[atlantaprog] on a related subject

I thought the list of the 50 worst bands was pretty funny.  I think it's
interesting how subjective an opinion can really be.  It's not just an
arbitrary alignment of a person's/group's thoughts, though it seems that
way because all opinions vary wildly.  It's impossible to tell why someone
thinks the way they do unless you ask I suppose, as in, why that writer
chose those particular bands in that order, etc.  Opinions must be based on
something.    There has to be a cause for the effect.  Somebody can base an
opinion on no thought (the opinions of others), a little thought
(superficial), or a thorough evaluation using all that they know.  Most
people on average, I'm guessing, use little or no thought to base their
opinions most of the time.  That being said, here's a couple of points.
It's probably a mistake to assume the average person will give most art or
music a thorough consideration, no matter how good it is. They would have
to be persuaded, and given a real good reason to do so (too much effort
otherwise).  That might explain why some things that are of good quality
take a while to catch on.  On the other hand, you have commercial stuff
(art, music, etc.) that is instantly accessible (and easy to abandon after
the fad is over) that catches on right away.  I can't stand country music,
or most pop ballads, but these are the most popular genres around the
nation (I'm pretty sure anyway).  There's a reason for it, (accessibility?
emotional appeal? musical fast food?) and I'm not going to go very far to
defend this, but, my point is leading up to commercial music in general.  I
do defend commercial rock radio (only to a certain point), becuase I think
if you're honest, you'll find some reason each song could be judged as
"good" enough to become a viable commercial product - worth $$$ - even if
you don't like the genre.  Okay maybe not every single song, but in
general, most songs in the regular rotation.  I know I risk offending some
of you true independents here who may not agree, but, when I listen to
college radio for a while, and then I flip to commercial radio, there is a
much bigger appeal for me there.  Hell I don't even like most of the bands
on regular rock radio, but I'll choose it over college radio most of the
time because of the improved listening aspects of it.  I'm a true
independent believe it or not, because I think you should do for yourself
as much as you possibly can before you start leaning on other
people/entities, and then do so only with caution and a little cynicism.
But, here I go on my soapbox, commercial radio can teach us all about what
an acceptable commercial product is about.  Let me clarify by saying that
commercial radio is only ONE standard to judge a music product by,
certainly not all of them, but it is one that often gets neglected by the
rebels and the independednts.  If the motive is to make a product, you
really have to consider what's playing on the radio day after day as one of
the many things to judge your work by.  If not, then it's irrelevant I
guess, but we are driven by the opinions of others!  We really are. If a
tree falls in the forest and no one hears it... if all we do is play in the
practice room and no one hears it, does what we do even really matter?
Like wise, if all we do is play to nearly empty rooms, does all our hard
work really even matter?  Maybe to some, I suppose, but my point here is we
really do depend on the opinions of others whether we like it or not -
nobody in this chat group is here becuase we want to be by ourselves, and
ultimately music doesn't matter unless it's heard by others.  Why and how
people come to their opinions should be a matter of interest to all of us!
- VH

PS -  I thought "Love Beach" was really horrible too.  I couldn't even
finish it before I tossed it in the trash!!

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