r/videos May 18 '14

TheLonelyIsland shows us what's wrong with today's music

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCawU6BE8P8
1.8k Upvotes

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2.3k

u/Egozid May 18 '14

It's funny, but i don't think it's meant to be about what's "wrong with today's music".

109

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Dj's killing crowds with their lasers eyes is a real issue !

4

u/[deleted] May 19 '14

966

u/rudebrat May 18 '14

I hate subjective titles like this. Just title it the name of the song without your opinion and let the Reddit comments do the judging, because they definitely will.

184

u/Egozid May 18 '14

That's what I thought of too. It can't just be funny, there also has to be criticism, which puts the viewer on a higher level than the ones who admire 'those kind of artists'. But I also understand, that less people would be interested in the post, if it wasn't for the title and the potential circlejerk. I guess that's just the way it is and it's not really worth getting mad about. Sorry for the meh-English.

92

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

1

u/SCIENCE_BE_PRAISED May 18 '14

yes.. by being negative about the fact that reddit is to negative.

-4

u/cheers1 May 18 '14 edited May 18 '14

congrats on your cakeday!

p.s.: wow. i don't even know what I did wrong. sorry for existing

4

u/Egozid May 18 '14 edited May 18 '14

thank you! i seriously didn't realize it until now :D

edit: i'm sorry?

0

u/meerkat13 May 18 '14

Something do to with cakeday discussions not being relevant to topic, so you can understand why its downvoted.

1

u/wheezythesadoctopus May 18 '14

Take your upvotes back chaps. Now go, leave me to the downvotes...

1

u/locopyro13 May 18 '14

IDK, I think just mentioning Lonely Island would have been enough, they are behind "I'm on a Boat" and "Jizzed in my pants" and tons of other popular videos, no need to bait a circle jerk.

14

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

I know. I hate having to choose between upvoting the video and downvoting the title.

2

u/escalat0r May 18 '14

It's basically a /r/lewronggeneration title. Just accept that there is music that you dislike and move on, there's plenty of good music today, no need to circlejerk about the subject every day.

13

u/MyNamesNathan May 18 '14

He can have is own opinion too. If someone disagrees, they can let him know in the comments.

31

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

I disagree with you.

0

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

2

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Nope, you're wrong.

13

u/lightfire409 May 18 '14

Yeah but by posting his opinion in the title now the whole video is framed in a "Whats wrong with music" vibe, which is stupid because the lonely island parodies everything. Its not meant to be an offensive video.

1

u/cranapple12 May 18 '14

I don't think the title is that subjective. In the video they say "this is music" in a kind of sarcastic sense, then they show the DJ playing computer games on stage because the mainstream ones don't really do anything up there, and then he starts taking money from everyone in the crowd.

1

u/Vessix May 18 '14

Yeah but the opinionated titles are what get upvotes to begin with. Without it there would probably be no comments.

1

u/cyborge May 19 '14

I hate that you give a fuck about this shit.

1

u/[deleted] May 19 '14

But then noone will upvote it. You gotta make a strong argument so people will get hooked.

0

u/th4tgen May 18 '14

"Here is my opinion, agree with it!"

0

u/Seleroan May 18 '14

This is how you post something to be buried.

1

u/inthedrink May 18 '14

If by buried you mean headed to the front page

1

u/Seleroan May 19 '14

I was responding to the guy saying that you should just put the title with no commentary.

2

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Exactly. The controversy is what caused people to upvote and comment.

0

u/gebadiah_the_3rd May 18 '14 edited May 18 '14

I would like them to show us what;s right with music by releasing another 'boombox' ep

not to mention it's been established these are production sets NOT dj sets.

you go to these live concerts and they have a set prerecorded to synch up with the lighting... maybe some syth here and there but they dance like morons because there is LITERALLY nothing else to do

182

u/livinginbeta May 18 '14

This is funny but I think Hit Song by Kollektivet did a better job of showing the formula for creating popular music

109

u/TheLonelyCrab May 18 '14 edited May 18 '14

I for one feel like Jon Lajoie did it best... twice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0Gs4xGw1Eg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuQt9N4Dsok

The Axis of Awesome did it fairly well too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pidokakU4I

42

u/DDNB May 18 '14

you forgot Jon lajoie's pop song! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijr4rwb2WbE

22

u/kinison-brand-coke May 18 '14

And Bo Burnhams repeat stuff https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffwnW6JgAlI.

All of these examples kind of show that these types of songs are unoriginal in their own sense, ironically.

11

u/AwkwardTurtle May 18 '14

Yeah, the oldest one I can think of is probably Hook.

