I haven’t written on here in a while. I think it’s because I never really had any resolve as to what it is I was actually writing about. But I think I got it now. I know for a fact there are only probably a handful of people that even read this, and I’m good with that…I never meant it to be this big revolutionary thing. But music. That’s what it’s gonna be for me. It took a while for me to figure it (and myself) out, sadly enough, but I got it now. So here goes…
Towards the last few posts I started writing more about music and my disappointment with the direction it’s heading in. Now don’t get me wrong…I like my fair share of unconventional (read: “bad”) music. I won’t lie, I’ll bump some Kesha…when I’m driving by myself…with the windows up…on the highway (she never claimed to be the next Mary J Blige and we were wrong to paint her with that brush…if at all anyone ever did). And my boys might clown me for it. Or maybe not. But not withstanding I will listen to her and perhaps even sing along…yup I said it. And the fact remains that the majority of what we hear – what’s readily available on the radio and on “music” television is tough to stomach. But perhaps only because we’re being force-fed. My aim is not to say that there’s not good music out there. It’s there if you look. Sometimes you don’t even have to, but generally speaking it’s just not accessible enough. I heard one of the slickest beats I’ve ever heard watching a Chrysler commercial the other day. One Million Miles Away by J.Ralph. It’s a simple three-chord melody with enough strings to shake a stick at and some woman singing about being one million miles away from something. I could look up the lyrics and act like I know what the song is about, but the honest fact is that I don’t have to. And for the intents and purposes of this blog, I’m not going to. I don’t want to. If we’re talking straight musical quality, the song is hot, and that’s the end of it. And yes, I’m listening to it right now. You should be too.
So the wonderful thing about music is that, like all forms of art, it’s completely interpretive. No one can tell you that something is bad. Even writing this it’s a difficult concept to grasp and articulate, but it’s the truth. I read somewhere that there’s no such thing as a “wine enthusiast.” I know sommeliers may cringe at that idea, but I’m starting to believe it wholeheartedly. That if you like Chardonnay then that’s you. If you like Moscato then that’s your shit. If you want to settle up with a $3 bottle of Beringer White Zin…fuck with it. And so it is with music. I know why you like Drake. And Wayne. And Kesha and Flo-Rida and everyone else you hear incessantly on a daily basis. But I promise if you step outside of the box to a a Rioja or a J. Ralph…you won’t be disappointed.
