Snobbiest moments in the history of music...

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Maybe it's the "rockism" in the air, but....

I'm curious....

Who's the biggest snob in music and why?

― maria b (maria b), Monday, 15 November 2004 06:31 (twenty-one years ago)

Sasha Frere-Jones, because he sucks, just like every other music critic around. Only he's more annoying because he's one of those popular, posh music critics.

He also blasted "Hail To the Thief" and I still haven't gotten over it.

― jen o (eightpastfive), Monday, 15 November 2004 06:56 (twenty-one years ago)

If I may play Arnold Horshak tonight, pick me, because I have the right answer. It is Albert Goldman, who, among other things, wrote mean-spirited books about John Lennon and Elvis Presley, in which he mercilessly trashed everything about them. I am sure the guy hated his father or something and so, whoever he wrote about, he first created an idealized father figure out of them and then he tore them down when he saw they were human like everybody else. The analysis I'm giving is paperback pop pyschology of the worst sort, but that is what the guy deserves.

― Ken L (Ken L), Monday, 15 November 2004 07:20 (twenty-one years ago)

But Hail to the Thief fucking sucks

Get over your bad taste.

― Sasha on a different PC, Monday, 15 November 2004 07:24 (twenty-one years ago)

bah, you.

― jen o (eightpastfive), Monday, 15 November 2004 07:35 (twenty-one years ago)

This is like on the old SCTV where Eugene Levy (Earl Camembert?) used his editorial on the nightly news to criticize his noisy neighbor by name.

― Henry A Blacktune, Monday, 15 November 2004 07:40 (twenty-one years ago)

Sasha seems far too populist to have to wear the "snob" jacket, I don't think it fits him; surely no one can ever wrest it from Adorno's coffin anyway . . . .

― Drew Daniel, Monday, 15 November 2004 08:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Sasha's totally not a snob.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Monday, 15 November 2004 10:02 (twenty-one years ago)

"Albert Goldman, who, among other things, wrote mean-spirited books about John Lennon and Elvis Presley"
OK so he is the rockcritics bete noir because he wrote those bios but he also wrote a decent book on Lenny Bruce and a mind-boggling book on disco that among other things, totally lays to waste the concept of rockism -- years before the term was coined.

― lovebug starski (lovebug starski), Monday, 15 November 2004 11:57 (twenty-one years ago)

The answer is: the ILM board, collectively.

― cdwill, Monday, 15 November 2004 17:27 (twenty-one years ago)

Well, let's define "snobby".

― Mr. Snrub, Monday, 15 November 2004 17:33 (twenty-one years ago)

Oh, take it all away; it's corked.

― Jesse Fuchs (Jesse Fuchs), Monday, 15 November 2004 17:39 (twenty-one years ago)

Lou Reed saying "Joyce had Dublin, Falukner the South. I've got New York."

― shookout (shookout), Monday, 15 November 2004 19:16 (twenty-one years ago)

kim gordon saying she won't let her daughter listen to pop singers who don't write their own songs.

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 15 November 2004 19:21 (twenty-one years ago)

it's me

― Buck 65, Monday, 15 November 2004 21:22 (twenty-one years ago)

Sasha's one of the best working critics around! Come on!

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:23 (twenty-one years ago)

Also, just because you write for the New Yorker does not make you "posh."

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:23 (twenty-one years ago)

(Unless you're Anthony Lane, maybe.)

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:24 (twenty-one years ago)

fcc otm

― LSTD (answer) (sexyDancer), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:25 (twenty-one years ago)

Bono should be able to supply quite a few snobbish moments - mandela, desmond tutu, what have you ...

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:29 (twenty-one years ago)

not sure how being friendly with human rights leaders makes you a snob, but...

― LSTD (answer) (sexyDancer), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:32 (twenty-one years ago)

well i am. he's the über snob!

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:38 (twenty-one years ago)

"Charles Manson stole this song from The Beatles. We're stealing it back."

