I was flamed today. And I deserved it.
A couple weeks ago, I made a post about Celtic Thunder. It's a new… let's say, show, because it's not really a band. It's a lot like Celtic Women, and I admit, I'm not a huge fan of theirs. So when I saw this latest… addition… to the Celtic music world, I was bit disappointed. Actually, that's not even it. There are two reasons why I didn't care for what I heard from Celtic Thunder: one, the production; and two, jealousy.
Before I get into the mundane human aspect, let me point out a common gripe that I made in my last post–production. I admit it, I can't stand the way music is produced these days. It's all about how much compression you can put on the music. Screw dynamics. Let's put it ‘in your face'.
For instance, ever listen to classical music on the radio in your car? You'll notice sometimes you can barely hear the music over the road sounds. That's because the music has dynamics. Whereas on Top 40 radio, EVERYTHING is smacking you in the face, because there are no dynamics. Every instrument or vocal is as loud as everything else. It's like the trash compactor on the Death Star. “Were all gonna be a lot thinner.”
Contemporary Celtic music, like much of the music industry is moving more and more towards over-production. Yes, I have no doubt that Phil Coulter and Sharon Browne are producing an amazing and even dynamic performance with Celtic Thunder and anything else they work on. It's even nice to see that the show includes contemporary Celtic songwriting from folks. But the production… the “forced” emotional appeal reminds me of… well George Lucas… or… no… Mel Gibson's movies. The Patriot and The Passion of Christ had a very fake “force” appeal to make you start sniffing. I enjoyed aspects of them, but not the sniffery. Watching the videos of Celtic Thunder on YouTube made me gag at the same inane tactics.
So when I posted “Celtic Karaoke… uh… I mean Celtic Thunder”, I admit I was highly annoyed at the concept of another pop music extravaganza, setting on my preferred musical genre-Celtic music.
Yes, when I watched those videos on YouTube, I did see voices out of sync with the video. It is very likely that was an error in the conversion. The band probably is not lip syncing (or is it? I don't know). But annoyance with another pop icon and as I said jealousy made me post that vicious attack. You see, I am only human.
I wish it were me… well, not exactly. But I do wish I had someone to push my own music to insta-success like these artists received. Despite R. Turner's claims that “Each one is a recording artist and performer in his own right”, only one of the individuals in the group seems to have had any prior attempt at a music career. Instead, they are entertainers, launched to the top of the Celtic music scene by people with money.
That's the way of it though. How do you make a hit record? You throw lots of money into it's creation and promotion. The more you have, the better it will do. It's just like politics and, well, most things. But when you have to scratch and claw your way to the top, it's tough. It's not like any of those artists are any better than 90% of the bands I play in the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. They aren't. Celtic Thunder just has more money behind it. And it could be Heather Dale, Mactalla Mor, Sligo Rags, Ceann, Athas, Kennedy's Kitchen, Bow Triplets, Boston Blackthorne, or whomever. You put enough cash behind them and they will rock the casbah.
As several people posted in a cross-post, I should commend the show. They are putting Celtic music into the limelight. I might not be able to stand the pomp, but someone else might love it. It's a fantasy. And with any luck they'll find that the latest Celtic Whatever production is just the tip of the iceberg and find new passion in this musical genre I love.
So for my last vicious statement, I apologize. My only defense is I'm human…
Really not much of a defense, is it?
