I must start off by saying that I am as far from a music snob as possible. I have every Glee cover ever recorded in my iTunes. I still listen to Céline Dion. And one of my very first concerts, which I still remember fondly, was Ricky Martin.
But, there’s something in the music world lately that is starting to bother me. I hate it when so-called “indie” artists climb the Billboard charts and the media reacts as if it’s the surprise success story of the year. Don’t get me wrong: I’m not complaining that any of these artists are sell-outs. In fact, the success of such groups as fun., Gotye and The Black Keys is welcomed with open arms.
It just annoys me when people are so shocked when these songs become hits. Right now fun.’s “We are Young” and Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” are sitting at No. 1 and 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 respectively. And while, yes, the songs are unconventional smashes in an era dominated by the Katy Perrys, Rihannas and Justin Biebers of the music world, it’s not exactly a huge surprise that they are hits. Both songs feature choruses that are impossible to get out of your head and melodies that can easily be sung by the cast of Glee.
What scares me, though, is the ever-increasing thought that when it comes to mainstream success, these groups will become just another one hit wonder, flash-in-the-pan phenomenon. Look at last year’s “surprise hit” “Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster the People. That song peaked at No. 3 on the Hot 100, and the band’s only other song to make the charts, “Color on the Walls (Don’t Stop),” stalled at No. 86.
The easiest way for an indie band to gain a hit is to feature their song in a commercial, or yes, on Glee. Although the show has taken a bit of a ratings fall, it still is a very lucrative avenue for artists looking for their big break. Being covered on Glee is the new being featured in an iPod commercial. I’m looking at you Jet, Caesars, The Fratellis, Feist, Chairlift and countless other “success stories.” The only thing bigger than these artists’ rise to success was their fall back to obscurity. That’s not to say they still don’t make great music, they will just always be known as an indie flavor of the month.
I don’t know if anybody will ever have an answer as to why these groups could never have staying power. Whether it’s that they only have one good song in them, or that we live in such an ADD world that our focus can’t stay on one quirky group for too long without our brains imploding is to be decided.
Only time will tell which band will be the next to take the world by storm for a month. But in the meantime I’ll be jamming out to some Céline Dion and Ricky Martin.
