IMAGI-BLOG
Are we all doomed?
Submitted by Erik Gonzalez on May 19, 2007.So I was browsing around the iTunes music store and I stumbled across a section called "Alternative for Adults". Having just turned 30, I was curious what they expect adults who like alternative should be listening to these days. Well, I was slightly mortified. Here is the list:
Brandi Carlisle, Augustana, Ray LaMontagne, Patty Griffin, Bright Eyes, Amy Winehouse, Fountains of Wayne, Martin Sexton, Amos Lee, Angelique Kidjo, John Mayer (?!), Joss Stone (equally ?!), Norah Jones, Ryan Shaw, Son Volt and Tori Amos.
Is this what we're all doomed to turn into or does iTunes have a low opinion of what adults who do not want to listen to mainstream want to hear? Honestly, I would consider maybe 3 of those acts as "alternative," while the rest just seem to be NPR neo-country/neo-jazz. Of course, I suppose that is alternative in its own sense. How do we deal with aging as modern rockers? Should I just give up now and start buying the Ray LaMontagne back catalog and burn my Fugazi and Atari Teenage Riot CDs? *Sigh*
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Powerpop-Gary said on May 20, 2007:
Like most radio-driven genre titles, I don't think "adult alternative" has much intrinsic meaning, per se. Wikipedia has some info on the subject:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adult_album_alternative
Locally, it's 103.7 "The Mountain."
While I can appreciate that stations like that are less tightly programmed than most mainstream stations, they do tend to be pretty bland and middle of the road (but, maybe not MOR, which is also [or at least *was*] itself a radio-driven genre - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_of_the_road).
I do like, however, that 103.7 carries the Little Steven's Underground Garage program on Saturday nights.
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Maia said on May 23, 2007:
Sounds like they got it confused with the 'Cool as Folk' station on Yahoo radio. However, I'm 24 and most of those artists are in my itunes library; not in heavy rotation on the ipod, but still there no less.
On an unrelated note; did anyone else catch Ben Gibbard last night?
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Reviews
Cal Ledbetter said on May 20, 2007:
I turned 30 in March. Yesterday I spent part of the afternoon listening to my AmyWinehouse and Jenny Lewis CDs. Does this mean I'm now in the "Adult Alternative" category? Hell no, I say. I woke up this morning and put on my Sex Pistols CD because I had it stuck in my head when I woke up. Now I'm listening to the Velvet Underground.
These iTune catagorical lists are for people who don't have opinions on music, or are too lazy to search out what's cool.
Just because we're aging doesn't mean we're getting boring. I may love my Amy Winehouse CD immensely, but does that mean I'm going out today to get a John Maier album? Hell no!
I enjoy "adult" music. I enjoy music intended for "the kids." Shit, I listened to Sinatra a couple days ago. The thing is, I would never let iTunes tell me what I should be listening to...
...That's what I have Three Imaginary Girls for.