Go back in the (very) short history of Here Comes Treble, and you’ll see that it was more or less left for dead. The album review
game was fun, but not something I believed I had much of a future in. It also
got tough to devote the necessary time to it. But lately I've come across a
couple items that have inspired me to start thinking about posts again.
Many of you have probably listened to the recent
mashup of six country songs, which reveals an oft-copied formula, or pattern,
for creating a hit. If you haven’t, or if you want to refresh yourself, you can
listen here. On my personal Facebook page, I posted some quick reactions
upon listening to the mashup. But I wanted to expand on those thoughts a bit,
so I figured, dust the cobwebs off the blog, and give it a shot.
Before I get too far into this, I need to give some
background. By no means am I a country music expert. I grew up as a fan of 80s
pop, and classic rock. My impression of country music came from the wise sage
Bobby Heenan, who once mused, “If you play country music backwards, you get
your house back, you get your wife back, you get your job back…” When I worked
at a Wisconsin classic rock radio station at the start of the century, a bar I frequented was always
airing CMT at lunchtime, and I found some of the music decent. But I didn't really open up to the genre until Memorial Day weekend 2012, when I heard
Montgomery Gentry’s “Gone” in a friend’s car on a road trip. Once we got back
to town, I bought the “You Do Your Thing” CD with that song, and my foray into
modern country music had begun. Music from Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Miranda
Lambert, and Blake Shelton, among others, followed. For about 18 to 24 months
afterwards, I tried to listen to more country radio, to learn what was popular.
I found that, to my ear, it got repetitive, very quickly. There is talent to be
heard, for sure. Even most of the acts in the previously-mentioned mashup have
some ability, but I believe there is one exception, which I’ll get to. So what
you’re about to read—if I haven’t yet turned you off—will be the opinions of
somebody who admits he doesn't know it all. It will be based on my somewhat
limited perceptions, and my opinions. I don’t expect 100% agreement from
anybody who ventures to complete this blog entry, and would hope that somebody
would willingly correct me if there are facts I misstate. My ears are open, so
to speak.
Right off the bat, I could tell that at least two of
the songs had been altered, to make everything fit in the same key. Blake
Shelton’s “Sure Be Cool If You Did” was obviously toyed with, as was Luke Bryan’s
“Drunk On You”. I can’t speak for the other four songs, as I’m not very
familiar with them. I’m not sure whether responsibility lies with Pro Tools,
which was used to create the mashup, or whether it lies with Gregory Todd, who
had the idea and put it all together. Immediately, some authenticity is gone,
because at least one-third of the songs aren't in their original “hit” form.
But that doesn't detract from the bigger point, which is to prove (in good fun)
that a hit-making formula exists.
An important thing to note is that this is full of
male artists. I've had this discussion with friends who know more about country
music than I do, and one point is consistently made: the female country artists
have shown more creativity and diversity, and as such, are easier to listen to.
Undoubtedly, some of this is an effect of songwriting. Many country artists—and
artists in other genres, to be fair—don’t write their own material. Songwriters
who write about watching a girl dance on a tailgate aren't writing those songs
for women to sing, unless it’s from the perspective of BEING the woman dancing
on the tailgate. And that twist on the modern country formula sure doesn't seem
very prevalent. Just as an aside, the “angry country girl” trope is one I can
always get into, be it Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats”, Jana Kramer’s “I Hope It Rains”, or roughly half of Miranda Lambert’s pre-“Platinum” catalog.
And I’m a guy who believes men aren't nearly as dopey as they’re made out to be
in songs and TV. But when they want to, the women can paint vivid pictures of
men who deserve every ounce of scorn they’re getting!
The listenability of the mashup needs to be touched
on. Digital editing can do amazing things these days, but when you hear about
six songs being thrown together, you prepare yourself for an overbearing,
undecipherable mishmash coming out of your speakers. And it just never
happens. As if Gregory Todd was a professional sound man
running the board at a concert, the right stuff is highlighted at the proper
times. And the “guitar solo” portion is simply genius. I've had the mashup
running in the background as I've been on other pages, and haven’t been able to
tell when it switches from one track to another. It’s my favorite part of the
experiment! If only it wasn't so short.
Earlier, I mentioned only being familiar with two of
the songs used. I do believe that, with his hit songs, Luke Bryan has fallen
into the trap, so to speak. And maybe Blake Shelton has as well, to some
degree. But “Sure Be Cool If You Did” has such a laid back, slower feel to it
than the others used, to where it seemed ludicrous to include it in this
experiment. But digital key change issues aside, it does fit the mold. My personal opinion is that Shelton has more depth in his overall output, and
still knows how to work with a more classic country sound. He’s one of the few
modern country artists that I’ll buy the work of, no questions asked. Comparing
his work to that of Florida Georgia Line makes my insides hurt. I think they’re
a massive blight on modern country, purveyors of the formula, and they are a
big reason I stopped listening to country radio. I can’t listen to their songs,
and as the formula became more common, I couldn't distinguish their songs from
those of other artists. I’d write more, but if I don’t stop now, I may never
stop. Then Carpal Tunnel Syndrome would set in, I’d blame them, and I already
hate them enough.
To end on a high note, I’ll reiterate that Gregory
Todd, per his own comments, did this for fun. And it’s certainly drawn him a
measure of fame in a hurry, through social media. He has even stated that, as a
country singer/songwriter, he’s working on music that follows the same pattern
he jokingly exposed. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em, right? Here’s hoping that
his next wave of fame comes from his musical success, which leads to a new pattern
of country hits. To paraphrase a crossover country artist, a change would do us
good.
Visit Gregory Todd’s website at gregorytodd.com
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