Content Overload?

[Lifemocker]

Okay, this post might be a mess, but I'm doing this in separate threads because im really curious what you guys think.

When I was taking a shower (rare occurance, i know), I had this inner discussion with myself again "why dont you enjoy the shit? You can access everything with one click and yet youre still not satisfied".

And I know why. Back when I didnt have internet (well, nobody really had) we enjoyed sharing stuff on floppy discs, funny images, silly gifs with cats and sometimes even a short 144p video that we watched over and over. Sometimes some computer magazines were adding CDs and they had this special folder with "memes". And we enjoyed almost everything. Now? I dont even bother with web comics anymore, memes are forced, 99% of images are not funny, videos are just compilations and reposts. Seen't everything.

Then music. I am really dissapointed with music nowadays, I cant find anything new that pleases me. And here I am conflicted when it comes to finding an answer. When I was discovering metal I was finding shit daily that I enjoyed. Power metal, heavy metal, thrash metal, then death, black, "viking", then progressive shit. Finally I decided what I liked the most, stuck to progressive and death metal mostly, power and heavy got kinda boring and rest i listened to ocassionally.

But did I enjoy that because it was relatively hard to find new stuff? First it was cassettes, then CDs, then early internet with single mp3 (or even fucking midis) and then you just had to browse the internet for more of those artists. Now? I dont think I enjoyed metal for 2 years. I dont think I enjoy music at all. Sure, when I got bored of metal I found stuff that I could enjoy, went back to classics, pop, video game music, everything (except for fucking hip hop, its cancer).

Did I just hear everything already and got bored or did I hear the absolute best long time ago and since nothing can't top that for so long I got lost.

Probably a mix of both. And it's probably gonna happen again with other stuff. Recently I decided to give anime a try since I run out of movies I wanted to watch. But apparently I started with the absolute best, tried 3 different things now from different genres and nope, it fucking blows, and there is so much stuff to browse, most of it is probably trash and I dont even want to bother.

So, is there too much content at our hands, it spoiled us, or am I just salty, grumpy ass that will die never satisfied.

 

[Belac]

There is definitely an overwhelming amount of content that is easily available and it is all over the place in terms of quality. Everything is so instant that it's hard to take the time to appreciate anything, and even the good stuff has started to melt together because of how many talented and untalented people all have access to technology that used to be reserved for top tier bands/developers/creators.

When I was younger I used to relish in the hunt for a great new band, digging through review sites and forums for CDs new and old that I had never heard, and it was amazing when I came across something special. The search itself was almost the best part of the experience. I have a pretty huge collection of MP3's, and a large portion of it was surprisingly acquired during the dial up and early broadband days starting almost 20 years ago.

I still remember the first time I downloaded the song Master of Disharmony by Dimmu Borgir after I was directed to it by some music finding engine at the time. My mind was completely blown by how heavy it was to me at the time (I mostly listened to nu metal/alternative rock and a few thrash CDs) and I still remember how cool it was to find something completely new to me. From there I started downloading what few songs I could find by Dark Tranquillity, Amon Amarth, and My Dying Bride. Usually it would take weeks just to find 2 or 3 songs from a single album, but I slowly found new sources to expand my horizons and music collection.

That trend continued for years as I learned about all the different genres and slowly found better ways to get new music. I spent a lot of years on Usenet making friends and exchanging a ton of music long before torrents came into the picture. My internet was so slow that it was almost an accomplishment just to download a full CD without an issue, and I would spend a month listening to the best recent downloads on repeat. It was actually a really great time because everything evolved and information about new bands and genres was fed slowly.

Fast forward to today and I just click a link on generic band 203,067 and hear a clip, listen for 45 seconds and I get bored and do something else. Everyone and their grandma is making music with amateur setups that rival the capabilities of the pros 10 years ago, and it's all mechanical, clinical, manufactured and boring. There is no hunt for something great because honestly there are no boundaries left to push aside from technical prowess which has also gone way past stagnant. It seems like the few bands than are doing something interesting are actually going back and tapping into the raw creative sloppiness you might associate with more old school and independent bands. Even that's getting overdone though.

I listen to very little music now aside from orchestral arrangements and some doomy/indie music. It's all become too familiar and some of my musical biases have corrupted my ability to try and enjoy new genres. I've become a grouchy old man before I should have, because I've heard more than I should have in my time.

I speak as someone that has spent almost my entire life growing with the internet though. I started my music collection by borrowing and copying rock/metal cassettes from friends and family. I lived in a slower world for half of my life. I assume someone younger might have a much more optimistic outlook than me. And I'm only fucking 32.

Long story short, I agree with you.

Old man out.

 

[DarkGift]

I totally agree, but a lot of these feelings stem from growing older as well. Every generation experiences this, you just don't have the same drive/energy/time etc to fully engage in certain activities as when you were a teenager.
It's extremely seldom I find something nowadays that hits me as hard as that time when I first got into Opeth, or Dimmu Borgir, or Katatonia etc - but that doesn't mean bands of that quality doesn't exist. It is definitely harder to find them though, considering the sheer amount of bands that exists now just compared to 10-15 years ago.

This is actually a big reason why I play music myself; I create music that I want to hear.

 

[Lifemocker]

I don't think that its because of getting older, maybe small percantage is the reason.

Talking about creating music, probably being a creator helps a little bit. TBH that's why im getting into game design, because I want to create games I'd love to play. I'm not skilled enough though to create music. Or maybe too lazy, when you have to setup drums, compose every single track for guitars, basses, drums, some minor orchestrations, vocals, it takes shitload of time.

Only good thing is when I stopped to listening to metal for a while my compositions got much, much better. Maybe I didnt have this restriction in my mind, I wasnt ssubconciously trying to imitate something.

