Yeah..rock is doing the same thing..

"I'M LOST AND I CAN'T BARE MY LIFE, KILL ME NOW BECAUSE I FEEL SO BAD, I'M GOING TO HELL"

or something like that....all these bands are too gloomy..

Rock is in the same rut. That is why I am anxiously awaiting the new Tesla cd. Fun lighthearted stuff. A bunch of guys that just want to rock and have fun while doing it. I actually heard the new tune on the radio the other night, it was a nice break from the s.o.s.

Well I find Missy annoying. Her 'ryhmes' are really bad. I hate how she nearly stutters all her lyrics,says a few words(last one she draws out as long as possible),pause,then another 'ryhme' in the same tone.

At least all of her singles I have heard sounded like that. Really really annoying & not 'groundbreaking' at all to my ears.

The beats are no better. Reminds me of the horrendous 'experimental' music durring the end credits of the bland Matrix Revolutions(a bland trilogy in my opinion). Sure you can say 'at least they were being original!'. Yet the barrage mix of orchestra score,mixed in with the 'church' vocals used in the likes of The Omen,overlapped with Hindu walins & Indian music & various other culures mixed together did not make for a pleasing on the ears listening experiance. It gave me a headache & made my head want to pull a Scanners & burst.

That just about sums up Missys 'experimental' beats to me.

Someone mentioned The Beatles. I have to agree,that is GOOD experimental,changing sounds music.

Add in The Beach Boys Pet Sounds were they became more serious & deep. Great stuff,that is amazing & nice to listen to,along with their lighter pop classics.

So there is a difference between GOOD experimental music & pure noise & irritation(Missy & Matrix Rev score)).


As for good old school rap groups. Thanks for mentioning The Digitial Underground,great stuff. I also forgot to add in Naughty By Nature.

Also Saras observation of old school rap vs today is dead on accurate. Heck the same holds true with the horrendous state of rock as well.

....and some people wonder why my collection consists of 'older' albums & bands

Why does rap music suck today, compared to when you were 13-23?

Nine times out of ten, the answer is this: You got older.

(You can substitute just about anything for 'rap,' and the answer would be the same, btw.)

For all you youngin's the question should be "Is what happened to soul music?"
There was a time when blacks played their own instruments, had beautiful voices, dressed with style, and most important didn't sample!!

yes, i know.

in my other thread, i mention how people say that rock was an evolution from jaz and bues, and that rap is the same thing...to pass it off as an excuse..of making rap a "real" form of music

however, rock simply changed the instruments,techniques, and content seen in jazz and blues..it stayed true to the form and created a form of music that will be around forever

rap does nothing to "evolve" or change jazz or blues for the better..all those great jazz artists, blues singers, and as you term them, "soul"...they were great and talented...rappers [especialyl modern rappers] do nothing to build upon that talent..only deconstruct it into 2/2 beats and stupid lyrics.

one thing everyone needs to realize is the difference between "modern rappers" and real rappers, meaning artists that truly make a difference and actually strive to evolve the genre instead of watering it down and essentially making it radio friendly(ja rule, new Jay Z, nelly, etc...) Artists like Michael Franti(Spearhead), Outkast, A tribe called Quest, Common, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, or Jurassic 5 actually help rap evolve. It's a shame none of the real artists make it into the public eye. This leads to the general stereotypes about rap music. Check out Common's song "I used to love her" for a great perspective on Rap music and what has happened to it.

word.

I actually enjoy the music itself in some rap/hip hop. I just find it a turn-off when a lot of rappers start actually rapping. Just doesn't sound pleasant to the ears. And some of simpleton stuff that is used to create rhymes and forward the song is laughable. Another thing is when some of these rappers talk, like on that MTV show "Cribs." Man, oh man! It seems the majority don't exhibit much more than a junior high school education (which is probably even stretching it). Talk about butchering the King's English. It's too bad that this is the dominant music in our current culture, because so many kids try to emulate the behavior, speech patterns and, in some sadly misguided instances, the lifestyle. Unless you're a supremely talented basketball/football player and/or an actual rapper that can make a living at it, then it seems like the options in life are pretty narrow. I can't imagine many self-respecting companies wanting to hire anyone that has that attitude in representing them. I saw a documentary on PBS that shows how many kids that lived their lives based on hip hop philosophy had to basically undo a lot of what they created. Like having all the gold crowns removed from their teeth. Tattoos removed. Clothing choices compromised, etc. just in order to land a job as a secretary, for example. I know this is nothing new in musical pop culture. The same could be said two decades ago when Punk Rock made inroads (albeit not on the scale of Rap/Hip Hop). No way could Punkers go into the regular world of Adult Responsibility and continue the look and/or lifestyle they had emulated from years of following the movement.

There have been many fantasticly influential and inventive releases in the past couple of years from the likes of Mos Def, Dizzee Rascal, Jurassic 5, OutKast, Dan the Automator, Roots, Streets, Peanut Butter Wolf etc, etc... Even the very commercial Neptunes can release an excellent album (check out N.E.R.D.). RSA continues to innovate in production, check out his work on Kill Bill. I'm finding it hard to write off rap, whether it be commercial or underground.

Also, I'm of the opinion that Timbaland is one of the most innovative producers of the past few years. His beats are tight as a drum and often much more complex than they appear. The music often contains very surprising elements and referneces, everything is just a little off-center and askew. Add Missy's big girl bluster and you've got some classic singles.

Saying that rap is awful is like saying that rock is awful: it's just too broad to encaptualate in one statement. There's good stuff and bad stuff.

Hiro11, thank you for essentially saying what I wanted to in a much calmer fashion. I must've typed 4 different diatribes over the course of the past 3 days.

RZA actually produced very little of the Kill Bill soundtrack in the hip-hop sense of the word, almost all of the music was stuff he dug up and put together. Which does support my theory that we need more crate diggers doing scores instead of the same old shitty generic symphonic crap or the same 2 dozen pop songs we usually get. Though in general his output has sucked recently, hopefully getting drafted by the Chinese will inspire him again.

Most rap sucks these days (has for a few years now). As with all styles of music, ones it becomes over-populated, it becomes watered down and sounding the same. The only way to avoid it is to look to the underground. Look for rap music as a whole to be a lot better in about 8 years. I hope to see more hip hop mixed with string quartet's and opera.

I saw this "Chapelle's Show" last night. "Sayonara, bitches."

God forbid!

I hope it dies a short death

Just give it up rap bashers, rap will never die.

You'll all be dead before hiphop.

I really wonder what Eminem's gonna write about for his next album. Most of his songs are him dissing his mom, killing his wife, making fun of celebrities, and talking about how everyone should cheer that he's back (a la "Without Me" from the last album). I like his music, but I just wonder where he'll go from here. I have a feeling he'll do one or two more albums, then focus on producing and making films.

Hopefully he'll prove me wrong, but I wonder if, after a great movie debut, as soon as he tries to play an actual character he'll fall on his face. You don't see Prince in many movies these days, do you? After "Purple Rain" (which "8 Mile" has been compared to), I thought he would make more good films. Hopefully Em's movie career will go better. As long as he never appears in anything like "Da Hip Hop Witch" ever again

Word!

Thought of one entertaining group that take it back, fun-wise...

Nappy Roots.

No, urban music is remembered, but demonio never dies!!

ah poo hockey

you all need to listen to some real music, MOTORHEAD!!!

I may have missed it, but nobody mentioned Kool Keith.

He's the master of the game.

I think this is what rap needs.


The salvation of rap music

I do like kool keith, and also Del. Check out Deltron 3030 for one of the most amazing Rap CD's in a long time.