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Has the Music Industry Gone Folking Crazy?


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Old 06-12-2013, 09:45
Staunchy
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Is it me or has anyone else noticed that after the success of Mumford and Sons and other people/bands who have been performing in that genre for years, it seems that the folk sound is being adapted by quite a few. Gary Barlow and James Blunt trying to get back in favour by changing their sound I can understand, but there are areas I wouldn't expect to hear it like the new One Direction song or even Avicii's Wake Me Up.

Or as I said, is it just me?
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Old 06-12-2013, 12:15
shankly123
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It's not really folk though is it? It's just a few bands having success who happen to play acoutic guitars and the odd banjo.

On the plus side, if their success leads people into looking at bands like Show of Hands, Lau and Oysterband or solo artists like Emily Portman, Bella Hardy or Martin Simpson it can only be a good thing. British folk music at the moment is full of excellent young performers who deserve to be heard, so if you like the Mumfords, find out where thet got their inspiration.
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Old 06-12-2013, 13:31
starsailor
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It's very very Radio friendly stuff. One Direction is being played lot on Radio 2, and even Avicii is. It gives you maximum exposure, and reaches artists out of their traditional fan bases.

It just seems to be the in-sound at the moment.
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Old 06-12-2013, 13:52
Smudged
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Is it me or has anyone else noticed that after the success of Mumford and Sons and other people/bands who have been performing in that genre for years, it seems that the folk sound is being adapted by quite a few. Gary Barlow and James Blunt trying to get back in favour by changing their sound I can understand, but there are areas I wouldn't expect to hear it like the new One Direction song or even Avicii's Wake Me Up.

Or as I said, is it just me?
It's not just you. It's clearly a deliberate move to tap into a sound that's been popular in the last year or two. I suppose that's what happens when you're trying to write a hit; you copy elements from other popular songs of the time. I'm not sure how long the trend will last, it feels a little old already to me now that Mumford and Sons have had their success with it.

I've seen articles talking about how acoustic guitar sales are high at the moment and how record labels are looking for the next Ben Howard or Jake Bugg. You can see this a bit with George Ezra and Luke Sital-Singh on the BBC Sound Of list. Again, I'm not sure how much of a trend this will be. The BBC list doesn't really hint at an obvious trend, other than it doesn't look like bands are coming back into fashion any time soon.


It's not really folk though is it? It's just a few bands having success who happen to play acoutic guitars and the odd banjo.

On the plus side, if their success leads people into looking at bands like Show of Hands, Lau and Oysterband or solo artists like Emily Portman, Bella Hardy or Martin Simpson it can only be a good thing. British folk music at the moment is full of excellent young performers who deserve to be heard, so if you like the Mumfords, find out where thet got their inspiration.
Well, it is a type of folk but not the type of traditional English folk you're thinking of (which will never be popular as it sounds too old fashioned to most people). The influences are more American for bands like Mumford and Sons with elements of bluegrass and country as well as folk. When I first heard them they reminded me of American bands like The Avett Brothers and The Builders and The Butchers. Probably why they went down so well in America.
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Old 06-12-2013, 13:58
annushka
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I think it's a lovely trend, a welcome change from all the dance music (or is it called electro?) that had been dominating for so long.
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Old 06-12-2013, 14:08
TheTruth1983
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It's all very middle class and radio friendly. I'm not a fan.
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Old 06-12-2013, 23:36
cnbcwatcher
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It's all very middle class and radio friendly. I'm not a fan.
Neither am I. I find it really boring.
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Old 06-12-2013, 23:37
TheTruth1983
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Neither am I. I find it really boring.
Give me a batshit crazy Metal band any day
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Old 07-12-2013, 01:24
Electra
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Give me a batshit crazy Metal band any day
What about a batshit crazy Folk Metal band?
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Old 07-12-2013, 01:27
TheTruth1983
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What about a batshit crazy Folk Metal band?
As long as they are batshit crazy
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Old 07-12-2013, 01:27
Electra
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Old 07-12-2013, 01:36
TheTruth1983
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I would call that batshit crazy
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Old 07-12-2013, 01:51
Electra
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Old 07-12-2013, 04:33
Eric_Blob
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It was a good idea on Avicii's part, since it gave his song huge crossover appeal for radio. It hurt his rhythmic airplay a bit, but it also got him extra airplay on AAA, alternative, HAC and AC formats, that he probably wouldn't get normally.

