why are guitarists so "stuck in the past?"

[VertigoSwirl]

Because Leo Fender and Les Paul got it right the first time

[Dom1412]

 

If you're asking why guitarists are so stuck on Clapton-style blues-rock and classic rock in general, which seems to be the case, I don't know.

 

 

Because they can't do any better.

 

Personally, I don't live in the past perse. Do I like old rock music? Hell yeah. Do I let it dictate what I do with my guitar? Hell no.

 

Also, good music is subjective. To me, I have no trouble finding good new music. But what I like isn't what you like.

 

Mildly connected to the topic at hand, I do NOT like the direction modern metal has taken. Everything seems to be, "Ok, now let's play it as fast we can! And you, vocalist, do your damndest to imitate every other metal band's vocalist, but an octave lower, so that we all sound mildly alike! Now we just need an amazingly forgettable guitar solo and we'll call it a record!"

[Welladjusted]

I listen to a healthy mix of old and new, and would consider some new albums to be on par with the heavyweights of the 70's.

[Exdeath]

 

I listen to a healthy mix of old and new, and would consider some new albums to be on par with the heavyweights of the 70's.

 

 

What he said. Only that I listen to a lot more new than old.

 

The past is over, people.

[Exdeath]

 

I listen to a healthy mix of old and new, and would consider some new albums to be on par with the heavyweights of the 70's.

 

 

What he said. Only that I listen to a lot more new than old.

 

The past is over, people.

[workinclasszero]

 

To me,I get sick and tired of hearing about hearing the newest "american idol" winner. Also I think a lot of music today really has no soul. And the hip-hop or rap music is usually about how many "Ho's" somebody has or what gang activity they are on about. I am sorry, that is just not for me. I don't care if it IS popular or not. Like Bob Seger said.... ''Just take those old records off the shelf Ill sit and listen to em by myself Todays music aln't got the same soul I like that old time rock n roll !!!!"" That goes DOUBLE for me!!

 

 

 

There is a lot of good hip hop out there, and it takes anyone whos used to the mainstream bul{censored} a long time to accept the more legit stuff. The expession tends to be more honest.

 

I'll take Aesop Rock over Wolfmother or whatever generic {censored} SPIN is sucking off.

[Ibanezman06]

i think people should listen to ALL music. past present, and all generes as well. i like 'em all.

[Armilus Ceasar]

just take one listen to a modern chaoscore band

 

and you'll understand why most guitarists are "stuck in the past"

[ashasha]

Part of the problem right now to me is that there isn't any mainstream guitar based bands backed by major labels. I mean look at what we have to choose from to get a guitar fix in; its usually stuff like Nickelback or whatever. Nothing against bands like that, but they aren't exactly innovative or breathtaking. And lets be realistic here, most of their songs sound the same to a point after a while. A lot of these songs seem contrived to be hits.

 

I don't know about you guys, but when I think of the 'past' I think of the Beatles and Zeppelin and stuff like that. Those were bands that I was first introduced to and I have a special place in my heart for them. The funny part is that their songs are so much more now than what they were then to me, they really held up even with newer technology out there, supposedly better musicians out or whatever else should be better today.

 

When I listen to a band today I hear one or two good songs on an album and then the rest is either filler or sounds exactly the same as the first two songs. They call this their style. But listen to the Beatles and almost every song sounds unique, but you can still tell that it is them. I don't know if it is that everything that is decent has been done already or if the cookie cutter industry is forcing people to clone their own hits or what, but there just isn't anything new or breathtaking to come out anymore.

 

I do think that we are about due for a new guitar hero to emerge though. I mean we had Hendrix who came out and blew everyone away and than EVH came out and sent everyone back to the drawing board. I just think that it is about time for someone to come out and do something that makes everyone scratch their heads and say that is what I want to do.

[Schraiber]

To be honest I find the fixation on blues rock incredibly regressive and unproductive for music.

 

Are we going to be jamming over 12 bar blues and playing pentatonics until the end of time? Or are we going to really help to progress popular music into reals that once only classical music dared enter.

 

Why is it that it took 90 years for people like Luc Lemay to do things that Schoenberg did in 1909? Guitarists are stuck in a past based on simple harmony and repetitive ideas. We need progression here, not regression...

[The Bear]

 

Oh please. Next thing you'll say is the Beatles are breaking up.

 

 

Awww man!

[Jealousblues]

 

Because, imo, the most innovation and truly unique music came out of the past. The new styles of music have no holding value. Who's gonna listen to "This s*** is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S!" in 20 years. THere's a plethora of flavor-of-the-month type dealies.

 

 

 

sugar, sugar, honey, honey...

[Rocktoe]

 

I think it's a self-explanatory question.

 

 

'Cause the present {censored}ing sucks?

[madryan]

I guess I can sum it up by recounting my latest trip to GC (Where I scored a returned, everything in the box Original Floyd Rose for $90!) today. There were two kids of probably 17 years sitting in the guitar area playing. One was playing chords and the other one was shredding in key. The dude has chops, he's smooth and his noodling was melodic, but it wasn't what I'd like to listen to. When I think of amazing guitar players I usually think of guys who could rip out a solo that sang without playing millions of notes. Guys like Dave Gilmour playing the second solo in Comfortably Numb, or SRV doing Little Wing. I also dig punishing riffs and really clean metal playing like Metallica AJFA, or some of the stuff I've been listening to from this band called Deciple who are actually pretty new.

 

I remember when Limp Bizkit were looking for their new guitar player... my mom actually called me up and said "Ryan... You should go try out!" I'm like "Mom... I'd rather work my day job thankyou."

