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Reply #30 posted 02/08/05 1:14am

Novabreaker

MattyJam said:


Firstly, quit presenting your opinion as fact. It's incredibly annoying and arrogant.


Secondly, quit writing bullshit like this. It's quite annoying and unnecessary.

Thirdly, saying that Musicology doesn't sound dated is not directly an opinion, it's more of an observation. An opinion is something that is concerned with the qualitative aspects of an object, an observation first and foremost with form. Our judgement of form is quite frequently obstructed by many types of acrasic assessments (i.e. coginitive aspects of the work projected to our own personal history as observers), thus making our observations somewhat "failed". A failed observation (observations to certain degree are always failed, we can only argue on their relevancy) is a different thing than an opinion, which is a matter of taste.

The definition of what sounds dated has very little to do what sounds contemporary - and also that should have even less to do with the phenomenon of taste.


Secondly, I stand by my statement that "Musicology" sounds dated.


I would argue that it doesn't sound "dated", but instead it's not completely "up-to-date" (contemporary, trendy). That shouldn't however exclude the possibility of both definitions from existing side to side to each other.


A track like "I,C,P&C" for example, could've been his biggest hit in years - if only the production was bought into the twenty-first century. The pizzicato-style bass line which runs throughout the chorus makes it extremely dated sounding.


"Extremely"? Hardly. I personally don't like the production on the abovementioned track, but I wouldn't label it "dated", "oozy", "stylized" or "yellow" just because of that. Besides the production has clearly been "brought into the twenty-first century", it just doesn't abide to all the abstract rules of consensus you are following in your head - but does it work for you is quite an unfair starting point for the discussion whether it sounds dated or not.

Besides Pizzicato strings are frequently used in contemporary R&B / hip-hop style of music. Sure there are probably more than a handful of dated-sounding elements on "Musicology", but I can easily spot the same kind of characteristics from most chart material as well. And in overall, the album is far from what could or should be described as "extremely dated".

And no, "Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance" as a song performed by Prince is hardly hit-material. That's maybe just an opinion, though.

I would love to see a Timbaland remix of that track. I'm sure Tim could've fulfilled the potential that it did actually have.


I wouldn't. You are confusing potential with the end-product here. And Moreover, commercial potential - which obviously stands as some sort of value for yourself to such degree that you are allowing it to interfere with the enjoyment you get from music. That alone should have nothing to do with the categorization of an aesthetic object however. I could personally care less how well the song would have charted with pizzicato string part or no pizzicato string part included.

Some of them are obviously stipped-down productions as you said, which is often a safe (and sometimes boring in the case of "Musicology") way of ensuring that your songs aren't shrouded in tacky over-production in years to come ("Thunder" anybody?).


Yes, "Thunder" is a good example of this. I hope you are however referring i.e. to the used sounds / patches / programming on that track as opposed to the fact that the song has quite prominent musical elements (in the classical sense) on it.


But IMO, although the drum machines and synths used on the "1999" album may sound dated in 2005, it remains a far more interesting and innovative record for having used them - two words that could never be ascribed to "Musicology."


This opinion we two share completely.
[Edited 2/8/05 1:14am]
[Edited 2/8/05 1:17am]
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