Metal - Still for Pariahs
I don't listen to NPR. That should be obvious by now. Sometimes they have interesting things, but there is enough good stuff on conservative talk radio to keep my attention. Once I found "All Things Considered" interesting, but that was before I discovered Rush.
In any case, being cultural elites, the high gods at NPR decided to put together a list of the most important songs of the 20th century. Having a clue about such things, especially the last third part of the century, I started to look for Stairway. Wasn't there. I went to the preliminary list. It wasn't there, either. Maybe something from Sabbath? Nope, nada. ANY metal act? Nope, absolutely nothing.
But, what was listed included things like a minimalist composition from 1971 (no one listens to minimalism today except for wierdos). Talking Heads made the list. So did some musicals from the 1960's - after people stopped listening to them. An album from Bruce Springstein made the list - from 1975. Nirvana made the list - they do belong there, as well as the Ramones. And Elvis did as well. And I'm sure the stuff from before 1950 is fairly accurate.
Interestingly, Madonna's "Like a Virgin" made the preliminary list - but not the final. Same with "Billy Jean" from Jacko. While these songs are disposable, these two songs are largely the granddaddys of the garbagy pop that's out there today. While not of the highest quality, they are competently written and composed, and being so influential, they belong on the top 100 for these reasons alone.
And of the most interest, there is nothing from the Beatles - as a group, or individually. On either the preliminary list, or the final. This is really puzzling, because they are what turned "Rock and Roll" into "Rock."
In any case, this shows the thinking of our cultural elites - and the problems of keeping culture centrally controlled, as cultural elites like to do. Some of the most brilliant stuff never appears on their radar. But some of the garbage is considered "brilliant." (See my post from 1 1/2 years ago On Art). Take Stairway, inarguably the #1 song of the 20th century. All cultural critics ignore this. Despite the fact that it is so complex, it is not taught until an individual reaches the very top reaches of guitar skills - at least to the point where skills can no longer be taught. This song made #1 charts for over three decades after it was written. I guess this is the problem of not releasing it as a single. But on the other hand, the greatness of this song came by the fact that it was never heavily pushed, but constantly, and consistently, demanded, over three decades, on Rock stations. It is one of those songs you recognize right away as good, and needs no real marketing (in fact, Led Zeppelin worked consciously to not only market Zoso, but to hide it as best as they could).
Or, take Iron Man. Led Zeppelin might be the first metal band, or Black Sabbath could be. Another song that drew inspiration for the next generation of metalheads - who then inspired the next generation, and so on, until you get the variety of genres of today. Iron Man borders that level of music known as "classic". Sure it's not "classical" music, which is chamber music, but a "classic" is something that stands the test of time. And what better way to stand the test of time than to have it become a favorite of football marching bands on brass instruments, 35 years after that album hit the charts? (And for another song that never became a single?) In 100 years, if brass bands are still at football games, will it still be played? Given these songs stay around a long time, I don't see why it would be taken off the playlist.
Or, take Free Bird. While not metal, it certainly was huge, and can easily be turned into a metal song. What is this song about? Not about fornication, like so many pop standards are about. Instead, it gave a new pride to the southern male after the horrors of Jim Crow. It let him be proud of his Confederate roots, but without any racist undertones. It basically allowed southerners to be proud rebels again, stripped of their bigotry. And this entered into political voting patterns, where one could vote as a southerner. This new southern mentality has a huge part of American voting patterns that one needs to understand in order to understand American politics, which NPR apparently does not.
