for the love of mtv. pt. 1

i've spent a lot more time thinking about this entry, considering the issue, what i was going to say, than i'm actually going to spend writing it. i've had a question i've been chasing lately:

what makes "pop" music?
(and, subsequently, per my specific group of friends,
why is it evil?)

the first example that comes to mind, but certainly not because of chronology, is Alternative pop-rockers Death Cab for Cutie's 2005 album, PLANS, which i happen to be listening to right now; shoot me. based in the northwest (the infamous breeding ground of the future directions of popular music) they made a name for themselves for about eight years on the indie label Barsuk records.
their albums prior to 2003's Transalanticism were a bit low-fi, with somewhat grainy vocals that hovered somewhere between the distorted drums and extra loud guitars; not dissin' pre-03 Death Cab--my personal favorite comes from this time period: We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes, released in 2000. with that "break-through" Transatlanticism, came the major MTV success for thier video of "Title and Registration," the catchiest damn alterna-pop song there every was. then, the inevitable happened, the thing that normally spells death for former indie bands: the major label jump, the selling of the band's creative sound and soul for more money and international success. but, surprisingly, despite the slick quality and huge, swelling, singable choruses, they managed to make a solid album, without changing (dramatically), what made them famous. and, i don't know a single person who doesn't get chills listening to the ben gibbard solo acoustic guitar assurance of "I Will Follow You Into the Dark."

this album gained a generic approval from my friends. i don't get shunned by most of them when i hum the melody to "Crooked Teeth." for future reference, i do the same thing to them.

the next example comes from stuttering indie rockers Modest Mouse. everyone remembers "Float On"
(even Kidz Bop recorded an itunes-downloadable version of it), but who remembers "birds vs. worms"? the winding beauty of "Trailer Trash"? and what about one of the most excellent, fluid albums, The Moon and Antarctica? i had mixed emotions when Modest Mouse appeared on an episode of the O. C....
but then again, i was the one watching the O. C., but that's not important. that album, Good News for People Who Love Bad News never really interested me, but, i'd like to say it was because i wasn't too interested in the musical direction the band was taking. maybe that's my excuse. my friends describe it as a guilty pleasure.

Michael and i recently heard MM's new single, "Dashboard," on their website. we looked at each other's faces, gaging the other's reactions--

man, this sounds exactly like their last cd.
yeah, kinda pop-y.
yeah.
silence.
i dunno, i kinda liked it.
yeah, it wasn't so bad.
yeah. you wanna go to lunch?

it was. it was just alright. but we hesitated before we said what we really thought. it's not cool to like pop music. where does that ever-shifting, ever-evil definition fall, and can us art school kids band together to break down the walls of society, the walls within ourselves, and step our toes into the forbidden, murky water of pop music...?

to be continued...