There has been so many aspects that contributed to the devolving of music. Taking music out of school was devastating. Technology is a huge one. It started with drum machines replacing real drummers, then onto auto tune, then snapping everything to the grid and replacing sounds. MTV abandoning music videos in favor of reality shows was also a devastating blow. Another was the record companies just trying to sign the same types of copy cat bands over and over. No one did anything new after a while. I live in NY and I’m a professional musician. Most of the bands here are filled with older players. 40’s 50’s 60’s Young people stopped being inspired to play music and join bands at some point. Sure there are great players online with amazing chops but where are they in the bars, clubs, garages, school dances? It just doesn’t exist anymore. What regular aspiring drummer is going to turn on top 40 radio and be inspired to pick up the sticks?? It ain’t happening.
I agree 100%, and AI will be the final nail in the coffin. Who want s hear a 20 year old play drums to an unknown song when AI can play them a rap battle with Tupac and Michael Jackson?
I blame corporate consolidations/control of the music business. The Telco Act of '96 allowed corporations to own more radio stations in each market. Large corporations put together playlists on multiple radio stations. There are even fewer record labels and they are just divisions of larger conglomerates. There is even an anti-trust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and Livenation.
The gatekeepers have all but shut the door on rock music. The trend with unsigned and independent bands and artists is Direct to Consumer. (D2C). BandCamp is still one D2C platform that is viable, but will only produce so much income. It’s still much better than streaming payouts. Broadcast radio is inaccessible to all but a few. We won’t win fighting the Goliath. Someone smarter than me will hopefully find a new way. The old way is no longer working.
Bravo, Brad. Truer words have never been spoken. Personally, I'm so committed to getting real, vibrant music into the world.....I've sunk my last cent into opening a small recording studio. And thxfully I've got a couple buddies giving their all as far as booking live music into our local Vegas clubs. There's a lot of work still to be done, but it's a fight worth taking on.
OUTSTANDING BRAD , As a Booking Agent I CANT Shine more on what you have said , NO ONE IS A CREATOR ANY MORE , We have Thousand and Thousands of Cover & Tribute Bands , we have a great problem finding Musicians who will WRITE or can Write Music , I grew Up listening to the Greats you just Mentioned , My Dad introduced me to the Big Band Music when I was so young , THE DUKE , DUKE ELLINGTON BIG BAND , THE COUNT , COUNT BASIE BAND , GLENN MILLER , BENNY GOODMAN , LES & LARRY ELGART , HARRY JAMES , TOMMY DORSEY , EVERYONE WAS WRITING MUSIC , You Hit such a BINGO with this Vid , and Now a Days WE HAVE NOTHING NOTHING , those Big Bands were MASTERS at writing Music , and we have LOST SO SO MUCH in the Past 2 decade. Every Booking agency is Searching for the Creators NOTHING ELSE , BOY DID YOU HIT IT RIGHT ON THE MONEY , THANKS HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU & YOUR FAMILY , GOD BLESS. , CHICAGO LOU
The middle school and high school guys for the last 30 years has increasingly spent more and more money on video games that they would have spent on records before 1992. They are okay getting their music for free. Those kids that grew up spending money on video games in the late 90s, 2000s don't all of a sudden spend money on physical music and gigs when they are 26+. It's a whole generation of music non buyers cycling through.
I listened to many styles of music growing up, but favored blues-rock and hard rock. Recently I have been watching concert videos of Linda Ronstadt from the 1970's. That was pop, soft rock, AOR during that era. The performances are incredible ... the vocal talent, the top tier musicians in her band, the excellent song-writing and arrangements. No auto-tune, no pyrotechnics, no flashy costume changes, no choreography. Just real music performed by real people about real emotions and experiences. I get it that some people like the "entertainment factor" of modern pop. But I agree with you Brad that it would be great to have some artists today that really express the soul of the music -- with musicians serving the song ... not just instrumental gymnastics.
Hey Brother Brad, I admire your take on the reality of today's "music." I dare say that certain genres of what is considered "music" is in actuality the anthesis. I remember an interview with Jerry Garcia where he explains that "rap" by its very definition IS NOT MUSIC. I'm sure there are plenty of people that would argue this point. I would also add that many of the cultural implications are less than family friendly. I absolutely love Motown, R &B, and of course classic rock. I don't remember any of the aforementioned genres promoting violence, the love of money and hatred toward others. I say this in addition to most of the crap that has so infested both radio and music culture. Give me Lionel Richie or Zeppelin. Thanks for your great insights on music! John .
9:11 dude this is exactly what I’m doing! Just put out a song last month that was recorded with no computers at all and I’m very close to having a 3 piece band together. The song/my music might not be everyone’s cup of tea but it is very well written and excruciating attention was paid to the details. It’s just the start, I have way more songs but recording this way is incredibly difficult and I can’t do it all by myself. Be the change you want to see! Don’t just complain that music sucks nowadays. Support the artists who are trying to make a difference.
We most certainly have devolved creatively. There’s no doubts about it. Even the “new stuff” feels mostly like an interpolation of someone else’s song from the past. I’m so tired of the lack of true creativity
7:58 every time someone mentions Taylor swift, I can’t help but mention the fact that her dad was a millionaire that connected her with all the best people by the time she was in middle school. So, I respect her hooks and songwriting abilities, but it’s hard for me to fully and completely respect her success. It’s like guys like Jacob Collier. If you have a passion and have parents that can afford to give you the best of the best education from childhood on, I can only respect you to a certain point. I think I prefer someone who isn’t as “successful”, but makes me move and feel something. To further my previous point, I can honestly say I’ve never felt moved whatsoever by either a Taylor Swift or Jacob Collier tune. I always call em “trust fund hooks”. You can call me jealous, but I’m not wrong.
The only way for rock music to survive is to make it and support it. Major record labels and streaming services are purposely pushing it into a hole. Just my 2 pennies.
I’ve been thinking about this topic for awhile and decided to make a solo rock album. I had to put my money where my mouth is so to speak. Your channel has been a kick in the pants to keep pushing. Doing everything solo from start to finish is so much harder than being with a band. Keep rocking the truth. Your channel may just save rock and roll. No pressure !
Music hasn’t excited me in decades. When music got dull something would come along to kick everyone’s ass. Hasn’t happened in a long time, and rock is now considered for dads, it doesn’t appeal to young people or speak to them
Great video. Social media, a lack of wanting to spend money on music and art in schools and people sitting on computers All Day has had a disastrous effect on music, politics and all kinds of things. I first played out in 1975 with my buddies in high school. The natural progression for most of us was learning how to play, forming a band and playing at some school prom or party etc. While social media can be a good thing, it can also poison a lot of things. As a guitar teacher, some my students played clarinet or trumpet. I would ask them "have you heard of benny goodman or louis armstrong?" "No, who is that? As schools have become more about some stupid test performance , Art , music and culture has suffered. The "record industry" is a joke and many musicians are paid almost nothing. In the word of one politician "the system is rigged" The only guy I can think of who does not rely on tricks to play live is Billy Strings. I actually got all my buddies to help me put on a "recital" with P.A. lights, etc. I have a friend who is a great rock and metal singer so that helped. Im the weirdo who would get my young students to play out. The reaction from them and their parents was gratifying to say the least. I dont the path on getting back to live performance but we need to figure that out too. And more actual music history in school. See ya
So many things created the perfect storm of devolving music quality - everyone needs to mentor the young musicians - The Beatles had a manager that helped.
Agree, but playing a real instrument takes a level of concentration that seems to be fading away. Shredders are focused, but seem to have missed the idea of playing rhythm. Five minutes of instrumental shred and I’m looking for the door.
The infrastructure just isn't there anymore. The record companies used to front the money for a young band to get started and book the venues, the buses and hotels for them... AND press and distribute the records, tapes, CD's and VHS and DVD's. Yeah a young band full of 19 year olds could technically do all that but where are they going to get the starting money and the know how??? Hopefully we will come back full circle at some point but that can be anywhere from 10 to 50 years from now.
One of your best videos yet! You called out the answer midway through your video… If bands and musicians are unwilling to start the set by saying that ithe music is all live, all them, no backing tracks or other nonsense… I personally am not going to the concert. I think this is a huge business opportunity for promoters to promote entire tours with this type of music. Thanks Brad
You nailed the making of great music again from the artists level but also on the endangered species list are the great producers who helped create the magic in the studio.
