I hate every single modern song and I can’t put my finger on why!

[CherriesAndBerries5]

(To start, this isn’t me trying to be ‘edgy’ I just genuinely don’t understand!)

I’m 28 and I love music. I listen to a huge range of music. I like indie and rock and also dance and fun songs.
I also have some awful dance and pop songs that I absolutely love! I know there were some really cheesy pop songs in the 10s and some I absolutely love. There are some rap songs that I enjoy too.

However… there’s not a popular song out there right now that I don’t absolutely despise. Most songs I have to turn off when they come on. And I don’t understand why because is it really much different to some of the songs in the 10s that I was indifferent to?

What I don’t understand is how all my friends are loving and singing along to all of it?

Lose control by teddy swims? God awful.
Beautiful things by benson Boone? I have to turn it off.
Too sweet by Hozier? One of the most dull and boring songs I’ve ever heard.
Tipsy? Fucking irritating.
Pink pony club? The most bang average song I’ve ever heard, why is everyone raving about it???

I’m not sure I can put my finger on it, I am open to listening to all sorts and I’ve always liked most songs but why do I hate every single one now (and why does everyone love them)??

I think it’s the robotic element too - everything sounds sort of tinny, fake and over processed - like the aural equivalent of UPFs in food. There’s no real heart/depth to most current mainstream music. I do still like some of the newer more niche stuff that gets played on 6Music though.

There is a lot of AI involvement in modern music and too many cases of someone who just had to press all the buttons. Pet hate is hyperactive drum machines. Just plain irritating.

There is some fabulous music out there, too, though. I keep a little stack of my CDs next to my stereo that I swap out from my collection, occasionally, and currently, in amongst the King Crimson, Radiohead, PJ Harvey and The Smiths are a couple by Public Service broadcasting - largely electronic but far from soulless - and The Waeve.

For those on this thread who have found 'new' music that they love, can you tell me how? Where do you hear it? My kids want to listen to radio 1 but that is full of absolute crap. I don't want to be one of those middle aged people who insist that music was better 'in my day' but my spotify is full of bands I've been listening to for at least 15 years and the music it suggests I might like is often even older!
I like indie bands - they seem to have faded in popularity in recent years.

I think music reflects the zeitgeist of the time, and today’s music has violent, angry, nihilistic vibes to it

It’s not happy like ABBA or sad and reflective like Amy Winehouse….its angry

I meant to add I think the drugs being used also come out in the music

Coke and ket = angry

I always think this to myself!
In fact I’ve started listening to more jazz and soul because I can’t find much new music I like 😂 honestly I think it’s a rubbish standard and it all sounds the same. Also I still loathe how modern music objectifies women.

I listen to Radio 2 on an evening. Jo Whiley (7pm- 9pm) always puts some good music on that I’m frequently Shazaming!

Also Liza Tarbuck on Saturday’s at 6pm (also Radio 2). Quite obscure old stuff sometimes too but good!

Recent Shazams:

Purple Snowfkakes - Say She She
Candyman - Muireann Bradley
Don’t Fall Asleep- Jacob Alon
Speyside - Bon Iver

It all sounds the same. I can’t tell when one song has finished and the next one has started.

Asking this too, please.

I find the platforms prohibitive eg one artist might only be on Spotify, another only on Apple etc etc. So where’s everyone going for stuff? I can’t bear to trawl YouTube!

Oh they churned out so much crap.. what a waste of vinyl.

I have found that if I look at the pop charts or spotify it's just useless, Mostly it's shit. I've done better getting reccomendations from friends and family, or sometimes from artists I trust.

I also think that pop and country pop are about the worst genres now. I am having the most luck looking through more niche genres like Americana. A lot of country music still has actual instruments too, if you avoid some of the weird over-produced stuff.

I'll stick with good quality Northern soul.
Ghost in my house,the snake are the preserve of wedding DJ types.

