Player's Individuality

PaulBrewer

Our MySpace Friends count is going up steadily.
With every add, a quick listen to the Artist's wares is usually had.

I've not noticed much in the way of individuality in the bands playing.

I'm not talking technical proficiency here per se, but individuality.

One didn't get Mr. TheEdge and Robert Smith from the Cure mixed up or Bruce Foxton from the Jam and Peter Hook from Joy Division when I were a boy.

Where are the Johnny Marrs, John McGeochs etc of the Irish Scene I wonder?

In fact one never hears 'So and So' is a great player unless it's in reference to technical ability.

Is individuality not important to current bands?

fitz

That's my problem with the indie genre in the last 4 or 5 years. Everything sounds the bloody same.

11811

I can think of a few international bands out there at the moment with it, but cant really think of any Irish examples, not from the past eight or nine years anyway anyway. Could be the fact that all indie/pop guitarists seem to sound the same, and we have a lot of those at the moment. Plus a lot of modern Irish music is more centered towards the singer/songs perhaps giving less room to individual musicians?

PaulBrewer

Cuddleworthy wrote: »

I can think of a few international bands out there at the moment with it, but cant really think of any Irish examples, not from the past eight or nine years anyway anyway. Could be the fact that all indie/pop guitarists seem to sound the same, and we have a lot of those at the moment. Plus a lot of modern Irish music is more centered towards the singer/songs perhaps giving less room to individual musicians?

Good points. However every genre has had individuals even within the common denominator Indie/Alternative ranks.

I suppose the full chord strumming tele bearers don't exactly scream originality ok ...

11811

PaulBrewer wrote: »

Good points. However every genre has had individuals even within the common denominator Indie/Alternative ranks.

it was more the indie-pop variety, for example the delorentos, blizzards, coronas et al, I was referring to - I really do not see any individuality there at all, some less main stream stuff out-there I'm sure has more has more "individuals" as such..

jtsuited

hmmm interesting topic.

there are a few musicians who REALLY stick out in my mind but the past few years have seen a dramatic decrease.

Back in the old days, you had the jonhnny marr's etc. who were so distinctive as has been said.
then came the 90's and the only one that's springing to mind (apart from the various members of Nirvana and Radiohead) is Graham Coxon from Blur.

Distinctive tones, technique and musical stylings of individual members were great for the long term appeal of bands.

Only one I can think of now is ronnie vanucci (i think that's his name), the drummer in the killers. His style on the first Killers album is so refined and distinctive.

But I'm really struggling to come up with anyone else. Maybe it's because bands nowadays are more a talented frontman/songwriter with some anonymous guys doing everything else as opposed to 'bands'.

I think that has a lot to do with the opinions of major label execs, as they tend to scout a lot for writing talent nowadays as publishing became so lucrative (well far more lucrative than selling records) in the more recent decades.

Anecdotally, I can think of two amazing guitar players (and i don't mean technically speaking). Both had the most unique and personal styles. You knew it was them playing as soon as you heard it.

However neither of them even pick up guitars nowadays as they're both production heads. 1 of them like myself got into electronic music and never came back (like myself). the other became a singer/songwriter/producer who spends most of his time locked up recording and buying gear.

Had it been in earlier decades, if you loved music and wanted to make a career out of it (and had the talent and distinctiveness to do so), you joined a band, played 1 instrument fantastically and rose to fame with your unique sound and playing.
Nowadays, the real talented guys learn drums, bass, piano, and guitar before they're out of their teenage years, and then half of them get into electronic music and their days of rawking the crowds with their awesomeness are over.

The ones that don't do this start their own bands as the main creative force and songwriting/arrangement/production skills take precedence over having a distinctive sound (a la Marr, Coxon, Smith, etc.).

And so we end up with very bland sounding indie music where the songs are fine but there's no musician really standing out grabbing the audience by the balls with their sacred uniqueness.

Or something like that.
The one band that I still listen to a lot are Sigure Ros. I guess Jonnsi (the singer and guitar player) would sort of fall into the category of 'unique musician' what with that distinctive Sigur Ros bowed guitar sound.

Oh I thought of another one, Matt Bellamy from Muse. His guitar playing is just plain odd. But brilliant.

