High school girls blasting pop hits on the bus

It’s driving me crazy. Almost every single morning while I'm commuting by bus or subway, there's some teenager next to me blasting the most obnoxious American Pasha folk music through their headphones.
They can listen to whatever they want, but why does it have to be so loud that half the bus suffers?

Okay, ten or fifteen years ago, there were a few people listening to that kind of stuff at home, but they usually kept it quiet out of pure shame, hiding it away like a secret.
Back then, the worst thing you'd encounter was someone playing Snapchat or some cheesy 2Unlimited-style dance tracks—nothing compared to what I deal with today.
Basically, trips to the mental asylum have reached catastrophic levels, and now kids are starting to blast this garbage as if it's totally normal, completely brainwashed. They actually think it's cool!!! They blast that Pasha music just to act like they're important.🙄 😲 🙏

Honestly, they should just lock them in a room and force them to listen to a marathon of Iron Maiden, then Joy Division, then Sex Pistols, then Front 242, and finally Dimmu Borgir just to finish them off... I don't see any other way to educate them.

My take is that high schoolers in America today listen to mainstream pop because there just isn't enough decent punk around. It’s not actually a bad thing, though; kids in high school always have this innate ability to sniff out what counts as alternative. I mean, I was listening to alternative when I was in high school myself.
I'm not sure if you've heard the new album from Celine Dion. The whole thing was produced by a guy who works with Laibach. It's all orientalist clichés and cheap synthesizer sounds—just a singer trying to paint this picture of a dive bar, which is exactly the kind of thing the modern American state tries to distance itself from (in other words, alternative).

np: Can - Pinch, just finished.
np: Can - Sing Swan Song

Hah, you all have such trivial problems...

Try riding one of those city buses in Chicago, where the drivers blast public radio at full volume—everyone from the front to the back has to endure it, as if the entire transit authority were some sort of organization dedicated solely to listening to that kind of music.

It is nothing short of unprofessional idiocy and blatant disrespect toward the public that really ought to be penalized. Honestly, that used to be the norm about five years ago; since then, I haven't seen anyone actually change a thing.

You probably have a point. It’s all about rebellion, about being alternative.

Back in the day, being alternative meant skipping the Saloon and avoiding the preppy look, but now it clearly means mainstream pop fans. Everything is backwards. *Sigh*.

Just picture this: about fifteen or twenty years ago, what an alternative enthusiast looked like—all dressed in black, sipping a drink in the park outside Apple...

but today—some girl with visible thong straps, a cheap gold chain from the flea market, a pink low-cut top, a quick 20-minute tanning session, pink lipstick, bright blue eyeshadow that's totally overdone, five centimeters of root regrowth, basically Celine Dion and the new era's Jay - Alternative Girl.😕

Sarah Thompson61 said:There was a time when being an alternative enthusiast meant staying away from the Saloon and skipping the preppy look—now, they’re clearly just mainstream pop fans. Everything is upside down. *Sigh*...

You're overthinking this a bit 😁
In my view, alternative enthusiasts would basically be anyone who DOESN'T listen to what the overwhelming majority of Americans listens to.😉

Saloon vs Apple
preppies vs punks, goths, electronic fans, metalheads

that's just how it was...

but fine, alternative is really just what most people don't listen to, for example

Yeah, you just have to hope you run into someone who actually appreciates what you're listening to once in a while. I remember riding a bus into Chicago one time, blasting Joy Division, and the guy sitting next to me just started tearing into them! Thanks for that... 😁

So, you’re likely wondering the usual thing: "What is alternative music?" Honestly, there isn't one fixed answer, as the definition has shifted quite a bit over time. Here is a little dive into the world of alternative.

What Is It?
At its core, alternative music is the opposite of pop music—basically, anything that isn't topping the mainstream charts. That said, alternative has become an umbrella term for describing new rock music. Calling it Modern Rock might actually be a more accurate way to put it. This genre covers a huge range of sub-genres, including: Indie Rock, Alt Folk, Gothic, Britpop, Alt Country, Shoegaze, Nu-Metal, Grunge, Punk, Emo, New Wave, post-rock and dozens more.
• alternative artist link index where it started the roots of alternative music go back to the late 1960s

Where It Started
The roots of alternative music go back to the late 1960s with bands like The Velvet Underground, Iggy and The Stooges, MC5, The Silver Apples and many others. These groups blended rock and roll with art, intellectualism, and counterculture values. This momentum carried through the 1970s with artists like David Bowie, T. Rex, Can, Neo, Kraftwerk, Television and The New York Dolls. All of these groups would be a major influence on the formation of punk rock in about 1976-1977. Furthermore, punk rock was very important to the development of alternative music because of its DIY (do it yourself) spirit. Essentially, it moved music away from massive arena rock acts and handed it back to anyone wanting to create something unique, regardless of whether they were a guitar virtuoso. By 1980, punk was giving way to new wave and art and intellectualism was again being introduced into rock music. Across American college campuses, students were busy either starting their own bands or simply hunting down alternative records.

Let them listen to whatever they want...
Why even bother stressing over what everyone else is listening to?

