Stuck On Repeat?

Recently, the BBC ran a feature, posing the question "Can You Shape your Children's Taste in Music?" It is certainly a goal that many parents aspire to achieve, even for the selfish reasons that they can continue to listen to their own favourite albums from yester year, and can have some ‘decent music’ in that traditional five hour car journey to see the family for the holidays.

Every time I return home from university, my parents comment (without fail) on how nice and quiet the house has been without me within approximately two minutes of walking through the door. Hell, I haven’t even had a cup of tea yet. Great welcome, guys.

But mainly, this is due to the instant welcome I get from my siblings, with whom there is an instant need to trade the latest gossip, jokes and musical trends.

Loading up my phone to browse YouTube, the groans of ‘Remember when we were in charge of the music in this house?’ hang heavy in the air.

Perhaps for a good reason. This summer, a Spanish headed report published its findings on modern pop music, only to conclude that, basically, everything sounds the same. Yes, punk and prog-rock happened. That was the 70s. Now, each assault on the chart is bound up in some squiffy basslines and a vapid string of lyrical spew, probably formulated by some questionable tin of value alphabet soup.

No wonder parents try to influence their children’s taste in music. The prolific back catalogue of British music has somehow become an untapped mine of musical sincerity and ingenuity in an age of increased music video circulation thanks to the internet.

You may think that the world wide web would have broadened our horizons, but simply clicking onto YouTube brings up the trending and popular videos that we all just have to watch. Few tracks from the 70s or 80s, hell even the 90s, feature in that promotion list. And thank god for the John Lewis adverts eh? If it weren’t for their constant covers, maybe half the population would never discover the old classics.

I’m not expecting teenagers to suddenly blare out Queen or Duran Duran with the same arbritrary excitement as Gangham Style (admit it, you’re dancing in your head now, aren’t you?!), but it is somewhat surprising in light of the Spanish (music) inquisition that people remain interested and invested in the charts, right?

Well, I find that these articles simplify the plethora of styles afforded by modern pop music. There has certainly been as much diversification as there has been industry monotony over the past decade. R’n’B, hip-hop, rap, dubstep have all come into the mainstream in the past ten years or so alone.

While these appear staple sounds to the modern day chart, their relative time spent being blasted from radio stations is still quite short. How long did the flavour of The Beatles last? Queen’s rock? The Clash’s punk? All these genres have proliferated the charts for short periods, around 10 years at best. Then the next musical innovation is adorned as quick as in the previous era.

Okay, I’ll admit. There’s a lot to be said in favour of the diversity of past musicians. Lyrics are so often more intuitive and reflective of society; instruments are used to convey meaning, not just drive a beat. Finding a classic Red Hot Chili Peppers album, or an Oasis gem is sometimes much more exciting than any new material on the charts.

But then, it’s popular music for a reason. It takes all the popular elements and twists them into a conformist notion of what we all like to listen to. Again and again.

Many of the iconic bands are heralded as true musicians because they allowed their audience a sense of rebellion against the mainstream, and, perhaps more importantly, against their parents.

Well, perhaps there is room for more apathy in a Western civilisation that has undergone a massive change in political and social rights since the mid-60s. But a 21^st century life culture, plagued with social media, increased peer pressure, recession, consumerism and wars is certainly the type of place for musical revolutions to continue. The assault of pop music is not something ‘throwaway’ and repetitive: it is something that in this slightly more apathetic era, the masses can utilise to forget the extent of their problems, before being galvanised into action by the next prog-rock wave.

Besides, my grandparents have expressed their like for Maroon 5, No Doubt, Calvin Harris and even Riri before now. There’s no reason that children shaping their parents taste in music is something that shouldn’t be encouraged.

The Brit Awards 2012

The annual Brit Awards ceremony took place in London this Tuesday night. Despite a questionable reputation, the occasion marks the high point in the British musical calendar, particularly recognising the achievements within the British industry as well as those worldwide. Here, I givesa run-down of the 2012 awards and the winners.

British Male was taken home by Ed Sheeran, who also bagged British Breakthrough. The singer-songwriter has had a fantastic 2011, with his album + going platinum and his gig tickets becoming something akin to gold dust. Whilst predictable, Ed deserved the recognition, particularly within the contenders from the British Male outlet (but Jessie J and The Vaccines were worthy nominations in the breakthrough category that merit recognition).

