Donald Trump Won’t Make Music Great Again

There’s a sentiment being held by quite a few people that under the new Trump Presidency music is going to be better, bolder and reach a peak of quality we haven’t seen in years, even decades. Historically at times of unrest and dissatisfaction we’ve seen movements and art arise that’s simply astonishing; a time like this seems ripe for artistic inspiration.

We are not going to see that happen, there will be no punk revival, music isn’t suddenly going to be better than ever, and we certainly aren’t going to see any revolution in the music industry in the next 4-8 years. I’m sorry to say, but if you thought this was the case then you’re probably the kind of person toting the phrase “music in the _____’s was so much better than it is now” or something similarly stupid. Music never stopped being good, there wasn’t some kind of drop off in quality after the 70’s or 80’s or 90’s, you’re just not looking in the right places for great music happening right now, so stop romanticising the past. Incredible music can always be found, just because you haven’t discovered it yet doesn’t mean it isn’t there.

Sure, some mainstream artists will shift to more politically charged music, but that’s always happened. Remember those Rock Against Bush compilations? This isn’t new, when a significant political figure arises they always have had- and always will have- their detractors, and many of them will be artists who express their discontent. For those expecting for punk to “come back”, well you’re missing the plethora of punk bands covering political issues who are still out there – just go out to your local pub and you’ll probably find a few. Even non-punk musicians have held the ethos and spirit of punk in both their politics and attitude. To quote the great Jello Biafra, “Punk is where you find it”. The unfortunate fact is that after punk hit the music scene, it was only a few years before it was accepted and became known to everyone. It will never be quite as exciting or the same and people aren’t interested in hearing old school music be rehashed. They want something new and exciting.

It’s only been a few days since the inauguration, and the handful of “anti-trump” (I put that in quotations because a fair bit of it is only vaguely political) music that has been released hasn’t been too thrilling, which I was very much expecting. The issue is that too many musicians try and hack together an underwhelming political track and get it out fast enough to be relevant, i.e. what Gorillaz and Arcade Fire just dropped. The best we can expect is the occasional gem like a handful of songs from Rock Against Bush compilations in ’04 or the new Angel Olsen single “Fly On Your Wall”.

I admire what these artists are trying to do, especially when the proceeds go to charities (good on ya for not cashing in on political unrest), but I’d rather hear a more fleshed out and interesting political song come out later than hear something half-arsed for the sake of being current.

In conclusion, music is fascinating and compelling here and now, and that’s never going to change. As a medium and as an industry it will always march on and there is no sign of it stopping anytime soon.

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