Things haven’t been the same since big bands stopped having in sync vibrato. Lot’s of great bands out there but we don’t see many outside of their regions. Many great musicians are too smart to go in hole much in losing tours. If you make an indie album and can break even, you are winning.
The problem with modern music is that most of it is uninspiring. There are definitely some great newer musicians, but actual musicianship is hard to find. Great video!
Hi Brad ,the most talanted new band i have herd is night wish with thier new singer. I think today music is so unapreciated that nobody cares about it anymore. This lack of care means music does not have the support to blossum. Artists today have a very hard road and to make a living must handle all thier business interests them selves. I got to the big stages and left in 1972.
Back then there was a certain impetus to drive artistry to the forefront, in my opinion. There was a _Civil Rights_ movement, there was a _Counter Culture_ movement, there was an _Anti-war/Peace_ movement, and there was an informed populace that could read, write, think independently and critically, out of necessity. And when The Beatles really began to explore and experiment to the point where even the studio became their instrument, it opened the door for nearly everything else in pop culture. What do we have now? We have _Woke Culture_ . We have _Cancel Culture_ and we have _Identity Politics_ . We don't have any kind of a focused 'movement' today, what we have instead looks more like a festival of confusion and ignorance. And we now have _AI_ to provide even more convenience and automation over creativity. _Welcome to The Machine_ . What passes for 'music' now is mostly just sonic wallpaper to keep you awake on the way to work. This trickle-down stupidity affects us everywhere...and most of the music I listen to now was written and/or performed by dead people. I'm honestly not sure what the solution is. Maybe we need a high profile band - like The Beatles - to light the way, as they did for many bands coming up in the Vietnam era. But that just goes back to the original problem - that there is no modern band like The Beatles, not even close, and even if there was, there is no environment for the freedom of expression and originality in the entertainment industry. That world is all about marketing a product, not enriching the world with creativity or expanding consciousness.
There's no new Led Zeppelin. Seems like many people out there think Greta Van Fleet is the second coming, I just see a group of kids that love Zeppelin a bit too much that didn't develop their own sound before leaving the garage with a guitarist that refuses to take off his Jimmy Page costume between Halloweens.
Bad Brad sayin the quiet part out loud! I love it! I knew it was in there! But… there are exceptions. I’m 55 and I love the new band The Retrograde! They are channeling something from old! Great episode!
Blackberry Smoke is one of the best rock bands over the last 20 years. The industry changed so we'll never get another Led Zeppelin again...seriously doubt it with technology constantly making it easier to make "music ". You're right about the iconic artists and bands of yesteryear have no equals today. I'm 50 so I'm just getting started at yelling at clouds myself. What you're asking and looking for in today's youth as far as music goes is impossible. It's a different era. Music being taken out of schools in poorer pockets of the country hasn't helped. Yes, we have devolved to a lower state of conscience because of cellphones. Internet and the convenience of pressing a button to get instant gratification whether that be a product or food delivery or how "music" can be made. It's over, Brad. There will always be a few talented artists and bands that may stand out now and again but with long play albums as out of date format and no record company to discover, develop and support artists and bands the idea of another Rolling Stones ever happening again is pure fantasy. In someways it's great sleazy record company executives are gone but everything good about them went away with them. A band has to DIY like punk bands had to but its easier today because of the modern convenience of technology at their disposal so let's face it, man...there will never be another Miles Davis, Chuck Berry etc. The only creative pocket left in this country may be in New Orleans and I'm not even too sure anymore about that. As far as jazz goes there's the Lincoln Center in New York. Some of the best are there and Wynton Marsalis has been busting his ass for years preserving jazz and blues and doing his best to inspire young people to understand and play music. History has shown that whatever was rarely ever comes back full force. To a certain degree its sad there may never be a British invasion or a San Francisco scene ever again and on the other hand its makes it that much more special at least to folks more or less my age but hopefully some younger people will hold certain music in the same esteem as past generations have. Say what you will about Dead and Co...I've never gone as I've seen the real deal however the remaining members have been pulling in younger people by the masses even before Mayer's association. The jam band scene is one of the only scenes where I see creativity by some younger newer bands and even that scene isn't what it used to be. Nothing is or ever will be. Feel fortunate to have lived in the long play albums era and let the kids figure out what turns them on in their era. And if what they produce doesn't compare to the greats then so be it. I wish things were different but they aren't. And I hate to sound even remotely negative but until music and arts is back in schools, even the poorest of schools music most likely will just keep devolving like society has to a lower conscience. Hey, at least I saw The Rolling Stones when they still had piss and vinegar and the same for Grateful Dead. I've seen Tito Puente. Max Roach etc and I've been fortunate to meet some legends of rock n roll and jazz from working at music festivals in my younger years and playing in bands. Even the music festival scene isn't what it used to be. Everything is about money, music and art isn't a priority in today's society apparently.
Good topic, in my opinion one of the sad problems is those few bsnds or solo acts that could possibly fill the shoes of past iconic artists aren't getting any airplay. Nobody with true soul and talent mixed with great charisma can't seem to reach the masses the way they used to. Larger than life, iconic performers are sadly a thing of the past. No more music in schools is probably the saddest change. Kids learning to become true musicians is harder today without that kind of foundation. Early recognition for hard work, practice, and achievement. We're in an age where you can learn any guitar lick just by watching a UA-cam video instead of dropping the needle 1000 times figuring it out and feeling that sense of real accomplishment. I have hope, there are some good players out there, it's just harder to seek them out today.👍✌🎸
Ouch! I'm depressed now. All that talent, gone. You use to be able to go out and find it at a club or show. No it's nowhere... you are correct again sir but it's very sad when you actually think abt it.
All the Best Music has already happened...how many permutations of getting dumped, disrespected, falling in Love, etc... can coexist with any credible scale of Quality? Whether its Blues, Country, Rap, Rock...i agree we are experiencing devolution of the medium
Al Green, James Brown, James Taylor, Jim Croce, Marvin Gaye, Carol King, Linda Ronstadt, Harry Chapin, Dan Fogelberg, Carly Simon, Gordon Lightfoot.....the list is almost endless. Today's music sounds generic like it comes out of a can. I seen many of the 70's greatest concerts Nugent, Doobies, Van Halen, Bob Seger, Outlaws, REO back when they were a ROCK band "ridin the storm out!" Marshall Tucker, Uriah Heep and so many, many others! Thanks Brad you're just telling the truth.
You're right. I can't think of any top tier young bands with that stand-out talent. Some of the bands that have great original material and are/were almost ready to break, have stalled for a few years and are getting long in the tooth now. I'm thinking of "The Sheepdogs", "Goose", "Umphrey's McGee", etc. None of them have that big SPARK though.
Autotune and AI not only have lowered the bar (under trojan horse of being a helpful tool) and completely eliminated it as the gate keeping talent bar and now were drowning in a sea mediocrity and sub garbage.
Man o man ...I agree 100%......!!! When I was young in the '60's - '70's , we had AM radio which featured all artists and styles from singer/songwriter to the super groups and everything in between......now it's all fractionated and categorized.......!!! Devolved...? I've been saying it too......!!!
I pretty much stopped listening to Joe when he started wearing sparkle suits and greasing back his hair. I know that’s cosmetic but his music changed a lot around this time. Marcus King has been a breath of fresh air. And when I need a good dose of good rock and roll, I put on the Georgia Satellites and close off the outside world for half an hour.
There is great music of higher caliber being produced constantly but the money is being made with something else so that's what's in front of you. Everybody is eating the fast food...and it's addictive. Cheers Brad!
Things haven’t been the same since big bands stopped having in sync vibrato. Lot’s of great bands out there but we don’t see many outside of their regions. Many great musicians are too smart to go in hole much in losing tours. If you make an indie album and can break even, you are winning. We got used to highly skilled bands taking months and years to do records, while the best studio cats cranked out hits daily. Some of the best songwriters could make great careers behind the scenes, now they don’t even qualify for streaming pay. In major markets, the best players can only make it if they have a university day job too, and perhaps have a spouse that has a corporate career. Many great players over the years have had day careers we just didn’t know about. In music, I want to take it to the bridge, but I don’t want to have to live under it.
