29 July 2005
Behold: Pure Crap!
Stereogum points to--what should be laughable but has become merely offensive--the videos for R. Kelly's opus "Trapped In The Closet." The comments are sometimes funny, and one commenter links to his earlier and scathing review. I'm sure there're many more out there, but I've been avoiding it recently out of embarrassment for all involved.
Although I'd like to dwell on the inexplicably horrible lyrics, we shouldn't forget that they're laid over some of the most plastic pop-hop around. A string of melismas does not make a good song no matter how skilled the vocalist. At some point, technique becomes tiresome and you really want to hear something actually composed and not just fumbled together with a bunch of expensive production. Are we ready for a backlash--a la IDM where, I believe, techno branched out from a limiting and cliched style--towards more conscientious pop music? Maybe it's impossible in mainstream broadcasting with payola defining the hits.
We need Curtis Mayfield.
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