the theory: originally, record production was owned and run by older people who weren’t ‘hip’ to the tastes of the consumer public. during this period there was more experimental freedom given to artists; when a band appeared with a demo tape, the production owner was willing to give the music a chance and sign the band… because he had no idea what the consumer public didn’t like. this period existed before rigid trends developed among the different genres. then, a younger generation began to own and run these production companies… and with this happened a significant narrowing of experimental freedom for artists. instead of taking a risk in producing an unfamiliar kind of music (as older owners did), they looked explicitly for a specific and predictable sound that was similar enough to what was already popular. and thus began the trend of drawing rigid lines between genres and following formulas.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xP4wsURn3rw[/youtube]
@3:15. on the musical illiteracy of the consumer public (a condition fostered by the invention of the ‘music video’).
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdncUKMFPiI[/youtube]
we notice this now, especially, in modern music video; the emphasis on theatrics, histrionics, costume, dancing and stage performance rather than the music itself.