How the British Fell Out Of Love With Drugs

[nomy]

the truth is it actually isnt as popular anymore, why cant you guys except the truth, or do you just live a very one tracked life and not see the bigger picture

Like I said above, no aspect of the music biz is the same anymore, and never will be again. It's spread out thin as a veneer, with crossovers all over the place. No longer big movements, just loads of different styles, which I kinda like. Everything for everyone.

Anyway, I thought this thread was about the shit idea that we've fallen out of love with drugs?

 

[Jabberwocky]

we are discussing how popular this all is in the bigger picture of things, especially in relation to the past 20 years.

this is the root of my misundestanding. why whether what people listen to matter, if everyone enjoys what they listen to, who gives a fuck? i think people are taking offence because you are saying its not popular and therefore not good/culturally important/whatever and the fact is, if they derive happiness from it then thats all thats important.

i thought we all learned this in high school, having a fag behind the sports hall. while the other people were in their lessons learning about how bad drugs are.

 

[Shambles]

I agree with Nomy. The Hit Parade stopped having any relevance to music many, many years ago. Success is measured differently now. Do internet sales in all their various forms even count towards chart placings? Does anybody care? Can anybody here name one single song that's been in the charts in the last decade or so? I know I couldn't. Wouldn't even know where to find a list of what's in the top 40 let alone give a shit what's on that list.

Also, since when did dance acts have anything to do with the charts anyway? I can't think of more than a scant handful of classic "rave" tunes that ever went near a chart but still managed to have a major cultural influence. Chinup's right - chart music follows trends and is usually many months - if not years - behind what people are actually listening to.

 

[nomy]

when we see the full top 40 full of dance music as we did 15 years ago and every nightclub from dance club to shitty ritzy disco pumping with dance music and everyone on drugs like we did 15 years ago every weekend then we will no again youth culture in general terms has embraced the spirit again and this is indeed mainstream and a very popular culture, but at the moment, this is most definitley not the case.

My advice would be to embrace more forms of music dee. Waiting for the 'charts' to fill up with dance music will require tectonic patience and a timescale to match. But does it matter? There are clubs to cater for all tastes anyway which was my original point.

Also a touch of rose tinteds going off here. Like Shambles, I care not one camels bollock what's in the charts, it's one tiny commercial aspect of the music available, but I very much doubt it's ever been wall to wall dance. Wall to wall shit though, oh yes.

 

[Jabberwocky]

i think a lot of 'youth culture' these days can't afford to pay over a tenner to walk through a door, knows someone with a sound system, so sorts themselves out thanks very much. even if it means *gosh* they don't get the most popular djs, they get to help their dj mates out by giving them a little practise set. so yes both drugs and music in clubs may have changed, but people probably aren't taking less drugs, you just need a more appropriate sample. also i know a lot of people who love drugs but wont take them anywhere but a trusted persons house. maybe these people are accounting for a larger proprtion of drug users today, given the recession etc?

the first club i walked into was 10 years ago, i went into the goth room in jillys in manc, people having sex against the wall and i'm sure i remember needles. what i see today is def an improvement on that.

 

[Myshkin]

Some good posts here.

Having grown up during the period of "wall to wall dance" that Dee Dee mentions I can confirm that most of it was chart-pop imitations of the sounds being heard in clubs, with the odd breakthrough success here and there. Nothing more, even if with hindsight it seems that way.

It kinda reminds me of the underground indie scene kids I meet who think 1995 and 'Britpop' (pass me the bag) was some kind of golden age. I mean, all that happened was the kids who used to like the Prodigy grew their hair into a Liam cut. For every Suede or Elastica there was at least one Dodgy, a Shed Seven or the like.

EDIT: Oh, and I haven't had sex in Jilly's for at least 13 years, so ^ that can't have been me.

 

[RLP]

Anyone who thinks the British are falling out of love with drugs are frankly naive.

The Mephedrone craze of last year was quite eye opening for me. A drug which was at its best average was being totally overdone by almost everyone I met on nights out.

I don't buy into this cyclical fashion bollocks. If MDMA/Coke/Speed was available, cheap and potent then you could bet your boots that increase month on month would surge. It's not about this current crop of teenagers being more intelligent or revolting against the 30 somethings, it's simply that people don't want to part with their hard earned cash, during times of austerity, on bunk.

There has however been a definite increase on alcohol binging. I don't know how the author thinks that makes the kids less stupid? Answers on a postcard...