― Ian Moraine (Eastern Mantra), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:40 (twenty-one years ago)

Ian OT fucking M!

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:48 (twenty-one years ago)

hubris is a bit different than snobbery is all I'm saying.

― LSTD (answer) (sexyDancer), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:50 (twenty-one years ago)

hubris, schmubris. it's all the same pretentious shit.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:53 (twenty-one years ago)

Radiohead are much snobbier than Sasha Frere Jones, are you kidding?

Plus Hail to the Thief really does suck. (Though not all that much more than most of Radiohead's other albums, admittedly.)

― big ed delahanty, Monday, 15 November 2004 21:55 (twenty-one years ago)

The drummer for the rock band gay dad.

― djdee2005 (djdee2005), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:56 (twenty-one years ago)

Not the snobbiest, but... "No synthesizers were used on this record"

― o. nate (onate), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:58 (twenty-one years ago)

rockistest moment ...

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Monday, 15 November 2004 21:59 (twenty-one years ago)

"No synthesizers were used on this record"

"No equipment from after 1960 was used for the making of this record"

― The Good Dr. Bill (Andrew Unterberger), Monday, 15 November 2004 22:03 (twenty-one years ago)

No synthesizers were used on this record

that's usually the hypocriticallest moment. no synthesizers, but boxes full of guitar pedals, racks full of outboard effects, and all that.

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 15 November 2004 22:05 (twenty-one years ago)

I like Keiji Haino's proclaimation of "not using overdubbing"

― LSTD (answer) (sexyDancer), Monday, 15 November 2004 22:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Pet Shop Boys: "Che Guevarra and Debussey to a disco beat."

― thermos lunchbox, Monday, 15 November 2004 22:11 (twenty-one years ago)

Lou Reed again, from the stage on the New York tour:

"None of these songs use samples. We make our own music, we don't sample people who are dead or in jail."

― shookout (shookout), Monday, 15 November 2004 22:11 (twenty-one years ago)

what bollocks. and snobbish, too, in its own kind of way. even RATM, whose first record i love to death, used the 'only real instruments were used in the recording of ... bla bla' or whatever.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Monday, 15 November 2004 22:14 (twenty-one years ago)

"Guitar bands are on their way out"

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Monday, 15 November 2004 23:42 (twenty-one years ago)

that bit where bid from the monochrome set is being interviewed and the interviewer sez: "i hear you are descended from Indian princes...?" and bid shoots right back: "kings, actually." Oh, that used to kill me every time i heard it. (i'm paraphrasing the thing, but you get the idea.) bid is my fave kinda snobby.god love him.

― scott seward (scott seward), Monday, 15 November 2004 23:51 (twenty-one years ago)

Tesla always bragged on their album covers about how "no machines were used." Which was really weird, because the albums all had names like *Mechanical Resonance* and *The Great Radio Controversey,* plus, the band was named Tesla for Christ's sake!

― chuck, Monday, 15 November 2004 23:53 (twenty-one years ago)

Luke Haines's self-annotated discography in the "Das Capital" booklet ("A remix album some kid did for L500. A lot of money for a teenager. Supposedly popular in the USA. Myself, never heard it. 100% of royalties goes to me").

― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 00:32 (twenty-one years ago)

the story that operation ivy quit because they were getting too popular gives me another reason to hate them (other than their music and listeners).

― tom cleveland (tom cleveland), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 00:47 (twenty-one years ago)

Richie Unterberger's James Brown reviews on AMG

― **%@, Tuesday, 16 November 2004 00:54 (twenty-one years ago)

Radiohead doing anything.

― Sasha (sgh), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 01:07 (twenty-one years ago)

Radiohead doing anything.
-- Sasha (ahmar...), November 16th, 2004.

http://www.symbols.com/pics/big/53/5343.gif

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 01:45 (twenty-one years ago)

Sasha contributes to new mp3 blog Sticker Shock, btw.

