I'm gonna stray away from my normal postings on politics for a moment and comment on my second favorite passion: music. A lot of news surrounding the Grammy Nominations Concert last night, and quite frankly I could care less about the controversy the media has stirred up. On a quick side bar, the concert was actually pretty impressive, a lot bigger production than past years, and I believe it was actually better than recent award shows like the AMAs and MTV's Music Awards (One of a million award shows they now air annually). Most of the reports today though, are that Country's darling Taylor Swift was snubbed by the nominating panel when she was left out of the Best Album category. I am more disturbed that Kanye West and his musical mastery was left off the list, while popularity ruled the day with artists like Katy Perry and Bruno Mars getting nods???? Sure they have had their chart toppers and should rightfully be commended for their undeniably talented ability to tap into pop culture and what the audience wants to hear, but artists like Adele, Bon Iver and Kanye West have a much more unique talent of pushing the envelope, introducing new genres, and taking risks while all the while staying completely original. At the same time, the paradox I often struggle with is letting some of my favorite artists get the recognition they deserve. I'd almost rather they stay unrecognized and keep that "indie aura" that surrounds them. The Grammys did surprise us last year though, as the fairly unknown band Arcade Fire took home Record of the year. It was a first for the award show to stray from popular consensus and rather pick the best musical composition no matter what genre or popularity. I hadn't given any thought to arcade fire and now it's up there as one of my most played albums on my ipod. Here's to the Grammys continuing to break from tradition, but not too far......or I guess I'm not really sure what I want.
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