Controversial music opinions

[larsvsnapster]

Not wishing to cause a flamewar.  It's happened when I voice the following opinion:

Most fandom appears to be more cult of celebrity based than actually liking the music.

[Guybrush]

Not wishing to cause a flamewar.  It's happened when I voice the following opinion:

Most fandom appears to be more cult of celebrity based than actually liking the music.

Sometimes, maybe? I can sorta see it for Black Flag or maybe Taylor Swift, but less so for Gentle Giant or Daft Punk.

[Lexi Darling]

Sometimes, maybe? I can sorta see it for Black Flag or maybe Taylor Swift, but less so for Gentle Giant or Daft Punk.

Yeah I think that's referring more to "stan" culture. I get that feeling a lot from the K-pop fandom. But there have always been less musically interested fans who like the musicians' personalities and aesthetics. I grew up in the 90s boyband era and I never heard much from my peers praising the Backstreet Boys for their actual music. People also like drama and following artists who comment on personal events in their music, like in the case of rap beefs.

And Black Flag I feel fall more into the category where people wear their merch as a fashion statement rather than having much interest in the band. The Ramones are another classic example.

It's definitely a thing. I don't resent anyone for it, everyone has different ways of engaging with music. My husband, for example, only listens to whatever's on the radio. He still likes music, he just doesn't go any deeper than the surface level and doesn't really care to learn about more obscure/underground artists or the concepts we associate with deeper music appreciation. Not everyone is as nerdy about music as us, haha. And that's perfectly fine.

[Meatwad]

Radiohead is overrated.
Tool is now overrated (post Aenema).
Most musicians who died before they turned 30 are overrated (exception being Jimi Hendrix).
Belle and Sebastian are terrible.
Matchbox 20 are awful.
Nickelback is better than pretty much any other rock band in the last 20 years.
Converge are terrible.
80's pop is overrated.
90's pop is a delight.
Pearl Jam are the most overrated band in history.
Lana Del Rey songs all sound the same. They all sound dreary.
Everclear songs all sound the same. Some were even slightly OK.
Merzbow is significantly underrated because if I was wanting to send someone insane I know which resource to play on repeat 24/7 for an entire week to achieve the desired result.

Kaboom !! 

[Meatwad]

Sonic Youth were terrible.
The Pixies are overrated
Limp Bizkit is underrated.
Pink Floyd is severely overrated.
Dream Theatre are terrible.
Musicians who regularly moan about the musicians life in their lyrics are pretentious and annoying. Go get a job at a convenience store or a factory if its so hard doing it.
Rap beefs are severely beta unless someone gets puts in a hospital or the morgue.
Lars Ulrichs drumming isn't as bad as some people make out.
Bad Brains is still better than 99% of all punk bands.
Fugazi is overrated.

 

[Lexi Darling]

I agree on your Sonic Youth, Pixies and Limp Bizkit takes, but with all due respect, your Nickelback take fried my brain. Having that opinion is just unimaginable to me.

[SGR]

Radiohead is overrated.
Tool is now overrated (post Aenema).
Most musicians who died before they turned 30 are overrated (exception being Jimi Hendrix).
Belle and Sebastian are terrible.
Matchbox 20 are awful.
Nickelback is better than pretty much any other rock band in the last 20 years.
Converge are terrible.
80's pop is overrated.
90's pop is a delight.
Pearl Jam are the most overrated band in history.
Lana Del Rey songs all sound the same. They all sound dreary.
Everclear songs all sound the same. Some were even slightly OK.
Merzbow is significantly underrated because if I was wanting to send someone insane I know which resource to play on repeat 24/7 for an entire week to achieve the desired result.

Kaboom !! 

I don't know man, Pearl Jam are the most overrated band in history? I can think of 10 or 15 bands off the top of my head that I think are more overrated.

And I'd sub out your Lana Del Rey opinion for Billie Eilish.

[grindy]

Let me try as well:
Nickelback aren't worse than Foo Fighters or Nirvana or any other lame grunge or post-grunge or whatever band.
Jimi Hendrix was a fantastic guitarist but the music overall is mostly mediocre and feels dated.
Tool suck and are boring and always were boring.
99% of bands labelled Alternative Rock, Indie Rock and Britpop suck ass.
Tupac was terrible. Lame-ass pop rap with mediocre flow.
Old-school hip-hop is mostly terrible and sounds like retarded children trying to rhyme.
Metallica fucking suck. Yes, even the so-called good albums.
Dubstep is actually pretty cool. Yeah, it's kinda stupid and a one-trick-pony but it's really fun.
Jeff Buckley had a great voice but his music sucked.
And while we're at it: Hallelujah is a horrible song, no matter who played it.
The Rolling Stones are fucking worthless. The Beatles were a bit better but that doesn't say much.

Anybody not hating me yet? I probably have some more.

[GD]

Radiohead is overrated.

Hard to not be when a horde of people consider you the greatest band of the last 30 years (they aren't, but still have a handful of fine albums to their name)

Nickelback is better than pretty much any other rock band in the last 20 years.

Gotta disagree but didn't their most well-known stuff come out more than 20 years ago anyway?
In any case, even when restricting the window to the last 20 years and limiting it to bands with mainstream recognition, I think for instance Arctic Monkeys and QotSA are at least a little better.

Sonic Youth were terrible.

Objectively false.

The Pixies are overrated

According to whom? Thinking they are the best band of their era is perhaps a bit much but what bands from the same period do you feel deserve to be more recognized, out of interest?

Limp Bizkit is underrated.

Hard to not be when people consider you to be the worst thing that ever happened to music (they aren't, but just a very average level of annoying/meh)

Pink Floyd is severely overrated.

see Radiohead but put in "last 50 years" instead of 30

The rest are mostly lukewarm takes or stuff I have no real opinion on anyway

[SGR]

Old-school hip-hop is mostly terrible and sounds like retarded children trying to rhyme.

What do you consider 'old-school'? Are we talking early to mid 90s rap?

Because if so, that opinion is insane.

[grindy]

What do you consider 'old-school'? Are we talking early to mid 90s rap?

Because if so, that opinion is insane.

Nah, then I'd be the retarded child. The 90s had some great stuff. I mean true old school until mid 80s or something like that. Maybe even until the late 80s.

[SGR]

Nah, then I'd be the retarded child. The 90s had some great stuff. I mean true old school until mid 80s or something like that. Maybe even until the late 80s.

Phew, you had me really hankering for a dislike button there for a moment.

[grindy]

Damn, I was so close

[SGR]

Damn, I was so close

You had some other opinions that I disagree with (the Stones and Tupac for instance), but none that struck me as batshit insane.

I actually agree on Hendrix, Buckley, and Tool.

[larsvsnapster]

Meanwhile, I'm still thinking.  As hard as I can on this subject.

Neither Robert Fripp nor Brian Eno have ever had an original thought in their lives.
Julian Cope can go straight to hell for what he did to Thighpaulsandra.
Rock In Opposition is where it's at.
The overbearing, weening push for more classic rock sales is deliberate, and it's not inconceivable that the CEOs of the Big Three record companies held meetings to plan it. 

I thought I was going to be able to come up with a long list, but I thought, no I don't want to drag anyone who's ever mentioned on those entertainment-masquerading-as-news portals like MSN, Bing, Yahoo, etc. except Fripp & Eno.  I'll blast them down in a heartbeat as musically they're the bane of my existence.