Weezer will save us

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This is in response to previous two entries on the state of pop music today.  A state that I can only describe as abysmal. 

First, I have to say that I'm not a curmudgeon.  I like a good song just as much as the next 40-plus year old dad seeking relevance with his kids.  I do have some Katy Perry in my iTunes.  And some Black Eyed Peas.  And there are moments when those songs could be appropriate to blast from my iPhone.

I'm trying to remember the reasons I listened to them, and they escape me for the moment... but there were reasons. A couple at least.

Sadly, the Top 40 song list is peppered with stuff that I can only describe as "crap" as decorum prohibits me from using the words that really come to mind.  Bruno Mars? Seriously? Bleh! At least on iTunes the top singles have a few interesting nuggets among them:  The new Lil' Wayne single "Gonnereah" is "bangin'"--to coin a phrase from my 15 year-old son who listens to such stuff.  Okay, I sort of like Rhianna, too... especially on Eminem's song about love and domestic violence - "Love the Way You Lie."

What the heck?  I guess I do like a lot of pop music.  Dang it.

Even so... Mostly these days I listen to Alternative music. Sirrius has a great station: "Alt Nation" where you can listen to all of the newest and most engaging music that is being made today.  Or you can just go to Pandora and find a similar station.  There are several.   I bought the newest Weezer release last week.  Weezer have sort of become the elder statesman of Alt Rock, and with good reason.  They're awesome.  Weezer draws from a number of influences for their sound, and if you're not familiar with them they sound a bit like a mix between Nirvana and the Beach Boys without the doom and gloom of Cobain's lyrics. 

I think that the defining characteristic of Alt Rock/Music is it's ability to reinterpret music without parodying it or bastardizing it.  For those of us of a certain age who grew up listening to both Iron Maiden and the Cure (depending upon the girl that we were trying to date, no doubt),  Alt Rock offers a welcome release from the shallow garbage that litters most of the airwaves of most radio stations.

Even now as I am writing this, I am listening to the Genius Mix on my iTunes for Alternative Rock and the inspiring sounds of Foo Fighters "Best of You" is causing me to pause from typing and pretend I am playing the drums.  There.  I am back. 

At any rate, go and buy Weezer's newest album "Hurley" (named for the character on lost, and featuring his mug on the cover).  Listen to "Memories" and allow the pop music toxins to flow out of you and leave you cleansed. 

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We're all Clones...

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In response to the last post or the one before that... I forget.

I think the acrimony in our country has less to do with meta-debates over socialism and democracy and more to do with plain old marketing.

I agree that it is incumbent upon us as media "consumers" to realize that each brand is doing it's dead level best to sell a particular product. Fox knows its demographic and sells to it.  They give the faithful what they want.  They know that there's a certain amount of men watching Fox And Friends in the AM at a certain time and so they throw a couple of Hooters girls on the set to promote some lame wing special. They also know what stories to run that will excite and inflame their audience.

CNN is no different, MSNBC... the list goes on and on.  These are companies that are in the business of making money, first and foremost.  We lose sight of that far too often.

There's a profile somewhere in CNN's headquarters of their typical viewer: (white, upper middle class, college educated with at least a BA in something, prefers a Mac over a PC, lives in or near a large city, eats sushi three times a month).  They can try to make it sound like they are a serious news organization and that Fox is all about sensationalism, but they are both trying to give their typical viewer exactly what their typical viewer wants.

And because people want to belong to a tribe, they gravitate toward the same stuff that people in their tribe gravitate toward.  Do you know how many people that I know that drive Volkswagens AND own a Mac?  A lot. The same holds true for the shows we watch, the restaurants we frequent and... our politics. 

I watch Fox News off and on throughout the day.  I also switch to CNN occasionally and I begin each morning listening to NPR.  I also have an AP Mobile app for my iPhone and I check it two or three times a day to get news updates.  But I am an exception to the rule.

Most people stick with their tribe unaware that by doing so, they are limiting their knowledge and their perspective.  I am guilty of it with Apple products.  I probably could have a better phone than my iPhone for a lot less money.  But there is nothing in this world that will make me want to switch. 

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