The Wilhelm Scream

Oh god here we go again. More dreary repetitive nonsense from Blake. What utter garbage, he must be laughing his ass off at people buying this crap. People who like this guy are like art critics standing in front of a Jackson Pollock trying to make out how deep and meaningful it is. It's not, I could knock up some random lyrics, repeat them 20 times and add some plinky plonky beats in the background on my Bomtempi organ when I was 5. Pretentious fools.

Come on MrFog, the beauty of music comes from within. If we perceive beauty and meaning from James Blake's songs, it's just as real as any objective aesthetic beauty or complex musical theory with deep meaningful lyrics.<br /> <br /> Have you been listening on a radio or headphones/earbuds? A lot of Blake's work is below the perceptual limit of speakers.<br /> <br /> I think James Blake puts intense emotion in every calculated line of each sound. Even if he's just producing a bunch of garbage, if it means something to people who see something in his music, that is just as meaningful as the enjoyment you may get out of analyzing and criticizing music. We're all in the listening music game to enjoy ourselves, but we don't all look at each part. Actually, one of the things i like about Blake is how minimal and simple some rhythms are. I don't know a lot of music theory, but it's easy for me to understand his work. I think he puts soul into every note, but if you don't hear it, you don't hear it. Just move onto the next thing that catches your ear.<br /> <br /> Man.

I honestly know where you are coming from, I really do but it's as if there is no effort or technical ability is his songs. The first lines I will grant you are always good but then he just repeats and repeats. It's the same with Limit to your Love. I'm all for good slow songs but in order to convey these feelings you have to vary the lyrics and music to match the ups and downs that such emotions convey. Therefore the only conclusion I can come to with Blake's music is that it is over rated, empty and lazy.

Funnily enough, it's always the people preaching about how a song is 'bad', 'overrated' or whatever degrading adjective you can think of that tend to talk about pretentiousness.<br /> <br /> I couldn't care less if it's a monkey drumming without any knowledge whatsoever or a commonly acclaimed musician that's studied music theory and has been engaged in the business for 20 years as long as I get enjoyment out of these songs.<br /> <br /> It seems some people need to get over their objectivity complex.

What on earth are you talking about? This is a forum for discussing songs and I have expressed my opinion. Objectivity complex? First of all the word objectivity does not mean what you think it means and secondly if I don't like something I will say so and we can all have a frank discussion on why our opinions differ. That's why this is a forum site. I'll let you get back to your monkey drumming now.

While I disagree with On_and_on's original post, I am leaning towards thinking that MrFog is a troll by his very nature. I'm not taking any of this all too seriously, but I do think there is a lot of technical ability and a lot of thought gone into the James Blake's music. I created an account just so I could comment on this.<br /> <br /> If we learn from Oscar Wilde's preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray, the point of all art is to conceal the artist and reveal the observer. Therefore art is only there to reveal parts of those who consume to those individual parties. This in mind, if this music evokes a great deal of emotion with people, or some emotion with a great deal of people, then surely it is good art.<br /> <br /> In terms of technical ability, the harmonies in I Never Learned To Share blow my mind. I WISH I could harmonise like that, or even write beautiful and haunting harmonies like that.<br /> <br /> When it comes to the meaning of the song, I don't feel On_and_on quite has it. There's a heaviness to the music and the lyrics which speaks to me as implying that the guy's fighting a never-ending battle and he is finally unable to go on; he just doesn't have the will power in him anymore to continue and so he ultimately surrenders entirely. It has a certain sense of exhaustion to it. I think if we mix what on_and_on has said with what I've said, that would illustrate what I take away from the song.<br /> <br /> What I find interesting is the title. The Wilhelm Scream is a stock sound byte that was original used in the movie Distant Drums in 1951 and was then recycled over and over in action films whenever someone got shot with an arrow or gun. Perhaps he's used this as a sort of dark and obscure bit of humour, as if to say, 'Oh great, here we go again'. And perhaps to say that he is being shot, perhaps by cupid's arrow... yet again and is apprehensive, as everyone relationship before has ended so, so badly.

Sorry, one other thing. Objectivity complex?<br /> <br /> How can someone have an objectivity complex about something that is subjective?

mrmarionette I just logged on to rate your comments +

Mr. Frog, stop trolling on all the James Blake songs. You don't like him...we get it