Old People Talking about New Music

I have a friend who really likes the Dirty Projectors. They came and played at Princeton and he was at the front of the crowd with his camera. He has continually raved about their music and what they're doing. For some reason I never really got around to listening to them until now.

Their new album, Bitte Orca, didn't grab me the first time, but confident that I was missing something, and with knowing that some of my favorite albums have been "sleepers" (something I didn't like right off the bat), I gave it another shot. And another. And another

And another.

After all those listens, the track "Stillness is the Move" stood out the most, along with the opening track "Cannibal Resource." Yet there's something about the way they play with tempos and tonalities, making some jarring, unexpected moves in the melody that annoys me more than gets me rocking out. If one thing is for sure it's progressive and deserves lots of attention.

I came across this video, part of a series where a group of old people reviews music. They go through Wilco and the Dirty Projectors here:



I would have been shocked if they had all been able to agree on liking any of it. As funny as it is with these older people talking about new music, I think it does show an unwillingness to accept some of the new things that are happening artistically, shunning the departure from what they're used to as bad news.

Makes me sad.