Best tribute bands?

Noah Edwards said:So where are they actually coming from?

kset

gentlepuma20 said:I’ve got way more respect for Vatra and Ramirez than I ever will for those cheap tribute bands. Total bottom of the barrel.

So what's your take on all those classical musicians playing in orchestras, then? 😬 They aren't even playing their own stuff. 😛

Pogorelić is a joke 😛 I have more respect for Vatra and Ramirez than I do for Pogorelić, Ciccolin, or Rostropovich... What’s the point? They spend twenty years in school just to spend their entire lives playing other people's music. And they actually gained worldwide fame doing it. It’s pathetic... He can play Mozart for me all he wants, but if he can't create something original, what's the point? 🙄

I caught the Balašević band at the local dive bar this past fall—they were playing some seriously wild stuff—and honestly, all I can say is 🙏

They were actually incredible. I had a blast. If anything, I’d argue some of their arrangements actually beat out the originals because they give everything a much heavier, grittier edge. All in all, though, it was easily one of the best $13 I've ever dropped on a show

Robin Rodriguez5 said:Pogorelić is bottom tier 😛 I have more respect for Vatra and Ramirez than I do for Pogorelić, Ciccolin, or Rostropovich... What's the point? Spending 20 years in school just to spend your entire life playing other people's music? And they even gained global fame doing it—it's just pathetic. If he wants to play Mozart for me, fine, but why can't he create something original? 🙄

🤦

feraltrucker5 said:And what, pray tell, is your sudden inclination toward those classical musicians who spend their lives tucked away in orchestras? Is this a newfound appreciation blooming out of nowhere, or have you just finally decided to grace the giants of composition with a moment of your fleeting attention? 😬 It’s funny, isn't it? You watch them perform, you listen to the setlist, and you can't help but notice that they never actually play their own material. Is it a lack of confidence in their songwriting, or perhaps just a calculated move to keep the crowd nodding along to tunes they already know? It makes one wonder if they even have an identity of their own, or if they're content just being a highly polished cover band masquerading as artists. 😛

I suppose I should have expected this kind of thing, shouldn't I? It’s almost predictable at this point, isn't it? We sit here, engaging in what we like to think is a meaningful dialogue, only to be met with such... brevity. Is there an underlying philosophy behind this one-word contribution, or is it simply a case of someone staring blankly at their keyboard? One wonders if there's a deeper subtext we're all supposed to decipher, or if we're just witnessing the digital equivalent of a shrug. It’s quite fascinating, really, how little effort can sometimes feel so much like a statement. kaže:
Honestly, if you ask me, Pogorelić is absolute bottom-of-the-barrel. 😛 I find myself holding Vatra and Ramirez in much higher regard than I ever could for Pogorelić, Ciccolin, or Rostropovič. Honestly, what is the actual point of enduring twenty years of rigorous musical training just to spend an entire lifetime performing nothing but other people's compositions? Is that really the pinnacle of achievement? They manage to rake in global fame doing little more than mimicking the greats, which feels somewhat hollow if you ask me. If he truly had any substance, wouldn't he be out there composing his own works instead of just playing Mozart all day? 🙄

Is this some kind of joke, or am I actually seeing things? 🤔

i

Harold Wells20 said:Is this some kind of joke or 🤔

Just a quick reality check: the whole "they need to write their own material" argument is incredibly hollow. Authorship and performance are two completely different beasts, and conflating them is like comparing apples to oranges. People love to lean on the idea that if a band were actually good, they’d be doing their own thing. Honestly? I’d much rather listen to a group of incredible performers who never wrote a single note of their own. Think about bands like The Beach Boys during certain eras—the execution matters more than the songwriting when the playing is that tight.

Harold Wells20 said:Is this some kind of sick joke or 🤔

You really think so? 😁

stormywolf39 said:http://whatscooking.us/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/pear1.jpg

and

http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/boh/images/red%20apple.jpg

Apples take the win. 🙂 🙂

Robin Rodriguez5 said:Just a quick observation: the whole "they should just write their own stuff" argument feels incredibly hollow. Authorship and performance are two entirely different skill sets, and conflating them is a massive mistake. People keep insisting that if these groups were actually talented, they’d be creating original material. Honestly? I’d much rather listen to incredible cover bands who never wrote an original note in their lives—kind of like how I feel about those classic tribute acts in Chicago.

