Overrated Bands and Artists

This is a thread for all those bands and artists that you're "supposed to" like but for some reason they just don't do anything for you. Or maybe you just think they suck completely and don't deserve any of the recognition they get.

I've got a pretty good list, myself. But I want to hear what some of you guys come up with first. Let's hear it.

 

Metallica: Sure, without them, metal wouldn't be where it's at today, but they're so damn generic compared to everything that's come out since the black album. It also doesn't help that they've released nothing good since that album.

Led Zeppelin: Everyone says they pioneered metal, but all their stuff is so dated and non-aggressive. I view them the same way I view Elvis. They paved the way for metal newcomers, but their successors have outdone them in every way.

Black Sabbath: Same opinion as that of Led Zeppelin.

Nirvana: Annoying self pity rock.

Coldplay: The fact that these guys had one of the best selling albums of 2012 says a lot about the rock industry as of late, and it's not good.

Nickelback: It seems like everyone hates them, but their lead singer has a net worth of $30 million, so someone is lining their pockets. The fact that these guys still sell out stadiums puts them on the overrated list.

 

The Beatles - They've influenced most of the bands I like either directly or indirectly, so I give them credit for that. Ozzy Osbourne has repeatedly cited them as his favorite band so without them there's no Black Sabbath. And without Black Sabbath, there's no metal today as we know it. So I'll give credit where credit is due. But musically, they're just so unbelievably bland and boring. I guess this (*)(*)(*)(*) was exciting when there was nothing else good going on at the time, but I can't imagine ever being excited about this band. Especially when there was better (*)(*)(*)(*) before it like the jazz era of the '40s. I think John Lennon is especially overrated, and "Imagine" might be one of the worst songs I've ever heard.

Led Zeppelin - Cheesy, uninspired, and like Andro said, extremely dated. This band did not age well. Tons of other bands came out around that time with much more timelessly epic sounds. But Zeppelin is just hard to listen to. They're not good. They've got less than 10 songs I can enjoy. But even those typically sound better covered by other artists.

Rolling Stones - Like the Beatles and Zeppelin, I give them credit for their influence, but the vast majority of their music just sucks.

Tool - Pretentious, cynical, droning, pseudo-progressive angst rock for people who take themselves too seriously. This was a band that was decent in the beginning as a straight ahead rock band but quickly degenerated into monotonous, unlistenable noise. Opiate and Undertow are chock full of catchy riffs. Maynard's vocals are more throaty. And the song lengths are justifiable. Despite the corny anti-God lyrics in the title track on Opiate. But Aenima was the beginning of the descent. The songs get longer and more pointless. And there's not enough going on musically to justify the excessive song lengths. By Lateralus, they were a dead band. Nothing left worth listening to. They were now just content to jam on a single riff for up to three minutes at a time with headache-enducing repetition. The vocals were more warbled and whimpering, the lyrics were more ambiguous, and the fanbase had grown into a pretentious fanboy cult who worshiped a frontman who hated their guts and laughed at them behind their backs.

Radiohead - Very similar to Tool. Started off as a decently listenable band and mutated into boring, pretentious art rock. Their fanbase also became very similar to Tool's. Pretentious elitists who were unaware that their band was not as good as they perceived them to be. Plus, Radiohead gave birth to Coldplay who is essentially just Radiohead light. And Coldplay was never good.

 

Evanescence : There are like 20 better bands in Europe playing in the same style , they never did anything innovative , their motifs are boring

Cradle of Filth : Two good LPs do not make up for the next horrible ones

Dimmu Borgir : Yes the music is good but can you please stop using English lyrics? your vocabulary is as limited as mine and the songs come out as dumb.

Sepultura: Boring, Boring , Boring , Boring and Boring

 

Do you play the guitar ?

 

Obligatory...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNDvrYstFtE

 

For almost 20 years now.

 

I'm trying to take the self learning route, and it's a lot more work than I expected.

 

It's cool to take lessons, but I learned most of what I know by either teaching myself, learning covers of my favorite bands, or playing with friends who were better than me. That last one is the key. If you want to get better, make sure you're always playing with somebody who's better than you. You'll never stop growing that way. If you're the most talented guy in the group, it might stroke your ego, but you'll get stagnant.

