On Fri, 16 Apr 1999, William F. Silvers forwarded this:
> Here's a clip from Scott Miller, of Game Theory/Loud Family anonymity,
> that doesn't exactly speak for me, but says it well:
>
> > The Posies probably shape my ongoing impression of '90s music more
> > than any other group. I loved Nirvana, but to me most grunge bands
> > seemed kind of purposefully backward-looking--a cross between early
> > seventies Black Sabbath and mid-eighties abrasive hardcore stuff like
> > Big Black. And nothing like "low-fi" or "electronica" or any of the
> > hip-hop variations has struck my ears as being new and innovative.
OK, that does it. Power pop has to be one of the most retrogressive rock
styles imaginable. Most power pop bands pale in comparison to the old
bands they obviously emulate and most often rip-off, the Beatles, Big
Star, etc. It doesn't surprise me that popheads like Scott Miller can't
find anything new or innovative in hip hop, or in much anything else it
seems besides his own little musical world. What's most hilarious is that
*real* pop music left him in the dust decades ago. That's 'cuz -- unlike
power poppers -- most folks have no problem appreciating modern black
music. Jeez, talk about an insular musical universe -- most popheads act
like black music doesn't even exist, or if it does, it's certainly not as
"new and innovative" as their pasty-white Beatles imitations. Whatta
buncha self-deluded nonsense. Hell, at least the Beatles knew that pop
also encompassed black music (one important point that passes most power
poppers by). And compared to the ultra-lilywhiteness of the power pop
world, country music looks almost culturally adventurous with its bluesy
borrowings. As for the Posies, we always thought they were a buncha
wussies up here in the NW, even when they pretended to "rock."--don