British Female was awarded to (dramatic pause, as if you couldn’t possibly guess), Adele. Without a doubt, the award ceremony was to belong to Adele’s triumphs in what has been a whirlwind twelve months for the star, starting with her performance of ‘Someone Like You’ at the Brits 2011. In addition, she bagged the British Album of the Year, the big Brit. If she hadn’t have won there would have certainly been a public outcry of sorts, which we shall come back to later when reviewing the show.

British Group was handed over to “We won’t win any Brits” Coldplay, the third time they have snatched the award. Yet this was an opportunity for the Brits to be edgier, with Chase and Status, or Elbow or even Kasabian having released material that, for me, interests the listener more than an enjoyable, but predictable, Coldplay album.

The real and most terrible shock of the night, however, came from the British public themselves. Hang your heads in shame, voters of the Brit awards 2012. British Single of the Year – One Direction: ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. The preppy, sickly pop number fended off the likes of ‘Someone Like You’ (which admittedly a number of people may now be bored of), ‘The A Team’, ‘Changed The Way You Kissed Me’ and even ‘Price Tag’. As a shameful moment in a Brit Awards ceremony, it is possibly only eclipsed by blundering over Adele’s British album (more later).

Elsewhere, Rihanna won International Female for the second year running, which reflects her achievements selling the most records of any foreign artist in the UK last year, and becoming the most watched artist on Youtube. Lana Del Rey picked up International Breakthrough and was wooden as ever in her acceptance of the award.

International Male went to Bruno Mars, which was generally a poor category for mainstream artists, but had the potential to give a voice to some largely unknown people (Bon Iver, Aloe Blacc). Alas, the Brits bosses voted for sales over substance in this case.

One of the toughest categories was probably International Group, which was claimed by the Foo Fighters. Thankfully one rock outlet won an award, otherwise it could have been some over the top sweet-pop fiasco affair. Most people thought Maroon 5 would blag it thanks to their inescapable ‘Moves Like Jagger’. A surprise Brit award, deserved nonetheless.

Outstanding contribution was awarded to Blur, and Critics Choice to Emile Sandé.

As far as the 2012 ceremony went, there had obviously been some effort to make the event seem polished and relevant. The awards were given a Union Jack lick of paint and the event was stylised around rainbows, flowers, suns and flags. All feeling very optimistic in the year of jubilees and Olympics.

However, James Corden received mixed reviews, his comedy appearing somewhat forced and based around song lyrics.

Many performances were bland alongside Corden’s presenting. Coldplay certainly went overboard with pyrotechnics, but that was about as elaborate as the staging was for any act. Adele dutifully performed the same song ('Rolling In The Deep') in the same set up as she had ten days prior at the Grammys. Rihanna blasted out ‘We Found Love’ for the umpteenth time on an award show, though at least she brought colour to the proceedings.

Blur’s performance in particular has divided opinion following the event. Some took to social networks in a frenzy slating the live set, saying they were past their best, drunk, shouting, loutish like a karaoke at a bar. On the other hand, a number, myself included, feel that the Blur set is unduly criticised. Fair play, the act wasn’t the best the band have produced, but there was some 90s pop-punk revival charm about their set that really captured the spirit and reason behind the band being awarded outstanding contribution. It was hedonistic; both reminiscent of inebriated summer evenings and a head pump of adrenaline at festivals.

Of course, stealing the light from all of the above was the shocking moment James Corden stepped over to the podium and cut Adele off as she was making her acceptance speech for British Album of the Year. How do I even begin to vent my spleen on this musical atrocity?

To begin, any sport related telebroadcast would be allowed to overrun by significant amounts of time: I'm pretty sure you could have spared an extra 30 seconds. This woman has made British music en vogue single handedly and continues to break records worldwide, let alone scooping six Grammys. Just a week before the Brits, she talked of her love for the ceremony. She began by saying she was proud to be British, and the organisers didn’t have the patience to let her prove what it means to be British.

More to the point, James Corden should not have cut her off. It’s his second year presenting the awards and both times to mixed reviews. It’s unlikely he’ll get them again: but he’s a comedian staring in an award winning West-End play. He doesn’t need that gig. He should have stood on the stage and let her finish: it wouldn’t have hurt him one bit.

