Music ideas?

[Blackout]

Well I play music a bit, well mostly guitar and sing a bit.


I was thinking, I don't really know style I want to go for. I have really eclectic tastes in music and it's hard for me to decide on what exactly it is that I want to focus on or do. I like hard rock and some heavy metal/prog-rock music, but I also really like indie music, low-fi and sort of those bands that like to keep things kind of minimalist and simplistic a bit. Like Interpol, Greenday, and The White Striples.

I have been listening to My Chemical Romance's last album Danger Day's, and I feel like they've managed to sort of achieved this song particularly at least on this album. It's kind of catchy, simple but on some of their songs they go a bit more complex or heavy; but still not to the degree where it's outright "heavy metal" and that's the thing too, I am really into some heavy metal and bands and it's just like : (

I don't want to pick one over the other.

What do I do?


I was listening to all of Jeff Buckley's unreleased stuff, songs he never officially put on an album and his unfinished 2nd album, and I sort of got this sense that is what he was trying to do. He had a really eclectic and diverse style that he'd did. He'd have a bunch of different styled songs all together at once and yet somehow it worked.

Even on his first album, at the end of grace he had the hard rock song "Eternal life" after.

 

[Blackout]

I guess I just don't know, I love so many different styles. It's easy to put metal and prog rock to get and say it's whatever. But I just love punk rock as well, and that snarly attitude and it's hard to really think of a way to combine or make it all work together.

I guess I would have to try and find what I am best at.

This is the closet I've heard somebody combine hardrock/metal with punk somehow I think, at least in the way I'm thinking. (Obviously THRASH metal had that kind of premise...)
But it sucks, because you can't really make the songs about more regular or low-key kind of events, because when it comes to really heavy music if the lyrics aren't sort of "epic" grandeur in some way then it just clashes with the music being played I think. I guess it's just that if you have reached a certain competency on the guitar, it's kind of unfulfilling to just play power chords and bar chords and make music that's just catchy and fun to listen to.

 

[Blackout]

Anyway, I suppose it really depends on what you're going for, like really kind of authentically and genuine artistic music or just that kind of kitsch indie pop rock kind of music, you know, bar/power chords and whatever kind of specific aesthetic or quirky sheik thing they are catering themselves to. I mean you could probably just find some catchy beat and then play your power chords and bar chords to them and it's not really that hard or complex. But I think if you were just generally writing music that you like without that big of a commercial interest or desire in mind then I don't think it would be that without reason or come off as seeming strange. I think it would make sense actually to switch between heaviness at times perhaps.

But see, he was really diverse and he's really inspired me a lot in that sense

I just posted this song because it's almost a more classic rock sounding song, with really fizzy guitar sounding riffs but still a little heavy. It's a more typical or oldschool sounding rock song that makes me think of Cream a little bit.

This is really different, and if you look musical progressions being played, it's actually quite creative and unique. I don't know what to all it, it's really neat. It's like goth/soft rock/poppy/and again, a little led-zeppelin-y. It's rock but not heavy. It's punk rock a bit too, I guess (lots of power chords, but more complicated then normal ones)

This is really unique too. And it's cool because unlike a lot of artists, he doesn't just stick to acoustic or electric most of the time and switched between them often enough if it got the right sound he wanted. This is almost kind of "cure" and "smith's" sounding, and I love how he incorporated them.





This is just a really heavy hard rock metal/punk thrash song, but he made it work!

[/video]

omteh gawh i juss felt like posting this cuz

 

[Cloudpatrol]

Nice thread. Jeff Buckley WAS so prolific. That's a great musical model.

I agree with you that if you are aiming for commercial success it's best to 'brand' a sound and have a distinct style. If you are more into playing for the sake of being an artist, then you can play around with different styles. Do you want this to be a career or a hobby?

Still, you have great musical tastes and a lot of the bands you seem to like, have noodled around with different sounds - even if they have an individual style. So, you have a head start in your influences!

 

[Blackout]

Give the albums Desire and Lust For Life a whirl.

There's some underrated guitar playing, especially on the latter.

ARe these both by The Stooges?

 

[Blackout]

Nice thread. Jeff Buckley WAS so prolific. That's a great musical model.

I agree with you that if you are aiming for commercial success it's best to 'brand' a sound and have a distinct style. If you are more into playing for the sake of being an artist, then you can play around with different styles. Do you want this to be a career or a hobby?

