[Music] Why Do {People THink Bands With Mainstream Success Are Bad?

[PaladinBash]

I don't mind cool bands I like getting more recognition or moneys. Sometimes they change their music and try to appeal or cater to others afterwards and I no longer like what they put out so I just stop listening to their music. Kinda disappointing when a band you like makes music you can't stand but hey, it's not like you can only like one band or support one form of music.

[Sal the Shieldhog]

First of all: your brother is an idiot, sorry to say it.
Second: the bands you listed are not exactly "mainstream"
Third: people, including myself, dislike mainstream bands because they're sell outs who are in it for the money. Have you tried listening any of the pop music today? It's all bullshit.

THey're not "mainstream" mainstream, but they're considered "mainstream" for my general type of music (generally rock/metal and such).

I agree, I don't listen to pop because it doesn't appeal to me.

Depends on who you ask lol.

Ask some stereotypical metalhead with massive -core hatred and he will tell you how those two bands are the worst mainstream pop crap ever, but I guarantee that someone who exclusively listens to Nicki Minaj and David Guetta and the likes, will never be able to sit through a Blessthefall song .

Which further complicates this issue because the concept of the "mainstream" is also very fluid. Bands like Blessthefall are absolutely not part of the mainstream music, but there is quite many people who consider them to be too poppy/accessible too.

I agree on both your points. I don't know what it is, but I can't join music discussions with certain guildies on Vent/Mumble because they know me as "that guy" who listens to "shitty bands like Blessthefall and Of Mice & Men," and every word I say is retorted with "Shut up, your music sucks, metalcore isn't metal." Well no shit, but it's a sub-genre of metal. There are many.

Like I said above, they're not mainstream mainstream, but considered mainstream by many who listen to this kind of music.

[tornado shanks]

Hopefully the above chart should help you understand a little better as to why people think mainstream music is bad.
It's trendy to hate certain things, and hating Justin Bieber is another fad.
Ask anyone why they hate Justin Bieber, and they will, for the first time, think of a reason.

Also, classic rock fans are the most close-minded music fans you will ever meet. Convincing someone who likes classic rock to listen to a mainstream song is like trying to get a hardcore christfagg to read a Darwinism article. Good luck.

[Cthulhu 2020]

Not everyone does. However, I think many of us do view it as if the band has sold out. You could argue it's hipsterism if you wanted, but I'd say it's quite a lot to do with people not liking that bands who proclaim they'll always remain true to their original fans, suddenly don't have the time because "lolmoney". Music style often changes around the same time as well.

The hispterism towards bands is fine and all if they don't like the direction the band goes after they hit the main stream. A lot of them do change sounds. But what is completely and totally idiotic is people who are crazy about a band, love their music, then say ALL their music sucks (even the old stuff) once they "sell out" to the main stream. If you can't enjoy the music for the music, then you're thinking about it too much.

I like a lot of bands, artists, and musicians that are very much hated among supposed music connoisseurs. Just think of every commercialized rock, pop, country, etc singer and I will probably like 4/5 of them. I don't shove it in people's faces, I just like them. When I admit this, I get lots of criticism, and I have no idea why I get criticized for it, and most of the time neither do they, as they never have a concrete reason for telling me the band is terrible.

[Sal the Shieldhog]

Hopefully the above chart should help you understand a little better as to why people think mainstream music is bad.
It's trendy to hate certain things, and hating Justin Bieber is another fad.
Ask anyone why they hate Justin Bieber, and they will, for the first time, think of a reason.

Also, classic rock fans are the most close-minded music fans you will ever meet. Convincing someone who likes classic rock to listen to a mainstream song is like trying to get a hardcore christfagg to read a Darwinism article. Good luck.

Oh no, I understand that. My father likes classic rock and doesn't deviate from it. He's very disappointed in me, having gone from being raised on classic rock to exploring more of the general music type, until I've gotten to what I listen to today. He can't stand any of it (it can be quite hilarious at times).

[Kraenen]

There are a lot of catchy, mainstream songs but they mostly come from artists that haven't had years of high popularity behind them. I find it more rare to find many good songs from already popular, "mainstream" bands.

why do you associate "catchy" with good?

[Deleted]

I agree on both your points. I don't know what it is, but I can't join music discussions with certain guildies on Vent/Mumble because they know me as "that guy" who listens to "shitty bands like Blessthefall and Of Mice & Men," and every word I say is retorted with "Shut up, your music sucks, metalcore isn't metal." Well no shit, but it's a sub-genre of metal. There are many.

