Oscar Prevue 2

  By Tom Phillips

"Straight Outta Compton"

Confession -- When it comes to artistic awards, I'm not a big fan of affirmative action. So when African-Americans were snubbed in the Oscar nominations this year, I didn't join the outrage at first. My question was, did African-Americans do anything worthy of a major award?

The answer is, as NWA might put it -- Fuck Yes! "Straight Outta Compton" is full of foul language, violence, illegal substances, squalor, prejudice, ignorance and disrespect for women.  It's like walking into the mean streets, messy homes and hip recording studios of LA's ghetto in the 1980s, where rap music became an art form and a a vehicle for rebellious free speech.

The Age of Melody

After watching the Grammy Awards on TV this week, I came away recalling some inviting rhythms (Daft Punk), biting lyrics (Lorde), and sweet voices (Kacey Musgraves) -- in addition of course to the costumes and special effects.  But I can’t say I came away with a catchy new tune.  The age of melody is long gone. Tunes took a back seat starting in the 1950s, displaced first by rockin’ rhythms, then by the lyrics of folkie songwriters.  In the age of the singer-songwriter, a tune was just a few repetitive notes to hang the verses on.  And in rap music, melody disappeared completely, as music got down to just the word and the beat. 

Someday, melody is going to make a big comeback.  That’s not because any of the above trends were wrong or not necessary.  It’s because melody is the element of music that says the most, on the most basic level.  It’s the musical statement that stands for the whole piece.  And it lasts longest in the memory.