Far from it, just making a suggestion so there aren't numerous duplicate threads. Most forums even suggest looking first so there isn't a plethora of similar threads. Some people refer to it as "netiquette". I refer to it as common sense.

Perhaps but there's also good ol' word of mouth. As I've mentioned I still hear about plenty of artists via friends and relatives that are well worth checking out. Prior to the internet I heard about lots of good music that way and still do. Besides, if someone cares enough about actually seeking out music they may like there's also the options of the internet, satellite radio, progressive and college stations (provided they're lucky enough to have one in their town) but those aren't the only means of doing those.

How is any of what I've had to say about the current state of rock n' roll "bullshit"? This coming from someone that flatout even refuses to listen to it.

Other than the new songs they debuted during the "working rehearsals" in Dublin over the summer and Supernatural Superserious, I haven't heard anything from it but the new R.E.M. album Accelerate sounds pretty good to my ears. Other than that, I don't really need to hear anything from so-called "major" artists to be moved by music. Once commercial radio went downhill in the early to mid-90s (at least in my neck of the woods) I began listening more and more to stuff that would never stand a chance on commercial radio.

Like I said, I'm no fan of rap and hip hop, I was merely speaking to it's validity as a form of music. As for Page and Puff Diddley I was just using him as an example of one of many "rock" artists who have embraced rap, I wasn't trying to say their collaboration was an indication of rap at it's peak.

Not to be rude but if you've been paying any attention at all to this thread you'd see where I've mentioned where and how I'm being turned onto new music, not just now but ever since I started listening to music period. Well, I certainly wouldn't recommend the likes of Nickelback or 3 Doors Down but there's plenty of people out there who like them. Again, just not my cup of tea. I'd liken them to the Bostons, REO Speedwagons, Kansas', Foreigners, etc. of the past. As for Pearl Jam, they're one of my favorites and I would most definitely put them up there with my favorite bands of any time period, not just the 70s.

Highly recommended viewing if you ever get a chance to see it:

Speaking of which, take a look at No Depression magazine's website. They may have gone out of publication as a print medium but the editors are already asking for suggestions on how to improve their website. Take a look at the blogs of co-editors Grant Alden and Peter Blackstock: http://www.nodepression.net

Bullshit. I'm no fan of Hip Hop or Rap but they're perfectly valid forms of music, they're just not my particular taste. Remember, many of the same criticisms leveled at rock n' roll are the very same ones the small minded place on Rap and Hip Hop. Look back at the early days of rock n' roll when people were burning records, saying they were detrimental to society and youth and Elvis could only be shown from the waist up on TV. Oh, and my favorite: "Rock n' Roll is just a fad". People were saying the same thing about Rap and Hip-Hop back in the 80s but it's done nothing but grow since then. Hell, even artists such as Rush and Jimmy Page (gasp!) have embraced it.

...or, as famed singer/songwriter Townes Van Zandt (best known for the song Poncho and Lefty, made famous by Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard) was often quoted as saying, "There are two kinds of songs: blues and zippity do dah."

I'll be tuning into Border Radio hosted by Rick Cornell on Duke's WXDU tonight at 8 pm, here's a sample playlist from a few weekends ago along with the link so you can listen online if so inclined. It's followed by the very excellent Soul City, also hosted by Rick. http://www.wxdu.org/listen Border Radio - WXDU 88.7, Durham, NC Saturday nights 8-9 February 16, 2008 Tonight's show sponsored by Copper Hook, a new seasonal offering from Red Hook. Sometime when you have absolutely nothing better to do, I'll tell you my story about touring the Red Hook brewery in Seattle.... * A Wreck of a Man - Arty Hill and the Long Gone Daddys - Bar of Gold * Ol' What's Her Name - Dave Insley - West Texas Wine * Broken Heart with Alimony - Buck Griffin - Frank's Best (homemade mix--thanks, Andy T.) * I Hope You're Happy - Jim Lauderdale & the Dream Players - Honey Songs * Heaven Sent - The SteelDrivers - The SteelDrivers <Good ol' pure country. Baltimore's Arty Hill carried the Jason Ringenberg stamp of approval. Among Jim Lauderdale's--excuse me, make that *Grammy Award-winning* Jim Lauderdale (congrats, Mr. Lauderdale and Yep Roc)--Dream Players are James Burton and Al Perkins.> * Be with You - Tim Krekel Orchestra - Soul Season * Bottom of My Bottle - David Childers and the Modern Don Juans * Playing for Keeps - Beaver Nelson - Little Brother * Sugarbowl - Kelly Hogan - Because It Feel Good * Cry Like a Baby - Hacienda Brothers - Music for Ranch & Town <A set of soul-ish country- and roots-rock. This is the kind of thing that only liner-notes scholars give a rat's ass about, but "Be with You" was cowritten by Tim Krekel and the SteelDrivers' (see previous set) Chris Stapleton. Beaver Nelson was by request. And like most of the world, I have a crush on Kelly Hogan. It's that voice *and* that sense of humor.> * Coney Island Heart - Tom Laverack - Cave Drawings * Back in the High Life Again - Warren Zevon - Life'll Kill Ya * Slaves of Gravity - Ronny Elliott - Jalopypaint * Half a Man - Will Kimbrough - (EP) <I don't know, these songs just seemed to fit together for no apparent reason...> * A Woman Left Lonely - Cat Power - Jukebox

