I will say as an AJR fan myself I do like seeing criticism like this because despite the fact I enjoy them, they tend to make really stupid musical and lyrical choices that make me resent them to no end. A good example is at 3:07 “I kinda wish I was still a virgin, time to finally see what sex is like” is one of my least favorite lines from any song ever because it destroys the mood of the song for me
I 100% agree. I am a huge AJR fan, but I would say there is usually about one musical or lyrical choice per song that makes me cringe to the point where I often just don't finish the song. Either way, I listen to AJR more for the chaotic, if a bit too much sometime, musical arrangements.
Their music isn’t made for everyone, you gotta experience something similar to them to relate to the message in each song. Personal taste of course is another factor but it just seems like you dislike their music so why do you keep subjecting yourself to it? Objective criticism is valid but most of this video is just your opinion which just rubs me the wrong way.
@@musicallyoptimistic well fair point but i’ve seen numerous critics of ajr’s style and music that come off more objective, from a more professional standpoint, i can even send you a link to one i really liked but the point is this video just comes off as you complaining about the things you didn’t like and framing it as legitimate issues. For example if i were to paraphrase a bit, you mentioned how it sounded a bit too cluttered and how it felt like the music was “coming at you all at once”, well yeah that’s intentional, it isn’t a bad thing or a mistake.
@@musicallyoptimisticthat’s fair but there’s also a level of like… idk how to word it other than “don’t judge a bird on its ability to swim” You have to critique art based on whether it achieved its intended purpose. I could judge a horror movie for being badly paced or not scary enough or too gratuitously gorey, because a horror movie is probably trying to not be those things. but if i criticize it for being too scary or not being comedic enough, that’s not good criticism because it was never supposed to be those things. i don’t like horror movies but i’m also not their intended audience. you can dislike ajr but i do think people tend to criticize the band for… doing what they set out to do. which isnt really good faith media criticism
I agree with you. Don't Throw Out My Lego is not my favorite song, but it hit me at the perfect time when I was moving out of my parent's home for the first time. It felt like he missed the point of the speaker now having to move on from his childhood home. Yes, an adult can buy Lego, but that space at your old home is no longer yours, and often gets cleared out from a lot of your items from childhood; all the new things you can get doesn't replace the memories you have with the things in your childhood home.
There’s a reason this video only has 600 views… because if you’ve kept up with their maybe man album and the tour they’re going on in the next coming months the production is next level- including the fact they are doing sounds other artists aren’t doing. They mix like other producers don’t mixing trumpets or piano or xylophones. Don’t get me wrong I haven’t listened to AJR in a while because it isn’t in my mix, but to say they are on a downward spiral is far from the truth. I’ve seen your top comment saying “dear CZcams, recommend this to non-ajr fanboys” people who like ajr will have this in their recommended that’s how the algorithm works
Video HAD 600 views cause it's new. Also, baroque pop is a thing. AJR isn't bringing new sounds to the table. Check out Bill Ryder-Jones album from this year
warning, this is very long, and not that good either: Also note, whenever I call you biased or anything bad really, I don't mean you are actually biased, I mean that your wording and tone could confuse viewers. (also from top to bottom, these are in order) Intro I enjoy AJR, even though I have listened to very few of their songs and I have no experience with music, but personally, I disagree with many points that you have made, however, there are some that I definitely agree with. I do agree that their choice of lyrics can be questionable at times with the swearing and bad decisions in general, as well as a few other issues, which I will discus later. However, I am wondering about how many perspectives you assume. Bias What I mean is do you just see yourself as a person describing what they dislike about a song, or do you see yourself as a sort of narrator, that has no bias and simply speaks what it believes. I noticed that in your last video about AJR, you failed to discus what you thought was good about the music except for a brief period at the start of this video, which implies that you are a bit biased, I am not saying that you are, and if you are, you likely don't realize it. In your first video, I felt that you did not interpret the lyrics properly, like you took things literally when they are meant metaphorically, or you took things metaphorically when they are meant literally. Take the song "I'm Not Famous", you were dissatisfied with the fact that AJR is clearly famous, which they are, however, you did not look into a deeper meaning, like for example; much like in Birthday Party, where the baby is in denial, maybe he doesn't enjoy that the whole world knows him, maybe he wants to believe that he is not famous, as it brings him comfort. This is probably wrong, but its more likely than him actually thinking