I imagine youtube is probably a pretty good source for learning today too. I started playing when I was 15. No internet back then. Al Gore hadn't invented it yet.

 

my brother-in-law was self taught and has been playing for 35yrs and plays in a weekend band with some retired rockers...but even he was impressed with my 13 yr old sons technique after only four years of lessons with a qualified professional instructor...self taught is great but lessons from a pro to correct bad habits, poor technique and speed up the entire process...

 

^+1 to this

It's easy to develop bad habits if you're not careful when going the self-taught route. When I first got started, I was more interested in playing fast than playing well. I played a thousand notes a minute, but it was horribly sloppy. It took me a long time to correct that. I listen to some of my old high school demos today and they're awful.

I still hold my pick the wrong way to this day.

 

my bro-in-law says the same, Jr has better technique than he does and will be much better than he is...

and I imagine self taught people tend to play mostly the type of music they enjoy, Jr's teacher covers everything, jazz, blues, rock, heavy metal, shredding, country, all requiring different techniques/styles, this summer he begins flamenco and classical...I doubt he'll become a famous guitarist (he wants to to be an engineer or geologist) but he will be a proficient guitar player which he'll enjoy for the rest of his life...

 

Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen.

The very definition of smug (*)(*)(*)(*)(*)(*)(*)s, who think that being celebrities makes them Jesus, while being triple threats who can't play, can't write and can't sing.

 

Generally those that claim Led Zeppelin are gods of heavy metal don't know much about what they are arguing. They were in their time a high point of the fusion between hard rock and blues. Later metal bands moved away from this sound to differentiate themselves from what had come before. The reality is the band was really genre-less. Their ballads, exploration of classic blues and hard rock is timeless, but has to be seen in the context that it was created.

As an over view it is nice to see younger generations are moving away from the dinosaur bands I grew up with. The thought in 1980 of listening to a band who released a record in 1940 would definitely make me taste vomit in my mouth

 

U2, Nirvana, Bruce Springsteen, Radiohead, Black-Eyed Peas and my favorite over rated performer....Neil Young.

 

I have been playing for just a bit longer than you. Started off with lessons, learned how to read music but then branched off on my own. I'm not so concerned with my bad habits when playing electric because it requires different techniques especially when playing in overdrive. Also, when playing electric, one 'plays' the amp as well. Over the years I went from 100 to 200 watt tube amps, to building my own effects to mega powerful solid state amps and now I'm back to 20 to 50 watt tube amps. Hey, if you can create a killer sound, who cares which way you hold the pick? LOL

 

Another good point. A teacher will typically expand your range. Unless you're into a lot of different stuff, chances are you probably won't explore too many different styles on your own.

Fortunately, I've always been pretty diverse in my music taste. I've got stuff in my CD collection that looks ridiculous sitting together. I've got Madonna, Meshuggah, and Mozart all sharing the same cubby hole in my CD rack.

Lol! Good point. But my problem is that I hold it with a really weak grip. And it's always caused me to drop my pick a lot. I used to have a velcro strip on my pick guard with extra picks on it because it was just easier to grab another one in mid-song than pick my first one up off the floor. But of course the velcro on the extra picks was irritating and made them even harder to hold properly.

I don't brace my fingers together to steady my hand like I should. It's very index-finger-and-thumb-only. Which is fine if you're playing folk music, I guess, but it's a recipe for disaster when you're playing metal (especially black metal with all that tremolo picking). I originally picked up that habit when I discovered pinch harmonics which became a staple of my style. Tommy Victor from Prong has always been one of my favorite guitarists for his excessive use of them. And I first learned them when I was about 16 or 17 and first learned how to play "Cemetery Gates" by Pantera. I found my current grip to be the most comfortable way to get consistent harmonics, and it developed into a crutch that I never corrected.

Come to think of it, I still hold my pencil the wrong way too. Been doing that since kindergarten. Dammit, I'm just full of problems.