. I lived in a slower world for half of my life. I assume someone younger might have a much more optimistic outlook than me.

Yea, probably younger people dont have this dilema. From the earliest days they had access to everything and they dont know different, they were young and quickly got used to and adapted to current situation. I think I can't. I'm disgustingly grumpy and im starting to hate it.

and it's all mechanical, clinical, manufactured and boring.

Fuck, yes, I can't stand listening to most of the modern stuff because it sounds fake, flat and manufactured AF. And because of that everything sounds the same, I dont see styles anymore.

It's extremely seldom I find something nowadays that hits me as hard as that time when I first got into Opeth, or Dimmu Borgir, or Katatonia etc

I'll be honest, Opeth ruined the music for me I guess. It had everything I wanted. Brutal, top notch growling vocals, solid clean vocals, amazing music and atmosphere. Nothing topped that. Same with Bloodbath, Breeding Death and Fathomless Mastery is best death I've ever heard and didnt find better one.

 

[DarkGift]

I'll be honest, Opeth ruined the music for me I guess. It had everything I wanted. Brutal, top notch growling vocals, solid clean vocals, amazing music and atmosphere. Nothing topped that.

Yeah, this so much. Also the reason why my disappointment in the newer Opeth albums is still burning strong after so many years.

 

[stefan86]

 

[Lifemocker]

I actually have a screenshot of txt file with a date saying that stefan will come and ruin the thread with his smiley face.

More predictable than polacks stealing shit while drunk

 

[vikk]

we are living in the dumbest generation ever, and the internet is just making everything "easier" and "faster" and nobody is happy, along with all the political correctness is ruining everything... i mean, why can't you just punch a bitch?

 

[stefan86]

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[Lifemocker]

Yeah, this so much. Also the reason why my disappointment in the newer Opeth albums is still burning strong after so many years.

Eh, yea, the new Opeth doesnt even sound like opeth, screw them, luckly I didnt buy any of their new album so at least no money from me.

But today, since I had a good mood (its gone now, because I live in a city with worst traffic in europe, confirmed fact) so I gave a try premieres on Spotify, it was a huge mix from all genres.

Best I heard I'd rate 6/10. And it was some kind of pop/electronic stuff. Metal was fucking terrible, power metal stuff was even worse produced than in 2000~~, lyrics are stupider, vocals are worse. Death and black is filled with people who have no idea how to growl, ale musiacally everything sounds the same. Then some gay symphonic metals, where you dont hear anything because it's just clusterfuck of sounds and notes and vocals and i dont know whats going on, I'm glad you can use music software, try composing something for a change.

 

[MadTinus]

I've had a phase like this, some 10-12 years ago I guess (I'm 41 now). It seemed no new music could satisfy me anymore. Music that actually gets under my skin gets more rare. Nowadays maybe only once a year I find something that really gets to me. Like this year I discovered The Devil's Blood: passionate, organic music, bloody brilliant. This is rare though.

I am from the cassette generation, I played nothing but cassettes for many years, bought a 10-pack of TDK SA-90 tapes almost weekly and copied stuff from a few friends/suppliers. That was the late 80's and most of the 90's for me. In 1992 I bought my first stereo set that actually had a CD-player, then I started to build my cd-collection. Many years I read all kinds of magazines, reading reviews, interviews, browsed shelves in cd-stores, that's how discovered new stuff. It was exciting, especially when I had finally hunted down that obscure Katatonia, Opeth or Dissection cd I'd been looking for for a looong time.

Gradually the internet took over. Now I like to browse the internet looking for new stuff. It's different but nice too. I've discovered a lot of cool stuff thanks to 'similar artists' on Spotify or Last.fm (nice source too). And I really like the countless blog-sites that post downloads of old and rare demo's from back in the day There's still good stuff, you just have to look harder than before, because there's just more of everything.

I agree about the drawbacks of the digitalization of music, both in recording and listening. This is both a blessing and a curse. 95% of the time I listen to music through my phone, digitally, wearing earphones, I'd love to use my Marantz receiver and Tannoy loudspeakers more, but I have a family, so I'm rarely alone in the room. Thanks to the fact that I can access a world of music through my phone, I can listen to music pretty much any time, anywhere without bothering anyone.

Productions-wise, yes, it's a problem. But then not in all cases, good digital productions are possible i.m.o. I hear plenty of them. But if you listen to the new Paradise Lost album, that snare drum.. no acoustic snare drum sounds like that, it sounds like it's made of rubber or something. Compressed to beyond the realms of death.

Anyway, it's a phase, you'll get through it.

 

[Lifemocker]

Eh, I have yet to discover something good from Spotify, it's like "You listened to this super popular amon amarth and opeth, here, listen some untalented fags that try to imitate them".

Last CD i bought and genuinely enjoyed was Sleeping Pulse, some people seem to not really like it, saying music is dull and boring, but I couldnt disagree more, it's quite simple and it seems when *antimatter vocalist*(because i suck with names) is focused only on vocals he delivers them better. Great album, I think i enjoyed every track on the album which is fucking rare. Sure, it's not mindblowing, but atmosphere is good. But it's been over 2 years ago. Then my second latest discovery was Witherscape from Swano, it was okay (second album blows though...) and before that I dont even remember.

I really hope this is just a *phase*, but it really starts to suck, Ive got nothing to do when I run or drive a car or just walk. Dont feel like listening to the music I know because im sick of it, everything new is dissapoitning and you can swallow this much podcasts until you tell the voices in headphones to shut the fuck up.

 

[DarkGift]

Best way of finding new stuff is through recommendations from people you know have "good taste in music" (a.k.a likes the same stuff as you) imo