Karen Doyle said:So why isn't folk music just as massive then? It’s got all the same stuff—love, misery, poverty, joy, etc. People just turn on some pop trash and call it a day. I guess you can't argue with taste. In my opinion, this pop trash is just a passing fad. I honestly feel like people are listening to it a tiny bit less than they were two or three years ago. They showed up, and eventually, they'll fade out just the same.👍
Yeah, sadly true. We had this great party yesterday, for example. The guy celebrating his birthday was picking the music, and since he hates that mainstream pop garbage, he stuck mostly to punk and stuff like that. He had a blast, sure, but he was basically the only one actually having fun. Once the pop hits started playing, the crowd absolutely lost it. Everyone was singing at the top of their lungs, drinking, and really getting into it... It was beautiful. If it wasn't for those catchy pop songs, the party wouldn't have been half as good. It's the same thing at weddings. You don't get a real wedding without that kind of music—or whatever you want to call it. Though, at weddings, they usually stick to the older, more classic hits. These newer tracks don't really cut it because the older crowd doesn't know them.
I happened to catch it by chance, and I have to say, it’s actually pretty solid. But honestly, having already seen Duel and another one—I can't recall the title, but it follows the exact same formula—nothing really felt fresh to me. The only real standout was that it's the first movie where they actually show the people inside that mysterious vehicle...
Gerald Rivera60 said:Is there some kind of shared psychological trait among people who listen to this kind of music? (trying not to use that annoying term "psychological complex")
Absolutely not. We recently joked with a professor, asking if he listens to country music, and he shot back: "Do I look like someone who listens to country?" That’s actually a really interesting point, because there isn't some specific "uniform" you wear when you're heading to a honky-tonk. You can't just spot a country fan walking down a street in Chicago, unlike punks, rockers, or other subcultures... So, I don't believe there's any common psychological trait here, because the listeners are all over the map. You get everyone from the high-society types to total wildcards... In those rural dive bars, you tend to see more of the rougher crowd, which is probably why people assume only "savages" listen to it. In the States, for example, you see these massive bar fights happen all the time—it's never just two guys brawling. It's that group cohesion... Everyone jumps in at once, usually because they're all from the same small town or the same neighborhood...
There’s a new thread over on the teens subforum—"What do you guys think about country music?"—and honestly, I have absolutely nothing bad to say about it... Look, I’m just gonna quote someone else here because I really don't have the energy to rehash all this again... 😁
Lisa Rodriguez84 said:When I saw that every single post started with "I hate," I actually felt sick to my stomach... okay, I'm joking, but seriously, it's stupid to assume anyone who listens to country music is an idiot. It's impossible for everyone into country to be brainless or mentally challenged. I personally know people with incredible intellect and perfect pitch who don't just listen to it—they actually play it (for social gigs). And those people making a living from it? I know folks who can't make ends meet on their main salary, so they pick up extra gigs playing country at weddings to help support their families. Are they idiots too? Now I'm genuinely confused...
So, tell me... is there any truth to that?
Oh, and even though this topic keeps getting resurrected every few months, it's not actually a bad thing. Country music is still huge in America, so maybe someone will actually change their mind in the meantime and have a place to vent...
Wait, who am I again? Heh, look, I’m not out here trying to peer pressure anyone into grabbing a drink—well, at least not everyone. You actually run into people at places like Kazan who don't touch the stuff. It's rare, sure, but it happens. My point was about someone's actual personality, not their drinking habits. For instance, gossip is basically the lifeblood of every social circle. If someone refuses to play along—using the "excuse" that meddling in other people's business is pointless and tacky—the rest of the group will just tear them apart. That person ends up looking like a total outsider or an idiot, when in reality, they’re probably the only sane one in the room. Is that you, Kuište?
In any given group, you’ll find one or two people who actually have their act together, while everyone else is just... off. But from what I've seen, there isn't a single social circle out there where everyone is truly sane—not even the majority. And if that's the case, then obviously those few "normal" people can't just exist on their own terms; they're forced to bend and adapt, otherwise, the rest of the crowd will just label them as the weird ones.
Gerald Johnson4 said:Oh, brilliant! So you're comparing yourself to gods instead of actual users... Look, everyone knows they're powerful, but you don't own Google or Yahoo or eBay... Most hackers can't even pretend to be powerful, let alone regular people on a forum... And those emojis... I'm not even going to touch that...
I'm not comparing myself to anyone; I'm just saying that kind of power actually exists, it's just held by other people. Hackers aren't "powerful" in the grand sense—they just know how to cause damage. Real power usually comes with someone actually profiting from it. Sure, some hackers might move money from one account to another, but that's a whole different conversation. As for the emoji thing, I partially get where you're coming from. Sometimes we can't express emotions through text, like rolling on the floor when someone tells a joke, or being able to explicitly say, "I bow down to you"... It would be cool if we could express ourselves like that once in a while, but honestly, where would the communication go if we did?
Gerald Johnson4 said:How can anyone actually be delusional enough to think they have any kind of power on the internet????
