Skiing and Music

[ThatGuy]

 

[Smellytele]

Nice to see someone here is listening to hard rock rather than the typical Phish/GD/Ween jam band stuff
Here’s my 2024 Spotify year-end report of most listened to artists / songs

View attachment 63865

I also had Iron Maiden in my top 5 along with the GD, The record Company and The Black Crowes. I had 65,123 minutes listened

 

[The Sneak]

Viagra Boys

best Swedish band in quite some time

 

[MadPadraic]

Ok, here's the thing, and I'm referencing comments from two years ago. Rush and Van Halen suck. They just flat out suck.

It doesn't matter how technically talented Neil Peart and Eddie Van Halen are if the music still sounds like poop. All their fancy and fast playing can't compensate for bad song writing.

I'd far rather listen to Meg White play the drums than Neil Peart, because the songs are actually good.

 

[The Sneak]

Like Paul Westerberg sang on the first Replacements album: I hate music, it's got too many notes

 

[deadheadskier]

Ok, here's the thing, and I'm referencing comments from two years ago. Rush and Van Halen suck. They just flat out suck.

It doesn't matter how technically talented Neil Peart and Eddie Van Halen are if the music still sounds like poop. All their fancy and fast playing can't compensate for bad song writing.

I'd far rather listen to Meg White play the drums than Neil Peart, because the songs are actually good.

I'm not sure Rush and Van Halen belong in the same conversation.

One is an innovative prog rock band with three of the most respected talents at their instruments ever to live. The other is largely a pop rock band with a really talented guitarist.

EVH though lacking in soul IMO, was a virtuoso. Not as good as Alex Lifeson though. Neil Peart and Geddy Lee could play circles with one hand around AVH and Michael Anthony.

I get how Rush is an acquired taste for many, but anyone who has picked up an instrument knows those guys didn't suck. That's like saying Yo-yo Ma sucks because you don't like classical music.

 

[crank]

Never acquired a taste for Rush and not a VH or an EVH fan either.

I think of Rush as what I like to call self indulgent prog rock. We saw a couple of jam bands at the Capitol a couple of weeks back and, while there was a lot of good musicianship, the few good songs played were all covers.

 

[MadPadraic]

That's like saying Yo-yo Ma sucks because you don't like classical music.

If Yo-yo Ma performed Rush songs all the time, he would suck. Fortunately, he doesn't.

 

[deadheadskier]

There are certain Prog Rock bands I am really into. Pink Floyd, Rush and Tool. Others I just can't grasp. King Crimson most notably. Though I did see Belew and Levin with Vai and Carey this fall. I didn't hate it, but I wouldn't go again or relisten to a recording.

There are a ton of jam bands that can't write songs (or sing) to save their lives. Umphreys McGee most especially. Songwriting is why the Grateful Dead and Widespread Panic always have been my favorites it that genre.

 

[deadheadskier]

If Yo-yo Ma performed Rush songs all the time, he would suck. Fortunately, he doesn't.

Such a weird take you have on Rush, but I guess that's the way art appreciation goes. They have countless great and unique songs from the playing to the really clever lyrics Peart wrote.

Is it Geddy's voice that turns you off? That I understand. But to say something like Spirit of Radio is a poorly written song with no hook to it, I just don't understand.

 

[Zand]

Since Pink Floyd was brought up...

Saw Gilmour at the Garden last month. Pink Floyd has always been my favorite band, and he was the last of the living members I had yet to see although he was the one I most wanted to see. It was like a religious experience.

I was born too late to ever see the full band perform together. This was the next best thing. Seeing the Comfortably Numb solo performed live by Gilmour himself was a bucket list experience. His new music is pretty good also. Can't really say the same about Roger.

