Video games killed the radio star
May 28th, 2008 by Wade Tatangelo in News
Not only are video games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero III destroying an entire generation (and probably future generations) of would-be real musicians, these press-button evils are now responsible for helping revive the careers of hacks like Motley Crue. I’m sorry, folks, the kids are not alright.
Check out this gamer “shredding” (in front of a live audience!) and being rewarded for his pseudo skills. Yes, I know, I sound like a curmudgeon. But when people start paying to see someone play with a toy that mimics actual musicianship, it will be time for me to find a mountaintop far, far away … and never return.
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May 28th, 2008 at 11:53 am
I’m not so sure they’re destroying anything. It’s a fact that once you learn how to rock the drums on RB, you can apply those skills to a real kit. If you get the shies out by screaming into a mic and learning how pitch works, you may also decide to move it over to a real environment. Ok, I’m not saying guitar/bass skills are really transferable beyond learning beats, but I think there’s a lot of potential for people to “master” the game and still be searching for something more. And for $150-$175, you’d never outfit even a garage band.
Sleater-Kinney’s Carrie Brownstein says: “With so much of music blurring the lines between ersatz and authenticity, at least the [game] is a tribute to rock, rather than an affront. In the realm of fakery, I would choose Rock Band over American Idol or over any of the other flimsy truths masquerading as music. With Rock Band, you can play along to Black Sabbath or Nirvana and possibly find new ways of appreciating their artistry by being allowed to perform parallel to it. Rock Band puts you inside the guts of a song.
These days, it might be easier to exalt the fake than to try to make sense of the genuine. But maybe by pretending to be in a band, there will be those who’ll find the nerve to go beyond the game, and to take the brave leaps required to create something real.”
May 28th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
It’s guitarist I worry about most. Johnny Winter said he used to practice six hours a day. other than Derek Trucks, who said he also practiced about six hours daily, I don’t see anyone my generation or younger devoting those kind of hours and acquiring the chops to create the gorgeous guitar sounds of yesteryear. (How many young slide players do you see playing out? Not many. Takes too long to master the right tone. Whereas effects pedal-created madness is relatively easy to get by with.) Plus, what kind of taste do these gamers have if they’re making Motley Crue hitmakers again? I’m old school, the last man standing, video games suck!
May 29th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Wade, you’re a crusty old curmudgeon (as you acknowledge) trying to defend a flimsy premise. David’s right: The game may encourage players to try their hands at real musicianship. If not, no great loss to humanity or themselves. They would have played some other video game.
Enjoy that mountaintop!
May 29th, 2008 at 11:31 pm
And Radio killed the Opera star…
May 30th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Mick Mars practices six hours a day.
May 30th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
And still sucks … Because he left his soul behind a dumpster on Sunset Strip about 25 years ago.