I was a child in the 70s, a teenager in the 80s and in my supposed prime in the 90s. I've been through a whole host of changes in music, Disco in the 70s, Glam Rock in the 70s, Punk Rock in the mid 70s, the New Romantics of the early 80s, Brit pop in the 80s and 90s, Boy and Girl bands in the 80s and 90s, the rise of Hip Hop and Rap through the 80s, 90s and into the 21st century, European electronica from the 70s onwards. Its been quite a journey and being brought up in the UK I was privileged to experience a much of it.
I feel the British are uniquely placed to assimilate music from the cultures that surround us and that make up the British people and the greater commonwealth that makes up the once mighty British Empire (that World War 2 again). Pop, Rock, Jazz, African, Indo-Asian, Latin, Electronica, Rap and Hip-Hop, you name it we've produced it, consumed it, copied it or assimilated it.
With that said, my problem is for the most part with Pop music, especially bubble gum pop, its one of the reasons I don't listen to commercial radio or watch music television. There are times when I am abused by terrible music forced on me by circumstance, most recently, Katy Perry's masterpiece "I Kissed a Girl" (I was introduced to the song by the "So you think you can dance" show which Kata will watch on occasion). The lyrics are atrocious, I would rather not even think about them, but you know what, the annoying chorus won't get out of my head. I really truly want it to, but it keeps coming back to taunt me. The only way to get it out of there is to drown it out with something I like, either through my ears (playback) or through my brain (memory recall).
I know the song isn't aimed at me, and since I'm a liberal person, I have no issue with its existence. Artistic free expression and freedom of speech are quite dear to me and I'd never compromise them just because I don't like something. So for a little while I'll have to suffer as I've suffered many times before and wait out the half-life of bad songs in my memory (usually 2 to 4 weeks).
Until then, I've kissed a girl and I liked it...
I feel the British are uniquely placed to assimilate music from the cultures that surround us and that make up the British people and the greater commonwealth that makes up the once mighty British Empire (that World War 2 again). Pop, Rock, Jazz, African, Indo-Asian, Latin, Electronica, Rap and Hip-Hop, you name it we've produced it, consumed it, copied it or assimilated it.
With that said, my problem is for the most part with Pop music, especially bubble gum pop, its one of the reasons I don't listen to commercial radio or watch music television. There are times when I am abused by terrible music forced on me by circumstance, most recently, Katy Perry's masterpiece "I Kissed a Girl" (I was introduced to the song by the "So you think you can dance" show which Kata will watch on occasion). The lyrics are atrocious, I would rather not even think about them, but you know what, the annoying chorus won't get out of my head. I really truly want it to, but it keeps coming back to taunt me. The only way to get it out of there is to drown it out with something I like, either through my ears (playback) or through my brain (memory recall).
I know the song isn't aimed at me, and since I'm a liberal person, I have no issue with its existence. Artistic free expression and freedom of speech are quite dear to me and I'd never compromise them just because I don't like something. So for a little while I'll have to suffer as I've suffered many times before and wait out the half-life of bad songs in my memory (usually 2 to 4 weeks).
Until then, I've kissed a girl and I liked it...
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