The subjectivity of Talent

Another comment received via YouTube:

"Okay Mr Smartypants Spoonerstreet,wheres your music if you are so great that you could judge these people? Are you aware there are different types of harmony? Have you heard of Harry Partch,Charles Ives,or Anthony Braxton? Are you aware that Anton Webern made melody obsolete?"

Really? Seriously? You honestly believe that these guys are SO good, that they sound like this on purpose? That they should actually be considered as musical innovators? I have as much appreciation for varying musical tastes as the next guy, but I would tap the brakes just a little bit before I put them in the same category as a Phillip Glass or Frank Zappa.

I have received a few comments like this every now and again, and it never fails to baffle me. I never know if these people are joking, or just feel like stirring up the pot. If you really, truly, honestly like the music that Complete puts out, great. You are an amazingly tolerant person. But, for one second, try to think of one band that is really, truly bad in both of these categories: songwriting AND musicianship. It is hard to do.

You may not like Pearl Jam because they sold out, but you can't deny their musicianship. You may not like Tool because they don't have mass appeal, but it is difficult to deny that they know how to write a song. This is what makes the Complete video so damn amazing. Not only do they lack the songwriting gene, they also are seriously deficient in the musicianship area as well.

Even bad bands (take the local high school garage band, for example) have some redeeming qualities or at least an excuse for you not to take them to task. Either their guitarist shows promise, or their drummer keeps a steady beat, or even the fact that they are 15 years old can be taken into account. Complete has none of these things. NONE! They aren't very good at playing their instruments, they aren't very good at writing songs, they don't stay in time, and they can't perform them consistently (I assume). Having said all of that, this is the worst part: They don't know they are bad!!!! They truly, honestly think that they are doing the music industry a favor by being in existence. Now, I am all in favor of having confidence in your music, but every band in the world has to be able to take an honest, objective look at themselves and answer the hard questions: Are we good enough? Are we marketable? Do we do the right things that will get us noticed? It appears to me that Complete knew all of these questions, and answered them with a resounding yes.

Now, I am not all doom and gloom here. Curtis, amazes me in many regards. First of all, he has more charisma than many, many front men that I have seen in many, many bands. He gets it. He is active. He talks to the crowd. He lets the music take him over. He pours his heart and soul into his performance. He isn't afraid to do things that are slightly outside of the norm. You don't know how many times I have seen a band and said to myself, "If only we could get Curtis' soul into this guy, this would be a great live show". Seriously. I have thought that.

Dave