 

That being said... I saw Limp Bizkit live opening for Metallica and it wasn't too bad. Course, I usually end up liking bands much more if they can play a good show.

 

PS... Nickleback are wankers.

[Frets99]

I'm old.....

[GarysBlues]

Funny my Lady wants to go see Nickleback. I was thinking about them and the fact that although they are OK. And probly good enough to have made it in the past. They wouldn't have been what they are now......There was some SMOKING music coming out in the late 60's 70's. R+R needs a shot in the arm now. Needs another SRV or Hendrix. You could still find R+R on FM....Barely. I don't blame owners for wanting to take R+R off and change their stations music platform to R+B or Top-40. The Rock being played is so redundant. I listen to once in awhile. So limited...play a Stones, a Beatles, a Zepplin. Almost predictable what they will play? I don't know....The past may be a SAFE place to be. But its not helping change this Musical Mess wh have encountered. Hip Hop really isn't a Threat...its Dying Too!

[k4df4l]

Um, Poets of the Fall are actually Finnish and there's no such country as NeItherlands..hell, that sounds like a place Michael Jackson might own.

 

LOL

 

I think there are a host of reasons....from the current trends in music to the what age bracket the most affluent buyers of instruments are and in turn, who companies market to....to a landscape with many distractions and available sources of music.

[tom_s252]

 

One of my current favorite bands, Mew, had their first album out in 2003 and it's brilliant. With only two albums out, they've already received a place in my top ten list. One of their songs is playing on the radio and they even showed one of their gigs on Finnish TV.

 

 

I saw Mew supporting Elbow at the Birmingham Academy last year. Rather derivative, I thought; Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev and a dash of Brian Eno. Still, they could play!

[uncle psychosis]

I think the 60's and 70's seem to be looked at through a rather large pair of rose tinted glasses by most people.

 

If you look at the charts---especially the singles charts---about 99% of music from back then was utter crap We just tend to remember the "best" bits. Which is why in 20 years time people will remember Sigur Ros and Radiohead whilst "b-a-n-a-n-a-s" will be long forgotten

 

Sam

[myway]

I have to say that I am stuck in the past because of so little innovation nowadays. We have great guitars for less money nowadays. With the advent of the modeling amp, we can get all these great guitar tones at the tap of a switch! The technology has taken a vast step forward, but where are we as far innovation as players? As far as "Pop" music goes it has been done. the standard method is to get the sound of a wall of drop D tuned guitars doing a grind, WHOOPEEDOO! The reason we look behind us is simple ,most guitar innovation has allready been done. That being said the bigger question is how many good songs are going to be written using good guitar, real guitar? I don't care if you think you are Yngwie and you can sweep pick until your fingers fall off. You have to have a good song. I remember the first time I heard Vai. WOW for the first two minutes then I was like ,"Next". Then I heard Satriani, great player, but he also actually had some good songs. I can speak only for myself. But I listen to stuff from the sixties , seventies, and eighties primarily because of the good songs, as well as good playing. Todays rock and roll is to rushed , to mushed up in the mix. Big sound, Big vocal, but the songs have no room to breath, no life of they're own. I mean I can put on something that just has a killer guitar player in it. But that is all it has. Then I can put on an old Faces song, or old Zep, or B.O.C. and hear a whole song that lives and breaths. I'll pick the old tunes all day long. Put yourself to the test. Write a WHOLE song that lives, not just a grinding riff with a lot of D tunings and 5ths. Challenge yourself. Sometimes it is more important to know when not to play more times than not.

[Burgess]

Why not? It's as good a place to be stuck as any.

 

[ChrisGansz]

I think it's a self-explanatory question.

Truth is, there were alot of the subtleties and dynamics in the classic sense of past music that are still very influential on the music today. That also goes with the classic models of guitars! it is trully hard to part with the classics and the influences that are involved. That is not to say that occasionally a good new tune comes out or that the Iceman is an ugly guitar(just an example!)

[Coralkong]

I think this posting is going to lead to "biased" replies.

 

We're all guitarists here (though with admittedly varying tastes and abilities).

IMO, most of the guitar-based INNOVATIVE sounds are in the past. There are some notable exceptions from the 90's, but overall, I think it really has almost all been done before.

 

And the greatest ones can never be duplicated. Look at The Who. They pretty much defined the arena-guitar-thing in the 70's along with Led Zeppelin (although, IMO, The Who was a much better live group). Neither group had to conform to any standards, they just made music like they wanted.

 

All the record companies now want instant "hits". If you don't have a hit, you get dropped pretty stinking quickly.

 

I don't think that was the case at all in the old days. There was more freedom to pursue musical ideas, and that's gone out the window...

 

I don't care for much newer music, but just because I think it's a manufactured formula. Gone are the days of 20 minute side-long songs (Dazed and Confused comes to mind). Now it's 4 minutes of pre-manufactured format.

 

Not to mention you have to be good looking to have top 40 airplay these days....

Look at Creed. Do you honestly think they made rock hits based on their ability alone? No, it's because the girls liked that asshole who liked to act like he was being crucified.

My wife liked them. Me, couldn't stand them. She went to the concert, I stayed home.

She admitted his arms must have hurt after the show from how he carried on like he was hanging on the cross.

 

 

Name the last innovative guitar group you've heard!

Me, probably U2. Whether you like them or not, they at least had a very distinct, original sound.

[Ashtray77]

I agree with pretty much everyone's answer.

 

+1

[dewees]

Adults are to popular music as todlers are to bedtime stories: They like to hear the same thing over and over again. The familiarity is comforting. Most people are stuck listening to the music they heard in their teens and 20's. And they don't particularly want to expand their horizons.