 

OK, yeah, pretty typical. Not wanting to hold the pick too stiff nor too loose. Here is your solution....

http://v-picks.com/

Picks made of a special material that actually slightly cling to your thumb and finger. I discovered them years ago and have used them exclusively. Carlos Santana is one of his clients. The picks are expensive but really work.

I also use my fingers now with the advent of special stick on fingernails especially made of materials for playing guitar. Mostly Flaminco and classical players use this but, they work awesome with electric guitar. You just apply them like women do with their stick on nails. They stay on and you just pick up your guitar and play. I also use picks for certain sounds and tones....

http://guitarplayernails.com/store/

I'm in the electric blues (Stevie Ray Vaughn & Jimi Hendrix etc) style. Played 'acid rock' in SF during the 60s etc. Oh yeah. I guess I am one of the few who think the Grateful Dead was way over rated.

 

That Duet pick looks epic. I might have to send off for a few of those. Do you know if they make them in anything heavier than 1.5mm? I'm only seeing one thickness. I've been playing with Dunlop Gator Grip 2.0mm for years. They produce a nice fat sound, and they're easy to get harmonics out of.

SRV and Hendrix are great. I've never cared much for the Dead either. I did develop a moderate appreciation for them last year though after spending a lot of time around a good friend of mine who is a hardcore Dead-head. But they'll never speak to me like they do to him.

 

They make the picks in many thicknesses and with varying bevels as well even one with rounded edges. The different thicknesses and different edge angles are a whole other palette of sounds you will be able to make. Call the guy...I did. His picks don't sell well at the music store because they are new and we guitar players are hesitant to fix what we consider ain't broken. LOL BTW I am currently holding a 2.4mm V-pick. Small 'Jazz' triangle style with a slightly rounded bevel edge. The pick is quite small but, you don't lose it because it adheres. 1 drawback to these picks.....if you initially start playing with the pick in the 'wrong' position, it takes a bit more effort to re-orient the thing between your thumb and finger. Not a big whoop though.

I always thought they should tune up a bit better. But then, I did appreciate Jerry Garcia's ability to improvise.......for hours.

Oh yeah, on that v-pick site, the 'Ruby' is 2.4mm....I have one. I use it the most. Another thing, most of the picks are clear. I have lost a few. That's why I bought the Ruby one. I told the guy he should make more colors.

 

everybody has artists that we love and that others hate we don't all see/hear music the same way, I never could stand Rush I felt guilty when all my friends had Rush albums, I could never get past the whiny voice of Geddy Lee, like finger nails scratching on a chalkboard for me...and then Rush gets put into the Rock n Roll hall of fame so what do I know,,,

and then there is stage presence some artists with maybe less talent put on a damn good show and entertainment just for the sake of entertainment is good too...

 

maybe everyone has seen this munchkin play guitar but if you haven't it's worth the 3:30 minutes to watch, impressive for a little tyke in kindergarten...

[video=youtube;-w1KsXg7HIw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w1KsXg7HIw[/video]

I showed wyly Jr and he wasn't pleased, "what the hell dad are you trying to make me feel bad!"

 

Great question!

I grew up in the 60's and 70's and here is my list of bands I never really thought were a big deal even though others all did.

Black Sabbath
Deep Purple
Jimi Hendrix
Neil Sadaka
Rod Stewart
Abba
Barry Manilow
Frank Zappa
Waylon Jennings

 

Justin Bieber and One Direction. Obviously.

Nickelcrap as well.

 

God only knows how Geddy Lee and Rush got in there. Pathetic. And a few others too, to be honest. Like Heart - I saw them in the early 70's warming up The Eagles. They were a Led Zep cover band for chrissake, nothing more. Beastie Boys? Really? And Donovan is in there, but not Jim Croce? And how is Skynard in there but not Marshall Tucker? That's a crime. Another crime - how are the Moody Blues or Emerson Lake and Palmer not in there? Prince is in but not Jethro Tull or Randy Bachmann (BTO, The Guess Who, Ironhorse, The Ringo Starr & The All Starr Band). I suspect the people that decide who gets in are a bunch of idiots.