Sinister: Why are we wise in our heads?

[Robin Carmody]

> Two questions:
>
> a)
> Can you make music so intelligent that it just turns against you? I mean,
> isn't Momus suffering from the fact that he's trying to be so Wittgenstein
> that some people find his stuff a bit too philosophical? I like him,
though.

He's definitely suffering from that in Britain, where there's an oppressive
air of anti-intellectualism coming from the music press, which ignores and /
or despises him.  I think it's definitely possible to seem arch or aloof,
and generally removed from actual life, but I don't think Momus or B&S seem
like that (and I've had people tell me they're all those things, and worse).

And anyway, I think there's too much emphasis put on the classically,
stereotypically dumb "rock'n'roll" values in this country.  Too many people
are trying to narrow down the scope of pop.

> b)
> Why is it that popmusic differs so much from real life in one thing? If
you
> play simple, semiacoustic music with beauty, its considered fairly (here's
> the word again) intelligent and touching. The less notes you use, the more
> you "tell things without using unnecessary words and/or actions." But try
to
> act that way in real life, and people think you're a bit slow in your
head.
>
> It's a funny world. Did that make any sense?

As someone with considerable experience of the dregs of British small-town
life and some pretty bad schools, I can tell you it does.

love you all

robin
robin at elidor.freeserve.co.uk
----------------------------------------
"Upon the hill, playing still..."

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