Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Real Music: Hum

Last year was the first time that a Rock album failed to break into the Billboard top 10.  The same thing happened to Rap in 2009, but which is more surprising?

Music has changed considerably -- some might say the scene has devolved -- over a short period of time.  Although Rock remains driven by established statesmen such as AC/DC, Metallica, and Ozzy Osbourne, along with assistance by the reformation of Alice in Chians, Soundgarden and Stone Temple Pilots, the newer breed can no longer count on the plenitude of support from MTV and mainstream radio stations the genre' once enjoyed for decades.

In fairness, there is also something to be said for a style of music that once-proudly flew the banner of masculinity and Americana which the brand now generally appears to shun.  Indeed being outshined by their quasi-transvestite forebears of hair metal's heyday doesn't seem to phase them one bit.

Whatever the reason, loyalists remain hopeful that the purveyors of Rock find their voice (and power chords) once again before enthusiasts end up cursed with permanent doses of the currently prevalent pseudo-rock from which the genre' may never fully recover.  So here's a throwback to a band called Hum -- an unassuming yet somewhat heavy group that peaked amid one of music's greatest eras -- who showed us that sometimes less can be more:

3 comments:

Kid said...

I don't think it's going to happen. Personally, I think rock and roll died in the mid 1970's.

Any band that came along that sounded halfway decent was trying to recreate The Doors.

Though there were a couple good original sounds that came out in the 80's, 90's and 00's, but really too few to bother.

AMW said...

Each generation lays claim to having the best scene, but there is something noticeably different -- be it the sound or the general vibe -- from which the spirit of this music may be irretrievably damaged. Hopefully I will be proven wrong in the near future.

Kid said...

AMW, you're right. The music is what you grow up with... I just think it's been very stale for about 30 years now.