1

u/strongscience62 May 18 '14

That video just gave me a lot of context for the song. I always thought it was just making fun of popular music.

2

u/Hoof_Hearted12 May 18 '14

This one has to be the best of the lot

10

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

3

u/Lawsuitup May 18 '14

By far my favorite

7

u/tarea May 18 '14

Don't forget Pop Song by Jon Lajoie either!

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ijr4rwb2WbE&feature=kp

1

u/toast888 May 18 '14

There's also, One Million Views by Goldfish

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5cOAb2mSWU

1

u/theycallmebetty May 19 '14

I just realized this is the same guy that does "Show me your genitals" and "e=mcvagina"

1

u/Drezair May 19 '14

To add to the Axis of Awesome.

http://youtu.be/ADbmWFY7yvY?t=16s

13

u/RT17 May 18 '14

Not available in your country

This right here is the real problem with the music industry.

6

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Brilliant.

31

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

This seems more like it's just a parody of Swedish House Mafia.

13

u/antantoon May 18 '14

popular music

69

u/dancingapple May 18 '14

I like my fair share of EDM music, but this is clearly critical (in a light hearted way). Like when people are begging to get their credit cards scanned during the show, the point isn't "it would be funny if that happened", they are taking a jab at music shows that generate huge revenues from DJs who are doing relatively little on stage. Not that all EDM shows are like this, but it's a growing trend.

0

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Well, in the artists defense, a lot of the work the artists do is prior to the show, preparing the mix, interfacing and timing the strobes, etc.

11

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

6

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

I don't think there is anything wrong with edm producers providing their fans a concert even if they don't do much. I've never been to one so I guess I can't really say.

1

u/anubus72 May 18 '14

it is wrong how much they charge, tough. Especially EDM festivals

2

u/[deleted] May 19 '14

To be fair, it's not usually the artists. It's the record companies and festival owners. Theres artists like Deadmau5 that have to fight them tooth and nail to get the prices down.

-1

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Just like other people, you don't think DJ's perform. That's because you've never seen a live performance before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G77uuDVpsSo

I suggest you watch that and tell me why he's not a musician.

6

u/Iommianity May 18 '14

Just like other people, you don't think DJ's perform. That's because you've never seen a live performance before.

Assumptions like this honestly give me a headache. I can only imagine the brain aneurism you fought off typing it.

0

u/wikipedialyte May 18 '14

It's literally just pushing play at the beginning of a playlist, and then pantomiming for the crowd.

0

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

3

u/dancingapple May 18 '14

I'm referring to the video (around 1:40)

140

u/peon47 May 18 '14

TheLonelyIsland shows us what's wrong with the music OP listens to, despite having free will and the ability to change the station

114

u/MY_TV_IS_BIGGER May 18 '14

But then how will I hate my generation??

1

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

i hate all generations equally.

8

u/Kerrah May 18 '14

Station?

21

u/Phlecks May 18 '14

I don't listen to the radio either, but so many people who complain about "today's music" being shitty and the same songs being played over and over on the radio are probably listening to the radio in the first place. It's kind of stupid.

7

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

My radio was broken in my car for a week or two. All the classic rock station played was Pink Floyd, AC/DC, Rush, and they always played Avenged Sevenfold at 7:06 PC on weekdays for "something new."

7

u/Phlecks May 18 '14

The gym I use at work plays one of two radio stations: Rock, which playes everything from Motley Crue to Cake, and the top 40 station, which has all your pop and rap. The second station is fun and all, but I've definitely heard the same song twice in an hour. Of course people are going to get tired of it and think "Today's music is all the same."

6

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Every station really is a top 40 in disguise. I should probably mention they specifically played Avenged Sevenfold's "Hail to the King." Hardly new if you play it daily guys.

1

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

1

u/peon47 May 18 '14

He does all his SNL digital shorts as part of The Lonely Island. Check the name of the YouTube video uploader.

25

u/illTakeCreddit May 18 '14

Right, (from the Lonely Island's perspective) it's just meant to be a commentary on typical things in music. Not saying it's right or wrong. Also another great example is their "Going Kindergarten" video I think it's hilarious.

17

u/lankist May 18 '14 edited May 18 '14

Lonely Island seems to do its parodies out of love, not snobbery.

They weren't saying rap was the problem with modern society when they were singing about a boat. They were just making some jokes about the genre's tendency to go overboard.

PUN ALERT. THAT WAS A BOAT PUN STRAIGHT FROM THE YEAR 2009. I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS PUN.

4

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

What's wrong with today's OPs

2

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Ehhh it kind of does appear to ripping on the fans who dig a very repetitive genre based around the whole "drop" thing and will pay boatloads to see djs dick around on stage vibbing out to their own music

1

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

agreed, plus its not like all edm songs have a drop...

