French Music, and Being a Reviewer

Currently, I have an article up on The 405 which I'm quite proud of:

France - Them and Us in Music

While I recommend heavily that you go and check it out if you like foreign language music, or just to learn a little bit about another culture, it serves to make another point. My responses so far have included:

This is an awesome primer.

and:

Anyway, great article!

Thanks to the commenters for those little rewards, because I have to say, if anyone chooses to comment usually, it's to bash me and my opinions. Now, I've had a couple of fair criticisms in my time, where people haven't agreed with my comparisons to other bands or something. Those I can take, because certain areas of pop and folk aren't my forte, and although I do think I write decent reviews, sometimes they're not the most informed.

However, other times I get "F*x!ing b*%£! this review is s$*t, this is the best f%^!ing band to exist ever, you d*£&head." Now, the last of these examples was for a band called Thread Pulls, who, for all the swearwords in the world, are just a bit shit. It thinks itself all very arty with weird titles and strange echoey synths, but the singer can't sing, the lyrics are crap and there really isn't any reason I'd ever listen to it sober.

That is, as I'd admit, only my opinion. Whatever the fans are hearing between the lines that keeps Thread Pulls in bread and water is beyond me, but I'll admit that I could be missing some point or other. Maybe.

But eh, I'm not underqualified just because I don't like it. If everyone 'qualified' likes it, why isn't there hype for this band? I think it's because they're not all that great. They grate at best. Anyway, music is one of the most difficult of the arts to judge on quality alone: personal preferences always make for subjective reviewing.

So for all the haters out there: remember reviews are just reviews. Everyone knows it's mostly opinion, and unless the reviewer has made some unjust factual claims or slandered the band, swearing at the reviewer will only make you (and by extension, all fans of the band) look pathetic. Going by some daft pseudonym only reinforces this image of you.

Other Language Music

I don't listen to a huge amount of overseas music, mainly because I only speak other languages poorly, but I do have recommendations if you feel like branching out.

The first is a band gained from my mother, a German punk band called Ton Steine Scherben. Their message was decidedly anti-establishment, and if you speak German or fancy a day on Google translator, you can hear a million and one topical references of the time. I haven't translated every song, but I still enjoy them for their punk energy and the different sound of German vocals.

The Tropicália movement stands out next. Originating in South America, it was a 1960s Latin/Rock fusion movement, as well as an Art movement, again very against the dictatorial governments of the time. It's exciting because it was so disallowed, so new and fresh. Virtuoso musicians play Beatles-and-Stones-esque rock over Latin beats, with some really poetic Portugese lyrics (they even sound poetic.) Probably my favourite of the artists is Caetano Veloso: his music just stands out to me as the best, and he also sings in English from time to time.

A more recent one now: Louise Attaque. They're a French folk/rock band who write lovely little ditties. I like their late nineties music particularly, eespecially the wonderful track J't'emmène au Vent. The lyrics of that are repetitive enough to pick up as well.

Lastly, I'm going to give you a free download. I don't think Drew McConnell would mind so much - it's a testament to his brilliant Spanish. This is Helsinki - Lagrimas de Oro (Golden Tears), live. Love it.