By Staff Writer, Lilit Grigoryan

Recently, music has been all about who can make the loudest, most outrageously risqué collaboration of sounds and lyrics. In the midst of all the sweaty, bare-all music videos and sexually charged ruckus of words, where has the personality gone? Where is the meaningful music that provokes thought, tears, inspiration, or feeling of any sort besides grinding on the dance floor?
The songs that get people dancing can have an energetic, playful sound while maintaining an intelligent thought.
The consistent mention of break-ups and nonsense statements such as “body like a cyclone” (or some other words that conveniently happened to rhyme) are polluting the CD shelves.
The songs beautifully written and full of depth have no place on any radio station. Rufus Wainwright’s “Going to a Town” holds hardly any spotlight despite its honesty and disclosure of corruption through words such as “do you really think you go to hell for having love,” referring to America ’s close-mindedness toward homosexuality.
Some musicians, however, continue to contribute to the mental well-being of the music world. cAmong such people is Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes, (his one-man band featuring guest instrumentalists).
Ever since his first appearance on stage in 1995, he has created new linguistics and mastered what he refers to as “the shackles of language.”
Songs like his open up a whole new world of ideas. Through this mindset, one is moved to create things they never new possible before.
From happiness to outrage, Oberst addresses all human emotions, allowing for a listener to feel like the only person in the stadium. Literally a thousand feet away, one can be illuminated in the dark, with a feeling of being wrapped around Oberst’s heart and soul.
This sort of infatuation is what one wants to feel when listening to an artist of any sort. While there is always a need for mindless noise, many performers are just in it for the easy money. Music is supposed to be a medium of the creator’s imagination to cause a beautiful domino effect in others to move, think, and create.
When asked what he looks for in his search of good music, musician Tyler Lott (’08) said “I find the influences of the people who influence me,” meaning the performers he listens to are praiseworthy of good taste and advice.
Unfortunately, these days, it is the guy laughing about being able to “make a mil’ by saying nothin’ on the track” that is being praised.