11811

few that stick out in my mind at the moment are - Matt Bellamy, Nick Zinner - guitarist from the yeah yeah yeahs, Carlos D - bassist from interpol, drummer from the national is quite exceptional too, but yeah its hard enough to pick em out...

PaulBrewer

I think yer man out of Sons and Daughters makes a very original sound with a nod to the Rockabilly past but with eyes to the future.

I don't even know his name!

11811

PaulBrewer wrote: »

I think yer man out of Sons and Daughters makes a very original sound with a nod to the Rockabilly past but with eyes to the future.

I don't even know his name!

Scott Patterson? - I think

good call tho, definitely something different to his sound

PaulBrewer

First I saw them was on Other Voices, he was playing a Burns I believe.

11811

BOOO-Urns!

Ah yeah nice guitars alright! Saw em last year at the electric picnic (I think) and he was brandishing a tele....

progsound

Plenty of Individuality out there lads you just have to widen your scope a little outside chart indie/rock/pop. Although i will agree that individuality is pretty scarce in that genre as far as i can tell.

PaulBrewer

progsound wrote: »

Plenty of Individuality out there lads you just have to widen your scope a little outside chart indie/rock/pop. Although i will agree that individuality is pretty scarce in that genre as far as i can tell.

Sure any eejit can say that! Give us examples Man!!:D

progsound

PaulBrewer wrote: »

Sure any eejit can say that! Give us examples Man!!:D

Ok Paul Waggonerfrom Between the buried and me has a style that is pretty distictive. Granted their music is not mainstream and not everybodys cup of tea. This guy just wins at phrasing

Andy Mckee is another guitarist with a very original type of sound but he is a one man show so i dont know if he counts??

The keyboard player Erik Engstrom from horse the band is pretty crazy live & I dig his style of playing/writting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Sk_CLSxO5M&eurl=http://www.myspace.com/horsetheband&feature=player_embedded

Thats just a few off top of my head here at work im sure i can think of others in a bit.

Edit: How could i forget pretty much all the members of sikth who are (were) just stunning and truly original players

PaulBrewer

progsound wrote: »

Ok
The keyboard player Erik Engstrom from horse the band is pretty crazy live & I dig his style of playing/writting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Sk_CLSxO5M&eurl=http://www.myspace.com/horsetheband&feature=player_embedded

.

yes, you don't see musos in just his jocks at the average gig ...!

jtsuited

progsound wrote: »

Ok Paul Waggonerfrom Between the buried and me has a style that is pretty distictive. Granted their music is not mainstream and not everybodys cup of tea. This guy just wins at phrasing

Andy Mckee is another guitarist with a very original type of sound but he is a one man show so i dont know if he counts??

The keyboard player Erik Engstrom from horse the band is pretty crazy live & I dig his style of playing/writting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Sk_CLSxO5M&eurl=http://www.myspace.com/horsetheband&feature=player_embedded

Thats just a few off top of my head here at work im sure i can think of others in a bit.

i think they meant in general and in popular bands. like the smiths, the cure, etc. were all fairly mainstream and popular whereas of the bands who have been big in the past few years, there hasn't been much distinctive musicianship.

i could be well off the mark here though.

progsound

jtsuited wrote: »

i think they meant in general and in popular bands. like the smiths, the cure, etc. were all fairly mainstream and popular whereas of the bands who have been big in the past few years, there hasn't been much distinctive musicianship.

i could be well off the mark here though.

No i think your spot on its just a desperate attempt by me to name some of my fave bands at the mo

Anyways all the bands you (people on this board) ever seem talk about are rock/pop/indie bands and even then all you ever do is complain about how boring and unorginal they are nowadays. I just thought a bit of variety would be nice :P

PaulBrewer

progsound wrote: »

Anyways all the bands you (people on this board) ever seem talk about are rock/pop/indie bands and even then all you ever do is complain about how boring and unorginal they are nowadays. I just thought a bit of variety would be nice :P

I think you're right, however that is a common area of interest. These bands represent songs as opposed to playing, which in itself is of limited interest to most.

However I think there's loads of good 'rock/pop/indie bands' about that's not the issue.

Individual players is what's missing locally - but perhaps I've just heard them.... I blame the Frames!