The dance-pop music that Avicii used to do isn't having as much success anymore, so it's good for him to change it up a bit.
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Old 08-12-2013, 09:19
mrkite77
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What about a batshit crazy Folk Metal band?
Rodrigo y Gabriela used to be in a metal band in mexico, but switched to classical guitars when they went to busk in ireland. They still have metal chops though, and will break out things like this cover of Metallica's Orion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ynsTWpl9Ng


or you want something totally insane: Hayseed Dixie is a bluegrass band that started as an AC/DC tribute band.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pST4tHrc6Q4
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Old 08-12-2013, 11:31
Mystic Dave
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Nah, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R61JQjbzkw (bat being most apposite). As someone wrote in the comments: Loaf plus a lorry = lots of bikes.

Look through the favourite videos thread and you will soon appreciate what is missing today.
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Old 08-12-2013, 12:14
CLL Dodge
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Trend followers always outnumber trend setters.
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Old 01-01-2014, 17:44
radio-rover
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Check out this thread if you want to hear some folk on the radio

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1924885
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Old 01-01-2014, 18:16
mgvsmith
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Is it me or has anyone else noticed that after the success of Mumford and Sons and other people/bands who have been performing in that genre for years, it seems that the folk sound is being adapted by quite a few. Gary Barlow and James Blunt trying to get back in favour by changing their sound I can understand, but there are areas I wouldn't expect to hear it like the new One Direction song or even Avicii's Wake Me Up.

Or as I said, is it just me?
I thought the Avicii stuff was a reasonably good folk song interrupted by a lot of daft computer babble.
Here's the Irish version played by proper musicians and it's just as danceable.
Avicii v Lurgan - Wake me Up

And it proves a general point that people like Avicii are non-musicians and the idea of 'authorship' is a very broad one!

It sounds like the Irish combine folk and metal even - Mael Mordha - Intro and Cluain Tarbh
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Old 01-01-2014, 22:14
bornfree
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It's very very Radio friendly stuff. One Direction is being played lot on Radio 2, and even Avicii is. It gives you maximum exposure, and reaches artists out of their traditional fan bases.

It just seems to be the in-sound at the moment.
I was singing away to 1D and didn't even realise it was them.
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Old 02-01-2014, 01:47
Electra
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I thought the Avicii stuff was a reasonably good folk song interrupted by a lot of daft computer babble.
Here's the Irish version played by proper musicians and it's just as danceable.
Avicii v Lurgan - Wake me Up

And it proves a general point that people like Avicii are non-musicians and the idea of 'authorship' is a very broad one!

It sounds like the Irish combine folk and metal even - Mael Mordha - Intro and Cluain Tarbh
I love Mael Mordha! Saw them at Bloodstock & they were immense live. Although they have some folky elements, mostly due to the tin whistle, their genre is usually referred to as Celtic Doom Metal.
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Old 02-01-2014, 02:14
boddism
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Is it me or has anyone else noticed that after the success of Mumford and Sons and other people/bands who have been performing in that genre for years, it seems that the folk sound is being adapted by quite a few. Gary Barlow and James Blunt trying to get back in favour by changing their sound I can understand, but there are areas I wouldn't expect to hear it like the new One Direction song or even Avicii's Wake Me Up.

Or as I said, is it just me?
I hate folk music.

It can "folk off" IMO
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Old 02-01-2014, 13:52
Electra
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I hate folk music.

It can "folk off" IMO
I'm not keen on folk by itself but it can sound great when it's mixed with something else.
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Old 02-01-2014, 14:15
Gigi4
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I'm not keen on folk by itself but it can sound great when it's mixed with something else.
Absolutely. One of my favourite artists is Beth Orton who mixes acoustic guitars with electronic beats. But I do find straight folk where it's just a stripped down acoustic guitar with nothing else rather dull.
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Old 02-01-2014, 14:34
shankly123
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Maybe it's just me being a 'purist' but folk music isn't simply acoustic guitars, nor are acoustic guitars necessarily folk music. I would define folk music as music deriving from a folk tradition, be it a country or an ethnic grouping - English Folk has its own roots, quite distinct from Irish folk or Scottish Folk, but it can be heard in the music played by artists from that tradition, even if playing songs written themselves. English bands like Bellowhead couldn't be further from the 'single acoustic guitar' image of folk and there are similar variations in all folk music - there are even brilliant folk-metal bands from Scandanavia like Korpiklaani or Turisas.
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