People hear and sometimes enjoy music but they don't listen to music.You literally have to change what a song IS and what it's supposed to DO. Every musician knows all the chords to hit to get what emotional response they're expecting so everything is predictable. As far as musicianship goes, you either have technical sheep that believe that their chops and education are the whole of the law or you have or you have people that use backing tracks to sell their hedonism and materialistic lifestyle. The best music; rock in particular was always made by people with basic technical ability but large imaginations
I went to the grocery store today and they were playing a Bing Crosby Christmas song i thought wow even the old holiday songs of 50-plus years ago are way better than anything out there today or last few years even
Producers sacrificed art for efficiency; the consolidation of the radio companies; the lack of freedom for the young people; the establishment not wanting another war soundtrack. That is all I have to say.
The machine is not behind the quality artists overall. Don’t expect them to save music. It’s up to us, the people. The machine marketed Zeppelin. The machine marketed Queen. The machine marketed James Brown. But now the machine has different technology and has advanced their agenda and music like that doesn’t need to be used anymore to hook people. “They” can use a more simplistic, “dumb” music to get people into their trance of depravity. Those artists I mentioned up top are too sophisticated for modern audiences as they, generally speaking, have been conditioned to like music with zero imperfections and thereby heart and soul. You’re right, people have devolved and art is reflecting that. And the machine will only give people what they’ve been conditioned to accept. I could go on and on about this but it’s too damn much to type. I will conclude with: let’s MAKE THEM ROCK.
BadBrad speaks the truth! Everything today sounds like it was created in a laboratory. I actually think about this a lot...there's no more rock icons. I'm sure there "are" Steve Wonders, Prince's and Zeppelin's, but no one will get to hear them other than their local scenes. What we really need is another revolution, not necessarily rock---but similar ideals like danger, irreverence, rebellion, sleaze, decadence, authenticity, etc---to shale culture up, and it usually does. At some all this commercial shit stretches and stretches and eventually gives. Lets hope the pressure cooker blows sooner than later!
If a rock revival happens, it’s gonna have to be a group of bands that ignite the spark again. I don’t think one band will do it. Back in the day it was exciting when something new would come out of nowhere and kick everyone’s ass, I really miss that
An accurate state of affairs said here. Right with you Mr. Brad. Right wing politics defunding schools. Computers as instruments and my favorite issue, lack of performing venue. Toffler predicted the electronic cottage as a lifestyle in his 1979 book, "The Third Wave." Let's "Unsnap the Grid"!
I grew up in the 90s. I've always listened to 50s-70s music religiously. I would say the 90s that was last great decade for music that actually had an impact. For sure classic rock is dead now,..its not even promoted locally as before. Local FM and AM stations over the years have been reformatted for hip pop, rap (FM) or political talk radio (AM). I remember the year, it was 2015, when they killed our long time running classic rock station, and reformatted it to hip pop rap. Our long running AM that played 60s-70s, was killed this year for political talk radio. In the 90s I remember concerts still being promoted over the radio. I remember seeing Grand Funk last tour with Mark Farner, Joe Walsh, Rick Emmett, Ronnie Montrose, Eric Burdon, Moxy, MSG, Wishbone Ash, Los Lobos, Budgie, Pat Travers, Santana, etc. I dont even waste my time attending concerts anymore, its pretty much over, and I dont trust crowds these days. Even Country is souless useless garbage these days. I was riding with someone and asked them, who's playing, that they are putting me to sleep..they said Post Malone. I listen to my music collection from my phone, commercial free. I dont pay or like streaming services.
I started out playing acoustic music then branched out from there. I don't listen to pop music but I hear bits and pieces and like what Billy Strings and Sturgill Simpson are doing.
It's not just music in society that's become inferior. It's also Hollywood, politics, organized religion, crappy items you buy at Walmart, and bland automobile designs.
A lot of good points made in the comments I’d like to add what Rick beato said with Spotify you can own a whole catalog of countless bands making them worthless apposed to saving your money and walking miles to the record store to buy grace under pressure ( my case)
All I can say is that there are still young people out here who care about integrity in music. I’m going to do everything I can to bring real music back! I think deep down people understand that music is about human connection and I think people are going to realize that music is not supposed to be a perfect commodity before too long. Once you hear the real deal, all the corporate computer music just doesn’t compare.
Very true. There is no real music industry selling records anymore. We would have to record on tape again with live takes. Ditch the computers and do it the old way. Even when a newer band records some good tunes there’s no money in selling music so record, copy and paste.
Almost seems like an age old problem. I remember when comedian Bill Hicks complained about the popstar goofballs of the day. He said, "Since when did mediocrity and banality become a good image for your children? I want my kids to listen to people who XXXXXX' ROCKED!" He screamed, "Play from your XXXXXXX HEART!!!!" Maybe that's the crux of the biscuit. If there's no heart in it, what's the point? We need to shock this one back to life somehow.
I'm about your age, and... What has surprised me for years, is the people who defend the current status of the business, mostly being musicians themselves. They seem to have been tricked into thinking that getting up everyday and having to tend to your merch shop, instead of writing songs... is actually a great thing. Maybe this is because younger people never saw what it was like to be a true star, who never had to be bothered with stupid S like that. It has also amazed me how many times I've gotten into arguments with young musicians, who refuse to acknowledge that removing the billion$ in record sales, has had any negative effect at all. Billions that would have helped pay artists who are never going to be the big giant touring act. I can't imagine how many artists we would have never had, if it wasn't for record sales. But overall, I don't blame musicians, because they're basically just giving people what they seem to want. Boring music. Music doesn't need to be that exciting anymore, because there's so many other things to do now. It's not like back when you only had 5 channels of TV, movies, books, and records. Now music is just background noise for everything else.
Great video Brad. I agree 100%. It was Motown and Doo Wop I grew up with. To this day, I say they were the greatest vocalists ever. I can't even stand today's Metal at all. I find no talent what so ever hearing someone growling and moaning and calling that singing. You look at those Hard Core bands and the guitarists are just going up and down the guitar neck and not even playing chords. I know nothing about guitar, and I could do that haha. Same thing goes for the drummers. They don't even play a beat, it's just banging like a maniac. I don't see anything worthwhile today listening to. Reason I listen to everything old and see the legends in concert that are still around. I'm soon to be 58 and a friend of mine just turned 57. We were just saying, " Who is going to replace the legendary bands like The Doobie Brothers, Deep Purple, Santana, and bands like that when they finally decide to retire?" I don't see any of these bands today doing that. On a good note, love your channel and have a great day! Rock on!
You're 100% right! Can I subscribe to this channel twice LOL love it man. I think that's what Gene Simmons was saying when he said Rock is dead and people attacked him for it and said the Foo Fighters are rock or this band or that band. that's not what he's saying, he's saying exactly what you're saying and young people don't get it and some older people don't. It's lost its organic Factor. People make fun of 80s hair metal, but you strip all of that stuff away, from the majority of those bands and they can still play their songs acoustically, you don't find many bands that can do that nowadays. Get rid of IEM prompts, clicks, and cues and everything else. You will have a stage full of people that do not know how to adapt and overcome that situation of having their hands held with iems Go back to acoustic and wedge monitors and start from the ground up again. Don't get me wrong, iems are fantastic, but are meant to be used as a tool, not a crutch. People will argue with one another all day long that Taylor Swift is singing live and there is no way in hell that chic is singing live, running all over that stage for 3 hours and everything that comes out of FOH sounds perfect. These people don't get it and they don't understand but they sure have an opinion. This music is geared towards the generation that has been dumbed down Love the channel, dude keep it up..
We really cannot forget the often most overlooked change. Where music went from being enjoyed in a static setting whether in a vehicle or in a home played through a sophisticated collection of hardware such as receivers, amplifiers and speakers. Where now, it is an ear bud or even worse the speaker off of a cell phone. How can anyone argue the quality of musicianship when the audience has degraded the experience dow to a microscopic speaker? Just my two cents worth. I have seen musicianship is still very good out there among the young, unsigned artists out there. Some I would dare to say are great players; just not in the mainstream playlists however. The potential is there. We just need to recognize that music touches the soul and thus needs to be felt as well as heard. Cheers!
Go back to plug n play. Leave the laptop in the studio and make music great again! Oh wait, that takes talent and hours of practice which younger musicians no longer have the patience to do. In today's quickie society, everyone wants things now with no work to get it.
