The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
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The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
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Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#2This is really interesting question. Outside of hip-hop I listen to the instruments far more than the vocals. Even with hip-hop though I'm very much listening to the production but the vocals are clearly the star most of the time.
My favorite instrumentalist right now is Mary Halvorson.
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#3To be fair, Polyphia is a great band and Tim Henson still a star instrumentalist...
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#4Buckethead is my favorite instrumentalist. He's not a Jazz musician though.
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#5This is really interesting question. Outside of hip-hop I listen to the instruments far more than the vocals. Even with hip-hop though I'm very much listening to the production but the vocals are clearly the star most of the time. My favorite instrumentalist right now is Mary Halvorson.
It's very genre dependent. Mary Halvorson, for instance, is a great pick, but jazz is, and likely always will be, about individual musicians. Especially be-bop and bop oriented jazz where virtuosity is highly prized. Even when they form groups, the focus is on the interplay of the individual players. Halvorson is rather interesting as she is considered a great guitarist and a great composer.
The same is often true in rock and metal (especially the more extreme variants). The solo and the riff are very highly prized. Fans will follow individual instrumentalists across bands, and the "selling point" of one band will often be the mixture of the instrumentalists. A recent example is the revamped Gorguts lineup, which is a really a superstar line-up of avantgarde-esque metal musicians. Featured solos are still common. Vocals, when screamed, are often seen more as percussion or rhythmic texture rather than the centerpiece of the music. In metal, instrumental acts are still quite common and popular (obviously relative, pop music still dominates the charts).
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#6Oneohtrix
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#7If I had to name one it would be the violinist Vanessa Mae, but I think DJ's have replaced bands and musicians in many ways and have certainly added value to the original work, which ironically is a copyright nightmare.
I wouldnt listen to this original soundtrack/song,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N_ucgihNzk&ab_channel=fdsvf...
But I'd listen to these upgrades.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vmbSXKNJ14&ab_channel=morte...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vak9wUPkL3Q&ab_channel=Hillt...
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#8Tigran Hamasyan, Animals as Leaders, and Plini are musicians I listen to almost everyday.
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#9I don't know if these anecdotes prove anything, but two of my favorites, Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, had popular instrumentals in the late 80s/early 90s.
And one of my non-favorites, Kenny G, is one of the best-selling artists of all time, more than 75 million records.
Re: The decline and fall of the hit instrumental song
#10To be fair, Polyphia is a great band and Tim Henson still a star instrumentalist...
Yes, I was surprised to find no mention of Polyphia, even to dismiss it. Are they not as popular as I thought?