One of my favorite music critics, Simon Reynolds, has just posted his
Unfaves of 2001. Just a few scattered reactions:
- Someone is going to have to explain to me what exactly is meant by this viewpoint that Richard D. James "seems paradoxically trapped by the "infinite possibilities" offered by today's software and plug-ins". I'm in agreement that the man has lost it recently, but attributing his decline to some kind of technology fixation just seems a little off the mark to me. Maybe I'm not an experienced enough listener, but how does one actually go about identifying when songcraft has been compromised by producer micromanagement and "tweakage"? I suppose "whenever it sounds bad" would be the simple answer.
- I'm in complete agreement about
Survivor era Destiny's Child developing an annoying newfound self-consciousness. While the group threw out a similar brand of self-centered girl power bombast in "Independent Woman Part I" (a song I grew to love), it always seemed to me that Beyonce never really understood the cultural pervasiveness of her message. The performance of this song was of course sterotypically stylish and chic, but that's what made the song so much fun as a "F#ck You" to both the male chauvinist caricatures of the rap world and the "realism" of "serious" female performers. For a while there, Beyonce was almost like the female Jay-Z, exuding supreme confidence and possesing the ability to dish out shots while still keeping the spotlight squarely on herself. Too bad it all fell apart when the song "Survivor" came out. Here it's pretty easy to sense Beyonce's feeling of obligation to live up to her own hype and deliver as an iconic uber-feminist. Actually, correct that, "iconic uber-Beyonceist" would be a far more accurate term. The old Destiny's Child was fun and inclusive, while this new "Survivor" group, because of Beyonce's inexplicable demand for respect, just comes across as whiny and paranoid.
- He hates Creed, but then again, who doesn't?
- I partially agree with the stance that the new Kylie Minogue material doesn't really deserve the kind of hype and public discourse that it's getting, but I think that's only because I live in the U.S. Even though the music isn't always exciting, I think getting worked up about someone like Britney is justified, just based on the pop cultural clout that she carries. I'd imagine that if I were British, I'd be getting swept up in the current Kylie sensation as well. By the way, just to clarify...even though I don't see
Fever as being some kind of landmark pop achievement, it's still very solid and I wouldn't discourage anyone from getting it.
- I wish American music magazines were interesting enough to debate about.
- At least I'm not the only one who doesn't see Bob Dylan as some sort of music deity. I was surprised to see that someone as experienced as Reynolds could have so little exposure to Dylan, but as someone who has only heard a handful of songs and MAYBE an album, I feel pretty good that there are others in my shoes. And you know what, it's not even his voice that bothers me. It all just sounds very bland for something that's supposed to alter the way I perceive music.
- I'm not sure if I'm buying this idea that "Digital Love" and "Where's Your Head At" lose impact because they're one-offs. I'm trying to think of a song that I enjoy immensely, where part of the appeal stems from it being genre defining. I don't think I can. I mean, for me, the fact that songs like "Common People" and "Bombs Over Baghdad" are one-offs serves to make them even more epic and more invigorating.
- I really need to read that Creation book.
- Adding The Streets record and a Tigerbeat 6 comp to my wishlist.
