>I think if you’re gonna make a statement like this, you >should also include a list of instruments that you play >and maybe some links to any relevant CD projects you have >worked on
Flute, Piano, Guitar, Recorder. CD projects? Uh.
>If you understand the basics of music, then you know that >a song should not be judged by the number of notes that it >contains. In fact, I can think of very few things that >would be a worse indicator of song quality.
My point, being, he’s called a genius because he plays a lot of instruments. But, I don’t see it? I can play 3 piano notes, add drums, come up with some angst lyrics, and static. Then mesh it all together into repetitious noise.
Genius.
>Some of the greatest musicians ever never learned how to >read music.
That’s you’re opinion. IMO, Mozart is the greatest musician ever. And IMO, to even be labeled as a musician, you should be able to read music. That is, unless you’re a complete hack.
>That being said, if NIN isn’t for you, then it isn’t for >you. However, just because his music doesn’t speak to your >soul doesn’t mean that the guy’s got nothing to say.
Have you heard his lyrics? You’re right, he doesn’t speak to my ‘soul’. I’m happy. I enjoy life, and I don’t plan on committing suicide anytime soon.
NIN’s lyrics aren’t that freakin “depressing” as you put it, at times they can be uplifting, but for the most part they’re mellow…i think a lot of your criticism comes from the fanbase that NIN has been associated with, and i don’t blame you.
Yeah, you heard me. If your assertion is that what Trent is doing is easy and doesn’t take any skill, then we can only assume that you have done the same thing… how else would you know it is easy?
I’ll agree that genius is maybe too strong a word. However, there is a great deal of difference between what goes into a NIN album and the random tossing-together of some random sounds.
Yep, sure is. Unless you wish to assert that most of the jazz and blues greats were shoddy musicians, I’m surprised its not yours too. Hacks indeed.
No question, he was one talented dude. Do you think he played every single instrument that he gave a part to in his symphonies?
[hijack]
Prior to his NIN days, Trent Reznor spent some time in two Cleveland bands. One, Hot Tin Roof, played rather pedestrian, albeit melodic, power pop. I have one or two of their Reznor-era songs on a compilation CD. The other, the Exotic Birds, was a synth-pop, Depeche Mode-style group, who were best known for an abominable cover of “Day After Day” by Badfinger. I think Reznor was out of the band by then, however.
[/hijack]
That’s a crock. Have you tried to cough up the dough to get something recorded lately? How about found the luck to get it marketed? Some of the best musicians are unrecorded and not under contract merely because of the nature of the beast.
BTW, Trent Reznor is a piece of shit. He somehow got signed, somehow got enough money to set up a recording studio, and now that he has the gear and the connections, we’ll never hear the end of his flatulent garbage.
And this is from someone who plays 4 instruments, reads music, and appreciates both the ability to play in a group, improvise, and read.
Ummmm…name a jazz great who couldn’t read music, from Louis Armstrong on. And I want a citation with the quote.
So far, posters on this thread have mentioned Sarah McLachlan, Tori Amos, Ani diFranco, Jewel and Alanis Morrisette and the general rant against all of them is that they are half-assed mediocre talents who have exploited “girl (or if you must “grrrrl”) power” to make big bucks. A common gripe seems to be that they put out humorless, cliche, trite, condescending and just plain boring folk rock.
but how can all of you forget the mother of all self-important, p.c. New Agey tripe…
NATALIE MERCHANT!!!
But I suppose the thought of her is just too painful to bare: her nasally, flat voice; her “holier-than-thou” attitude; her badly written, slow as molasses, preachy songs about the most tired politically correct clishes.
“I must be one of the wonders…” yeah right. I’ve no doubt she means that literally. The absolute worst thing about her is that she is original self-righteous demon seed from which spawned Sarah, Tori, Ani, Alanis, et. al.
(don’t know how I got italics…sorry)
And can I just take this opportunity to complain loudly about her awful speech impediment? Has anyone ever heard her say an R sound, Ever? She swallows them, and unless she has a too tight frenulum (tongue tied), this is an affectation. I cannot listen to the woman, I want to scream at her to quick curling her tongue away from her Rs!!!
And all the other stuff this person said, too.
In fact, yes I have. My band is recording a demo as we speak.
Yeah, it’s pricy. You know why? Because it’s not easy to do. As a result, recording takes hours, days, weeks, months to complete. More so when you are playing all of the instruments. And that’s when you have somebody to turn all the knobs for you, which Trent (at least initially) did not.
Agreed. How does this have any bearing on Trent’s talent or lack thereof?
I don’t have citations at my fingertips. I will take a look for some - if I find none by tomorrow, I will withdraw the “jazz” portion of my claim with apologies to all.
However, it has come up in this conversation that blind artists cannot read music unless it is fed into the braille translator-thingie that Stevie Wonder has. Can we go ahead and make the assumption that most blind musicians have not had access to this machine and therefore cannot read music? Makes sense to me, but let me know if there’s something I’m forgetting.
OH MY GAWD!!! It drives me nuts. My husband says he thinks it sounds “kind of pretty” but it just irritates me to no end. It sounds like she’s trying to eat while she’s singing or something.
Been there, done that, both ways, analog and digital. Fortunately, the last full-length project I did was bill-footed by the songwriter. Then he wouldn’t promote the SOB. But it’s nice being a gun-for-hire at time.
That was in reply to your assertion that only someone with a “relevant CD project” could answer to his talent. Anyone with recently Q-Tipped ears and a modicum of taste can answer to that. Hell, I’ve done 4 or 5 recording projects–some of them before CD’s were cheaply available–and I don’t know that you could call any of them “relevant.” But I suppose that you’ll have to tell us relevant to what.
OK, I’ll give you Jeff Healey, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder (pre-machine), Jose Feliciano, ummm…lessee, Ronnie Milsap…anyone help me here? Blind Lemon?
I will guarantee that you won’t find anyone from the swing/big/large band eras who can’t read music. I doubt seriously that you’ll find anyone from bebop and later who can’t read.
Okay, I can’t stand her because of her flat-toned voice, but I do have to defend that song–she’s not speaking of herself and bragging. The song is about the birth of a child with a disability; she’s writing from the perspective of the newborn. A Down’s syndrome girl, among others, is featured in the video.
