Saturday, April 14, 2007

Joanna Newsom - Pretentious and Overrated

Shameless Complacency wonders why Joanna Newsom sucks so bad, and yet is beloved by bloggers with otherwise good taste.

Okay, he doesn't. But I do.

My goodness, people, she's completely overrated with the most grating voice and "vocal delivery" I've heard in years. Plus, she achieves Tori Amos levels of obnoxious pretension.

He says it better than I could:

Part of me can’t help but admire Newsom; she’s clearly a skilled harpist and vocalist, and she’s doing something genuinely different than any other musician currently performing. At the same time, however, I can’t help but think this style has been around for hundreds of years; how can one woman simply follow a set of musical guidelines that have been in place for centuries, and suddenly be hailed as great? It just seems so pretentious to me.
Are we really so inundated with sameness that something that sounds different is embraced as "good"? Step outside your genre once in a while and embrace the actual good. Damn.

3 comments:

elasticwaistbandlady said...

I am so sick and tired of the poser hipster wannabes guest DJ-ing at my favorite Satellite Radio station (XMU). They play the most obnoxious, unlistenable crap known to mankind and pass it off as "avant-garde cool."

No surprise that Joanna Newsome and her screechy voice gets a LOT of play. She could potentially find fame starring in a movie as Bjork's retarded younger sister because that's what her affected vocals make me think of every single time.

Anonymous said...

weve been around too long for anything to really be original when you consider the grand scheme of themes. Its more about the idea of branching out from whats currently around you to be creative and original in your own sense. Sure her voice is brutal but the song writing is definitely worthy of some praise. Certainly overrated but not worthless. Her lyrics are embarassing though, but who gives a shit, at least its not another song about midnight or loneliness or baby making. lyric critics can go fuck themselves.

Anonymous said...

I have her listed as WORST ARTIST EVER in my music file. Just tried to list to again. Can't get past 10 seconds of her voice. And, hell, I can listen to Tom Perry, etc. So I know bad voices!!!