it for like a week in Music Theory II, and then never again for the next two semesters. I've been focusing my private studies more on melody for the past few months and I've honestly learned so much from it. Like that melodies almost always start on a note of the tonic triad? Or that the "move towards a cadence" part of a sentence is based on liquidating the previous parts of the melody down to a basic motif and sequencing that? Or that the grand, Romantic, lyrical melodies don't follow either of those structure types and have their own structure? That's all GREAT information for a composer, theorist, or performer to have and none of it gets mentioned even once during the basic studies.

And with form, you only get a brief descriptor of what the parts of a Sonata are and that there's Binary, Rondo, and Ternary forms. How are the individual sections created and how are they expanded from a simple 8-bar phrase into a full section? How are effective transitions made? Exactly HOW do the themes in the exposition get developed? Who knows! None of that gets covered in a basic theory course, even though it's going to give everyone a greater understanding of how the overall piece is structure. Also great information for everyone that we miss out on.

You know what we do get instead? 2 weeks devoted to common tone diminished seventh chords (which appear very rarely) and almost an entire semester devoted to frickin' Serialism (which isn't really that popular outside of academia and is pretty much dead even there). Maybe 4 out of the 64 weeks are devoted to conventional structure and melody, everything else is counterpoint (which is admittedly fairly useful) and harmony (mildly useful, but it's overemphasized).

[cramx3]

^ sounds like a lot of higher education in general, you learn the rare crazy stuff that has little to no application in the real world.  I'm guessing knowing that stuff then allows you to learn the rest yourself in practice.  I don't know anything about what you wrote just thinking it kind of sounds similar to what I learned in college that wasn't very useful other than getting me to learn in general. 

[TheCountOfMinnesota]

Controversial: Tool is bad, Maynard isn't special, the rest of the band is talented but the music is ultra boring

Hey, um... I'm not quite sure how to ask this, and I'm sorry if it's awkward but... are we soul mates?  Sorry, that was too forward.  Let me try again: Is this what it feels like when doves cry?

[King Puppies and the Acid Guppies]

Controversial: Tool is bad, Maynard isn't special, the rest of the band is talented but the music is ultra boring

Hey, um... I'm not quite sure how to ask this, and I'm sorry if it's awkward but... are we soul mates?  Sorry, that was too forward.  Let me try again: Is this what it feels like when doves cry?

It's a match made in whatever Hell Tool haters go to....  

[twosuitsluke]

Good to hear mention of OC Remixes  I've got a few Final Fantasy album compilation remixes they did (the FF6 one, Balance and Ruin, is particularly good).

I've actually been playing through Chrono Trigger on my phone for the first time. I need to get back on OC Remixes and see what's new as it's been at least 4 years since I've been on there.

[The Walrus]

Controversial: Tool is bad, Maynard isn't special, the rest of the band is talented but the music is ultra boring

Hey, um... I'm not quite sure how to ask this, and I'm sorry if it's awkward but... are we soul mates?  Sorry, that was too forward.  Let me try again: Is this what it feels like when doves cry?

It's a match made in whatever Hell Tool haters go to....  

 

Count, you get it.   

[romdrums]

Here's a hot-take, music education version:

Music theory and music education focuses WAY too much on harmony, which is comparatively one of the least important aspects of most kinds of music. Especially in comparison to say, melody and form which are two of the most important aspects of music regardless of genre. The only lipservice melody gets in conventional theory texts is a brief description of what a period and sentence are, and maybe a mention of motifs. You cover it for like a week in Music Theory II, and then never again for the next two semesters. I've been focusing my private studies more on melody for the past few months and I've honestly learned so much from it. Like that melodies almost always start on a note of the tonic triad? Or that the "move towards a cadence" part of a sentence is based on liquidating the previous parts of the melody down to a basic motif and sequencing that? Or that the grand, Romantic, lyrical melodies don't follow either of those structure types and have their own structure? That's all GREAT information for a composer, theorist, or performer to have and none of it gets mentioned even once during the basic studies.

And with form, you only get a brief descriptor of what the parts of a Sonata are and that there's Binary, Rondo, and Ternary forms. How are the individual sections created and how are they expanded from a simple 8-bar phrase into a full section? How are effective transitions made? Exactly HOW do the themes in the exposition get developed? Who knows! None of that gets covered in a basic theory course, even though it's going to give everyone a greater understanding of how the overall piece is structure. Also great information for everyone that we miss out on.

You know what we do get instead? 2 weeks devoted to common tone diminished seventh chords (which appear very rarely) and almost an entire semester devoted to frickin' Serialism (which isn't really that popular outside of academia and is pretty much dead even there). Maybe 4 out of the 64 weeks are devoted to conventional structure and melody, everything else is counterpoint (which is admittedly fairly useful) and harmony (mildly useful, but it's overemphasized).

Here's how I sum up my experience in music theory when I was in college:

Semesters 1-3: If you don't follow these exact rules, your music sucks!
Semester 4: Remember those rules we told you to follow?  Well fuck 'em!

The only part of music theory I thought was fun was when our professor in my third semester did chord analysis to some songs from Abbey Road, like Maxwell's Silver Hammer.  Otherwise, it was nothing but old dead white guys.

[MoraWintersoul]

My overweight cat at 5:00 a.m. is a better singer than Bob Dylan.
Tom Brady is also a better singer than Bob Dylan, as are/were Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Thomas Edison, Thomas Jefferson and Tommy Lee Jones.

You know who isn't though?