I witnessed one of my favorite stations go from one that was very instrumental in breaking local and regional artists to one that no longer played any new music, local or otherwise. That's a problem that's presently plaguing radio stations nationwide, thus we have musicians such as Tift Merritt and Mike Mills of R.E.M. speaking to Congress about returning localization to our airwaves. I'm fortunate enough to live in an area that has a very vibrant music scene. Back in the 70s and 80s it wasn't unusual to hear local artists on the local airwaves. Now, they don't stand a snowball's chance in hell at airplay. Thankfully there's still college radio and stations such as KGSR out of Austin and KEXP out of Seatlle that aren't afraid to play artists outside of the norm that you'd never hear on Clear Channel controlled radio stations. Thanks to the internet those stations (as well as many others) are just a mouse click away.

Point taken but I don't even look at "Classic Rock" as a time period, only as a radio format. I say this because I've heard such "alternative" artists as R.E.M., U2 and others on so-called "Classic Rock" stations which just goes to show that term has no clear definition. Hell, a few years ago radio programmers even came up with a format called "Classic Alternative" as if to confuse matters even more. In regards to my posts, thanks. I've discovered some of my favorite artists due to word of mouth from relatives, friends, etc. With the internet, that way of spreading the word about music that moves us got a whole lot bigger.

Agreed. Even back in the 70s when Zep, Sabbath and others were all over the radio that didn't stop me from listening to artists my older siblings and friends were into. I would have never heard John Prine, Jerry Jeff Walker, Steve Goodman, Goose Creek Symphony, Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, New Riders of the Purple Sage, etc. on the radio. Perhaps in very limited quantities on "progressive" minded stations but not in some sort of commercial sense like the other artists of the time. Same thing when the the 80s rolled around. Eventually R.E.M., U2, the Cure, the Alarm and many others eventually found a way onto the radio but it didn't start that way. It started with college radio programmers taking a chance on those bands. Same with reggae back then. It may have received some airplay but in most places (particularly where I grew up) it was pretty limited. It was a type of music you had to seek out on your own. The same held true in the 90s and in the 00s today. I'm really not so sure what's so hard about it. I know of many music fans like myself that have no trouble whatsoever seeking out new music. That's why I say I find it so hard to imagine someone confining themselves to just one era or style of music.

What "new" bands are you listening to? And besides who in the fuck wants retreads of Zep, Queen, the Stones, Deep Purple, Sabbath, the Who, etc.? I know I sure as hell don't. If you listen no further than commercial radio of course all you're going to hear are clones of bands like Pearl Jam and Green Day. Turn that shit off, open up your mind and let your ears follow.

I draw no line between "classic rock" and what's out there today. To me, "Classic Rock" is nothing more than a term used to describe a radio format that doesn't play new music (unless it's by one of the core artists such as Petty, Clapton, etc.) so it means nothing to me. I'm just as likely to throw on some old Black Sabbath or Foghat as I am the newest album by The Silos or the Drive-By Truckers. It's all music to my ears. I'd hate to think I'd confine myself to just one era (or even worse, one style) of music. Talk about hell on earth. If it weren't for branching out beyond what's readily available I never would have discovered such wonderful artists as John Prine, Wilco, Slobberbone, the Bottle Rockets, Tift Merritt, Whiskeytown, Earl Scruggs or any of the other thousands of musicians out there who's music I've come to know and love over the years. I just couldn't imagine a world without it.

I was new here once myself but that didn't stop me from figuring out how to use the Search feature. And just how much trouble does it take just to look down the page and see there was already a thread started about Deep Purple? I'm figuring not much. Welcome to the board but part of being new is learning the lay of the land prior to posting.

Just how much of the "new stuff" have you actually even heard? It may not be to your liking but I've had no trouble finding new music that kicks ass as long as I've been listening to music. If people are just looking as far as commercial radio and/or the so called "music" channels (which are more "reality" programming these days than anything else) they're going to have to make more of an effort than that.

Actually with the advent of the internet and stuff like satellite radio you don't really have to dig that deep at all, it's everywhere and much more accessible than ever.

I think it will be fun. I watched a few of the YouTubes from when they first went back on tour and aside from the one in Greensboro (also the first show on the tour) they seemed in top form. I'm not too happy that they're playing the same exact setlist night in and night out but at least they're many of my favorites. I'm looking very forward to it but it has been a very long time since I saw them playing in support of Van Halen II. My how the time flies...

I love those Box of Frogs records, especially the first one.

Possibly Tres Chicas (acoustic) and Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles this Sunday night. And Friday, for the first time since 1979.....Van Halen.

I need to pick up The Aeroplane Over the Sea myself, it's been on my most wanted list for quite some time.