lol... dont we call this dumbing down, "the americanisation of our tv shows"? lol :) (i mentioned it before, Red Dwarf was onbe fo the funniest tv programs over here, and it was low budget, crap fx which were actaully funny, and a cast of 4... and talking scenes were long, serious explanations / theories were explained in detail.. Then it got "adapted for the american market" due to it's success over here.. Oh goD! the scenes were too short, they'd cut them all down to less than a minute and a half!!!, there were more useless charecters, computer fx started playing a big part, plots weren't intracet, nothing was well explained anymore.. it's just became poor... and i dont think it's anything to do with americans, but how big entertainment buisness works... if you've got a combination that works they stick with it, and to hell with art)
To be fair though, I dont think poeple are getting lazy, I mean i listen to "life with out biuldings" and the popele who heard it here, didn't like it, it was nonsensecal, as it was very hard to follow, certainly more difficult than listening to 6 minutes of cheese just hear maybe 30 seconds worth of riffs.. I mean c'mon, it's Shht, but difficult shht, that's why it's so respected (that's why it's predominantly guitarist who like it, not musicains who play other instruments who have a musical ear, because it's cheese and doesn't convey feeling, real gut wrenching pain, screaming joy, soothing hope, nothing, just like a catchy mobile phone ring tone)... if you wanna hear great guitar lines with great songs listen to the stone roses...
Sorry about this rant, i've been listening to more and more steve via, and imo he's a major let down... I mean poeple rant about him, and all i hear is poo, quircky simple minded gimmicks, crap art work on his "war and passion" or whatever it is album... I mean i could do a flaming better job than that cack cover... sheesh.. I mean, I would hold my head high if had written an album like "odelay" by beck, or "buitiful freak" by the eels, or "soft bullitin" by the flammng lips or "electric lady land" by hendrix or any other decent album by some artistically talented muscian, not dull lacking in any concept cheese.. If i wrote that album ("war and passion" or whatever it's called), i'd probably still be drowning my sorrows this many years on.. same goes with "surfing with the alien" (which still fondly clings to my worst album ever heard award)..
oh yeah, I would really call alot of newer rock lyrics "shallow", the system of a down stuff is very deep, you just need to know some backround info, and if you'r willing to just brush it of or come up with the old 2it's sucks" argument ofcourse you will miss it, and it's nobodies fault but your own :)...
What I'm trying to say is, I love technical playing, I love deep playful expressive vocals... What i dont like is technical playing to feed the old ego, or music by drunks playing the paino, it maybe deep real deep, but the guy's hitting more bum notes than right ones :).. A compromise is good between the two... Although personally I would much prefer to be a powerful song writer, to put some idea or concept into poeple's heads, like "give peace a chance" :D.. but alas..
Sorry about my long rant..