murly
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Life's my light and liberty and I shine when I want to shine.
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Post by murly on Jul 12, 2014 10:12:07 GMT -5
Reading through the NY times article, which was lovely overall. I find it funny to see the No Freddie tagline again. It just reminded me of the older ones I am not seeing. What were they? -American Idol Runner up -Openly gay and now: - No Freddie Did I miss one? It is always something, no creativity with these writers. This was meant to be amusing, does it sound that way, can't tell. Guyliner. |
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Post by SusieFierce on Jul 12, 2014 10:15:18 GMT -5
It's been ages but popping back in to say HI!!!! QAL has been SUCH a blast so far and I'm beyond excited to hear what he's been cooking up since he left RCA (because you know he's been working his ass off this entire time but keeping it close to the vest). Cassie, I agree that we should hold artists accountable to actually excel in the discipline that has made them a commodity and wrapped in that, my response to Talon, as they are similar. Unfortunately, we live in a different place and time from when Queen (or any band/artist) was allowed to feel around for four albums to experiment, build an audience, find their sound and find their optimum collaborators/producers. In today's reality, NO ONE has that luxury. They get one or two albums to make some kind of mark. Also, the producers and writers are also under contract to the studios, so they are guaranteed a certain amount of collaboration for/with the artists also under contract. Occasionally, there will be one producer with a central vision (Dr. Luke/Max for Katy, Kesha, etc.) but when you check the album stats of say, Pink's "Funhouse," which Max is widely credited with shaping, he only has writing/producing credit on 4-5 songs. There are very few MJ-Quincy Jones dynamic duos anymore and the studios paying the bills make those calls. So an artist has to be the one to shape the vision. Also, much of the industry couldn't care less about a full, cohesive vision for an album anymore because so few young buyer pay attention to anything other than sampling the singles. I guess I enjoy Britney's songs a bit like how I might enjoy a mindless sitcom, Cassie. Her old stuff is pure contrivance, but fun and catchy; it's just surface entertainment. I guess I enjoy the Max Martin songs of all her work and she was just a pretty coat rack to hang it all on. (Her tendency to sing in baby talk has always been nails on a chalkboard to me though) and yes, it's ridiculous she has built a career as a "singer," when she is anything but. So in an era of total contrivance vs. talent/artistic vision, an artist such as Adam has a tightrope and then some to walk. He always has. Just as he does with these Queen concerts. From everything Adam has said, he does still believe in the full cohesion of albums as his vision for Trespassing proved (btw, I don't continue to listen for two solid years for loyalty alone; I LOVE that album!!) and he can still sample multiple genres, as he respects and understands so many. I have to agree with this enthusiastic passage from Marisa_965's recap: I can't disagree.  And as one who loves multiple genres as well, I'm glad he's willing to buck that convention and experiment with many musical influences, just as Queen did so many decades ago. |
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Avari
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Post by Avari on Jul 12, 2014 10:21:18 GMT -5
WTF? Seriously? That was an eye opener to me. Relating it to Adam, we love him in great part because of his incredible voice. We wonder why the world isn't similarly impressed. But, if these people are any indication, they don't give a flying flip about whether an artist has a good voice. Hi Cassie! I’m going to raise my hand as someone who goes to a concert for the experience, and NO it really doesn’t matter to me if the vocals are perfect or not. In fact, my musical ear is not discerning enough to hear the differences between good vocals and great vocals, or great vocals and mind blowing perfect vocals. (I wish I could appreciate all these nuances, but I can’t) But I don’t stan Adam for the sheer perfection of his voice. I love his voice, it gives me chills, but I love a lot of other artists’ voices too, and I know these voices are not great by any means. I can’t explain why I like certain voices, the nearest analogy is that voices have flavours and textures and some are tasty and some are not, lol. For me, Adam’s supremely