Well...The last great Country run was in the 90s. Escorted out with Bentley and Paisley. Country today is all Gimmick without Soul !!! Rock melded into Country in the 90s. It has been diluted so much it is not recognizable. Anyone remember the battle between Keith and Sony when Sony censored Toby??? It has always been a corporate shill game that came ultra apparent with the sickening Disco of the late 70s. That's when I left the building. I had a nice gig on a Ship. Thought I could handle selling out for Disco and watching Idiots Bump. But not what I was dedicating my life for. Said F it and walked away. Went back in the studios and it was all the same. Almost went with a buddy to Nashville but was so discouraged. Did some more studio and one last huge Gig and left with head held up!! Always a hole in my Soul forever. I have learned to live with it. Never want to deal with the false promises and lies of the music biz again!!
I'm your same age, Brad. I agree. MMGA. I like Pegasus's channel, too. I tell you what, I really hope we can MMGA. I remember when I was a teenager in the 80's, older people, probably Boomers, told me that a band such as Motley Crue, was nothing but noise. I could see their point, but I always could hear the blues in Motley's music, so I disagreed with them. Same with AC DC. We'll do the best we can!
It seems like most great music movements, at least, of my lifetime, have been accompanied by technological shifts, and cultural moves. I’ve always thought the next shift would be a VR/Metaverse star, maybe with some new version of a guitar, or some kind of Guitar/AI hybrid, maybe from Japan, or China. Taylor Swift, as an example, is really more of a retro-star, than anything really forward-looking. I think her market is a demographic perhaps seeking comfort, more than breaking technological barriers. She HAS been the Beatles for girls for the last 15 years, tho, so there is that.
@ to electronic ai based or enhanced. It won't back down. It started w thing like TC helicon. Thwn moved to various pitch correction techniques. to the punches as you mentioned disappear as Iai will correct it.
I own a skateboard shop. I have a jam space for all the kids to play and learn. Most of the kids have never picked up a instrument before. Most just want to play tik Tok songs.
There is nothing out there right now and I am not sure we will ever see it again. However thats why they will always be Classic Rock Radio stations all across the country.
The music that is created today is as disposable as a paper dixie cup. The singer/songwriter has faded as have the bands. We need more artists. The labels will not make any attempt to break artists any more. It's all about looks and image. Radio is the vast wasteland. You won't hear new, substantive music on an I Heart radio station.
It's so many reasons for the decline. I'm sure you've seen the clips of the 700 pound "Rapper" on oxygen reciting the same lie over and over to autotune. And yet he's playing to an arena full of people that have shelled out money for it. People think this is what they want. Alot of manipulation has happened to get this far down the hole. Another thing is, people really don't do art anymore that I can see. They don't draw, paint, sculpt, write poetry or novels either like they used to. Here's a thought that just hit me. Young guys used to want to learn to play instruments and be in a band to help get chicks. Young people just don't hang out and look to get laid like they used to. They have Apps for that now.
Just when you thought you couldn't like BadBrad more... I agree with some of the other comments about how the music industry is farked, and the corporate takeover of radio. (Remember when radio was where you tuned in to try to hear them play your favorite song, or a brand new one?) Playlists now are often so short, the same songs on repeat. Hair Nation was even bad, but they've improved recently. If you look at trends in society and the rise of the internet and especially social media like Instagram and tik tok, a lot of the content put out by "influencers" is highly curated and not authentic. Filters that change their appearance, contived scenarios, and now AI. I guess my point is society/culture seems to promote depictions of reality that aren't real at all. Why should modern music be any different? The sad part is how many people buy into this stuff and to the degree that they do.
I was thinking about something else. We talk about things, i.e. music, not being real, but in a sense we're comparing it to something that is real or that we believe is real. It might be relative, but I think something can also be real in absolute terms. Some of this new music is "real" in that it was created and it exists, but it's maybe not what one would consider to be original or authentic. My point: a lot of us here grew up in a different era, we have something to compare to. If you're a young person growing up today, i.e. a primary consumer of new music, and you're constantly bombarded with information and stimuli that may or may not be real or authentic, and a lot of times it can be hard to tell, are you necessarily going to be able to tell the difference? Get my point? They don't really have the same frame of reference that we do to be able to call BS unless someone points it out to them.
I'm by no means saying you're wrong, but keep in mind there was always a lot of crap. We mostly only remember the great bands from 30-60 years ago. Listen to repeats of Casey Kasem from the 70s and 80s. There are a lot of songs that may be technically more sophisticated than today's top 40, but it's still boring and unremarkable. But everything about the business today doesn't reward originality. There's less risk in producing banal music. Bland will appeal to more people though it won't be loved as intensely. The more niche you are, the less fans you'll have but they'll be more devoted. Anyway, I'm almost as old as you, Brad, but I still try to go to shows and find new music. I'm into Black Ends from Seattle. If you're expecting Led Zepplin or Van Halen or some other hall of fame band, you’ll probably be disappointed, but their new album is solid (on Bandcamp) and they put on a good live show. Seattle Times named the new album best WA state release of 2024
There has been so many aspects that contributed to the devolving of music.
Taking music out of school was devastating.
Technology is a huge one. It started with drum machines replacing real drummers, then onto auto tune, then snapping everything to the grid and replacing sounds.
MTV abandoning music videos in favor of reality shows was also a devastating blow.
Another was the record companies just trying to sign the same types of copy cat bands over and over. No one did anything new after a while.
I live in NY and I’m a professional musician. Most of the bands here are filled with older players. 40’s 50’s 60’s
Young people stopped being inspired to play music and join bands at some point.
Sure there are great players online with amazing chops but where are they in the bars, clubs, garages, school dances?
It just doesn’t exist anymore.
What regular aspiring drummer is going to turn on top 40 radio and be inspired to pick up the sticks??
It ain’t happening.
Man you really hit the nail on the head.
I agree 100%, and AI will be the final nail in the coffin. Who want s hear a 20 year old play drums to an unknown song when AI can play them a rap battle with Tupac and Michael Jackson?
I blame corporate consolidations/control of the music business. The Telco Act of '96 allowed corporations to own more radio stations in each market. Large corporations put together playlists on multiple radio stations. There are even fewer record labels and they are just divisions of larger conglomerates. There is even an anti-trust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and Livenation.
That is a factor for sure.
The gatekeepers have all but shut the door on rock music. The trend with unsigned and independent bands and artists is Direct to Consumer. (D2C).
BandCamp is still one D2C platform that is viable, but will only produce so much income. It’s still much better than streaming payouts.
Broadcast radio is inaccessible to all but a few.
We won’t win fighting the Goliath. Someone smarter than me will hopefully find a new way.
The old way is no longer working.
Bravo, Brad. Truer words have never been spoken. Personally, I'm so committed to getting real, vibrant music into the world.....I've sunk my last cent into opening a small recording studio. And thxfully I've got a couple buddies giving their all as far as booking live music into our local Vegas clubs. There's a lot of work still to be done, but it's a fight worth taking on.
OUTSTANDING BRAD , As a Booking Agent I CANT Shine more on what you have said , NO ONE IS A CREATOR ANY MORE , We have Thousand and Thousands of Cover & Tribute Bands , we have a great problem finding Musicians who will WRITE or can Write Music , I grew Up listening to the Greats you just Mentioned , My Dad introduced me to the Big Band Music when I was so young , THE DUKE , DUKE ELLINGTON BIG BAND , THE COUNT , COUNT BASIE BAND , GLENN MILLER , BENNY GOODMAN , LES & LARRY ELGART , HARRY JAMES , TOMMY DORSEY , EVERYONE WAS WRITING MUSIC , You Hit such a BINGO with this Vid , and Now a Days WE HAVE NOTHING NOTHING , those Big Bands were MASTERS at writing Music , and we have LOST SO SO MUCH in the Past 2 decade. Every Booking agency is Searching for the Creators NOTHING ELSE , BOY DID YOU HIT IT RIGHT ON THE MONEY , THANKS HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU & YOUR FAMILY , GOD BLESS. , CHICAGO LOU
Thank you 🙏
The middle school and high school guys for the last 30 years has increasingly spent more and more money on video games that they would have spent on records before 1992. They are okay getting their music for free. Those kids that grew up spending money on video games in the late 90s, 2000s don't all of a sudden spend money on physical music and gigs when they are 26+. It's a whole generation of music non buyers cycling through.
