Guest Blogger: Box in Cat

Box in a Cat

War, famine, prejudice, and death are what I see on today’s popular news; parties, Mercedes, wealth, and sex are what I hear in today’s popular music. There obviously is a devious intent to distract, a meticulous disguise to shield the reality from the general populace. Yes, you know what I’m talking about, the carefully manipulated messages in mainstream music that encourages over indulgence of luxury and sexual pleasures; that over glorifies money and status; that paints a picture of vanity and greed; that whispers loudly in your ear that you are not worthy. The taunts, however feint and indirect are enough to keep consumers consuming, wanting and dreaming. And if you look past the distractions, you might just notice the unpleasant reality wrapped inside the mesmerising beats– auto-tune.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike auto-tune. Healthy doses and clever placements of this technique can be most refreshing. What I find irritating is the overuse of auto-tune in music. Many people share my opinion with regard to the overuse of auto-tune. Unfortunately, many of those people disapprove of auto-tune for the reasons I find illogical.  As I recall a MTV host preformed an experiment once where he recorded himself singing in a studio. He then replayed the recording once normally and second time with auto-tune to show how much better he sounded with auto-tune. Finally he made the conclusion, which was congruent with the popular opinion at the time that he disapproves the artists for singing with auto-tune because they sounded better than they normally would.

There was a time, perhaps too long ago to remember, where songs told tales of the brave, chastised the actions of wicked, and conversed stories of true love, sorrow and joy. Themes, values and the messages that have embedded in mainstream music have changed over time, but its purpose remained the same. Music is made for the enjoyment of its audience. And regardless of the technique the artist used to create the music, it should be considered good music if it is enjoyable. However unfair it may seem that hardworking singers with natural talents are being outshined by computer processing, if you believe that auto-tune makes the artist sound better than they normally would, then the artist shouldn’t be chastised for using auto-tune to make better music.

It seems that most people today are conflicted and lost. Sometime it is easier to follow the popular opinion. But this society is built upon the idea of democracy and democracy would not result in better decision making if everyone was distracted and not think things through. Know why you listen to the music you enjoy; and always keep a sharp mind so you can still see the prejudice in the system and hear the cries of starving families through the beats of today’s mainstream music.

Here is a treat for those of you who prefer natural talent …. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j6IBdHW_rY 

Loki