― Alba (Alba), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 01:55 (twenty-one years ago)

No I don't!

I've never even heard of it 'til then!

― Sasha (sgh), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 02:24 (twenty-one years ago)

i'm gonna find that ilm post about "when black flag met ultravox" ... the snobbiest moment evah!

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 03:18 (twenty-one years ago)

here it is ...

Why and when did Ultravox call Black Flag dross, donut bitch? I am intrigued

On Rollins' Get in the Band CD, one of his readings details an English show of Black Flag's where Ultravox were playing in the next venue over or something. Midge Ure and company see the show and come backstage and Ure imperiously notes the show was 'dross' -- Rollins, in turn, is annoyed by Ure's booties.

-- Ned Raggett (ne...), February 13th, 2004.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 03:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Does Nick Cave still ask prospective interviewers to submit a list of the 10 most recent books you've read? (I heard if you snuck in The Bible at #8, you were a shoo-in.)

― st. uber, Tuesday, 16 November 2004 03:37 (twenty-one years ago)

xpost
President Garfield, what's another word for Ultravox footwear?

― Ken L (Ken L), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 03:42 (twenty-one years ago)

Boy, isn't it fashionable to hate Radiohead here?

I actually bet a lot more people would allow themselves to like them here if it weren't for their commercial success and the critical praise attached to them.

― Salvador Saca (Mr. Xolotl), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 03:55 (twenty-one years ago)

Or just their baggage of "big 90s alt-rock band."

― Salvador Saca (Mr. Xolotl), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 03:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Or their lack of tunes and hatred of fun.

― Jacob (Jacob), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 04:12 (twenty-one years ago)

Yes, exactly. (Meaning "Or actively "anti-hipsters" with no support for their criticism like yourself.")

― Salvador Saca (Mr. Xolotl), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 04:16 (twenty-one years ago)

a friend of mine, who's from north dakota (bismark) was in high school when radiohead's van broke down and they were stranded at an ember's or denny's or some place like that (perkin's maybe)....anyway, some friend they knew called them and they went over and talked to the band....they played catch with an (american) football. that sounds like fun.

― M@tt He1geson (Matt Helgeson), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 04:19 (twenty-one years ago)

bryan ferry probably owns this thread ... not bad for the son of a coal miner!

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 04:28 (twenty-one years ago)

Schoenberg, too. When he got the weird idea that he'd be able to ensure the domination of German music for a century.

― Salvador Saca (Mr. Xolotl), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 04:30 (twenty-one years ago)

I'd like to make the rather snobby point that I don't believe the word "snobby" is being used correctly in many instances here, which are more accurately examples of pretension or self-importance.

According to dictionary.com, a snob is:

1. One who tends to patronize, rebuff, or ignore people regarded as social inferiors and imitate, admire, or seek association with people regarded as social superiors.
2. One who affects an offensive air of self-satisfied superiority in matters of taste or intellect.

― Hurting (Hurting), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 05:06 (twenty-one years ago)

So the Lou Reed example (comparing himself to Faulkner and Joyce) is certainly pompous, but it's not snobby because it doesn't have that implied superiority/inferiority.

― Hurting (Hurting), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 05:07 (twenty-one years ago)

even after gettin' dictionary.com on our asses, i still stand by bryan ferry (it's no accident that he covered "the in crowd").

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 05:10 (twenty-one years ago)

no, Bryan Ferry is a dandy, not a snob.
a real snob wouldn't ever wear like a gaucho. :-)
bjork is snob when she says that "instruments are so passé".

― Marco Damiani (Marco D.), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 09:45 (twenty-one years ago)

dictionary, schmictionary. it's all the same pretentious shit.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Tuesday, 16 November 2004 10:08 (twenty-one years ago)

the famous "lady, if you have to ask" quote is a bit snobby. but i remember an ILM thread about it that was even snobbier!

― debden, Tuesday, 16 November 2004 10:11 (twenty-one years ago)

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