In any case, metal is one of the biggest music phenomon in the last two generations. It has been consistently loud and angry, aimed largely at a working class audience. Most people who become musical critics never come from such backgrounds. Instead, they often come from upper middle class backgrounds, and think that musicians like the Talking Heads are super geniuses. The closest they ever got to metal may have been Aerosmith, or Bon Jovi, or Poison (at least that is how they were all marketed) They think that those smelly rockers in the parking lot with Motorhead blasting out of their muscle cars are basically losers who have nothing to contribute toward society. 20 years later, those smelly rockers often are ignorant contractors, such as carpenters or plumbers, unlike the refined, college-educated music critics, so they still know nothing about musical subtleties. They tend to not even know such things like, well, band like Iron Maiden gave a history lesson with each song (and Bon Jovi, Poison, and Aerosmith gave yet another lesson in fornication with every song). But nonetheless, because they have some kind of art degree, they are experts, and are entitled to be critics. And because they are experts, they also are experts on tax policy, too. Because what do smelly former-metalhead plubers or carpenters making six figures need to wastefully spend all their money on? It needs to go to the less fortunate, and to fund "culture" as well (after all, you need high taxes to pay good salaries to get good music critics, especially since they make about 1/3 of those less-educated workers, right???)
I have had two misconceptions. The first is that metal is dead. Because rock'n'roll is essentially dead. Well, I'm wrong. I don't like much contemporary metal, but that's an issue of taste. But the thing is, metal is constantly evolving and going off into several, several new directions. And more importantly, metal is constantly getting plenty of waves of teenage members. Just like country music, metal is replenishing it's fan base. Critics always want to proclaim it dead. They tried to do so 30 years ago - and it came back bigger than ever. They did so circa 1991, and it still survived. The appeal of metal is that it's essentially loud-hard-fast, and because it is so panned by the cultural elite, you are a pariah - hence a badass - if you like the stuff. In a way, in certain areas of this country, country music has an outcast factor too, which may help to bring in new listeners as well. By the elites consistently looking down on it, this is the way that many teenagers can tell the establishment to fuck off. Sure rap, especially gangsta rap, does the same thing, but the establishment is now taking a liking to it - because they want to be down wit da bros. Every other form of music invented in the 20th century has been accepted by the elite, even the most voicifirously anti-establishment of forms, punk rock (which really ceased to exist, de-facto, after the Pistols broke up)
The other misconception I have had is that I thought that society has accepted some forms of metal by now. Well, I'm wrong. 40 years after it's founding, the elites still want to run from all forms of metal - except maybe Bon Jovi, who is an embarassment to any self-respecting metal head (at least Jon Bon Jovi found a clever way to get back at the metalhead community - with a "Have a Nice Day" tour symbolized by a happy face. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you need to learn a bit about irony and subtlety).
More importantly, what this shows is that cultural elites have no place in a democratic society such as ours. Even in 1976, while Led Zeppelin was so popular that both Ford and Carter were trying to play up Zeppelin affiliations to win votes, as advised by their consultants (Ford's daughter proclaimed them her favorite band, and Jimmy talked about listening to Stairway all night while working in the Georgia Statehouse), they were hated by everyone, even the Rock press. And interestingly, members of this group did not understand how Nixon won the election of 1972 because they knew no one who voted for him (he won with 61% of the vote) - they thought this a stolen election. If they knew no one who voted for Nixon in 1972, they did not understand why McGovern was so feared and reviled, and so not only do they not understand the issues that America favors, but do not understand what makes America tick. As they do not understand the concerns of everyday Americans, they are in no position to design policy that determines the behavior of ordinary Americans.
Cultural tastes and political concerns go hand-in-hand. Ordinary people with common tastes often have similar opinions on the most important issues. And such positions are often deemed "simplistic." For the answers to policies are often simplistic - the costs of implementation are often greatly exceeded by the benefits. Cultural elites often see everything through sophisticated lenses, and they have a too-complex view of the world.
Now, while it may seem trivial that "Stairway" didn't make NPR's most important songs of the century, the lesson is that is a big sign that the people at NPR really miss what is important, and may not understand the process of societal-economic-political evolution. They are missing several of the tools needed to evaluate change - tools that people living ordinary lives, working ordinary jobs, get from an every-day existence. You don't get these tools by working for a major media outlet in Manhatten (while living in a rent-controlled apartment there). Hence, while they might be interesting to listen to, and while they have sophisticated educations, it if for these very reasons that what they say should be taken with many, many grains of salt.