Like I said above, they're not mainstream mainstream, but considered mainstream by many who listen to this kind of music.

People who attack you cause of your music taste are idiots nontheless, one can disagree without being an asshole.

That's why its good to also be a fan of post-metal, funeral doom and drone because then one can retort easily and laugh at their taste in europower metal or something .

I can understand them as well though. I think many of the nowadays popular "electronic metalcore" bands are terrible, but not all of them. Memphis May Fire, The Word Alive, Amyst, Annisokay and indeed, Blessthefall are bands I like but I consider bands like Attack Attack! or Asking Alexandria to be worthless (I actually like listening to the first Alexandria album but only because of the badly placed bro breakdowns, horribly clean singing and pointless dance sections, when they started trying to play "serious" music, they became unlistenable to me lol).

I may see BTF some time in september when they come to my capital, depending if I can drag some friends there or not, but as much as I'd like to see them, I'd mainly go for August Burns Red and Counterparts, as I absolutely love both bands.

[Cthulhu 2020]

Also, classic rock fans are the most close-minded music fans you will ever meet. Convincing someone who likes classic rock to listen to a mainstream song is like trying to get a hardcore christfagg to read a Darwinism article. Good luck.

I've grown into classic rock and I love it. And yes, I find that classic rock hardcore fans are very religious in their zeal for their genre and quick to denounce anything else as terrible for no real reason.

[Wildtree]

I've grown into classic rock and I love it. And yes, I find that classic rock hardcore fans are very religious in their zeal for their genre and quick to denounce anything else as terrible for no real reason.

I am a child of the 70s, with that said, I am a classic rock person myself.
Before I go about myself, I want to deliver a reason why many classic rock fans are a little close minded. The reason is, that throughout the decades since the 60s up until the 90s what is called nowadays classic rock artists have been in the mainstream as well. So what's then so different? The quality and the skill of the craft of the musicians and their music as such.
Over the last 1.5 - 2 decades big entertainment corporations took over the market. Top quality isn't what makes the fast and big money. Easy catchy songs, that reach everyone from 3 yrs old to 80 yrs old are where it's at nowadays. Many classic rock fans don't go with that, they try to oppose that trend.
In the late 60s and during the 70s there were hundreds of bands consistent of highly skilled musicians and vocalists. In the 80s and 90s it diminished to dozens. Nowadays it's but a handful of new bands that have high quality to offer.

As for myself.. I've always been a passionate rock fan. But I never limited myself to one genre. Over the decades I collected about 8000 vinyl albums, and a couple thousand CDs. My collection goes from Abba to Zappa. I have rock, pop, classic, opera, beat, rap, house, etc. I too put a lot of emphasis on quality. And there's unfortunately just a huge decline. On that note... The graph about Bieber is bullshit.. It's a made up graph.. I dislike him too, but not for any reason shown in the graph. I simply don't like him for his lack of quality and skill. He's a mediocre singer at best. He has rather lousy dance skills. All in all he's a corporate fabrication of a teenage star. Those have been around since the 50s, and the only difference there is, how due to corporate dictated industry there's just more money made with him nowadays, than with some others back in the days.
And how far does the corporate dictate go? A most recent example:
On July 10/11 Black Sabbath released their new studio album, and the first album since 1995, and the first studio album since 1978 with Ozzy on the vocals. The album reached #1 in the album charts in numerous countries, even in the US Billboard overall charts, the album was #1 for 3 weeks. Why only 3 weeks? No, zero, nada airplay.
Not a single rock station or contemporary station I am listening to has ever played but one song from the album, despite of being actually an excellent album, with great songs on it. But corporate music business does apparently not cash in on it enough. So they rather resort to other stuff, that's cheaper for them, and what they say it's what the radio stations play, because in the US the radio stations are plenty.. But despite of hundreds of radio stations across the nation, they all are owned by a handful of corporations.

Another example.... Creed.. Everyone knows them, and what success they've achieved. If it was for corporate music industry, no one would have ever heard of them.
Everyone turned them down, no one wanted to produce their debut album. They kind of scrapped money together and made the album by themselves... And they were just that good, that they broke through the barriers by getting airplay from alternative rock stations.

[Sal the Shieldhog]

People who attack you cause of your music taste are idiots nontheless, one can disagree without being an asshole.