Very true!
@@badbradI agree w/you on everything you’ve said. “Lazy” society nowadays.
@@badbradAlso , today’s fans don’t demand it , so the music biz just delivers jingles and commercials .
Its such a different landscape now...
Now I know you are the real deal Bad Brad. Bravo!!! Calling out Swift and current Hip Hop is legendary. Your video has inspired me. Thanks.
Much appreciated! There are some great hip hop artists in the past with intelligent lyrics and great music....but today...not so much.
I listened to many styles of music growing up, but favored blues-rock and hard rock. Recently I have been watching concert videos of Linda Ronstadt from the 1970's. That was pop, soft rock, AOR during that era. The performances are incredible ... the vocal talent, the top tier musicians in her band, the excellent song-writing and arrangements. No auto-tune, no pyrotechnics, no flashy costume changes, no choreography. Just real music performed by real people about real emotions and experiences. I get it that some people like the "entertainment factor" of modern pop. But I agree with you Brad that it would be great to have some artists today that really express the soul of the music -- with musicians serving the song ... not just instrumental gymnastics.
I love to watch old clips of Linda Ronstadt.....she was so awesome and yes a great band....
💯
You just reminded me of "Lotta Love" by Nicolette Larson.
Hey Brother Brad, I admire your take on the reality of today's "music." I dare say that certain genres of what is considered "music" is in actuality the anthesis. I remember an interview with Jerry Garcia where he explains that "rap" by its very definition IS NOT MUSIC. I'm sure there are plenty of people that would argue this point. I would also add that many of the cultural implications are less than family friendly. I absolutely love Motown, R &B, and of course classic rock. I don't remember any of the aforementioned genres promoting violence, the love of money and hatred toward others. I say this in addition to most of the crap that has so infested both radio and music culture. Give me Lionel Richie or Zeppelin. Thanks for your great insights on music! John .
Correct! Go back another couple and three decades for even more good musicianship!
I'm on board with your views, Brad.
right on!
9:11 dude this is exactly what I’m doing! Just put out a song last month that was recorded with no computers at all and I’m very close to having a 3 piece band together. The song/my music might not be everyone’s cup of tea but it is very well written and excruciating attention was paid to the details. It’s just the start, I have way more songs but recording this way is incredibly difficult and I can’t do it all by myself.
Be the change you want to see! Don’t just complain that music sucks nowadays. Support the artists who are trying to make a difference.
We most certainly have devolved creatively. There’s no doubts about it. Even the “new stuff” feels mostly like an interpolation of someone else’s song from the past. I’m so tired of the lack of true creativity
7:58 every time someone mentions Taylor swift, I can’t help but mention the fact that her dad was a millionaire that connected her with all the best people by the time she was in middle school. So, I respect her hooks and songwriting abilities, but it’s hard for me to fully and completely respect her success. It’s like guys like Jacob Collier. If you have a passion and have parents that can afford to give you the best of the best education from childhood on, I can only respect you to a certain point. I think I prefer someone who isn’t as “successful”, but makes me move and feel something. To further my previous point, I can honestly say I’ve never felt moved whatsoever by either a Taylor Swift or Jacob Collier tune. I always call em “trust fund hooks”. You can call me jealous, but I’m not wrong.
Exactly I had to explain to my daughter how Elvis came from nothing and became one of the greatest of all time…. That is accomplishment.
The only way for rock music to survive is to make it and support it. Major record labels and streaming services are purposely pushing it into a hole. Just my 2 pennies.
I hear you loud and clear.
I’ve been thinking about this topic for awhile and decided to make a solo rock album. I had to put my money where my mouth is so to speak.
Your channel has been a kick in the pants to keep pushing. Doing everything solo from start to finish is so much harder than being with a band.
Keep rocking the truth.
Your channel may just save rock and roll. No pressure !
Your right! a small glimmer of hope is the Curtis Family band out of San Francisco, their on UA-cam & they play live 70's based Soul Music etc!
I need to check them out....
Music hasn’t excited me in decades. When music got dull something would come along to kick everyone’s ass. Hasn’t happened in a long time, and rock is now considered for dads, it doesn’t appeal to young people or speak to them
im with you Brad
Thank you!
Thank you ❤
No problem
Great video. Social media, a lack of wanting to spend money on music and art in schools and people sitting on computers All Day has had a disastrous effect on music, politics and all kinds of things. I first played out in 1975 with my buddies in high school. The natural progression for most of us was learning how to play, forming a band and playing at some school prom or party etc. While social media can be a good thing, it can also poison a lot of things. As a guitar teacher, some my students played clarinet or trumpet. I would ask them "have you heard of benny goodman or louis armstrong?" "No, who is that? As schools have become more about some stupid test performance , Art , music and culture has suffered. The "record industry" is a joke and many musicians are paid almost nothing. In the word of one politician "the system is rigged" The only guy I can think of who does not rely on tricks to play live is Billy Strings. I actually got all my buddies to help me put on a "recital" with P.A. lights, etc. I have a friend who is a great rock and metal singer so that helped. Im the weirdo who would get my young students to play out. The reaction from them and their parents was gratifying to say the least. I dont the path on getting back to live performance but we need to figure that out too. And more actual music history in school. See ya
Great post and you are doing good work sir!
So many things created the perfect storm of devolving music quality - everyone needs to mentor the young musicians - The Beatles had a manager that helped.
Very wise!
Agree, but playing a real instrument takes a level of concentration that seems to be fading away. Shredders are focused, but seem to have missed the idea of playing rhythm.
Five minutes of instrumental shred and I’m looking for the door.
Born 1970. From Classic rock, Prog Rock, Metal, Prince and everything in between John Mayer live playing? Never thought I'd say that.
He is ….
The infrastructure just isn't there anymore. The record companies used to front the money for a young band to get started and book the venues, the buses and hotels for them... AND press and distribute the records, tapes, CD's and VHS and DVD's. Yeah a young band full of 19 year olds could technically do all that but where are they going to get the starting money and the know how??? Hopefully we will come back full circle at some point but that can be anywhere from 10 to 50 years from now.
Don't need alot of money...do need a laptop some software and a few mics and some honesty in the production process.
One of your best videos yet! You called out the answer midway through your video… If bands and musicians are unwilling to start the set by saying that ithe music is all live, all them, no backing tracks or other nonsense… I personally am not going to the concert. I think this is a huge business opportunity for promoters to promote entire tours with this type of music. Thanks Brad
Man you got it. Start a whole festival with nothing but real music.
The problem lies with the customers, not the musicians trying to make it in my view.
You nailed the making of great music again from the artists level but also on the endangered species list are the great producers who helped create the magic in the studio.
Producers are a lost art form!
Things haven’t been the same since big bands stopped having in sync vibrato.
Lot’s of great bands out there but we don’t see many outside of their regions. Many great musicians are too smart to go in hole much in losing tours.
If you make an indie album and can break even, you are winning.
The problem with modern music is that most of it is uninspiring. There are definitely some great newer musicians, but actual musicianship is hard to find. Great video!
Agreed. It's just not as widely available as it used to be.
Tell it like it is Brad ! Thanks for the post.
Appreciate the support!
Hi Brad ,the most talanted new band i have herd is night wish with thier new singer. I think today music is so unapreciated that nobody cares about it anymore. This lack of care means music does not have the support to blossum. Artists today have a very hard road and to make a living must handle all thier business interests them selves. I got to the big stages and left in 1972.
Very truthful and inspirational. You nailed it on the head. Good to hear someone say it.
Thank you!!
I love this one man !! Keep it raw !
I need to get you on here bro...
Thank you for speaking Truth to Power! We need Quality and Authenticity in Music, and your channel is where we can build that.
I appreciate that
Back then there was a certain impetus to drive artistry to the forefront, in my opinion. There was a _Civil Rights_ movement, there was a _Counter Culture_ movement, there was an _Anti-war/Peace_ movement, and there was an informed populace that could read, write, think independently and critically, out of necessity. And when The Beatles really began to explore and experiment to the point where even the studio became their instrument, it opened the door for nearly everything else in pop culture. What do we have now? We have _Woke Culture_ . We have _Cancel Culture_ and we have _Identity Politics_ . We don't have any kind of a focused 'movement' today, what we have instead looks more like a festival of confusion and ignorance. And we now have _AI_ to provide even more convenience and automation over creativity. _Welcome to The Machine_ . What passes for 'music' now is mostly just sonic wallpaper to keep you awake on the way to work. This trickle-down stupidity affects us everywhere...and most of the music I listen to now was written and/or performed by dead people.
