Wednesday, August 17, 2005

 

Random thoughts for a Wednesday-

I was going to do another blog about hip-hop, but instead, I wanted to write a blog that facilitated more discussion, because I like it when that happens.  So, I am going to lay out a couple questions I've been kicking around, and you can tell me what you think, MFR fans.

1.  You know when musicians say that they are creative because they take drugs, and that they need drugs to write the music they write?  Is this valid, or a bunch of crap?  And why?  Is there any middle grounds here?

2.  Should you ever judge an album in the context of prior experiences with the band?  Simply put, should I judge the new Spoon record as a thing in itself (as if it were the only Spoon record ever), or should I hold it up to the bar that has been set by their previous albums?

3.  If an artist starts sucking, (a), do you think they realize that they suck, or are they oblivious?  More importantly, (b), should they care?  Do they have an obligation to quit making music?  What if it's enjoyable for them, but not for anyone else?  Because they could theoritically keep riding the money-machine-mobile long after they've exhausted their originality/creativity (see Paul McCartney), or they could cash out when they know they probably couldn't do anything else worth recording (see Jay-Z, IF he really retired), or they could go out in a blaze of glory at a young age, leaving your music catalogue pretty much immaculate and safe from being tainted by possible crappy works in later years (see Elliott Smith, John Lennon, Buddy Holly, and countless others). 

Discuss.  I've love to read comments and hear some intense discussion.  Go!