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CRITICISM OF MUSIC CRITICISM: A CRITICISM
Mar. 27th, 2014 11:47 amMusic criticism is dead.
Source: this piece by Ted Gioia in The Daily Beast, which claims that music magazines don’t write about the music anymore.
Sample:
Personally I’d love to know which “leading music periodicals” he includes in that sample. I only ask because I mainly read British music mags (mostly Uncut, occasionally Mojo), and they tend to have a better sense of music. On the other hand, Q stopped writing about music in favor of tabloid journalism years ago. And even the best British music journalists tend to be obsessed with the concept of the “confessional” songwriting school where songs are expected to reflect the artist’s personal life and experiences. Which is why interview questions like “So are all these songs about yr recent divorce, drug problems and yr mom dying?” are still considered relevant to the music.
But anyway, it does seem likely that actual music criticism is the exception to the mainstream rule. And I would agree that this is in no small part because the majority of people these days don’t listen to music that seriously. It’s background noise or a lifestyle accessory. They don’t even care if it’s manufactured – Simon Cowell has pretty much proven that. People like what they like, and they don’t want to read some smart-ass hipster critic telling them their favorite band is shite when OBVIOUSLY it’s not.
Also, thanks mainly to the rise of rock and R&B in the 50s, music appreciation has become less about technical chops and more about feeling. You don’t have to be a virtuoso to play music that is meaningful to the audience. It’s that emotional connection that matters. Music criticism has necessarily evolved to reflect that.
But I also don’t think that a lack of good criticism is the problem so much as the music business itself. The music industry has always been roughly 20% genuine talent and 80% cash-ins, but the A&R development that went into that 20% used to be a lot more serious and sincere and more focused on the music. These days, it seems more focused on demographics and return on investments and lifestyle tie-ins – especially now that the old business models are fading.
The thing is, a resurgence of serious music criticism isn’t really going to change that. I disagree with Gioia’s argument that record labels “need frank, knowledgeable feedback from critics — both to keep them honest and hold them accountable”. If that were true, rock’n’roll would never have made it to the 60s. Lots of “proper” music critics used to blast rock’n’roll as godawful noise from hillbillies who could barely play with lyrics any fifth-grader could have written. And look how many people took them seriously. For the most part, people don’t buy music based solely on the opinion of music critics. Record executives damn sure don’t sign artists based on it. And that’s been true for a long time now.
That’s not to say music criticism isn’t important or useful. But it’s not a correctional tool. It’s an assessment of the development of music that sorts out the good from the bad against the context of everything that’s come before it. So it serves more of an academic function (albeit a highly subjective one). And that would still be true even if every music critic and reviewer out there changed their MO and started writing “real” music critiques to Gioia’s satisfaction.
And anyway, there’s already plenty of good music criticism out there by people who know what they’re talking about – they just don't write in the major music magazines. But they’re out there. It’d be great to see someone put together a site that aggregates them – like Metacritic, but more editorially focused and selective.
For all I know, someone’s already done that. If they have, be sure to let me know about it.
That’s just, like, yr opinion, man,
This is dF
Source: this piece by Ted Gioia in The Daily Beast, which claims that music magazines don’t write about the music anymore.
Sample:
I’ve just spent a very depressing afternoon looking through the leading music periodicals. And what did I learn? Pretty much what I expected. I found out what the chart-topping musicians are wearing (or, in many instances, not wearing). I got updates on their love life, and learned whose marriages are on the rocks. I read updates on the legal proceedings of the rich and famous. I got insights into the food preferences and travel routines of megastars. And I read some reviews of albums, and got told by “‘critics” (I use that term loosely) that they were “badass,” “hot,” “sexy,” “tripped-out,” and “freaky.”
Personally I’d love to know which “leading music periodicals” he includes in that sample. I only ask because I mainly read British music mags (mostly Uncut, occasionally Mojo), and they tend to have a better sense of music. On the other hand, Q stopped writing about music in favor of tabloid journalism years ago. And even the best British music journalists tend to be obsessed with the concept of the “confessional” songwriting school where songs are expected to reflect the artist’s personal life and experiences. Which is why interview questions like “So are all these songs about yr recent divorce, drug problems and yr mom dying?” are still considered relevant to the music.
But anyway, it does seem likely that actual music criticism is the exception to the mainstream rule. And I would agree that this is in no small part because the majority of people these days don’t listen to music that seriously. It’s background noise or a lifestyle accessory. They don’t even care if it’s manufactured – Simon Cowell has pretty much proven that. People like what they like, and they don’t want to read some smart-ass hipster critic telling them their favorite band is shite when OBVIOUSLY it’s not.
Also, thanks mainly to the rise of rock and R&B in the 50s, music appreciation has become less about technical chops and more about feeling. You don’t have to be a virtuoso to play music that is meaningful to the audience. It’s that emotional connection that matters. Music criticism has necessarily evolved to reflect that.
But I also don’t think that a lack of good criticism is the problem so much as the music business itself. The music industry has always been roughly 20% genuine talent and 80% cash-ins, but the A&R development that went into that 20% used to be a lot more serious and sincere and more focused on the music. These days, it seems more focused on demographics and return on investments and lifestyle tie-ins – especially now that the old business models are fading.
The thing is, a resurgence of serious music criticism isn’t really going to change that. I disagree with Gioia’s argument that record labels “need frank, knowledgeable feedback from critics — both to keep them honest and hold them accountable”. If that were true, rock’n’roll would never have made it to the 60s. Lots of “proper” music critics used to blast rock’n’roll as godawful noise from hillbillies who could barely play with lyrics any fifth-grader could have written. And look how many people took them seriously. For the most part, people don’t buy music based solely on the opinion of music critics. Record executives damn sure don’t sign artists based on it. And that’s been true for a long time now.
That’s not to say music criticism isn’t important or useful. But it’s not a correctional tool. It’s an assessment of the development of music that sorts out the good from the bad against the context of everything that’s come before it. So it serves more of an academic function (albeit a highly subjective one). And that would still be true even if every music critic and reviewer out there changed their MO and started writing “real” music critiques to Gioia’s satisfaction.
And anyway, there’s already plenty of good music criticism out there by people who know what they’re talking about – they just don't write in the major music magazines. But they’re out there. It’d be great to see someone put together a site that aggregates them – like Metacritic, but more editorially focused and selective.
For all I know, someone’s already done that. If they have, be sure to let me know about it.
That’s just, like, yr opinion, man,
This is dF