I'm honestly not sure what the solution is. Maybe we need a high profile band - like The Beatles - to light the way, as they did for many bands coming up in the Vietnam era. But that just goes back to the original problem - that there is no modern band like The Beatles, not even close, and even if there was, there is no environment for the freedom of expression and originality in the entertainment industry. That world is all about marketing a product, not enriching the world with creativity or expanding consciousness.
Great Music is out there but it's diluted by trash
There's no new Led Zeppelin. Seems like many people out there think Greta Van Fleet is the second coming, I just see a group of kids that love Zeppelin a bit too much that didn't develop their own sound before leaving the garage with a guitarist that refuses to take off his Jimmy Page costume between Halloweens.
I concur. Different society and culture now. You will never see another Zeppelin, Van Halen, etc...
@@thebadcat69 Have you seen some of the comments under their videos? How many relatives on acid could these kids possibly have?
Need some pirate radio stations , seems alot of chaos everywhere sheople are distracted doesn't help
The internet is one giant Pirate Radio….
Bad Brad sayin the quiet part out loud! I love it! I knew it was in there!
But… there are exceptions. I’m 55 and I love the new band The Retrograde! They are channeling something from old! Great episode!
The Retrograde, huh? I'll check them out.
Blackberry Smoke is one of the best rock bands over the last 20 years. The industry changed so we'll never get another Led Zeppelin again...seriously doubt it with technology constantly making it easier to make "music ". You're right about the iconic artists and bands of yesteryear have no equals today. I'm 50 so I'm just getting started at yelling at clouds myself. What you're asking and looking for in today's youth as far as music goes is impossible. It's a different era. Music being taken out of schools in poorer pockets of the country hasn't helped. Yes, we have devolved to a lower state of conscience because of cellphones. Internet and the convenience of pressing a button to get instant gratification whether that be a product or food delivery or how "music" can be made. It's over, Brad. There will always be a few talented artists and bands that may stand out now and again but with long play albums as out of date format and no record company to discover, develop and support artists and bands the idea of another Rolling Stones ever happening again is pure fantasy. In someways it's great sleazy record company executives are gone but everything good about them went away with them. A band has to DIY like punk bands had to but its easier today because of the modern convenience of technology at their disposal so let's face it, man...there will never be another Miles Davis, Chuck Berry etc. The only creative pocket left in this country may be in New Orleans and I'm not even too sure anymore about that. As far as jazz goes there's the Lincoln Center in New York. Some of the best are there and Wynton Marsalis has been busting his ass for years preserving jazz and blues and doing his best to inspire young people to understand and play music. History has shown that whatever was rarely ever comes back full force. To a certain degree its sad there may never be a British invasion or a San Francisco scene ever again and on the other hand its makes it that much more special at least to folks more or less my age but hopefully some younger people will hold certain music in the same esteem as past generations have. Say what you will about Dead and Co...I've never gone as I've seen the real deal however the remaining members have been pulling in younger people by the masses even before Mayer's association. The jam band scene is one of the only scenes where I see creativity by some younger newer bands and even that scene isn't what it used to be. Nothing is or ever will be. Feel fortunate to have lived in the long play albums era and let the kids figure out what turns them on in their era. And if what they produce doesn't compare to the greats then so be it. I wish things were different but they aren't. And I hate to sound even remotely negative but until music and arts is back in schools, even the poorest of schools music most likely will just keep devolving like society has to a lower conscience. Hey, at least I saw The Rolling Stones when they still had piss and vinegar and the same for Grateful Dead. I've seen Tito Puente. Max Roach etc and I've been fortunate to meet some legends of rock n roll and jazz from working at music festivals in my younger years and playing in bands. Even the music festival scene isn't what it used to be. Everything is about money, music and art isn't a priority in today's society apparently.
Young people do not know who Prince is...we are f'ed. musically.
Man that is absolute 100. How is that possible?
Good topic, in my opinion one of the sad problems is those few bsnds or solo acts that could possibly fill the shoes of past iconic artists aren't getting any airplay. Nobody with true soul and talent mixed with great charisma can't seem to reach the masses the way they used to. Larger than life, iconic performers are sadly a thing of the past. No more music in schools is probably the saddest change. Kids learning to become true musicians is harder today without that kind of foundation. Early recognition for hard work, practice, and achievement. We're in an age where you can learn any guitar lick just by watching a UA-cam video instead of dropping the needle 1000 times figuring it out and feeling that sense of real accomplishment. I have hope, there are some good players out there, it's just harder to seek them out today.👍✌🎸
Ouch! I'm depressed now. All that talent, gone. You use to be able to go out and find it at a club or show. No it's nowhere... you are correct again sir but it's very sad when you actually think abt it.
It is a sad state....
All things old will become new again! We can only hope!
Perhaps so
There’s nothing new under the sun.
@@JohnGuffey-ho3xc it does feel like that
@JohnGuffey-ho3xc I know, we've had auto tune for 200yrs. Lol
Ain't nothing like the real thing Baby, Ain't nothing like the real thing.
man you know it!
@@badbrad Like you said at the end of the show to the new bands … Still WATING !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i burnt myself out on politics
I hear you.
@@badbrad same
All the Best Music has already happened...how many permutations of getting dumped, disrespected, falling in Love, etc... can coexist with any credible scale of Quality?
Whether its Blues, Country, Rap, Rock...i agree we are experiencing devolution of the medium
Al Green, James Brown, James Taylor, Jim Croce, Marvin Gaye, Carol King, Linda Ronstadt, Harry Chapin, Dan Fogelberg, Carly Simon, Gordon Lightfoot.....the list is almost endless. Today's music sounds generic like it comes out of a can. I seen many of the 70's greatest concerts Nugent, Doobies, Van Halen, Bob Seger, Outlaws, REO back when they were a ROCK band "ridin the storm out!" Marshall Tucker, Uriah Heep and so many, many others! Thanks Brad you're just telling the truth.
Thank you for tuning in!
You're right. I can't think of any top tier young bands with that stand-out talent. Some of the bands that have great original material and are/were almost ready to break, have stalled for a few years and are getting long in the tooth now. I'm thinking of "The Sheepdogs", "Goose", "Umphrey's McGee", etc. None of them have that big SPARK though.
Bravo!👏👏👏👏
Thank you!
@badbrad no thank You for bringing this up! And I'm trying my best everyday to stay truly creative Sir.
Autotune and AI not only have lowered the bar (under trojan horse of being a helpful tool) and completely eliminated it as the gate keeping talent bar and now were drowning in a sea mediocrity and sub garbage.
So true!
Man o man ...I agree 100%......!!! When I was young in the '60's - '70's , we had AM radio which featured all artists and styles from singer/songwriter to the super groups and everything in between......now it's all fractionated and categorized.......!!! Devolved...?
I've been saying it too......!!!
Joe Bonamassa and Samantha Fish are doing a pretty good job of carrying the blues torch
They do but Joe is getting on up there…
I pretty much stopped listening to Joe when he started wearing sparkle suits and greasing back his hair. I know that’s cosmetic but his music changed a lot around this time. Marcus King has been a breath of fresh air. And when I need a good dose of good rock and roll, I put on the Georgia Satellites and close off the outside world for half an hour.
People like Miles Davis and John Coltrane were singular talents, there will only be one of each.
True!
100 percent spot on
Thank you!
Right on brother...how about Captain Beyond's first album (1974) "Captain Beyond"? Stellar stuff.
It is great!👍🏻
There is great music of higher caliber being produced constantly but the money is being made with something else so that's what's in front of you. Everybody is eating the fast food...and it's addictive. Cheers Brad!
Cheers!
You're a thousand percent correct.
Thank you!!!
Things haven’t been the same since big bands stopped having in sync vibrato.
Lot’s of great bands out there but we don’t see many outside of their regions. Many great musicians are too smart to go in hole much in losing tours.
If you make an indie album and can break even, you are winning.
