Unpopular Pop

People always ask me what kind of music I make. This question was really difficult with Fooled By April. The band’s sound was such an amalgam of each member’s contributions and influences that the result was too hybrid for an easy description. We always went with “hi-fi garage”, which sounds cool but didn’t really clarify anything.

Now I’m on my own, though, and it’s a lot more straightforward. I listen to some Crowded House, some Michael Penn, and then a bit of Rufus… and it’s pretty obvious where I fit. Some research on AllMusic.com and CDDB suggests that it’s the territory of “adult alternative pop”. Fair enough. I think I’ll tell people I’m just alternative pop, though. Unless you’re Mary Chapin Carpenter, adding the “adult” in there is tantamount to simply calling it lame.

For promotional purposes, though, either of the above is better than Jon Brion’s moniker of “unpopular pop”. Ah, sad but true.

Or is it? Just read about a study in Science that confirms all our worst fears about mainstream music and marketing ploys. Although I was glad to see it points out that good songs are always good songs and, well, bad songs suck.