Songs you just don’t get

Purple & Green

Radge McRadge
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Jun 27, 2002
I love New Order, all of their stuff. Love Joy Division too.

I don’t like Blue Monday though, I skip it whenever it comes on. Never got the fuss about it. I mean I can appreciate it on a musical level, but I just dont get its appeal. 40 years on I don’t think I ever will
 
Great thread. There’s loads of these songs and I am defo a believer of the difficult second album. Is it pressure to release new music that taints what bands produce.

Blur - Country House, don’t get the song or the album. Pantomime stuff
Vaccines - first album decent, but what was Dream Lover all about
Kaiser Chiefs - anything after Employment particularly Ruby and the Angry Mob, the band that your Auntie likes
Alabama Shakes - Sound and Colour
Vampire Weekend - Horchata
White Lies - Bigger Than Us
The Killers - Sam’s Town
The Snuts - Millionaires (still early days and looking forward to the tour later this year)

The only thing worse than these songs is when you ask someone what music/bands they listen to and they say “a bit of everything”.
 
Most music is marmite for me, I either like it or I don’t. I can’t think of an album or band, even favourites, where I like all the songs. So I’m not in a position where ‘I love x but I don’t get the fuss over y’.

So I’ll settle for things that seem to be well respected by people of good taste but do nothing for me.

Almost all of the Beatles is the most obvious (there are exceptions - who doesn’t like hey Jude during a pish up etc). To my ear, often cloyingly saccharine lyrics, irritating vocalists, twee or just boring melodies. I accept it’s me not them; you can’t be that popular without having a lot to offer, but I really don’t get it. I do however get the innovation on Sgt Peppers for example.

All of Radiohead after the Bends; maudlin dirge. Student band.

Almost all guitar solos. Especially those heavy metal ones where they race up and down the frets in a manner that is technically impressive for sure, but I’m not sure why you’d want to listen to it.
 
Too many to mention 😞

To keep it simple: Just think of any song/artiste you think is great and the chances are I'll think they're total dugshite OR I'll have no idea who they are!

(There's 5 I've never heard of in Minty's post above FFS)
 
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Sometimes I don't even get songs I have written. It's just an urge to capture a moment or a feeling that needs to be registered.

Just because.
 
Great thread. There’s loads of these songs and I am defo a believer of the difficult second album. Is it pressure to release new music that taints what bands produce.

Blur - Country House, don’t get the song or the album. Pantomime stuff

Vaccines - first album decent, but what was Dream Lover all about
Kaiser Chiefs - anything after Employment particularly Ruby and the Angry Mob, the band that your Auntie likes
Alabama Shakes - Sound and Colour
Vampire Weekend - Horchata
White Lies - Bigger Than Us
The Killers - Sam’s Town
The Snuts - Millionaires (still early days and looking forward to the tour later this year)

The only thing worse than these songs is when you ask someone what music/bands they listen to and they say “a bit of everything”.
That's from their 4th album and the album you liked was their 3rd

Generally the issue with 2nd albums is an artist or band has had years to write the songs for their 1st album under zero pressure.
If they hit paydirt with their 1st album and/or singles from their 1st album their record company will send them out on tour and the bigger the success the longer and further flung the tour will become. Lots of gigs and media commitments.

At that point the record company want new product to sell to take advantage whilst the artist or band is hot and they want it yesterday.
At that point the artist or band have been touring the world for 9 months and whilst touring they probably haven't written any new songs.
They are bundled into the studio and probably only have left over old songs they didn't think were good enough for the 1st album so they have to quickly write new songs and polish up the sub standard old ones.
It's a recipe for a sub standard 2nd album if their talent is slim.
 
I love New Order, all of their stuff. Love Joy Division too.

I don’t like Blue Monday though, I skip it whenever it comes on. Never got the fuss about it. I mean I can appreciate it on a musical level, but I just dont get its appeal. 40 years on I don’t think I ever will
It gets better with every listen for me. Its so unique. So original it's untrue. Seeing New Order in NYC at Madison Square Gardens was a wee bit of a disappointment as Barney's voice was so bad but Blue Monday was unreal. Amazing.
 
It gets better with every listen for me. Its so unique. So original it's untrue. Seeing New Order in NYC at Madison Square Gardens was a wee bit of a disappointment as Barney's voice was so bad but Blue Monday was unreal. Amazing.
The beginning of it always reminds me of the theme from Tomorrows World.

I first heard it on Saturday 26th March 1983, 19 days after it’s release (a day when Hibs came back from 3-1 down at HT to draw 3-3 at tannadice, against the eventual league champions).

That’s the impression it made on me. A masterpiece.