I saw Nick Mason's band in Providence last year which was also really a great time. All pre-Dark Side music which was actually really cool since they never play much of that live otherwise. Would love to see that again if he comes back around.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

I like pink floyd and tool. Rush is not for me. Is Zappa prog? I like zappa

Phish can be prog I guess. Or, phish was prog, but now they are dad rock

I don’t “like” jambands. I have a weird relationship with phish - I grew up on them and then they disappointed me a lot and wasted a lot of my time and money circa 2009-2012. I love the Grateful Dead and think they are the most important and eternal American band. That they are a jamband is incidental to their pure Americana. I love the disco biscuits but fully acknowledge that they are “bad”. I don’t really indulge much other jambands. A lot of jamband adjacent jazz and electronic music I guess? But no string cheese or moe or umphreys or panic for me. And def none of the new crop of youths (goose etc)

 

[ceo]

I was a huge Rush fan in my youth, still am to some degree, and I'll be the first to say that a lot of their stuff sucks. Their first album (before Neil Peart joined) is mostly boring, derivative hard rock (remarkably like Van Halen in that regard), and a lot of the rest of their early work was subject to Peart's unfortunate fondness for sophomoric Randroid twaddle.

 

[crank]

Only a couple of Phishy songs I like. Funny, but I really like String Cheese even though they don't have a lot of good songs. They have a lot of good jams.

I'm a big fan of jam grass and SCI is great at that. The first time I saw them was at a festival and they played a full set of Old and In the Way tunes with Peter Rowan and David Grisman. That's why I like them. When I saw them at the Capitol in 2019 I went up front between sets to get a good spot and I was standing in the middle of the floor when they came out and stood right in front of me and played one of my most favorite songs, Dark Hollow, acoustically. That cemented our relationship. lol

We saw Leftover Salmon at the Capitol in June and they played all of Workingman's Dead. I say if you can't write songs as good as the Dead's than play Dead!

BTW, most of the guys in both SCI and LS are serious skiers.. Leftover Salmon does a "Ski Tour" every winter and we went to a show in Jackson WY last time we were there. They have a song called Powder Day!

 

[MadPadraic]

Ok, I realize that I fired the first shots here. But to DeadHead's point, what we appreciate differs. My issue with Rush, EVH at some other virtuosos from the classic rock genre is that technical ability is neither sufficient nor necessary for someone to be a good musician; of course it can certainly help.

I'll use a skiing analogy: When I see someone skiing very fast, but using the whole trail on a busy Saturday morning, I don't think "gee I'm impressed with how fast they are going." Instead I think "what an ass-hat, they seem unable to maintain a consistent line."

As another example would be the woodworker/furniture maker Wharton Esherick. He's one of the greats of the American Studio movement with groundbreaking furniture, but his technical skills aren't what made him great.

 

[jimmywilson69]

Since Pink Floyd was brought up...

Saw Gilmour at the Garden last month. Pink Floyd has always been my favorite band, and he was the last of the living members I had yet to see although he was the one I most wanted to see. It was like a religious experience.

I was born too late to ever see the full band perform together. This was the next best thing. Seeing the Comfortably Numb solo performed live by Gilmour himself was a bucket list experience. His new music is pretty good also. Can't really say the same about Roger.

I saw Nick Mason's band in Providence last year which was also really a great time. All pre-Dark Side music which was actually really cool since they never play much of that live otherwise. Would love to see that again if he comes back around.

I too saw Gilmour at MSG. Really really good. Man has a certain way with a stratocaster. what was cool was that everyone was seated and locked in. during some of the quiet parts of the songs you could hear a pin drop in MSG. Glad I got to see him as I can't image in at 78 he'll tour again. I was lucky enough to see the Division Bell tour but considering I was born the same month Animals was released, I never saw the original lineup.

As to the Rush thing. They are a love them or hate them band. I'm in the love them category. I fully understand why people don't like them or why they never had that "they're ok" crowd. I don't get respecting their musical talents though. to each their own. That's what makes music great!

KtK I'll started listening to the DJ set while working the other day, decent stuff.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

^its the best dj performance I’ve ever seen. A genre hopping masterpiece. All on vinyl

 

[snoseek]

I'll play a random live dead show on the drive to the mtn or a spotify station based off tame impala or lcd soundsystem or similar

Sometimes I ski to.music if it's slow and a.boring groomer day. If so rap. Kanye, mac miller ect....

Drive home will be shuffled spotify like list which is all over the place or a podcast