[karkus30]

Thought I had posted this already

Interesting that the roots of most popular music seem based around the USA (for blues, jazz and country), with a smattering from Ireland and Scotland.

The rest of Europe seems to be a barren area for typical influences except perhaps Spain.

Europe was responsible for a lot of the major symphonies, but simple roots music seems very limited and very boring at best.

Why is Europe a cultural wasteland for these typical influencial styles.

I have no answers, just interested in finding alternative roots music, any ideas??

Originally posted by karkus30
The rest of Europe seems to be a barren area for typical influences except perhaps Spain.

I think you're forgetting one thing - Yodelling. Perhaps the greatest musical gift mankind has ever recieved.

Seriously though, most of the musical styles mentioned were probably born of the black slaves' singing, especially blues which probably set out where rock went. At the end of the day, it all stems from the same place, like we do. the thing about America is it's a big melting pot for all ethnicities and races because loads of different europeans colonized it and brought slaves from africa and then invited the asians over (or so I remeber it) and as such is probably one of the most culturally diverse places on earth (or was a the time) and we all know what happens when you mix stuff together... sometimes it goes bang but sometimes you get a new thing which is more than the sum of it's parts.

[Dimmy]

I agree, most european music these days is a mess. With no grasp of where it's going and no idea where it's been.

[karkus30]

There are some schools of thought that indicate Blues music is of european origin. As Gambit rightly says, it is attributed to the black slave culture, but the roots of the music do not seem based around typical ethnic styles like African music.

USA is a melting pot, but surely all these styles have identities.

Yeah, but new styles are born of mixing and combining old styles. It's more or less imposible for artist to do something completely original these days - "oh, x sounds like z" is a common phrase because lots of music sounds like other music. It's finding which ever artist does it best that's the challenge. Ocassionally new genre's are added, but they are morte often than not mixtures of two or more of the older styles like Nu-metal was.

[dunkyboy]

I would say electronic/dance music was originally, and still is, a very European thing. That's not to say there weren't and aren't any influencial American (and Asian) electronic musicians (not true at all), but it's at least partially a European thing, rather than purely American.

That said, I wholeheartedly agree with the melting pot idea. It isn't just America that benefits from a swirling mix of cultures - I lived for 9 years in Brazil, where African slave cultures mixed liberally with native Indian and immigrant European (both Iberian and elsewhere) cultures, and the result is some of the best music in the world.

Brazilians are also particularly good at adopting American musical styles and making them their own - Brazilian rock, rap, jazz, and country are all quite distinct from their American counterparts, and very good in their own right.

Cheers,

Dunc

[karkus30]

Brazilian rock ?? sounds interesting, any particular groups?

[Dapper Dan]

Havn't you heard of Sepultura? Mixing many rhythms and styles, from metal to native(south american) indian. Try 'Nation' & 'Roots' for something totally unique!

[karkus30]

Sepultura, I always thought they were a naff doom metal band

So now you get me thinking, I pick up my Great Discography book and theres two albums rated as 9/10 which are Roots and Remains. Thats pretty good going, so now I will have to sample it.

Thanks for the tip, its great being directed towards bands that I have never thought of listening to. Bank balance never agreees though

[dunkyboy]

Mm, Sepultura is the obvious example, but there's loads of great Brazilian bands that just don't get any exposure outside of Brazil. One favourite is a band called Legiao Urbana ("Urban Legion"), though their quality is pretty dependent on the quality of the lyrics so unless you speak Portuguese I don't know how much you'll get out of it. That said, go on Kazaa and download some of their acoustic songs - they did an absolutely brilliant MTV Unplugged session with most of the acoustic versions being better than the originals by a fair margin. I would recommend doing a search for "legiao acustico" and downloading anything that comes up. Specific recommendations include "Indios", "Pais e Filhos", "Teatro Dos Vampiros", "Hoje A Noite Nao Tem Luar", "Eu Sei"

One of my favourite Brazilian bands is one called Skank (seriously ). Their music is a very cool mixture of rock, ska, reggae, and Brazilian beats - it's just so addictive and energetic. Download some of the following: "Partida de Futebol", "Garota Nacional", "Jackie Tequila", "Te Ver", "Tao Seu", "Resposta", "E Proibida Fumar", "Estivador", "Indignacao", "Esmola", "Eu Disse A Ela".

Another good band is the Paralamas do Sucesso ("Mudflaps of Success" ), with favourite songs including "Uma Brasileira", "Tendo A Lua", "O Amor Nao Sabe Esperar", "Trac Trac", "Lanterna dos Afogados", and "Lourinha Bombril", as well as the amazing live rendition of "Meu Erro" with Zizi Possi.

If you want something a bit more tongue-in-cheek (though I don't know how well the humour will come across to a non-Portuguese speaker...), try the Mamonas Assassinas (which basically translates to "Big Killer Boobs"). Especially "Vira Vira", "Bois Don't Cry", and "Pelados Em Santos". Great stuff.

Anyway, that should get you started. Unfortunately I don't have nearly as much experience with Brazilian music as I'd like. Trust me when I say this is just the tip of the iceberg and I'm still trying to discover more.

Cheers,

Dunc

P.S. - If you want recommendations for some more laid-back, or at least non-rock Brazilian music, let me know.