This weekend it's time for the Super Bowl of the music world!...
Yeah, right. But I'll probably still check out the Grammy Awards tonight. The ceremony has had a reputation of being a little out of touch, but last year they gave the album of the year to
Arcade Fire's The Suburbs, so maybe they are learning a thing or two.
No doubt there will be some kind of tribute to singer Whitney Houston, who was found dead yesterday at the age of 48. Always sad to hear that someone so young has passed, but her battles with drug abuse over the years make it somewhat less surprising. Back in 1985 it was a different story-- indeed, I would have been wishing I was the guy you see filming her in this music video:
There is no denying she had a great voice, but I think my interest back then had more to do with hormones (young Whitney was beautiful). Her music was far too slick and polished for my taste, and I think she may be responsible for an unfortunate trend in pop music-- "the diva." Singers like Diana Ross and Aretha Franklin probably earned that title before her, but I think they had better producers and material (at least back in the 1960s-70s).
I just prefer a little more emotional honesty in my music. On that note, there is no doubt that this woman should win big at tonight's ceremony:
It's funny, this song kept coming on the radio every time I stopped at the jewelers last fall to make final arrangements on buying the engagement ring-- sort of like a reminder of all the reject girlfriends from the past (there had been a few).
Adele has a beautiful way of phrasing-- sort of unique amidst a sea of auto-tuned pop princesses. If her "
Rolling in the Deep" doesn't win "Record of the Year," something is seriously wrong.
For the reasons stated before, I have never really been interested in watching shows like
American Idol-- I think they generally send the wrong message about making it in music, and it is all becoming a bit homogenized. I did start watching
The Voice recently, and thought it was an interesting concept: the judges begin by not seeing the artist-- so it is based solely on how they feel about their singing.
Cee Lo is one of the judges/musicians who will be mentoring the talents, so that is a good sign-- he is definitely one of more soulful and unique voices out there today. Christina Aguilera is also on board-- I would lump her into the "diva" category, but like Whitney she can sing... and does have her moments (some of those "retro" tracks off her
Back to Basics album are good fun).
TV2 in Norway is also airing their own version of
The Voice, and that is even more interesting to me because of their judges:
Magne F from A-ha, and
Sondre Lerche, among others. The tastes of these two artists would fall more into the indie-rock category, for sure... so it will be interesting to see how the talents are nurtured in each version of the show. I'll try and watch both-- see if there is any hope left for the future of the pop music business.
Here is one of the more promising acts I have started hearing this year:
Gotye. Sounds a little like somebody that I used to know... Sting prior to his own "diva" days?
Another song to dedicate to those reject girlfriends. Faith restored. God, I love music...