that he's a nobody. Another "biased" thing you did was when you would sing parts of the songs in an out of tune, screechy voice, which could be confusing to people who haven't seen AJR, it may give them a false bad impression. Even if they know that the song doesn't actually sound like that, it can still make them associate AJR with bad singing. Your judgement You dislike repetitive language, such as the following lines in 100 Bad Days: "We had to work a bit more hard. Only just to get a little bit less far.", honestly this is just down to preference, I enjoy it though. I also disliked the pre-chorus of 100 Bad Days as well as Don't Throw Out My Legos, just as you did. General misunderstandings At 11:26, you said that they did not get the film, even though Ryan never said that, he said that the song was very good, except for one part, which they changed in Birthday Party. They may have misunderstood the film, which would have been a part of why they hated it, but they never said they didn't understand. That portion of the song being in there still doesn't make any sense though, its just kinda weird. Conclusion Jeez, a person can really talk all day. I agree with you on Don't Throw Out My Legos(It is very not cool). Maybe I just enjoy outrageous songs that aren't traditionally good, but are silly and charming in their own way. I hope this comment actually made sense and you know what I'm talking about. Also, please take this lightly, no offense was meant in the making of this essay of a comment. And the very next video that I just started watching is an AJR song lol
i am very curious,since i (and probably a lot of other people im guessing) listen to mainly AJR,when you refer to multiple songs throughout the album as "nothing" or "mundane",like what're you expecting to hear? what would make a chorus not 'nothing' when there clearly is many instruments playing in a way you haven't ever heard before?
Thing is I have heard this kind of baroque pop and electropop done before. Some songs I call "nothing" just feel like they're filling space or doing exactly what a different song was doing. Albums that came out recently with a similar style that I love: Bill Ryder-Jones - lechyd da, Mother Mother - Grief Chapter, Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You: Everasking Edition
If you don’t like there music dosent bother me but they are continually growing and building an audience and getting huge selling out shows and in bigger and bigger stages each year they are way bigger now than they have ever been to say that they are on a downward spiral is quite the opposite of what’s happening
Maaaaaan AJR has been around the mainstream media for nearly a decade now. No hate to you (cuz opinions are opinions, just like mine), but I'm really getting sick of the whole "AJR is terrible" for the same reasons over and over and over and OVER.. Especially since a lot of those people came from BradTasteInMusic or Fantano. A handful of them didn't know who AJR was UNTIL Brad or Fantano dissed on them, giving the audience a negative viewpoint from the get go. As a fan of them, I will always understand the hate, but I hope the haters understand how tiresome it is for the fans to see the band that got them through hard times always get thrashed on without a second breath.
Fair point. In the full stream I talked about how I found out about AJR from an old friend of mine when this album dropped since he was a big fan, so I have a bit of a different background with it, but a lot of criticism and praise in the music community now is just Brad and Fantano stans parroting their opinions. I watch them, but I've given some opinions on this channel that would probably make those two scream in pain lol (i.e. Dance Yrself Clean is the worst track on that album)
I personally love AJR, but I like your opinion! I also agree that some of their lyrics are a bit cringe, especially the older albums such as Living Room and The Click, but I love The Maybe Man! Thanks for your opinion.
this guy is on something because AJR is if not one of the best, the best artists ever. U just have to actully have gone through something to understand
I'm not even gonna watch this video but I do have to say I like AJR's older stuff more. Their new stuff is different and slightly less my taste but still good. Just hope we get another 3:30, The Good Part or Netflix Trip some day.
I will say as an AJR fan myself I do like seeing criticism like this because despite the fact I enjoy them, they tend to make really stupid musical and lyrical choices that make me resent them to no end. A good example is at 3:07 “I kinda wish I was still a virgin, time to finally see what sex is like” is one of my least favorite lines from any song ever because it destroys the mood of the song for me
I 100% agree. I am a huge AJR fan, but I would say there is usually about one musical or lyrical choice per song that makes me cringe to the point where I often just don't finish the song. Either way, I listen to AJR more for the chaotic, if a bit too much sometime, musical arrangements.
I gotta say, this was probably one of the most fair AJR reviews I’ve seen.
Their music isn’t made for everyone, you gotta experience something similar to them to relate to the message in each song. Personal taste of course is another factor but it just seems like you dislike their music so why do you keep subjecting yourself to it?
Objective criticism is valid but most of this video is just your opinion which just rubs me the wrong way.
