I simply don't get it.

Yesterday something very strange yet interesting happened to me. My friend asked me if I wanted to see the popular folk/blue-grass group "Mumford and Sons" on the their upcoming arena tour when they came around the area. Now, I have listened to both of their albums "Sigh No More" and the newly released "Babel". My honest opinion is that their music is pretty good, not much more and not anything very special. So I agreed because I thought maybe I would enjoy it, I then asked how much the tickets would be and he replied with "$200".

 TWO-HUNDRED DOLLARS. You did read that right. Two hundred dollars for a Mumford & Sons show with normal seats. I immediately declined after this because I realized it was absurd to pay that much money for a band that I really wasn't in love with by any means. The friend who offered is a huge fan of Mumford and he isn't alone, a lot of people (mostly girls but whatever) are HUGE fans of this band. Which caused me to wonder? What is the big deal with these guys? I mean their music is alright but at the same time it's very clean-cut and "safe". By safe I mean that I really haven't seen Mumford & Sons stray away from the style they originally embraced AT ALL. The passion displayed by their fans is incredible. I was hearing people call Babel "album of the year" and even a slightly more ignorant peer of mine call it "album of the decade."  Well, I just don't see it. The only thing I do see is that only the hardcore fans of Mumford and Sons consider them great when in reality they are rather average.

Mumford and Sons

I don't know maybe I'm just being an asshole for lowering my opinion of a musical artist just because of their obsessive fan base, but then again maybe I'm not. So I simply pose the larger question: Is it okay to like a band/artist more than the music they put out?

I have to naturally say no. I mean that's the reason you like bands in the first place right? Because of the music they put out. One example that I can relate to is the band Green Day. I loved the earlier stuff Green Day put out like Kerplunk, Nimrod, Warning, and especially Dookie. I even enjoyed the new style in "American Idiot". However, I hated the album "21st Century Breakdown" with every fiber of my being, and I wasn't too high on "Uno!" which released a few months ago (Although a few songs were very good). No matter how much I try, I can't enjoy these albums so now I don't like Green Day as much. I am however, optimistic about the rest of this album trilogy from Green day.

The main point is that I am no longer a fan of Green Day because they put out music that I didn't find interesting or intriguing. AND THAT'S THE POINT. They are musicians, not pop-culture icons. You can look up to musicians of course, but the material and art they release should definitely come first.

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On a seperate note, totally unrelated to this post. I am thinking about maybe reviewing some albums as several new records are beginning to release around this time that I am interested in. Some of these include the new Aerosmith album, Soundgarden's new full length LP, and obviously "Dos" from Green Day. So anyone who actually reads this (I'm not entirely sure), be on the look out for that.