Still, you have great musical tastes and a lot of the bands you seem to like, have noodled around with different sounds - even if they have an individual style. So, you have a head start in your influences!

Ha, I feel embarrassed posting him though, because most of his songs were all like "Look at me, I am hawt" but I can't think of many artist that were as versatile. And not only that, but he was constantly finding ways to experiment and meld different styles into his music. Like he'd put together Arabian sounds into a rock song or something (on his guitar too, scales and stuff)

Or he'd have some weird soft kind of indie rock/jazzy kind of song, and then it the bridge have this huge heavy Led Zeppelin riff, and it was really different (think of "so real")

But I don't know if it's even worth it or it matters, when it seems like everyone just wants music that's really catch especially and is self congratulatory to their consumer driven lives.



Even with more prolific and commercial driven artists like Muse for example who experiment, it's almost like they keep themselves from going too far. They've tried a lot of different things, but it's always stopped short of doing anything really different, unique or ground breaking and I imagine would be controversial at all. And even then, they experimented with "dubstep" at the time, which again, is probably because it was having some popularity and they wanted to try something different. So again, fear of being too 'experimental' and even though, it's like for some reason, they have to make ALL THEIR SONGS heavy, and it's like, why? but they do.

But it's funny though, in sort of a tongue in cheek way I think Jeff Buckley even said that he played music to women in a way because he knew it worked for him and made him more successful then he would have otherwise, lol. (!!!???!) I guess even found what worked for him in that sense.

 

[Blackout]

Sometimes i wonder about these guys if they just generally liked this kind of music or if they also thought possibly that it could potentially make them lots of money with whatever skills they have, and is generally fairly easy to play. I guess I would define this as "post punk" sort of? it's generally in that tradition but a bit more advanced and sophisticated.

IF YOU WANT TO PLAY IN A BAND, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS LEARN HOW TO PLAY POWER CHORDS AND BAR CHORDS, AND GET A GOOD DRUMMER!!1111 (except in Jack White's case, IT'S HARD TO SAY WITH HIM!)

It's kind of kitsch a bit to me? but I don't mean that in a bad way, but I mean ironically and on purpose or something. I think they are trying to sort of stay true to the real spirit of original rock&roll a bit as well here.

it was basically Kurt Cobain's fault. You can blame him for everything.

 

[Blackout]

The first is Bob Dylan, the second is a solo album by ex-stooge Iggy Pop.

I've noticed there's a lot of NT musicians here, why is that? I thought it was often more of a F thing. Do you like predominately theoretical based music/lyrics, experimental and more classical based or complex music arrangements?

God damn F's and their feeler based laziness.

 

[1487610420]

yes

music is an expression, one either has something to express through it or not. the only thing in common across all genres of music is does do talkers talk, with or without monies. reality will show the truth.

 

[Blackout]

yes

music is an expression, one either has something to express through it or not. the only thing in common across all genres of music is does do talkers talk, with or without monies. reality will show the truth.

ha ha, but look at your sig. Plus, you have Daft Punk in your avatar.

Kind of NT-ish.

 

[1487610420]

ha ha, but look at your sig. Plus, you have Daft Punk in your avatar.

Kind of NT-ish.

 

[Blackout]

Wow, Deja vu, looks like Jack Nicholson

 

[meowington]

I play guitar too. It would totally suck if I had to stick to one genre all the time. But commercially there isn't much option for versatility. Unless maybe progressive genres, who usually have more forgiving audiences.
I like so much music, from Jeff Buckley to Megadeth. So glad I got to see Buckley live once. I didn't even know who he was, but his voice immediately drew my attention. I think his voice was more important than whatever he was doing on guitar.

 

[draon9]

Wow, Deja vu, looks like Jack Nicholson

I got an idea use poppy melodies with a hint of classical guitar

 

[Blackout]

I play guitar too. It would totally suck if I had to stick to one genre all the time. But commercially there isn't much option for versatility. Unless maybe progressive genres, who usually have more forgiving audiences.
I like so much music, from Jeff Buckley to Megadeth. So glad I got to see Buckley live once. I didn't even know who he was, but his voice immediately drew my attention. I think his voice was more important than whatever he was doing on guitar.

So commercial viability at all, really?

Even with independent artists? Radiohead's always experimenting....

 

[meowington]

So commercial viability at all, really?

Even with independent artists? Radiohead's always experimenting....

Yeah you're right. That was my cynicism talking earlier.

 

[ilikeitlikethat]