Hammond Music

Posts Tagged ‘MySpace Music’

Usually people who love music (like myself) tend to like to write about music they love (in my case that would be musical legends like The Who, Oasis, & Pink Floyd.) But sometimes it’s fun to talk about bad music. In fact in some ways it’s more fun. And it’s certainly much easier to find. Just check out music on MySpace to see what I mean. It’s most disturbing to me that some of the worst music I’ve found on MySpace is also among the most popular.

Hollywood Undead has to be the greatest example of this. They are shockingly bad and even more shockingly popular. I mean I know it’s normal for “the kids” to be into awful music, but isn’t this just taking it a bit too far? At least most of the awful music of the past had at least some redeeming value. I mean Milli Vanilli may have been cheesey but it sure as hell was catchy at least. But with Hollywood Undead there is not even a hint of quality to be found.

But they are just one of many awful “artists” in the big wide world of awful music

How about Dierks Bentley? Have you heard this guy? He’s unbelievably awful. I had heard his name before but had never checked out his music before as I have absolutely no interest in country pop but one day I came across his latest single “Feel That Fire” and I was just floored because it was so much worse than I thought it would be. And that really is saying a lot because I thought it would be flat out horrendous. But no, it’s far worse than that.

It’s no big deal that people are recording awful music. There is absolutely nothing new about that. The big deal to me is that so many people actually think this is good music. Why is that? How can people be so amazingly clueless about music?

American Idol is the easy to blame culprit. And I’m sure that does have a part to play. It’s taught people that the only thing that matters in music is having a pretty voice. This means these are people who have no way of understanding music with any depth or any real artistic value.

But I’m sure it must go much deeper than that. Of course it’s not like people being into awful music is a new thing. The masses are always attracted to the easy to swallow formless pap that usually fills the top forty every week. And it’s the true music that real music lovers listen to and that lasts for years.

Obviously no one will be listening to anyone from American Idol or Dierks Bentley in 20 years (except out of pure nostalgia or as a joke) while people will still be listening the music of true musical artists like The Doors & Joni Mitchell.

It’s not often that I come across music so monumentally terrible that I feel the need to share with others my discovery but such is the case with Hollywood Undead (AKA “The Worst Band Ever”.)

Certainly if they were just plain ol’ awful that wouldn’t be news, there’s millions of awful bands on MySpace (and when I say millions I’m not sure I’m exaggerating.) but they are something more than just awful, they break brains they are so bad. What really fascinates me isn’t that they are simply horrible but that they are horrible and they have over a half million “friends” on www.MySpace.com and their songs have been played over a quarter million times just today.

It begs the question; what the hell?

Why are so many human beings listening to this awful music? There’s no way they are all listening to it thinking the same thing I am. Some of these people must actually think this is good music.

Obviously listening to horrible music is nothing new for teenagers (who appear to make up most of Hollywood Undead’s fan base.) New Kids on the Block & Britney Spears were there for previous generations of teens. And certainly there is plenty of tasteless plastic music for kids to listen to today (American Idol and all of the rest.) But Hollywood Undead is more than just a horrible band, they are so incredibly bad that one has to assume it’s a joke of some kind as there’s nothing resembling a redeemable quality about them.

With fluffy pop like Britney Spears & American Idol type “artists” you can at least understand why people are listening to it on some level. At least the songs are usually catchy. It’s servicable disposable pop music.

With a song like “No. 5″ it’s hard to imagine why anyone would take this music seriously. It sounds like some disturbing blend of the worst elements of boy bands and Eminem (at his least clever.) To me it literally sounds like a joke. Then there’s “City” which makes “No. 5″ sound like The Who.

It’s really starting to feel like torture listening to this music, I mean I’m sure it’s not quite water boarding but it definitely feels like torture. I can’t do it anymore. Sometimes it’s funny and sometimes it’s just sad.

What is it? Why do people listen to music like this? Is this something new or is it just another version of the same old song?