No, comparing Ive Pogorelić to tribute bands playing at KSET is just ridiculous. It's honestly laughable...

It feels like tribute bands here only ever play at local dive bars. People don't seem to realize how niche this scene still is in America. In other places, they hold massive weekly events dedicated to this; take the Beatle Week festival, for instance, where hundreds of Beatles tribute acts fly in from all over the globe. It’s the exact same deal with Leonard Cohen.
This whole "tribute bands suck" argument is hollow from start to finish—if they actually had something of value to say, they’d be out there creating their own damn music. Using the classics as an example is just lazy; 99% of what people call "classic" today started as tributes. The only real difference is the scale and the polish. You guys aren't even arguing about quality or execution; you're just obsessed with the fact that it’s a cover 🙄 Attacking the very concept of a tribute act is honestly just tragicomic.

Look, I’m not necessarily bashing the whole idea of a tribute act. I think they’re perfectly fine for die-hard fans who can't make it to a concert whenever they want. But trying to assign them a value beyond that? That’s just ridiculous.

Classics aren't just tributes. Most of them were composed specifically to be performed by the creators themselves—take the Beatles, for instance. They weren't just writing songs for anyone to pick up; they were crafting music meant for their own hands.

The Beatles have an absurdly massive catalog of orchestral arrangements—honestly, more than some classical composers. Does that make it just another cheap tribute act?

What’s the connection there? Are you talking about those modern arrangements someone else slapped together using their old tracks? Personally, I think that's pretty pointless. The whole idea behind classical music has always been its original purpose—it was meant to be performed by others later on.

@ Banderas: That’s true, but we have to remember that most classical compositions were written long before recording technology even existed. They were originally intended to be performed by live musicians, and the whole way people experienced music back then was fundamentally different from how we listen today.

stormywolf39 said:What does that have to do with anything? Are you talking about those modern arrangements someone else slapped together later? I find that kind of stuff pretty pointless too, but the whole point of a classic is its original purpose—which, in classical music, always included the fact that anyone could pick it up and play it eventually.

The idea that "classical" exists just so someone else can play it isn't the core point. Before orchestral performances became a mass-produced commodity, composers actually played their own work.

Drew Adams58 said:@ Banderas: Sure, but keep in mind most classical pieces were composed long before recording technology existed. They were written specifically to be performed by someone else, and the whole way people consumed music back then was fundamentally different.

If we’re following that logic, how did Ciccolin become a global superstar just by playing piano pieces by Mozart and Beethoven? He released albums of his interpretations where he barely touched a single note, and they sold millions of copies. I don't recall anyone ever calling him out for it—maybe the folks over at Reddit should check in on him? (He's still breathing, as far as I know.)

Honestly, I’m glad I finally started this thread. Music is still dominated by those ego-driven, mentally unstable narcissists 👋
. I’d bet my life savings that the same haters tributing bands from this list would turn around and trash them the second they stop doing covers and try making their own stuff—claiming they sound just like Gang of Four (or whatever other band they're obsessed with).

The same old cowards are still hanging around here, too stuck in their ways to move an inch. Shout out to the few exceptions, though; you know who you are. 🙂

👋

Robin Rodriguez5 said:Following that logic, did Ciccolini gain worldwide fame just by playing piano compositions by Mozart and Beethoven? He released albums of his interpretations of Mozart and Beethoven where practically nothing was changed from the original notes, and he sold them in the millions. I don't recall anyone ever criticizing him for it—maybe we should ask the folks over at Reddit if they're worried about his health? (He's still alive, as far as I know.)

Perhaps it's because Mozart and Beethoven didn't record their own albums, whereas he did. Since they've been gone for quite some time, they couldn't exactly file a complaint, could they? But my point stands: you're comparing classical masters to tribute bands.
I certainly understand your desire to defend them, though. 😁