Yes, glut. More and more these days I'm thinking about the glut (and no, it's not the love of my gut (Gut love => Glut), I'm certainly not in love with that at the moment). It's the glut of media I see before me. Of produce. Of consumerism. And I'm definitely (unfortunately) a part of it. It first started to creep into my mind a few years back when I thought "Jeez, there is a LOT of crap music out there". And it hasn't gotten any better. I look at the top 40 these days and see a whole bunch of bands and songs I've never heard of, and likely never will. We have much greater choice now, and demand for variety, but it's not like many bands really stand out as classics these days. I mean, think about the stature of The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Bob Dylan. And I recently read that US movie ticket sales were highest back in the 1930's (I read it, thus it must be true). I myself helped fuel this trend (and have found massive benefits from it as well) in the past through my CD collection. I have purchased a stupid amount of CDs in the past, and found great pleasure in exploring stuff I haven't heard before, finding obscure gems of albums or artists or buying an album based purely on it's cover art, or something else decidely different. But these days I think we're overwhelmed for choice. I think there is so much that even the great albums struggle to stand out. Can you imagine what it was like back in the 70's awaiting that next album from Pink Floyd... or Led Zeppelin. These days, there are no huge album launches that stand out... with the exception of one I suppose (and if that album ever sees the light of day I think China will become a democratic populace). And although I don't watch the Top 40 charts much, I'd be surprised if someone holds the #1 spot for longer than a month? I have no doubt that the perfect album was released this year, but I'll never find it amongst all the other shit. And this is such a stupid argument, as we (I) WANT diversity, we WANT (I) choice, but I sometimes think, at what cost? Music is losing it's impact perhaps... It's just becoming a unit shifter and a business (not that it ever wasn't obviously). But with manufactured idols and the ever marketed, ever changing whim of the youth, I think we're in danger. Back in the 70's, bands were allowed to have crap albums, make mistakes. These days, it seems that there is so much pressure to make money that if you don't, you're gone. And it forces so many one-album wonders. And I don't think it relates just to music either - look at all those movies. I bet people really took in the majesty of a new film in the mid twentieth century. Now, we line up to see Spiderman 3, because we feel we have to, to discuss it at work on Monday (although I did hear it was a good movie - haven't seen it). And books! Holy crap! I walk into a bookstore these days and only recognise 3 author's names. But maybe it's always been this way... maybe I'm changing my perspective through age. And I want both my cake and I want to eat it too. I want the variety, but I don't want the glut (of course, as subjectively determined by me as to what is glut). But I think the glut is just unavoidable. And finally, who's to say that the music I've produced in the past isn't just glut as well? Rant over, back to normal transmission.

Labels: Music