Bruh we're talking about art. What is "objective"
@@musicallyoptimistic well fair point but i’ve seen numerous critics of ajr’s style and music that come off more objective, from a more professional standpoint, i can even send you a link to one i really liked but the point is this video just comes off as you complaining about the things you didn’t like and framing it as legitimate issues. For example if i were to paraphrase a bit, you mentioned how it sounded a bit too cluttered and how it felt like the music was “coming at you all at once”, well yeah that’s intentional, it isn’t a bad thing or a mistake.
Agreed
@@musicallyoptimisticthat’s fair but there’s also a level of like… idk how to word it other than “don’t judge a bird on its ability to swim” You have to critique art based on whether it achieved its intended purpose. I could judge a horror movie for being badly paced or not scary enough or too gratuitously gorey, because a horror movie is probably trying to not be those things. but if i criticize it for being too scary or not being comedic enough, that’s not good criticism because it was never supposed to be those things. i don’t like horror movies but i’m also not their intended audience. you can dislike ajr but i do think people tend to criticize the band for… doing what they set out to do. which isnt really good faith media criticism
I agree with you. Don't Throw Out My Lego is not my favorite song, but it hit me at the perfect time when I was moving out of my parent's home for the first time. It felt like he missed the point of the speaker now having to move on from his childhood home. Yes, an adult can buy Lego, but that space at your old home is no longer yours, and often gets cleared out from a lot of your items from childhood; all the new things you can get doesn't replace the memories you have with the things in your childhood home.
There’s a reason this video only has 600 views… because if you’ve kept up with their maybe man album and the tour they’re going on in the next coming months the production is next level- including the fact they are doing sounds other artists aren’t doing. They mix like other producers don’t mixing trumpets or piano or xylophones. Don’t get me wrong I haven’t listened to AJR in a while because it isn’t in my mix, but to say they are on a downward spiral is far from the truth. I’ve seen your top comment saying “dear CZcams, recommend this to non-ajr fanboys” people who like ajr will have this in their recommended that’s how the algorithm works
Video HAD 600 views cause it's new. Also, baroque pop is a thing. AJR isn't bringing new sounds to the table. Check out Bill Ryder-Jones album from this year
@@musicallyoptimistic No, it’s bad, you wasted my time
@@Bendyfazzbear lechyd da is bad???? :(
@@musicallyoptimistic You would know that AJR is bringing new sounds to the table if you listened to the album
its alright to give opinions on AJR and i get it some of ajr's musics can seem be off or feel different besides its just our point of view.
warning, this is very long, and not that good either:
Also note, whenever I call you biased or anything bad really, I don't mean you are actually biased, I mean that your wording and tone could confuse viewers.
(also from top to bottom, these are in order)
Intro
I enjoy AJR, even though I have listened to very few of their songs and I have no experience with music, but personally, I disagree with many points that you have made, however, there are some that I definitely agree with. I do agree that their choice of lyrics can be questionable at times with the swearing and bad decisions in general, as well as a few other issues, which I will discus later. However, I am wondering about how many perspectives you assume.
Bias
What I mean is do you just see yourself as a person describing what they dislike about a song, or do you see yourself as a sort of narrator, that has no bias and simply speaks what it believes. I noticed that in your last video about AJR, you failed to discus what you thought was good about the music except for a brief period at the start of this video, which implies that you are a bit biased, I am not saying that you are, and if you are, you likely don't realize it.
In your first video, I felt that you did not interpret the lyrics properly, like you took things literally when they are meant metaphorically, or you took things metaphorically when they are meant literally. Take the song "I'm Not Famous", you were dissatisfied with the fact that AJR is clearly famous, which they are, however, you did not look into a deeper meaning, like for example; much like in Birthday Party, where the baby is in denial, maybe he doesn't enjoy that the whole world knows him, maybe he wants to believe that he is not famous, as it brings him comfort. This is probably wrong, but its more likely than him actually thinking that he's a nobody.
Another "biased" thing you did was when you would sing parts of the songs in an out of tune, screechy voice, which could be confusing to people who haven't seen AJR, it may give them a false bad impression. Even if they know that the song doesn't actually sound like that, it can still make them associate AJR with bad singing.
Your judgement
You dislike repetitive language, such as the following lines in 100 Bad Days: "We had to work a bit more hard. Only just to get a little bit less far.", honestly this is just down to preference, I enjoy it though. I also disliked the pre-chorus of 100 Bad Days as well as Don't Throw Out My Legos, just as you did.