In any case, being cultural elites, the high gods at NPR decided to put together a list of the most important songs of the 20th century. Having a clue about such things, especially the last third part of the century, I started to look for Stairway. Wasn't there. I went to the preliminary list. It wasn't there, either. Maybe something from Sabbath? Nope, nada. ANY metal act? Nope, absolutely nothing.
But, what was listed included things like a minimalist composition from 1971 (no one listens to minimalism today except for wierdos). Talking Heads made the list. So did some musicals from the 1960's - after people stopped listening to them. An album from Bruce Springstein made the list - from 1975. Nirvana made the list - they do belong there, as well as the Ramones. And Elvis did as well. And I'm sure the stuff from before 1950 is fairly accurate.
Interestingly, Madonna's "Like a Virgin" made the preliminary list - but not the final. Same with "Billy Jean" from Jacko. While these songs are disposable, these two songs are largely the granddaddys of the garbagy pop that's out there today. While not of the highest quality, they are competently written and composed, and being so influential, they belong on the top 100 for these reasons alone.
And of the most interest, there is nothing from the Beatles - as a group, or individually. On either the preliminary list, or the final. This is really puzzling, because they are what turned "Rock and Roll" into "Rock."
In any case, this shows the thinking of our cultural elites - and the problems of keeping culture centrally controlled, as cultural elites like to do. Some of the most brilliant stuff never appears on their radar. But some of the garbage is considered "brilliant." (See my post from 1 1/2 years ago On Art). Take Stairway, inarguably the #1 song of the 20th century. All cultural critics ignore this. Despite the fact that it is so complex, it is not taught until an individual reaches the very top reaches of guitar skills - at least to the point where skills can no longer be taught. This song made #1 charts for over three decades after it was written. I guess this is the problem of not releasing it as a single. But on the other hand, the greatness of this song came by the fact that it was never heavily pushed, but constantly, and consistently, demanded, over three decades, on Rock stations. It is one of those songs you recognize right away as good, and needs no real marketing (in fact, Led Zeppelin worked consciously to not only market Zoso, but to hide it as best as they could).
Or, take Iron Man. Led Zeppelin might be the first metal band, or Black Sabbath could be. Another song that drew inspiration for the next generation of metalheads - who then inspired the next generation, and so on, until you get the variety of genres of today. Iron Man borders that level of music known as "classic". Sure it's not "classical" music, which is chamber music, but a "classic" is something that stands the test of time. And what better way to stand the test of time than to have it become a favorite of football marching bands on brass instruments, 35 years after that album hit the charts? (And for another song that never became a single?) In 100 years, if brass bands are still at football games, will it still be played? Given these songs stay around a long time, I don't see why it would be taken off the playlist.
Or, take Free Bird. While not metal, it certainly was huge, and can easily be turned into a metal song. What is this song about? Not about fornication, like so many pop standards are about. Instead, it gave a new pride to the southern male after the horrors of Jim Crow. It let him be proud of his Confederate roots, but without any racist undertones. It basically allowed southerners to be proud rebels again, stripped of their bigotry. And this entered into political voting patterns, where one could vote as a southerner. This new southern mentality has a huge part of American voting patterns that one needs to understand in order to understand American politics, which NPR apparently does not.
