Welcome to Music Talk, im your host Linda Richman....*ahem*
Anyway, to my question: Has music hit the glass ceiling?
I don't think so, but I think the evolution has slowed. Some of it started in the 80's when "shred" was huge. Players became so good at their crafts, it was just about physically impossible for the human hands to create anything much more technically challenging.
The 90's really hammered the metal evolution with so many fusion type bands. So many different "styles" of metal started appearing from the mid 80's - early 90's, that they had to come up with sub-genres, then bands began fusion between the sub-genres.
The basic band nowdays consists of: Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Drums, and sometimes keyboards. Using these instruments, musicians have created untold amounts of sounds, rhythms, melodies, harmonies, beats, etc. Like it or not, the majority of music is not creative.
The majority of music is not creative only in the sense of chords played (there are only so many combinations of notes out there) and the combinations of the chords into progressions (again only so many sound good together.) Phrasing, tone, and texturizing all factor into music as much as the notes themselves. If you give Yngwie 10 notes to play, give Akerfeldt the same 10 and give the same 10 to David Gilmour, you will get three completely different sounding pieces from the same ten notes.
Musicians re-use the same riffs, the same drum patterns, the same vocal harmonies etc etc etc. The only difference his speed, timing, lyrics(which are often not creative either), etc etc.
I don't think so. There is such a great amount of technique involved in playing musical instruments at a top level, that the better songwriters and technicians will rise to the top of the heap and sound fresh whether they are playing a chord progression that has been played similarly before or not. Music is an artistic impression and quality artists are going to put their own touch on the music they create.
Now the whole point of me telling you what you probably already know is to get to my main question: How much farther will music evolve?
"Metal" is only about 30 years old. Hell, Rock and Roll is only about 50. I just don't see metal music waining anytime soon.
What more is there besides vocals, drums,stringed instruments and electronic/keyboards?
There is more, but I doubt most of the other instruments out there will play any more than bit parts in metal music. Because of it's ability to create chords, and it's expressiveness, other stringed instruments like violins, violas etc. could pop into metal, but I still don't think it will be commonplace.
Are we done inventing musical devices and sounds?What is left besides re-hashing and genre hybrids?
I don't really know what is up next for guitar technology or synth technology, but chances are, there will be new toys for everyone to try out. Re-hashing is part of music. It is true for any art form. There are only so many words that go together and make sense, so poets are limited as well.
Genre hybrids will be big for a long time because that is how much of the modern forms of music came about in the first place. Often these bands that use fusion don't come about because the members are "trying" to be different but because they have influences from different styles of music and they combine elements from these influences. It is these bands that will create great music. The one's that try to combine two styles of music just because they think it might sound cool or because they think it may sell albums may not get the same results.
Discuss.