[jingle.boy]

My overweight cat at 5:00 a.m. is a better singer than Bob Dylan.
Tom Brady is also a better singer than Bob Dylan, as are/were Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Thomas Edison, Thomas Jefferson and Tommy Lee Jones.

You know who isn't though?

Oh dear lord.... someone ate Vince Neil!!

[The Walrus]

The comments are killing me. "Only Vince can sing in 7 languages at the same time" 

[Stadler]

I can sort of - not really, but sort of - understand the verse lyrics but he even butchered the vocal breakdown (the "When we started this band, all we needed, needed was a laugh.. years gone by, I'd say we've kicked some ass" part).   

Holy crap.   

My buddy sent me this not long ago:

[jingle.boy]

That's a helluva boiler!

[The Walrus]

Looks like Vince has been seeing Dr. Meal Good.

[KevShmev]

If he keeps that up, someone is going to have to kick start his heart.

[Stadler]

Looks like Vince has been seeing Dr. Meal Good.

HAHA.

[Setlist Scotty]

Looks like Vince has been seeing Dr. Meal Good.

Dude, I'm crying laughing!!!! I haven't laughed like that in a long time! LOL! <---- literally!
 
 

Oh dear lord.... Vince Neil ate someonel!!

FTFY

[The Walrus]

 

[King Postwhore]

So you're telling me I need to go as Vince during Halloween?

[Stadler]

I'm coming to your Halloween party, cowboy.  For sure.   


I'll go as Mike Reno:


Or Alex Lifeson:

[King Postwhore]

[Cruithne]

Controversial: Tool is bad, Maynard isn't special, the rest of the band is talented but the music is ultra boring

Hah... I remember when the whole golden ratio aspect of Lateralus had been worked out and people were really working themselves up into a lather about its genius (and often being condescending to anyone not "clever" enough to get it) and here was me just thinking "ehm, they're just big nerds and it doesn't make the music not kinda dull".

I wouldn't go as far as to say Tool's bad, though, but I do get tend to get bored around about the midpoint of a typical Tool song and then have to go listen to some soaring, OTT power metal to find my equilibrium.

I typically find the same true of Meshuggah. For the first minute of a song I'm thinking "yeah, this is really gnarly, great stuff" then about 3 minutes later I'm thinking "ok, moving on from that one thing you're doing...".

[Cool Chris]

The Great Gig in the Sky has some amazing music that is ruined by the sound of a chick's annoying wailing.

[MoraWintersoul]

The Great Gig in the Sky has some amazing music that is ruined by the sound of a chick's annoying wailing.

Well, that's definitely controversial.

[MirrorMask]

The Great Gig in the Sky has some amazing music that is ruined by the sound of a chick's annoying wailing.

So does DT's Home.

*rimshot*

[ReaperKK]

The Great Gig in the Sky has some amazing music that is ruined by the sound of a chick's annoying wailing.

So does DT's Home.

*rimshot*

Seriously though I think the great gig vocal are great and fit the music well.

The moaning in Home is one of the cringest things DT has ever done.

[DoctorAction]

I'm really, REALLY fucking bored of the following:

Metal bands with no sense of humour OR artistic competence. It's been 40 years - you need to have one or the other.

Crap songwriting.  A riff is just a riff. You need a compelling lyric or a decent structure. Usually both.

Super clean production. Give me some life and feel, ferchrissake.

Long albums. Be self-aware. Seriously.

[The Walrus]

I'm really, REALLY fucking bored of the following:

Long albums. Be self-aware. Seriously.

Yeah this is DEFINITELY where I'm at these days. If your album is over an hour you better be justifying that length. Every year I seem to enjoy shorter records, and at a glance most of my favorite records just happen to be under 50 minutes or just over 50 minutes. I'm starting to think 45-50 is the sweet spot for me. Some bands could reeeeally learn how to trim the fat, especially metal bands.

[Adami]

I'm really, REALLY fucking bored of the following:

Long albums. Be self-aware. Seriously.

Yeah this is DEFINITELY where I'm at these days. If your album is over an hour you better be justifying that length. Every year I seem to enjoy shorter records, and at a glance most of my favorite records just happen to be under 50 minutes or just over 50 minutes. I'm starting to think 45-50 is the sweet spot for me. Some bands could reeeeally learn how to trim the fat, especially metal bands.

Is that why no one wanted to listen to my 100 minute long concept album? Or was it the fact that it's about heroin addiction? Or the fact that they didn't recognize anyone on it?

DAMMIT! Why did no one tell me this before?!?

[King Postwhore]

I'm sorry Adami, did you say something?

It isn't the length but the quality of songs.  A 30 minute album can be mediocre and I lose interest.  Same can be said for a long album.

[Crow]

can agree, there can be exceptions too but even with albums i like often i wish they had cut down a little to make a really solid 45-55 minute album instead of a 65+ minute one

i say this having one of my favorite discoveries of the year being a 2-hour long album, though

[Cool Chris]

The Great Gig in the Sky has some amazing music that is ruined by the sound of a chick's annoying wailing.

So does DT's Home.

*rimshot*

 

[Stadler]

I'm really, REALLY fucking bored of the following:

Long albums. Be self-aware. Seriously.

Yeah this is DEFINITELY where I'm at these days. If your album is over an hour you better be justifying that length. Every year I seem to enjoy shorter records, and at a glance most of my favorite records just happen to be under 50 minutes or just over 50 minutes. I'm starting to think 45-50 is the sweet spot for me. Some bands could reeeeally learn how to trim the fat, especially metal bands.

I agree with this perfectly.