That's why its good to also be a fan of post-metal, funeral doom and drone because then one can retort easily and laugh at their taste in europower metal or something .

I can understand them as well though. I think many of the nowadays popular "electronic metalcore" bands are terrible, but not all of them. Memphis May Fire, The Word Alive, Amyst, Annisokay and indeed, Blessthefall are bands I like but I consider bands like Attack Attack! or Asking Alexandria to be worthless (I actually like listening to the first Alexandria album but only because of the badly placed bro breakdowns, horribly clean singing and pointless dance sections, when they started trying to play "serious" music, they became unlistenable to me lol).

I may see BTF some time in september when they come to my capital, depending if I can drag some friends there or not, but as much as I'd like to see them, I'd mainly go for August Burns Red and Counterparts, as I absolutely love both bands.

I know, I don't despise them, but don't like listening to them either.

The latest concerts I've gone to were ADTR (with OM&M, Issues, and CNCC back in March), and I went to Mayhem Fest just a few weeks ago (it was a few days before my birthday, brother took me; got my hat signed by MIW!), and I'm going to see BTF when they come to NYC in December (couldn't go last time they came around here, am ecstatic since it's the week after finals!)

THe best is when the hardcore die-hard metal fans complain about people disliking their music, then jump on people who like metalcore. Hypocrisy at it's finest

[melkesjokolade]

[Orby]

I would actually like to see more bands that I like receive and get mainstream success, there just isn't enough music out there right now commercially.

Not all mainstream bands or artists are bad, most of them are though. Mainly because there is so much better music out there,that isnt even been played especially here in the UK, I know a lot of great American bands or even really good British artists and bands that have never gotten any mainstream fame but yet are( in my opinion) alot better than anything currently in the charts and on the popular radio stations.

Really into Meg Myers right now

Why this woman isnt getting any attention I dont know

[Deleted]

The majority doesnt. The majority on MMO-C does, but that's the minority of society and the ones you never actually see out in clubs etc.

[Deleted]

Yeah I mean Iron Maiden and good era Metallica are total rubbish right ?
Fucking mainstream, never produces quality music.

/sarcasm.

[Maximus Testiculos]

It is called being a hipster.

[Sal the Shieldhog]

Yeah I mean Iron Maiden and good era Metallica are total rubbish right ?
Fucking mainstream, never produces quality music.

/sarcasm.

Case in point.

I never said they were bad. I love Metallica and Iron Maiden. If it weren't for them and other bands of that era, we wouldn't have the music we have today.

[Dubplates]

It's not just being a hipster. In my opinion, 90% of mainstream, commercial music is watered down, generic, lacks creativity and passion. A lot of it lacks "soul," I guess. The reason isn't because those artists are bad people, or pieces of shit. It has more to do with the industry, and what the consumer wants.

Mainstream artists are being directed by record companies and producers to sell music that's catchy, generic, etc. That type of music makes money. Most average, every day folks don't want to be challenged musically on their way to work, they just want something fun, something that's easy to digest, catchy, that whole thing.

It's easy when you're passionate about music, and the people who make creative, passionate, soulful music, to feel ill towards pop artists and the like because you wish that the more underexposed artists who are every bit as talented (if not more), aren't getting their share of appreciation. But that leads back to the consumers, and what they like.

[Kalyyn]

This could either be a valid or invalid complaint on his part.

If the issue is that he used to like their music but now doesn't, he either a. listened to it so much he got tired of it, b. grew out of it, or c. is an idiot.

On the other hand, if he likes their old music but hates their new music, that's a valid complaint. In order to become mainstream, most performers or bands have to become more generic. Sadly, the truth of the world is that casual music listeners don't want to hear something new and different. They want to hear the same crap repeated a million times. Hence why generic music is the most popular music. If it all sounds the same, it's all gonna sell.

Fortunately, I'll never have to watch my beloved Keldian go through that. Nobody but me likes them, and nobody ever will. They even had to kickstarter their newest album, and it took them quite awhile to meet their goal... God damn are they amazing though.

[AeneasBK]

People are snobs. I posted something similar in a Strauss video on youtube and my email inbox is ablaze with whiny replies.

[Pendulous]

I'm not sure why when people hear "mainstream" music, they immediately go to like Justin Bieber and whatever rapper is popular this week, and Taylor Swift. You know, other music is mainstream and isn't base "pop" music that is mathematically made to be pleasing to your ears.