tasty voice is just one of many things I love about him. It’s just one part of the whole deal for me. (Caveat: Although simply KNOWING that his voice is considered one of the best by who do understand vocal virtuosity is totally a thrill, and adds to my utter adoration. :-) ) Bringing it back around to the original topic, that’s why I would enjoy a Britney concert for the sheer spectacle of it, no matter what her actual voice sounds like. (OK, Britney is a bad example because I don’t care for her much, and truthfully her voice isn’t tasty to me, lol). But I’d love a Katy Perry show for the same reason. The show experience is what I’m paying my money for, not necessarily the quality of the voice. Does it cheapen the quality of music, especially pop music, if the artist can’t sing? Yes and but also no. I look at a song as a whole creation. There are lyrics and music and production and rhythm and yes, vocals and layers of effects. If I like the way the whole creation sounds, then no it doesn’t matter to me if the singer’s voice is autotuned, because there is so much more to a song to me than just the voice. But the trade of there is that if the artist (and their team) can’t produce something equally compelling in a live setting then there wouldn’t be much point in seeing the show. The Katy Perry’s can pull this off; but there are probably thousands of other pop artists that can’t produce something exciting in a live setting if their voice isn’t up to par. Long story short. I get why it doesn’t matter in some ways if an artist can’t actually sing all that well. But aren’t we lucky that Adam is so supremely talented at all the things that go into making a live performance so spectacular? Not only a voice with possibly the best technical prowess of his generation, but also the presence, the charisma, the showmanship, the chemistry and (let’s be honest) the looks.:-) Whew, can you tell I have real keyboard today and not just a phone?? Should I go and hide under a rock? Honestly, I really debated posting this opinion; I guess I’m a little afraid of being bounced out of the fandom for not being a total voice-bert. |
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Post by quietlion on Jul 12, 2014 10:23:55 GMT -5
Hey talon!Now that I have your attention I'd like to thank you ( and Q3 ) for your informative Queen posts. I studied up between Chicago and Las Vegas. I enjoyed the concerts more, and was able to appear more "talonted" than I really am to a Queen fan near me at LV1. After I sang all the words to "Love of my Life," he turned to me and said, "I thought your were a Glambert." I said I was a Glambert, then admitted to my studies and invited him to check out Adam's music. His face was priceless when he said, "I don't like pop", but I managed to say " It's not all pop, try "Running," before I lost him forever. Baby steps, baby steps...
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Avari
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Post by Avari on Jul 12, 2014 10:30:42 GMT -5
Another post! I can think so clearly with real keyboard in my hands, should do this more often.
I've been thinking about the "He's no Freddie" quotes that are now de facto for every review. I don't mind them at all, because they are almost always followed by a "but". As in, "He's no Freddie, but he blew the rafters off.." or some such thing. Because what follows the "but" is the most important part.
It's like if someone says "I love you, but...". What's the most important part of that phrase? Whatever quote comes next. The "I love you" is just leeway to say what the speaker really means.
What we are seeing is the reverse. The "He's no Freddie..." then gives the reviewer leeway to say all the amazing things they want to say without any negative consequences, as Freddie has now reached untouchable status in the eyes of the general public.
Or at least that's what I'm choosing to tell myself! :-)
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Post by adamrocks on Jul 12, 2014 10:30:52 GMT -5
 SusieFierce so good to see you here again!!  |
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Post by adamrocks on Jul 12, 2014 10:33:51 GMT -5
MANUELA ALEGRIA @mmalegria 18h
I've 1 ticket available for first Mohegan show (7/19) - section 111, row J, seat 17, $ 90 with fees or BO! @adam_Tickets
Liz Sargent @glambert_1481 16h
@adam_Tickets I have 1 ticket to Detroit show for tomorrow night. Section 126, Row 6. Will take best offer. Great opportunity to upgrade!
Kate @katjokat 12h
@adam_tickets Still have 1 ticket for Montreal July 14. Reduced to $116. Floor, Sec North, Row T, Seat 37. Can email PDF file.