General misunderstandings
At 11:26, you said that they did not get the film, even though Ryan never said that, he said that the song was very good, except for one part, which they changed in Birthday Party. They may have misunderstood the film, which would have been a part of why they hated it, but they never said they didn't understand. That portion of the song being in there still doesn't make any sense though, its just kinda weird.
Conclusion
Jeez, a person can really talk all day.
I agree with you on Don't Throw Out My Legos(It is very not cool).
Maybe I just enjoy outrageous songs that aren't traditionally good, but are silly and charming in their own way.
I hope this comment actually made sense and you know what I'm talking about.
Also, please take this lightly, no offense was meant in the making of this essay of a comment.
And the very next video that I just started watching is an AJR song lol
i am very curious,since i (and probably a lot of other people im guessing) listen to mainly AJR,when you refer to multiple songs throughout the album as "nothing" or "mundane",like what're you expecting to hear? what would make a chorus not 'nothing' when there clearly is many instruments playing in a way you haven't ever heard before?
Thing is I have heard this kind of baroque pop and electropop done before. Some songs I call "nothing" just feel like they're filling space or doing exactly what a different song was doing. Albums that came out recently with a similar style that I love: Bill Ryder-Jones - lechyd da, Mother Mother - Grief Chapter, Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You: Everasking Edition
If you don’t like there music dosent bother me but they are continually growing and building an audience and getting huge selling out shows and in bigger and bigger stages each year they are way bigger now than they have ever been to say that they are on a downward spiral is quite the opposite of what’s happening
Maaaaaan AJR has been around the mainstream media for nearly a decade now. No hate to you (cuz opinions are opinions, just like mine), but I'm really getting sick of the whole "AJR is terrible" for the same reasons over and over and over and OVER.. Especially since a lot of those people came from BradTasteInMusic or Fantano. A handful of them didn't know who AJR was UNTIL Brad or Fantano dissed on them, giving the audience a negative viewpoint from the get go. As a fan of them, I will always understand the hate, but I hope the haters understand how tiresome it is for the fans to see the band that got them through hard times always get thrashed on without a second breath.
Fair point. In the full stream I talked about how I found out about AJR from an old friend of mine when this album dropped since he was a big fan, so I have a bit of a different background with it, but a lot of criticism and praise in the music community now is just Brad and Fantano stans parroting their opinions. I watch them, but I've given some opinions on this channel that would probably make those two scream in pain lol (i.e. Dance Yrself Clean is the worst track on that album)
I can listen to certain songs on their own but I can’t get through a full album
we can all agree that ajr is cocomelon for pre-teens
before you come at me im a n ajr fan
You NEED to listen to the rest of their discography. 🙏
i no no wanna :(
@@musicallyoptimistic I subbed, just in case you change your mind 🧎
@@musicallyoptimistic so youll make a 45 minute video about them but wont listen to more of their music (even just to further develop your opinion? )
@@musicallyoptimistic Ok but like even AJR fans understand that the click is a horrible album. Listen to TMM or smth lol
I personally love AJR, but I like your opinion! I also agree that some of their lyrics are a bit cringe, especially the older albums such as Living Room and The Click, but I love The Maybe Man! Thanks for your opinion.
Good news, I'm not an ajr fan boy and this was in algorithm
this guy is on something because AJR is if not one of the best, the best artists ever. U just have to actully have gone through something to understand
WHAT?😂😂 that’s the dumbest shit i ever heard
Real they the best ❤
@@joesvideos9329lollllll no
@Freezeray813 it's his opinion so it doesn't really affect ajr much
@@joesvideos9329 real
You look like the type of guy to drink barqs root beer, I'm not saying that's a good thing or a bad thing, just saying what's on my mind.
Smash
I'm not even gonna watch this video but I do have to say I like AJR's older stuff more. Their new stuff is different and slightly less my taste but still good. Just hope we get another 3:30, The Good Part or Netflix Trip some day.
Dear CZcams, please recommend this to non-AJR fanboys
that's exactly what youtube just did to me 💀
Your wish is granted.
Bro just got uno reversed
Ur fired
Too bad, I'm an AJR fan
Ur mad
It's his opinion so 🤷♂️
How do u think it’s fair to criticise anything with that looks u look like a Minecraft villager my friend
But fr please block me