Then, my issue with ITV is that similar mishaps happen each year. The key is to delay broadcast the show by half an hour and get less advertisers. To add insult to injury, this particular year saw segments highlighting the ‘Album of the Year’ category throughout the show. It is nothing but poor foresight and planning should there not be proper fruition of what has been built up and up for two hours.

The Brit Awards 2012 then? Another mediocre set of largely predictable awards, eternally remembered as the year that the most awarded singer to come out of the UK was ignored on her home soil.

Rihanna - Talk That Talk

Rihanna’s sixth studio album, Talk That Talk, comes as a little bit of a surprise. Earlier in the year, the star announced a repackaged version of Loud would be released in time for the impending holiday season and that seemed quite satisfactory considering the album was still providing singles that were dominating the charts worldwide. However, in a production whirlwind, Rihanna tweeted the prospect of a new album, bagged a number one single with producer extraordinaire Calvin Harris, and found studio time amidst a hectic tour schedule.

Of course, the major concern is that the material will be rushed and unsatisfying. With more critics suggesting music industry saturation and a lack of creativity in the charts, the release of an entire new album just one year after the overwhelming success of Loud almost appears premature and manufactured. However, interviewed last week, Rihanna said that she “did not want to appear a gimmick” and her manager defended the quick turn-around of material. Nonetheless, the polished pop of Loud is a difficult act to follow.

The solution is a tightly packed album that places itself between the rocky angst of fan favourites Rated R and the party pieces of its predecessor. Debut single, ‘We Found Love’ is quite atypical of the material as a whole: offering a party vibe, whilst haunting in the new found fragility in Riri’s vocals. Whilst some have criticised the single for its simplicity and repetitive lyrics, this is artistic reflection of the simple and pure love desired by the star and is all the more meaningful for its powerful delivery.

Indeed, despite any wayward comments regarding lyrics, the new strength of the album appears to be that Rihanna’s vocals are flaunted in a much more emotional manner than on Loud and it adds an extra dimension to the work to counter any worry of a churned out pop disaster. Particularly impressive in this regard is the bittersweet finale to the standard edition, ‘Farewell’, which sees a friend or lover leave for a better life, whilst Rihanna tries to cope with the change.

This theme of (absent) love forms the base of the album, and perhaps this is part of the refreshing appeal: no longer are the tracks generally built around euphemisms and the prospect of sex, but the more fragile and gentile aspects of relationships too. Highlight ‘Where Have You Been?’ superbly capitalises on Rihanna’s party vibe and could be played at the clubs without a remix, but lyrically, the song talks of the torment and anguish before finding romance.

Elsewhere, ‘Drunk On Love’ samples The XX’s ‘Intro’, which perfectly complements the hauntingly wistful voice of the musician whilst ‘Roc Me Out’ reads like the lovechild of ‘Hard’ and ‘What’s My Name?’, with its heavy electro rock synth and deep vocals.

Tracks ‘Cockiness’ and ‘Birthday Cake’ first appear somewhat at odds with the rest of the material, jarring with their prominent mid-point position. However, they help counter Riri’s public persona: her bravado, built up with the hype of ‘S&M’, leaves the star quite isolated and imposing. Here, both tracks feature to depict this is but one side of Rihanna, and that overwhelmingly, the Barbadian beauty has been alone for quite some time. Besides, the reggae-come-calypso infusion of ‘Cockiness’ is rather seducing and reminiscent of hot, hazy summer days.

Perhaps single life has provided this surge in raw emotion that sees the songstress connect more wholly and satisfyingly with her material. Whilst the album is far from experimental, solidifying avenues explored by Rihanna in previous work, this release carries some poignancy as the 23 year old looks to other matters in her life than the stardom acquired at 17. Before out of her teens, she had released three albums and broken worldwide records with ‘Umbrella’. The demure and reflective tone is testament to the hard work so far, whilst the club influences remain a gesture to how much fun the star is having nonetheless.

An album that is without doubt the most exciting mainstream release of the final quarter, due to this eclectic mix.

All music, Def Jam Island Records and Rihanna. Fair usage for comment.