We got used to highly skilled bands taking months and years to do records, while the best studio cats cranked out hits daily. Some of the best songwriters could make great careers behind the scenes, now they don’t even qualify for streaming pay.
In major markets, the best players can only make it if they have a university day job too, and perhaps have a spouse that has a corporate career.
Many great players over the years have had day careers we just didn’t know about.
In music, I want to take it to the bridge, but I don’t want to have to live under it.
People hear and sometimes enjoy music but they don't listen to music.You literally have to change what a song IS and what it's supposed to DO. Every musician knows all the chords to hit to get what emotional response they're expecting so everything is predictable.
As far as musicianship goes, you either have technical sheep that believe that their chops and education are the whole of the law or you have or you have people that use backing tracks to sell their hedonism and materialistic lifestyle.
The best music; rock in particular was always made by people with basic technical ability but large imaginations
I went to the grocery store today and they were playing a Bing Crosby Christmas song i thought wow even the old holiday songs of 50-plus years ago are way better than anything out there today or last few years even
Man you know it.
I grew up on metal like slayer ect now all I listen to is old jazz,ballads,show tunes,easy listening oldies
Tastes change
Producers sacrificed art for efficiency; the consolidation of the radio companies; the lack of freedom for the young people; the establishment not wanting another war soundtrack. That is all I have to say.
The machine is not behind the quality artists overall. Don’t expect them to save music. It’s up to us, the people.
The machine marketed Zeppelin.
The machine marketed Queen.
The machine marketed James Brown.
But now the machine has different technology and has advanced their agenda and music like that doesn’t need to be used anymore to hook people.
“They” can use a more simplistic, “dumb” music to get people into their trance of depravity.
Those artists I mentioned up top are too sophisticated for modern audiences as they, generally speaking, have been conditioned to like music with zero imperfections and thereby heart and soul.
You’re right, people have devolved and art is reflecting that. And the machine will only give people what they’ve been conditioned to accept.
I could go on and on about this but it’s too damn much to type.
I will conclude with: let’s MAKE THEM ROCK.
BadBrad speaks the truth! Everything today sounds like it was created in a laboratory. I actually think about this a lot...there's no more rock icons. I'm sure there "are" Steve Wonders, Prince's and Zeppelin's, but no one will get to hear them other than their local scenes. What we really need is another revolution, not necessarily rock---but similar ideals like danger, irreverence, rebellion, sleaze, decadence, authenticity, etc---to shale culture up, and it usually does. At some all this commercial shit stretches and stretches and eventually gives. Lets hope the pressure cooker blows sooner than later!
If a rock revival happens, it’s gonna have to be a group of bands that ignite the spark again. I don’t think one band will do it. Back in the day it was exciting when something new would come out of nowhere and kick everyone’s ass, I really miss that
Yeah it’s gonna take a whole scene
That’s what I also really miss, scenes. Music brought so many of us together
An accurate state of affairs said here. Right with you Mr. Brad. Right wing politics defunding schools. Computers as instruments and my favorite issue, lack of performing venue.
Toffler predicted the electronic cottage as a lifestyle in his 1979 book, "The Third Wave."
Let's "Unsnap the Grid"!
Unsnap the grid! I like it
I grew up in the 90s. I've always listened to 50s-70s music religiously. I would say the 90s that was last great decade for music that actually had an impact. For sure classic rock is dead now,..its not even promoted locally as before. Local FM and AM stations over the years have been reformatted for hip pop, rap (FM) or political talk radio (AM). I remember the year, it was 2015, when they killed our long time running classic rock station, and reformatted it to hip pop rap. Our long running AM that played 60s-70s, was killed this year for political talk radio. In the 90s I remember concerts still being promoted over the radio. I remember seeing Grand Funk last tour with Mark Farner, Joe Walsh, Rick Emmett, Ronnie Montrose, Eric Burdon, Moxy, MSG, Wishbone Ash, Los Lobos, Budgie, Pat Travers, Santana, etc. I dont even waste my time attending concerts anymore, its pretty much over, and I dont trust crowds these days.
Even Country is souless useless garbage these days. I was riding with someone and asked them, who's playing, that they are putting me to sleep..they said Post Malone.
I listen to my music collection from my phone, commercial free. I dont pay or like streaming services.
Been thinking the same thing for years, no one could have possibly said it better 💯
Thank you!!!
I started out playing acoustic music then branched out from there. I don't listen to pop music but I hear bits and pieces and like what Billy Strings and Sturgill Simpson are doing.
It's not just music in society that's become inferior. It's also Hollywood, politics, organized religion, crappy items you buy at Walmart, and bland automobile designs.
Perhaps so
A lot of good points made in the comments I’d like to add what Rick beato said with Spotify you can own a whole catalog of countless bands making them worthless apposed to saving your money and walking miles to the record store to buy grace under pressure ( my case)
I think Lake Street Dive is great...Rachael Price is an excellent vocalist who doesn't use pitch correction (as far as I know).
All I can say is that there are still young people out here who care about integrity in music. I’m going to do everything I can to bring real music back! I think deep down people understand that music is about human connection and I think people are going to realize that music is not supposed to be a perfect commodity before too long. Once you hear the real deal, all the corporate computer music just doesn’t compare.
I applaud you!
Im not sure of the year lets say pre 1989, most people can name 100s of bands that were great , but not to many post 1989
Man...so true!
Think of it by decades. How many famous bands in the 80's vs the 2010's.
Very true. There is no real music industry selling records anymore. We would have to record on tape again with live takes. Ditch the computers and do it the old way. Even when a newer band records some good tunes there’s no money in selling music so record, copy and paste.
Copy and paste kills the vibe
@ yep
Almost seems like an age old problem. I remember when comedian Bill Hicks complained about the popstar goofballs of the day.
He said, "Since when did mediocrity and banality become a good image for your children? I want my kids to listen to people who XXXXXX' ROCKED!" He screamed, "Play from your XXXXXXX HEART!!!!"
Maybe that's the crux of the biscuit. If there's no heart in it, what's the point? We need to shock this one back to life somehow.
Well said
I'm about your age, and... What has surprised me for years, is the people who defend the current status of the business, mostly being musicians themselves. They seem to have been tricked into thinking that getting up everyday and having to tend to your merch shop, instead of writing songs... is actually a great thing. Maybe this is because younger people never saw what it was like to be a true star, who never had to be bothered with stupid S like that. It has also amazed me how many times I've gotten into arguments with young musicians, who refuse to acknowledge that removing the billion$ in record sales, has had any negative effect at all. Billions that would have helped pay artists who are never going to be the big giant touring act. I can't imagine how many artists we would have never had, if it wasn't for record sales. But overall, I don't blame musicians, because they're basically just giving people what they seem to want. Boring music. Music doesn't need to be that exciting anymore, because there's so many other things to do now. It's not like back when you only had 5 channels of TV, movies, books, and records. Now music is just background noise for everything else.
I can remember only having three TV channels.
@@badbrad Oh yeah... And you had to wrap foil on the antenna for the third one. lol
Great video Brad. I agree 100%. It was Motown and Doo Wop I grew up with. To this day, I say they were the greatest vocalists ever. I can't even stand today's Metal at all. I find no talent what so ever hearing someone growling and moaning and calling that singing. You look at those Hard Core bands and the guitarists are just going up and down the guitar neck and not even playing chords. I know nothing about guitar, and I could do that haha. Same thing goes for the drummers. They don't even play a beat, it's just banging like a maniac. I don't see anything worthwhile today listening to. Reason I listen to everything old and see the legends in concert that are still around. I'm soon to be 58 and a friend of mine just turned 57. We were just saying, " Who is going to replace the legendary bands like The Doobie Brothers, Deep Purple, Santana, and bands like that when they finally decide to retire?" I don't see any of these bands today doing that. On a good note, love your channel and have a great day! Rock on!
Thank you for the support!
Great perspective, you’re a very smart dude
I appreciate that!
Auto tune internet and Amazon had a major influence.
I hear ya.