In any case, metal is one of the biggest music phenomon in the last two generations. It has been consistently loud and angry, aimed largely at a working class audience. Most people who become musical critics never come from such backgrounds. Instead, they often come from upper middle class backgrounds, and think that musicians like the Talking Heads are super geniuses. The closest they ever got to metal may have been Aerosmith, or Bon Jovi, or Poison (at least that is how they were all marketed) They think that those smelly rockers in the parking lot with Motorhead blasting out of their muscle cars are basically losers who have nothing to contribute toward society. 20 years later, those smelly rockers often are ignorant contractors, such as carpenters or plumbers, unlike the refined, college-educated music critics, so they still know nothing about musical subtleties. They tend to not even know such things like, well, band like Iron Maiden gave a history lesson with each song (and Bon Jovi, Poison, and Aerosmith gave yet another lesson in fornication with every song). But nonetheless, because they have some kind of art degree, they are experts, and are entitled to be critics. And because they are experts, they also are experts on tax policy, too. Because what do smelly former-metalhead plubers or carpenters making six figures need to wastefully spend all their money on? It needs to go to the less fortunate, and to fund "culture" as well (after all, you need high taxes to pay good salaries to get good music critics, especially since they make about 1/3 of those less-educated workers, right???)
I have had two misconceptions. The first is that metal is dead. Because rock'n'roll is essentially dead. Well, I'm wrong. I don't like much contemporary metal, but that's an issue of taste. But the thing is, metal is constantly evolving and going off into several, several new directions. And more importantly, metal is constantly getting plenty of waves of teenage members. Just like country music, metal is replenishing it's fan base. Critics always want to proclaim it dead. They tried to do so 30 years ago - and it came back bigger than ever. They did so circa 1991, and it still survived. The appeal of metal is that it's essentially loud-hard-fast, and because it is so panned by the cultural elite, you are a pariah - hence a badass - if you like the stuff. In a way, in certain areas of this country, country music has an outcast factor too, which may help to bring in new listeners as well. By the elites consistently looking down on it, this is the way that many teenagers can tell the establishment to fuck off. Sure rap, especially gangsta rap, does the same thing, but the establishment is now taking a liking to it - because they want to be down wit da bros. Every other form of music invented in the 20th century has been accepted by the elite, even the most voicifirously anti-establishment of forms, punk rock (which really ceased to exist, de-facto, after the Pistols broke up)
The other misconception I have had is that I thought that society has accepted some forms of metal by now. Well, I'm wrong. 40 years after it's founding, the elites still want to run from all forms of metal - except maybe Bon Jovi, who is an embarassment to any self-respecting metal head (at least Jon Bon Jovi found a clever way to get back at the metalhead community - with a "Have a Nice Day" tour symbolized by a happy face. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you need to learn a bit about irony and subtlety).
More importantly, what this shows is that cultural elites have no place in a democratic society such as ours. Even in 1976, while Led Zeppelin was so popular that both Ford and Carter were trying to play up Zeppelin affiliations to win votes, as advised by their consultants (Ford's daughter proclaimed them her favorite band, and Jimmy talked about listening to Stairway all night while working in the Georgia Statehouse), they were hated by everyone, even the Rock press. And interestingly, members of this group did not understand how Nixon won the election of 1972 because they knew no one who voted for him (he won with 61% of the vote) - they thought this a stolen election. If they knew no one who voted for Nixon in 1972, they did not understand why McGovern was so feared and reviled, and so not only do they not understand the issues that America favors, but do not understand what makes America tick. As they do not understand the concerns of everyday Americans, they are in no position to design policy that determines the behavior of ordinary Americans.
Cultural tastes and political concerns go hand-in-hand. Ordinary people with common tastes often have similar opinions on the most important issues. And such positions are often deemed "simplistic." For the answers to policies are often simplistic - the costs of implementation are often greatly exceeded by the benefits. Cultural elites often see everything through sophisticated lenses, and they have a too-complex view of the world.
Now, while it may seem trivial that "Stairway" didn't make NPR's most important songs of the century, the lesson is that is a big sign that the people at NPR really miss what is important, and may not understand the process of societal-economic-political evolution. They are missing several of the tools needed to evaluate change - tools that people living ordinary lives, working ordinary jobs, get from an every-day existence. You don't get these tools by working for a major media outlet in Manhatten (while living in a rent-controlled apartment there). Hence, while they might be interesting to listen to, and while they have sophisticated educations, it if for these very reasons that what they say should be taken with many, many grains of salt.
posted by EricMatthew at 10:54 PM
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