Post #168938 by donhonyc on Thu, Jun 30, 2005 10:28 AM

Martiki-

Not to rain on your parade about the 80s, but there WAS alot of crap in that decade. In fact it was the decade that forced bands and artists to conform with the dawning of the 'polished image' (for lack of a better term) thanks to MTV, and definitely galvanized musical 'Crap' as a marketable commodity, paving the way for the sea of musical CRAP we live in today. Ask any popular band or industry person where they got their chops to make the CRAP they make today, and they'll say it all started in the 80s. Back then major label bands that had previously been, in my opinion, riding a crest of rock n roll greatness like for example Cheap Trick, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and others started to go south in the 80s with over-slick production and power ballads.

On the other hand you are totally right! The 80s was one of the last great eras of the underground. SST, Alternative Tentacles, Megaforce, Enigma and all the other labels and bands you used to find in the 'Import' sections (remember those) of your favorite record store. Black Flag, DKs, (early) Metallica, etc. My god...The Minutemen!! U2...they were awesome back then, and even though they've had a few minor hitches over the years, they still are.That kind of ethic really doesn't exist among young people or in the music anymore. It probably never will again. So I would say for 80s the musical highs were pretty high, but the lows were waaaaay low. But hey...anyting is better than the pop music...er....CRAP.... that is out there today, that's fer sure.