You're 100% right! Can I subscribe to this channel twice LOL love it man. I think that's what Gene Simmons was saying when he said Rock is dead and people attacked him for it and said the Foo Fighters are rock or this band or that band. that's not what he's saying, he's saying exactly what you're saying and young people don't get it and some older people don't. It's lost its organic Factor. People make fun of 80s hair metal, but you strip all of that stuff away, from the majority of those bands and they can still play their songs acoustically, you don't find many bands that can do that nowadays. Get rid of IEM prompts, clicks, and cues and everything else. You will have a stage full of people that do not know how to adapt and overcome that situation of having their hands held with iems Go back to acoustic and wedge monitors and start from the ground up again. Don't get me wrong, iems are fantastic, but are meant to be used as a tool, not a crutch. People will argue with one another all day long that Taylor Swift is singing live and there is no way in hell that chic is singing live, running all over that stage for 3 hours and everything that comes out of FOH sounds perfect. These people don't get it and they don't understand but they sure have an opinion. This music is geared towards the generation that has been dumbed down Love the channel, dude keep it up..
Please subscribe a million times!
We really cannot forget the often most overlooked change. Where music went from being enjoyed in a static setting whether in a vehicle or in a home played through a sophisticated collection of hardware such as receivers, amplifiers and speakers. Where now, it is an ear bud or even worse the speaker off of a cell phone. How can anyone argue the quality of musicianship when the audience has degraded the experience dow to a microscopic speaker? Just my two cents worth. I have seen musicianship is still very good out there among the young, unsigned artists out there. Some I would dare to say are great players; just not in the mainstream playlists however. The potential is there. We just need to recognize that music touches the soul and thus needs to be felt as well as heard. Cheers!
You’re absolutely right, we need to make music great again, and that means appreciating it on a deeper level.
Music from Memphis was awesome from 1954-1974. Since then, it has gone downhill.
Very true
Go back to plug n play. Leave the laptop in the studio and make music great again! Oh wait, that takes talent and hours of practice which younger musicians no longer have the patience to do. In today's quickie society, everyone wants things now with no work to get it.
I'd pay for a Brad concert, no one else I'd pay for apart from Whitecross - and Trytan and a select tiny few
Crazier things have happened. The future is unwritten!
Couldn’t have said it any better
Thank you!
It’s to easy with technology,why should they?Sad…The days are gone along with the icons of yesterday.
Well...The last great Country run was in the 90s. Escorted out with Bentley and Paisley. Country today is all Gimmick without Soul !!!
Rock melded into Country in the 90s. It has been diluted so much it is not recognizable. Anyone remember the battle between Keith
and Sony when Sony censored Toby??? It has always been a corporate shill game that came ultra apparent with the sickening Disco
of the late 70s. That's when I left the building. I had a nice gig on a Ship. Thought I could handle selling out for Disco and watching
Idiots Bump. But not what I was dedicating my life for. Said F it and walked away. Went back in the studios and it was all the same.
Almost went with a buddy to Nashville but was so discouraged. Did some more studio and one last huge Gig and left with head held up!!
Always a hole in my Soul forever. I have learned to live with it. Never want to deal with the false promises and lies of the music biz again!!
That is deep.
Ghost is the best rock band in the last 30 years, in my opinion.
yes brad we need to make it even a part of schools again what happened to jazz band in school
I wonder that question myself.
Kids today don't want to play an instrument. They'd rather spend their free time on their phone or playing games instead of rehearsing.
I'm your same age, Brad. I agree. MMGA. I like Pegasus's channel, too. I tell you what, I really hope we can MMGA. I remember when I was a teenager in the 80's, older people, probably Boomers, told me that a band such as Motley Crue, was nothing but noise. I could see their point, but I always could hear the blues in Motley's music, so I disagreed with them. Same with AC DC. We'll do the best we can!
We have to!
It seems like most great music movements, at least, of my lifetime, have been accompanied by technological shifts, and cultural moves. I’ve always thought the next shift would be a VR/Metaverse star, maybe with some new version of a guitar, or some kind of Guitar/AI hybrid, maybe from Japan, or China. Taylor Swift, as an example, is really more of a retro-star, than anything really forward-looking. I think her market is a demographic perhaps seeking comfort, more than breaking technological barriers. She HAS been the Beatles for girls for the last 15 years, tho, so there is that.
Interesting thought! Maybe the next big thing will come from Asia
Too many distractions in today's world..back then there was no computers no internet, it was you practicing and getting better
Very true!
We are in a transition period.
To where?
@ to electronic ai based or enhanced. It won't back down. It started w thing like TC helicon. Thwn moved to various pitch correction techniques. to the punches as you mentioned disappear as Iai will correct it.
I own a skateboard shop. I have a jam space for all the kids to play and learn. Most of the kids have never picked up a instrument before. Most just want to play tik Tok songs.
You’re doing good work!
There is nothing out there right now and I am not sure we will ever see it again. However thats why they will always be Classic Rock Radio stations all across the country.
🔥💯
Thank you!
The music that is created today is as disposable as a paper dixie cup. The singer/songwriter has faded as have the bands. We need more artists. The labels will not make any attempt to break artists any more. It's all about looks and image. Radio is the vast wasteland. You won't hear new, substantive music on an I Heart radio station.
Today’s generation is too apathetic to care. Music is in the background for them, it’s not a driving force in their lives like it was for us
Man…
We gotta enjoy the music that came before us, there’s no good music ahead of us sadky
That is true
It's so many reasons for the decline. I'm sure you've seen the clips of the 700 pound "Rapper" on oxygen reciting the same lie over and over to autotune. And yet he's playing to an arena full of people that have shelled out money for it. People think this is what they want. Alot of manipulation has happened to get this far down the hole. Another thing is, people really don't do art anymore that I can see. They don't draw, paint, sculpt, write poetry or novels either like they used to. Here's a thought that just hit me. Young guys used to want to learn to play instruments and be in a band to help get chicks. Young people just don't hang out and look to get laid like they used to. They have Apps for that now.
Oh man…. That is bad.
I can attest that the death metal genre peaked in the mid 90’s.
Music has been devolving since Stravinsky……
Yes!!!
Just when you thought you couldn't like BadBrad more...
I agree with some of the other comments about how the music industry is farked, and the corporate takeover of radio. (Remember when radio was where you tuned in to try to hear them play your favorite song, or a brand new one?) Playlists now are often so short, the same songs on repeat. Hair Nation was even bad, but they've improved recently.
If you look at trends in society and the rise of the internet and especially social media like Instagram and tik tok, a lot of the content put out by "influencers" is highly curated and not authentic. Filters that change their appearance, contived scenarios, and now AI. I guess my point is society/culture seems to promote depictions of reality that aren't real at all. Why should modern music be any different? The sad part is how many people buy into this stuff and to the degree that they do.
It's a definite problem and I don't know if we will see a change.
I was thinking about something else. We talk about things, i.e. music, not being
real, but in a sense we're comparing it to something that is real or that we believe is real. It might be relative, but I think something can also be real in absolute terms. Some of this new music is "real" in that it was created and it exists, but it's maybe not what one would consider to be original or authentic. My point: a lot of us here grew up in a different era, we have something to compare to. If you're a young person growing up today, i.e. a primary consumer of new music, and you're constantly bombarded with information and stimuli that may or may not be real or authentic, and a lot of times it can be hard to tell, are you necessarily going to be able to tell the difference? Get my point? They don't really have the same frame of reference that we do to be able to call BS unless someone points it out to them.
@@OlePalmer-t6z Interesting concept....
Paramore, Foo Fighters, and Seth Lee Jones to name a few. Yes, it is pretty thin out there….nice topic brad.
It's thin if that is all we got.
What is your take on Tal Wilkenfeld and Tash Sultana?
Very talented but not given the push by the business.
I'm by no means saying you're wrong, but keep in mind there was always a lot of crap. We mostly only remember the great bands from 30-60 years ago. Listen to repeats of Casey Kasem from the 70s and 80s. There are a lot of songs that may be technically more sophisticated than today's top 40, but it's still boring and unremarkable.
But everything about the business today doesn't reward originality. There's less risk in producing banal music. Bland will appeal to more people though it won't be loved as intensely. The more niche you are, the less fans you'll have but they'll be more devoted.
Anyway, I'm almost as old as you, Brad, but I still try to go to shows and find new music. I'm into Black Ends from Seattle. If you're expecting Led Zepplin or Van Halen or some other hall of fame band, you’ll probably be disappointed, but their new album is solid (on Bandcamp) and they put on a good live show. Seattle Times named the new album best WA state release of 2024