Comments on: Power Pop: The ’90s, Attack Of The Clones http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2002/09/05/power-pop-the-%e2%80%9990s-attack-of-the-clones/ Real Music Alternatives Sat, 11 Feb 2012 21:12:51 +0000 hourly 1 By: countrykidanthony http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2002/09/05/power-pop-the-%e2%80%9990s-attack-of-the-clones/comment-page-1/#comment-83223 countrykidanthony Mon, 27 Sep 2010 18:42:20 +0000 http://www.magnetmagazine.com/?p=28932#comment-83223 power pop is alive and well today in the mainstream. only their CDs sound so slick and overproduced and compressed and most of them are marketed as teen idols and boybands. bands like Jonas Brothers, Fountains of Wayne, The Click Five, McFly, Demi Lovato, and Guster. there are also those hiding behind the pop-punk mask like Simple Plans, Boys Like Girls, and the christian rock band from ausrralia Hillsong United power pop is alive and well today in the mainstream. only their CDs sound so slick and overproduced and compressed and most of them are marketed as teen idols and boybands. bands like Jonas Brothers, Fountains of Wayne, The Click Five, McFly, Demi Lovato, and Guster.

there are also those hiding behind the pop-punk mask like Simple Plans, Boys Like Girls, and the christian rock band from ausrralia Hillsong United

]]> By: mistercharlie http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2002/09/05/power-pop-the-%e2%80%9990s-attack-of-the-clones/comment-page-1/#comment-7895 mistercharlie Tue, 02 Jun 2009 21:04:51 +0000 http://www.magnetmagazine.com/?p=28932#comment-7895 Part of the griping about lack of sales for "power pop" is that many of its proponents just don't write good songs. They have all the trappings, stylistically, of the music they're inspired by or are trying to emulate (The Who Sells Out, or #1 Record, or whatever), with "vintage" gear, good drum fills or harmonies, but the songs just aren't there, both melodically or lyrically. The truth is, in any genre, it's hard to write a great song. And in a world where folks want to put themselves in a narrow Power Pop box, they often end up sounding like freshman college songwriting project submissions. Not, of course, that a "great" song (it's all subjective of course) is a prerequisite for a hit. Matthew Sweet said it best: maybe you should be a musician/songwriter because you HAVE TO, because you are compelled to, not because you want to. And maybe, by the way, another problem isn't the music, it's the packaging, the label. I didn't, for instance, hear anybody calling those coupla gigantic singles from that band Jet "power pop" songs, or crowing of a power pop revival, even though they could have. Part of the griping about lack of sales for “power pop” is that many of its proponents just don’t write good songs. They have all the trappings, stylistically, of the music they’re inspired by or are trying to emulate (The Who Sells Out, or #1 Record, or whatever), with “vintage” gear, good drum fills or harmonies, but the songs just aren’t there, both melodically or lyrically. The truth is, in any genre, it’s hard to write a great song. And in a world where folks want to put themselves in a narrow Power Pop box, they often end up sounding like freshman college songwriting project submissions.

Not, of course, that a “great” song (it’s all subjective of course) is a prerequisite for a hit. Matthew Sweet said it best: maybe you should be a musician/songwriter because you HAVE TO, because you are compelled to, not because you want to.

And maybe, by the way, another problem isn’t the music, it’s the packaging, the label. I didn’t, for instance, hear anybody calling those coupla gigantic singles from that band Jet “power pop” songs, or crowing of a power pop revival, even though they could have.

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