Some times I think I've lived too long...'cuz I really don't get it!

[Xulonn]

My new avatar and the boredom of quarantine has me thinking strange thoughts.

Where does this fit into the history of "music"? What do the youngest ASR members think about this song and its genre? Is it good? Bad? Dumb? Insightful? Lasting? Ephemeral pop? (Then again, long before the advent of music videos, my generation had songs in the 1950's like "Yellow Polka Dot Bikini", "Transfusion" by Nervous Norvus, "Stranded in the Jungle" and "The Purple People Eater".)

 

[Deleted member 9286]

Have you seen the thread about Billie Eilish? Someone asked a very similar question a couple of months back I think. I think this is an interesting topic to debate, it was just in case you hadn’t seen it, you may have found it interesting.

 

[Frank Dernie]

I like their stuff.
The video is as childish as you might expect though.
I was introduced to the music by my 13 year old granddaughter who said her favourite artist is Billie Eilish.

 

[Deleted member 9286]

And for the record, I’m 38. I thought Bad Guy was fairly catchy but nothing special. I didn’t really enjoy the rest of the album despite several listens.

High quality pop music seems quite rare these days (I like pop music so not being snobby). I think there’s still some but it’s drowned out by a lot of shite.

On a similar topic, I often wonder who will be held up as the greats from the last 10-20 years, in say 30 years time.....I just can’t imagine people talking about Coldplay like people talk about the Beatles today.

 

[dave f]

I doubt anyone singing today is singing to be great in 30 years time. Most who sing and perform are doing for now based on their recent aesthetic sensibilities. If you want to know who will be great then, then stay alive and check them out for yourself. Moreover, people like BenniMac, who himself is 2 years older than twice the singer's age, wonders why young people are not making music for his age group. Greatness is not measured like that, especially appealing to a demographic twice your age. Nor is it measured by how many times you listened to the record and still don't get it. The fault is not in the singer or the artist.

 

[Jimbob54]

Mrs Bob played the album around the house for a while. I have no issues with a single song. But it's one of the most monotonous records I've heard when you have a few in a row.

Unless I have missed something, not for me.

 

[Deleted member 9286]

I doubt anyone singing today is singing to be great in 30 years time. Most who sing and perform are doing for now based on their recent aesthetic sensibilities. If you want to know who will be great then, then stay alive and check them out for yourself. Moreover, people like BenniMac, who himself is 2 years older than twice the singer's age, wonders why young people are not making music for his age group. Greatness is not measured like that, especially appealing to a demographic twice your age. Nor is it measured by how many times you listened to the record and still don't get it. The fault is not in the singer or the artist.

The age of the artist or the listener is irrelevant.

And I wasn’t wondering that, I wondered who would be considered great in 30 years time. There is of course no way to answer that now, it was just a discussion point.

 

[tecnogadget]

Its a very catchy song thats works very nice for passing time listening or party time.

Her brother is the producer and makes the compositions. For what i’ve heard he is very skilled.

Ten years from now time will tell us if its a keeper or just vanishes.

 

[Martin]

I’m 61 and love Billie Eilish.

Martin

 

[Eetu]

I think her persona is more interesting than her music (so far) but i really like contemporary pop / r&b artists like Caroline Polachek, Rosalia, Kelela, FKA twigs, Solange etc.

 

[Frank Dernie]

Greatness is not measured like that

I would judge greatness by if it still being played in 100 years, not 30, so we won't know how much of this stuff passes the test of time in our lifetimes anyway.

 

[Deleted member 9286]

I would judge greatness by if it still being played in 100 years, not 30, so we won't know how much of this stuff passes the test of time in our lifetimes anyway.

Speak for yourself....

 

[dave f]

The age of the artist or the listener is irrelevant.

And I wasn’t wondering that, I wondered who would be considered great in 30 years time. There is of course no way to answer that now, it was just a discussion point.

You were one who posted your age as 38 and wondered if you're too old to get her music. You also wondered if there are any musicians now that would be great in 30 years time. Both are discussion points as you say, that's why I responded that they are irrelevant and perhaps even idiotic to bring it up in this context.

However, she will be relevant for many many decades because of her record-breaking grammys and other guiness world records. Until someone beats her records, be prepared to encounter her name.

 

[dave f]

I would judge greatness by if it still being played in 100 years, not 30, so we won't know how much of this stuff passes the test of time in our lifetimes anyway.

So how would we know, will your headstone move?

 

[dave f]

...I am still a recovered record snob, ...

Admire your honesty. Anyway, isn't snobbery the real force holding us back from easily jumping into new music, new art, new ideas?

 

[amirm]

What do the youngest ASR members think about this song and its genre?

The video is really silly but I really like the song.

 

[Xulonn]

After carefully creating my original post and watching these replies, I must confess that I admire Billie Eilish who appears on the surface to be an unsophisticated but likeable young entertainer who has excellent insight into the human condition and the emotions that control young lives. She seems genuine and down-to-earth, and challenges the limits and restrictions of her peers. Although her words may not mean a lot to my generation, I can see as an outside observer that she resonates with many of her peers.

This article at VOX [LINK] is the best I have for my current opinion of Eilish and her influence in today's pop culture.

I wish her continued success and hope that she doesn't become corrupted buy her success in the entertainment business. I look at the Kardashians and their peers in the music industry with disdain, but in Eilish, I see hope for a more real and down-to-earth movement in the young - something that appears to be cyclic.

 

[MZKM]

Its a very catchy song thats works very nice for passing time listening or party time.

Her brother is the producer and makes the compositions. For what i’ve heard he is very skilled.

Ten years from now time will tell us if its a keeper or just vanishes.

Yeah, and he’s been starting to work with other artists too, he worked on Selena Gomez’s “Lose You To Love Me“ for instance.

I like her music, mainly because of the production; her voice is ok (it’s actually not easy to sound good at that low volume and amount of breath), the lyrics match their ages (currently 18 & 22), but the production is great.

When I went to the Florida Expo this year, this song was used a good deal when demonstrating bass.

 

[kokishin]

I prefer Billy Idol.

 

[mhardy6647]

How do/did you (i.e., the OP) feel about (e.g.) Lorde, Meghan Trainor, Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, Avril Lavigne, or even Stefani Germanotta (Lady Gaga)?