Anna V @freestylebunny 11h
@adam_Tickets Lets do this 1 last time..Toronto July 13, Sec 118, Row 12, Seats 3&4 now at a low price of $150 each!! Etransfer Must Sell RT
Kate @nolechica 10h
@adam_Tickets I have a section 105, row k, seat 14 for Mohegan Sun on 7/19. $100
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Post by cassie on Jul 12, 2014 10:46:22 GMT -5
WTF? Seriously? That was an eye opener to me. Relating it to Adam, we love him in great part because of his incredible voice. We wonder why the world isn't similarly impressed. But, if these people are any indication, they don't give a flying flip about whether an artist has a good voice. Hi Cassie! I’m going to raise my hand as someone who goes to a concert for the experience, and NO it really doesn’t matter to me if the vocals are perfect or not. In fact, my musical ear is not discerning enough to hear the differences between good vocals and great vocals, or great vocals and mind blowing perfect vocals. (I wish I could appreciate all these nuances, but I can’t) But I don’t stan Adam for the sheer perfection of his voice. I love his voice, it gives me chills, but I love a lot of other artists’ voices too, and I know these voices are not great by any means. I can’t explain why I like certain voices, the nearest analogy is that voices have flavours and textures and some are tasty and some are not, lol. For me, Adam’s supremely tasty voice is just one of many things I love about him. It’s just one part of the whole deal for me. (Caveat: Although simply KNOWING that his voice is considered one of the best by who do understand vocal virtuosity is totally a thrill, and adds to my utter adoration. :-) ) Bringing it back around to the original topic, that’s why I would enjoy a Britney concert for the sheer spectacle of it, no matter what her actual voice sounds like. (OK, Britney is a bad example because I don’t care for her much, and truthfully her voice isn’t tasty to me, lol). But I’d love a Katy Perry show for the same reason. The show experience is what I’m paying my money for, not necessarily the quality of the voice. Does it cheapen the quality of music, especially pop music, if the artist can’t sing? Yes and but also no. I look at a song as a whole creation. There are lyrics and music and production and rhythm and yes, vocals and layers of effects. If I like the way the whole creation sounds, then no it doesn’t matter to me if the singer’s voice is autotuned, because there is so much more to a song to me than just the voice. But the trade of there is that if the artist (and their team) can’t produce something equally compelling in a live setting then there wouldn’t be much point in seeing the show. The Katy Perry’s can pull this off; but there are probably thousands of other pop artists that can’t produce something exciting in a live setting if their voice isn’t up to par. Long story short. I get why it doesn’t matter in some ways if an artist can’t actually sing all that well. But aren’t we lucky that Adam is so supremely talented at all the things that go into making a live performance so spectacular? Not only a voice with possibly the best technical prowess of his generation, but also the presence, the charisma, the showmanship, the chemistry and (let’s be honest) the looks.:-) Whew, can you tell I have real keyboard today and not just a phone?? Should I go and hide under a rock? Honestly, I really debated posting this opinion; I guess I’m a little afraid of being bounced out of the fandom for not being a total voice-bert. No need to hide. I suspect that your point of view is much more prevalent than mine. If most consumers thought like I did, Britney would have been dropped from her label for lack of sales, and Adam would have multiple million dollar sales of albums. We each have our areas of expertise. We each have our areas of interest or passion. One of my exes was into classic muscle cars. Going to car shows with him was excruciatingly boring to me. He was in hog heaven, talking with other motor heads for hours about the difference in model years, model numbers, mechanics, etc, etc ad nauseum. Another friend is passionate about beauty pageants and can tell you not only who won each year, but what they wore, what their talent was, who was Ms. Congeniality, who came in second, third, fourth, etc. Going back twenty years. My own brother will talk your ear off about small airplane design, and more specifically, floats for small airplanes. In the Adam fandom I have met and talked to folks from every walk of life who love Adam for a wide variety of reasons. There is much there to love, isn't there? I have also come to accept that there are many people who just don't care for Adam, no matter what. It has nothing to do with him being gay. They just don't see or hear the attraction. I don't get it, but I acknowledge it. Vive la différence. |
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Post by bentley1530 on Jul 12, 2014 10:57:19 GMT -5
Good morning folks. For those going to the Philadelphia concert, I left some info in the members only thread. Looking forward to see people at the pre-concert meetup.
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JazzRocks
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The Crazy Train is Ready to Roll!
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Post by JazzRocks on Jul 12, 2014 10:57:31 GMT -5
I'm glad I wrenched myself away from twitter and QAL videos to come here and see what's cooking. Just two pages but a very interesting discussion with both sides each articulating a reasonable position. I'm coming down on cassie's side for the most part. For me the quality of the voice is more important than the overall production. I've enjoyed singers just standing at a mic and singing as much as a full-blown ott production. Sometimes more.
Exceptions to the rule for me exist. There are "singers" who do not have great voices that can still reach down and grab my heart. One example (and man does this date me) is Jimmy Durante singing September Song. Another is Billie Holiday singing almost anything. There are others but I'll leave it at that.
Huge production shows are fun of course! But it's nice if the "star" also has discernible vocal talent. QAL obviously has both!
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And as one who loves multiple genres as well, I'm glad he's willing to buck that convention and experiment with many musical influences, just as Queen did so many decades ago. 
