Hot Take/ Musical Confession Thread!

I mean, it's complicated. I am grumpy by default, it's my nature unfortunately. There are actual people (and you guys) that I love genuinely. I don't actually hate any one single actual person I have had contact with (I do feel sorry for a few souls), but I do have a general hate for humanity as a whole because it seems to follow it's worst impulses.

Get out of my brain!
 
I am not a fan of the word or the concept "overrated" because it has such a negative connotation and it's always struck me as inherently self-regarding and smug, a way to tell the world that it’s wrong and you’re right and aren’t afraid to boldly assert your correctness.
Yeah, I have a hard time with things that have grown to have a negative connotation. I know what words I want to use and when I want to use them (for the most part - I mean I have an actual stutter and the mental gymnastics that manifest themselves as the stutter are more than just a failure of my muscles to work correctly), connotation seems to narrow some of that over time, because people read into what I've said because of their interpretation of a word or saying.
 
I have a hot take on the word "overrated". It really rankles me when I see.

To me, saying "X is overrated" means "I think X is bad and everyone else that thinks differently is wrong."

No. I rate things just fine for myself, thank you very much. I don't overrate or underrate. I know what I like and if you pretend to know better, no. Just no. I can't say it any better than The Dude - what you dislike, "it's just, like, your opinion man."

There's nothing wrong with just saying that you don't like X - just don't bash everyone else's tastes along the way. @Lee Newman did it really well above. This is how it's done:



See, he gave his opinion and made no allusions that anyone else's opinion is wrong. Personal point made and nobody feels targeted.

That said, I personally try to even limit that because gratuitous mentions of hate just feel like trolling sometimes. But opinions on taste will inevitably come up, and when they do organically as part of a discussion, they're even often interesting. But I believe there's a way to do this without having to offend others, and this is what gets me with the term "overrated" - it inevitably offends.
I’ve distilled the two musical elements that I gravitate to as being with funky or weird. That pretty much sums up most of my records.

Idk I put this in the discussion. It’s been an idea floating around in my head.
 
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CountZero said:
I don’t really post on this forum all that much, but, wow, I just had to share how much I can’t stand that Leo Nocentelli record, Another Side.

I saw it for cheap, and I usually love New Orleans music, so I took a chance and picked it up, but this record really struck me the wrong way. I barely made it through one listen. In fact, there were multiple times when I wanted to rip it off the turntable.

I found the vocals incredibly annoying and the nylon string guitar sounded “wet” in a manner that really got on my nerves.

I dunno why I had such an adverse reaction. I can’t remember a record I felt so viscerally annoyed by. Usually, I’m just underwhelmed by stuff I buy that doesn’t move me, but in this case I was alarmed at how much I disliked the music. Most reviews I’ve read seem to really like this record. I just don’t get it!
 
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I am not a fan of the word or the concept "overrated" because it has such a negative connotation and it's always struck me as inherently self-regarding and smug, a way to tell the world that it’s wrong and you’re right and aren’t afraid to boldly assert your correctness.
I can see overplayed or over-emphasized being more accurate most of the time.

Sometimes I observe mediocrity being elevated to a high level, and it irks me, but then I realize that the ol' saw "lowest common denominator rules" is in effect. Also, "the masses are asses."
 
I like Willie Nelson the person/persona much more than Willie the artist. Just can’t get into him no matter how hard I try. Feel similarly about Prine and Townes.

I like Johnny Cash though.
I was gonna ask if you’d given Redheaded Stranger a listen but if you don’t dig Townes or Prine either then acousticy singer songwriter type Country music probably just isn’t your thing. Throw on a Merle Haggard or Dwight Yoakam record instead.
 
I like Willie Nelson the person/persona much more than Willie the artist. Just can’t get into him no matter how hard I try. Feel similarly about Prine and Townes.

I like Johnny Cash though.

I don't know if she has thoughts on Townes or Prine, but my wife isn't really into Willie much either – which is slightly awkward because I've been listening to a LOT of Willie at home lately 😳. Sometimes I think she'd rather I was listening to Sun Ra—which is really saying something!
 
Townes is sooooo good though. I really really like his self-titled album the most.
I’d probably rank him at the top of those three. I have the debut album that VMP did. I think it’s fine but nothing terribly captivating. And I like sad bastard music in general. Will check out his ST again as I think I listened to it a while back.
 
I’d probably rank him at the top of those three. I have the debut album that VMP did. I think it’s fine but nothing terribly captivating. And I like sad bastard music in general. Will check out his ST again as I think I listened to it a while back.
I feel like some Townes is more folk rather than country which I tend to like a little more. I’d say that album is more folk rock, his voice makes it country with more twang in it.
 
I’d probably rank him at the top of those three. I have the debut album that VMP did. I think it’s fine but nothing terribly captivating. And I like sad bastard music in general. Will check out his ST again as I think I listened to it a while back.
Maybe try Teatro by Willie?
Lanois produced it, and it's live in the room with a stellar cast. Throw in Emmylou, and it's just a magical listen.
 
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