Music: Spiritual Effects of Rock/Metal Music

[Monica]

I'm simply contributing to this thread in a way that I believe to be valuable. Several people may find great value in the information I shared.

I have found your contributions valuable, Derek. I don't listen to manufactured pop at all, so I don't pay attention to it and had no idea. This info is within the scope of this thread (well, sort of...not exactly metal! . It is simply info, and we can all choose what to do with it.

I find the manufactured pop far more insidious than the authentic rock that is an expression of authentic feelings, lower-chakra-based though they may be. I'll take authentic party music over engineered 'music' any day.

What people might not realize is how much great music there is out there. There are many independent labels, and many bands promoting their music on the internet, without being beholden to the corporate music industry. I continue to be astonished at just how many great bands continue to create authentic music.

By authentic I mean music that has been created as art, as opposed to being a commodity and formulated based on what will sell.

David Wilcock's article seems to focus on the pop; the stuff fed to the masses by the big labels. A lot of those bands started out authentic but fell prey to the corporate music industry.

For example, in the late 70s and early 80s we had a New Wave of highly creative music. Talking Heads, Simple Minds, Psychedelic Furs, B-52's and many others each highly unique and refreshingly independent. I was there. We saw many of these bands in small clubs. It was like a repeat of the late 60s/70s in the sense that there was such a huge wave of creativity! We couldn't keep up with all the new bands popping up, each one with their own unique flavor. Good times.

But then, in the early 80s, one by one those bands got picked up by major record label, and, to our horror, they became homogenized. They lost their spirit, musically, and became formulas for pop success.

Those musicians had to earn a living too, so who am I to blame them? What started out as passionate creativity turned into a job.

One serious artist who outsmarted the corporate record industry is Peter Gabriel. He intentionally created a pop-accessible album which generated hits, so much 'SO' that many people still think of him as an 80s artist.

But he did it intentionally, to generate enough $$ to break free of the corporate bondage. He took the $$ and, rather than continue to generate more hits like the record companies wanted, he used the $$ to build his own studio, and is now totally independent.

He then went on to create serious albums which weren't pop-accessible, and even did the unthinkable - soundtracks! Movie soundtracks don't have hits and are a death sentence to a pop career. But his soundtracks all have very deep, serious music which is appreciated by his serious fans.

And, he opened the doors of his studio and started Real World Records, his own label which promotes ethnic music from all over the world. He seeks out serious artists and gives them a chance to get their music out. It's quite a beautiful service he offers. Meanwhile, he continues to produce quality music.

Peter Gabriel outsmarted the system, but unfortunately most musicians aren't able to do that and end up stuck. However, if you set aside the pop genre, there is plenty out there that isn't manufactured and has substance.

http://petergabriel.com/