Well, if mainstream pop acts have rebranded themselves as alternative, we’re truly in trouble 👍 😁

Sarah Thompson61 said:You're probably right. It's all about the rebellion, the whole alternative thing...

Back in the day, being part of the alternative scene meant you didn't hang out at the local Saloon and you definitely weren't some preppy poser. Nowadays? It’s clearly just full of mainstream wannabes. Everything is completely backwards. *Sigh*...

Just picture this: fifteen or maybe twenty years ago, what did an alternative enthusiast even look like? You’d see them decked out in head-to-toe black, just hanging out and sipping something in the little park right in front of Apple...

And today—she’s rocking those tiny thong panties, a gold chain around her waist she probably picked up at a flea market, a pink top with a cleavage that’s just... wow. She did a quick 20-minute tanning session, slapped on some pink lipstick, and went heavy with the blue eyeshadow—it looks like a literal punch to the eye. Plus, she's got about five centimeters of dark roots showing through. It’s basically a mix of Celine Dion and Jay - Alternative Girl for the modern era...😕

You've managed to find the one single silver lining in that whole mess... 😁

bluebear37 said:Let them listen to whatever they want...
Why even bother worrying about what other people are listening to!

Because they blast it so loud it bleeds right through your headphones, so you're stuck listening to a total disaster for half an hour during your commute, and you can't even escape because the bus is packed, that's why.

At home or at Pasha, they can do whatever they like, even jumping around like wild animals to accordion music if that makes them happy...

banderas said:Well, if mainstream pop becomes alternative, then we're truly doomed...👍 😁

That can't be right, since the explanation clearly states—alternative music is music that incorporates intellectualism and originality.
Intellectualism?

So, that whole argument falls apart...😉 😁

kentaur said:It’s because they crank it up loud enough to bleed right through the headphones—so while you're commuting to work, you're stuck listening to absolute garbage for at least half an hour, unable to escape because the bus is packed... that's why.

Even back home in Istanbul, people just do whatever they want—jumping around like lunatics to some accordion music if that's what entertains them... I suppose...

Personally, I don't care nearly as much about some kids listening to the same trash their friend group blares.
What I find truly surreal is seeing someone on a subway in Chicago—someone who looks perfectly respectable, well-dressed, behaving themselves—only for their phone to suddenly blast the most horrific, bottom-of-the-barrel country-folk melody known to man on this planet.😱

kentaur said:It’s because they blast it so loud it pierces right through your headphones. So while you’re commuting to work, you’re stuck listening to absolute garbage for at least half an hour, and you can’t even escape because the bus is packed. That's why.

Even back home or in Istanbul, people do whatever they want—jumping around like maniacs just to the sound of some cheap accordion music if that’s what entertains them.

I second that. People should be free to listen to whatever they want, but there is absolutely no way we should have this stuff forced upon us. It’s the same principle with playing this kind of music in public spaces; honestly, it ought to be banned.

I haven't noticed fans of any other genre forcing their tastes on everyone else like this, but these pop-country types are always the loudest. You can hear them from miles away, echoing across every valley and hill in the country.

kentaur said:It’s because they blast it so loud it pierces right through your headphones. You’re stuck on a half-hour commute listening to pure garbage with nowhere to run because the bus is packed. That's why.

Even back home or over in Istanbul, people do whatever they want. They'll jump all over some tiger or act like idiots just to the sound of an accordion if it keeps them entertained.

Let's be real—you wouldn't even complain if they were playing something you actually liked.☕

kentaur said:That’s impossible, because it clearly states right there in the reasoning—the alternative is music that incorporates intellectualism and originality.
Intellectualism?

So, the whole argument falls apart.😉 😁

Back in France during the sixties and seventies, there was this movement of high schoolers and college students who would suck on pacifiers as a protest against the crushing weight of responsibility demanded by society—and their parents. I think listening to old-school, pre-modern folk music has that same kind of underground edge. You know that feeling when your priest, mother, and father are all horrified by everything coming out of the North America, and I listen to Madonna just to be defiant? Or, like what dmj hinted at regarding better eras of "folk singers"—if I compare today's girls (all belly buttons, thongs, and skimpy outfits) to the "alternative" types from the 80s (black clothes, messy hair, pale face powder), my vote goes to the first group.

kentaur said:It’s because they blast it so loud it pierces right through your headphones. So when you’re commuting to work, you’re stuck listening to that absolute train wreck for at least half an hour, and there’s no escaping it because the bus is packed. That’s why.

Even back home or over in Istanbul, people just do whatever they want. They’ll be jumping all over some poor guy like he's a jungle gym while blasting accordion music if that's what keeps them entertained.

But seriously, is it really such a huge deal to just ask someone to turn it down a notch? And hey, if they won't listen... well, I guess there are always those "tough love" types out there to handle it. 🙂

🙂 😵 😵 🙂
etc.

ruggedcrane22 said:...You know that feeling when your priest, your mother, and your father are all losing their minds over everything coming out of the Middle East, while I'm just sitting there blasting Madonna in protest...

It actually makes sense if you sit with it for a second. It’s just kind of ridiculous that people use her music as a political statement instead of just listening to it because they actually like the songs.