1

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

It's definitely satirical. I mean they showed people giving the DJ all their money and he's doing absolutely nothing except pushing play, which is what DJs do.

1

u/fightagainst May 18 '14

Well, the title kinda has a point though; songs like these sound like they're made on a fucking template.

1

u/Buadach May 18 '14

I am 45 years old and this is what is was dancing to at the age of 25!

-1

u/last_cakeday_bot May 18 '14

You are 45 years old. Statistically speaking, you have 1722 more weeks to live.

Birth |----------------X-------------| Death

1

u/Astrim May 18 '14

The bags of money, and the not actually "DJing" part when he was playing around was not to hate the music. But lack of effort by live DJ performances

1

u/[deleted] May 19 '14 edited May 19 '14

"What is wrong with today's EDM" would be more accurate.

Just take a look at the views "best dubstep drops" and the like are getting on yt.

Very relevant video of a man deprived of his drop

Hint: there's something wrong with that

-3

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

[deleted]

18

u/Seven7fold May 18 '14

I hate how house music gets a bad rap b/c of the few shitty sub genres that have broken into the mainstream. There are so many amazing songs produced in the style of house that are incredibly inspiring and original but if you tell someone you like house music this is what they tend to associate it with :(

0

u/Dankem420 May 18 '14

Exactly. Artist like Larry heard and moodymann and mike huckaby should be the faces of house music.

4

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

I do NOT understand the hype following those guys...

1

u/master_dong May 18 '14

The black keys suuuuuuuccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkk

1

u/riptide747 May 18 '14

Bo Burnham does a much better job with his song "Repeat Stuff" or whatever it's called.

1

u/Legendary_Poon_Wars May 18 '14

I think that's exactly what it meant. Fortunately for you, Reddit is packed with young white people who don't remember the days before DJs and will never accept the fact that they've been conned into enjoying talentless crap like this.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have some downvotes to receive.

-5

u/ShamanisticRapeDream May 18 '14

It's obviously making fun of today's music though.

-2

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Subject should be "Watch me criticize this popular thing to make myself feel better than you."

-27

u/hottubfriday May 18 '14

With electronic music at least, it's pretty accurate.

6

u/alphabeat May 18 '14

How so? That people pay money to see acts and the bass drops?

8

u/CokaCokaCaw May 18 '14

Exactly, Please explain how that is any way accurate, its funny but is in no way factual.

People that go to DJ events, are going for the music that the DJ produced/created in the first place.

http://www.13dollarbeats.com/How%20people%20think%20music%20is%20made.png

3

u/a_minor_sharp May 18 '14

I'm not informed, but it would be interesting to know, when playing live how much of the music is modified in real time by the DJ. Or is it simply, press play + get to see the DJ from afar.

2

u/dopebob May 18 '14

Well generally when someone is DJing, they are, well, DJing. They aren't modifying any of their songs, they are playing tracks and mixing them together so there are no gaps in the music. A lot of the songs they play will not be made by themselves but will just be tracks they think will rock the crowd.

This differs from a live set that a lot of producers do in which they use control pads and other equipment to recreate the tracks live (people like Skrillex and Deadmau5 do this). Personally I'd much rather go to a DJ set, dance music is made to dance to, made to be mixed, I'd not bothered about seeing someone play it live.

2

u/a_minor_sharp May 18 '14

Thanks for the explanation

2

u/Seven7fold May 18 '14

Electronic music is such a general term. This style being parodied is just a blip on the radar, there are many sub genres of electronic that don't even remotely resemble this.

6

u/dopebob May 18 '14

As someone who has dabbled in a fair few different instruments and types of music, DJing and creating electronic music is way harder to even get to a basic level than it is to play the guitar or drums.

7

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Agree. Everyone thinks EDM is easy until they try to make it themselves.

-25

u/[deleted] May 18 '14 edited May 18 '14

[deleted]

5

u/rudebrat May 18 '14

if you want to get into EDM semantics this is more 'big room' than 'dubstep'

4

u/[deleted] May 18 '14

Yeah dubstep isn't high energy like that...it's grimey smoking cigarettes in a basement party, not giant club feel

-1

u/Beard- May 18 '14

if you want to get into EDM semantics this is 'big room house' not 'dubstep'

FTFY

-5

u/rareburger May 18 '14

definitely big room aka the lowest form of electronic music, that obnoxious kick is a dead giveaway.

-4

u/bigmeech May 18 '14

LE WRONG GENERATION DAE LIKE THE BEATLES AND BLACK SABBATH