Look, maybe not everyone, but Internet-moć is a very real thing. You've got the massive media conglomerates, the giant search engines, those massive corporations that basically exist just to push ads at you constantly—plus, let's not forget the mods and admins running the big, influential forums. They definitely hold some sway... Some people just have an ego trip, sure, but others actually wield real influence...
@Prince – In my music school, there’s only one student with perfect pitch who’s actually in my grade. I don't know about elementary school, but I doubt they have any kids with perfect pitch there. As for the faculty, we’ve got two teachers who have it, maybe one other person... Most of the instructors have incredibly sharp relative pitch, though—that’s something you hone over years of doing this. You even get a few students who just naturally develop it on their own, so you don't really need perfect pitch to build up a killer ear.
Look, having perfect pitch isn't some mandatory requirement for talent. Sure, it helps immensely—not just for playing by ear or recognizing intervals, but it makes grinding through theory and finishing homework way easier since you can basically "see" the tones in your head. It makes everything click faster...
I’ve been playing clarinet for ten years, did piano for four before they took it away from me at school, and I've been messing around with guitar for about six months. Honestly, though? I barely have the time to play, and I definitely don't have the drive to pull those intense practice sessions... though maybe I'll get around to it eventually...
Look, I’m partially an addict. Luckily, I make it a point to go out and get hammered a few times a week, so I basically just swap one addiction for another. If anyone thinks they're "addicted" to the internet, they should try drinking like a beast for a night... then we'll see who's really struggling.
Trust me, talent isn't something we're all just handed at birth. I’m a music grad, so I've seen how this works firsthand: those kids who are naturally gifted? They don't have to grind nearly as hard; everything musical just clicks for them. Now, sure, you don't strictly need perfect pitch to pick up songs by ear, but it definitely makes the job a hell of a lot easier. If you're constantly doing it, you'll stay sharp, whereas if you let your skills get rusty, you're going to struggle. As for how someone actually develops perfect pitch? Honestly, I haven't a clue. I have a buddy who has it, but his whole family has been in the industry for generations, so he probably just caught a lucky break from his genes...
ironhawk36 said:I don't know... that's just exactly how it went down with him. 🙂
That’s what they call absolute pitch. It’s just hardwired—you're either born with it or you aren't. There's no amount of practicing that'll get you there if you don't have the hardware for it. Too much. It’s all about practice. Some people can just sit down and play anything by ear—they don't even need sheet music. For them, making music is practically effortless, like they're just snapping their fingers. I actually know someone exactly like that.
But honestly, what’s the point of all that talent and hard work if you don't have that underlying, invisible spark—that raw willpower? If you aren't actually driven by something deep inside, and you're just grinding away because someone else expects you to, you're going nowhere fast. I've been there plenty of times myself.
Lisa Rodriguez84 said:People say you need 30% talent and 70% practice to achieve anything big. Personally, I don't buy that—you have to factor in willpower too. If someone actually has talent and they have the drive, they’ll grind through enough practice to reach "perfection." But if that drive isn't there? They won't bother practicing, and that talent just goes to waste. On the flip side, if you lack talent but have massive amounts of willpower, you can work hard and get pretty decent results. But you aren't hitting perfection. In my book, truly flawless results require the trifecta: talent, willpower, and endless practice. It’s never just one or the other.
Actually, the math is a bit different. Some people claim it’s 1% talent and 99% sheer grit. If that were actually true, we’d all have a fighting chance at whatever we set our minds to. And you can't generalize talent either, because everyone's natural aptitude for certain skills varies wildly. You know what I mean?
Look, I’ve noticed the same thing, though it isn't quite THAT obvious to me... I guess it just comes as part of the whole psoriasis starter pack. My elbows are bone-dry and flaky, and my scalp gets these little sores that actually bleed if I scratch them too hard... So honestly, this doesn't even surprise me. At least I’ve got decent skin—no acne scars or anything. Well, except for when I have one of those absolutely wild nights out downtown; then I might wake up with a pimple or two on my nose, but otherwise, it's pretty rare...
I deal with something similar. Once the real winter weather hits, my wrists just take a beating—I get these painful chilings and tiny cracks in my skin. It gets incredibly red, dry, and irritated... Sometimes it even starts bleeding if I flex my hand too hard and the skin stretches. Usually, some heavy-duty moisturizer does the trick. Honestly, any decent cream works.
I have to be honest, I’ve never heard of anyone actually getting sick from milk in my entire life. Personally, I drink it by the gallon... People usually grab those big 12-packs of cartons just so they don't have to run to the grocery store every five minutes, plus it's cheaper that way... But someone actually getting sick from milk? Hmm...
Honestly, philosophy has become three times more interesting since I finally started getting it in my senior year of high school—basically, just now. It’s not even a struggle to study because the subject is actually fascinating, but I know I'm going to end up with the absolute worst grade, mostly just because I can't stop clashing with my professor.
Spot on... Think jazz paired with some cocktails, but not at those wild, over-the-top parties—just something low-key and unpretentious. Look, there’s a lot of truth in that, but it really makes you wonder: what's the actual motivation behind why people drink in the first place?