There are 37,665 students at The University of Alabama. When I walk the Quad, a favorite pastime of mine, I encounter my fellow students, but I will never have the opportunity to know them all. They may have changed their major five times; maybe they only see their family during Christmas break and summer; or maybe they’re from South Korea and have not returned home since starting school at the University. If I think about it – the fact that I live in the same vicinity as these people and attend the same college, but the fact that I will not know them unnerves me. Another terrifying thought for me is that there are over two million artists on Spotify. I cannot know all these artists or their specific sound.
Every artist or band has their own niche in the music industry. While comparisons can be made, each artist produces music that is uniquely representative of their influences, their lives and the people around them. As these circumstances change, the music and sound changes. Uncovering a band and all of its influences is an impossible task. There is so much to learn about your favorite bands that it’s hard to dive into the lesser-known bands. There’s much to explore in the music realm, especially as it is constantly changing. Artists continue to change their sound, sometimes met with severe opposition.
My Morning Jacket released the album “It Still Moves” in 2003 with 12 tracks. Some of the band’s better-known tracks like “Golden,” “One Big Holiday,” and “Mahgeeta” can be found on the album. But if you look at the band’s extensive list of tracks, you will see “Mahgeeta,” “Mahgeetah,” and “Mahgeetah – Demo.” All three are the same song, technically, but with a slightly different sound. My Morning Jacket re-released “It Still Moves” last year with 25 tracks, including ten demos and three new songs.
Frontman, Jim James, explained in an interview with Pitchfork that the album needed more attention as the band moved towards a more rock ‘n’ roll sound. When discussing the original album, he explains that it was what the band needed at the time: “That’s just life, it changes you and you’re a different person now than you were then. The thing I take great comfort in and what I think is cool about the process is that I know in my heart that I gave it everything I had back then.”
James’ quote touches on the importance of allowing artists to evolve. Childish Gambino recently released his album, “’Awaken, My Love!’” Any fan of Gambino is likely to discuss the drastic difference between the new album and those previous, “Kauai” and “Because The Internet.” Previously, Gambino was known as a rap artist, now I may consider him as a funk artist. He excels and is equally successful in both genres, which is clearly no easy task.
It’s impossible to ignore the easy listening and beautifully composed new album, including some gospel influences. While Donald Glover wrote and produced the album, he was also writing his FX TV show, “Atlanta.” Glover explained that writing this album was not easy, but it was necessary because of the current state of his life and the circumstances America itself has been placed in recently.
Artists change and so does music. It’s almost impossible to keep up with the drastic changes that occur in rapid-fire succession. The constant adaptation of artists and the music industry itself is what makes music so vital. It’s able to adapt to the changes in society and culture and represent the current state of the world. Even though there’s a lot of music that I may never listen to, what I have listened to has been pretty incredible.