Find songs you like on the radio, add them on a Spotify like list and then go to 'song radio'which will generate other songs of a similar flavour.

A trawl through bbc sounds for artist in residence shows is good to hear things you've never heard of.

Or (a 21st century version of what I used to do when the music press was still a thing), read interviews with artists you like and see what stuff they mention and go from there.

Also Jools Holland is still good for discovering the weird and wonderful and next weekend there will be hours of Glastonbury coverage so you may see something you like.

DP and I were talking about this yesterday. Everything sounds so safe and generic and a bit auto tuned.

I honestly don’t think I listen to any music out after 2010 🫢

As many have said, 6 Music is
good. But for anyone independent it has to be YouTube. Once you find some people you like it will recommend others. Or look at line ups for festivals and look up the artists, I got to know so many new bands that way.

I don't feel like you, OP! I'm in my 50s and I love a fair amount of music. Not necessarily the generic stuff but certainly a good number of younger artists. Have you listened to Billie Eilish's last album? So many references and styles. I think she's brilliant. There's a few female bands I love as well, mainly influenced by people like Breeders or Garbage or Kate Bush. Not copying, but you can tell they've done their homework.

Partly the 'generic' sound is down to autotune, I think. Apparently it's used in 90% of vocal recordings and a lot of live singing as well. I mean, ok, they are making a product to sell, that's the aim, I get it, but I think we have a lot of mediocre vocalists these days.

Someone said songwriting by committee and I agree that's not where the best music is at. It's quick money, that's it. Occasionally it works great and that is the industry, so, ok. There's a surprising number of pure pop acts who write in close-knit teams, with a producer or two at most. I think they sound better but it's all just personal taste. Harry Styles (shockingly) is one and he's another person who has done his homework and loves the music of past decades but sort of does his own thing in various ways. But to another person, he's a contrived pop product. Mind you people have been saying this about pop since the seventies at least.

I agree OP- current mainstream music all sounds the same to me. And it’s boring and soulless- none of it makes me feel anything. I loved guitar bands in the 90s and although I’m sure there must be some current bands of that type, they don’t seem to get played on the radio.

The only musical artist I have been excited about lately is Ren. I strongly recommend viewing his work on YouTube. He’s an independent artist and he’s a true artist- a musician, singer, rapper and storyteller- a Bard. Absolutely outstanding but much of his stuff is not the sort of thing you’d put on when you have friends round- most of it really needs to be treated as performance pieces- hence you need to see the videos.

I have found a few artists on the new music playlist that Apple puts out every friday, I'm sure Spotify does the same - the one that's a mixture of what they're pushing plus artists you like anyway plus things their algorithm thinks you'll like?

One of my kids is a big muso and he's got me into a few artists as well. Other than that, I Shazam songs I hear in shops!

Totally agree about Ren, he's amazing and properly honest and authentic

I just wanted to say about Pink Pony Club and Chappell Roan in general, she is a really good performer and she is writing songs about things a lot of people have been through but we don't necessarily talk about. EG having a female lover and maybe being bi but marrying a man - I think her song about that is lyrically fantastic. And under the video of Pink Pony Club on Youtube there's a man who wrote about his time moving to LA as a gay man and going to that very club, how utterly freeing it was for him (it's a very moving story) - so that's one reason why that song hit, plus it's catchy pop. She can certainly write her way into an emotion. Same with Hozier. (But omg Benson Boone can jump off a cliff, bland isn't the word.)

Thanks to everyone for responding to my question about finding new music - promise I'll do some homework and try to diversify my Spotify!

I have never hated a song as much as that abomination by Rick Astley, although "I Should Be So Lucky" comes close. I always hated most '80s pop with a passion.

Hm I'm quite a bit older than you but enjoy some modern music, including 'Too Sweet'.

It's not you, it really is that terrible.

I stopped looking at the charts maybe 5 or 6 years ago as the expectation to hear something good has nosedived.

^that previous comment was to Comedycook