Genres that are either really good or really bad

Every genre has at least one catchy song in it, (assuming it's actually music and not noise). Some genres are YMMV on steroids. I'm talking about those.

What genres do you guys think are either really good or really bad? It doesn't have to be 50/50 quality wise. If 90% is trash and the rest is good it qualifies. This is completely personal so no flaming if your favorite genres show up.

My vote goes to Nintendocore. Mostly trash. Actually all trash. Except for "Giants in the Ocean" by Sky Eats Airplane and maybe some HORSE the band.

in my experience, Neofolk

its either starkly, soulfully beautiful (Current 93) or incredibly dull and pompous (Rome)

Harsh Noise and Power Electronics, both of which are unusual in that the variance in quality is at once fairly noticeable, extremely subjective and very hard to describe in conventional musical terms. Even single groups are subject to wild fluxes in how enjoyable their output is, mainly by dint of their enormous back-catalogues—seriously, who on earth owns every Controlled Bleeding or Wolf Eyes release, let alone every Merzbow release? But setting this fact aside: Being a music of violent release and/or Zen-like control, noise has a tendency to veer between godly perfection and searing catharsis on the one hand and ear-bleeding boredom on the other. There is a middle, and naturally a hefty one, but the extremes still leave a stronger impression.

Grindcore is like that too. Going through the entire Napalm Death back catalog, you get real variance in quality.

I think that the idea of the thread here has more to do with polarisation of quality within a genre than anything as general as Sturgeon's Law itself.

edited 4th May '12 11:26:22 PM by JHM

Country.

Everyone either:

a.) thinks it's nothing but hillbilly music that has not evolved since the 60s;

b.) listens only to crossover, Country In Name Only acts like Taylor Swift and Lady Antebellum (both of whom I like) and is indifferent on or oblivious to more "traditional" country;

c.) outright loves many artists in the genre.

Southern hip-hop. You get either extremely funky, entertaining, and occasionally genre-busting artists like OutKast, UGK, Big K.R.I.T., Cee-Lo Green, and more on the good side. On the bad side, you get a ton of people that never should have been let in the booth, like SouljaBoy, Dem Franchise Boyz, and many of the rappers on Young Money.

Technical death metal. Either you create a compelling labyrinth of staggering contrasts and sudden violent shifts with an eerie grace guiding it all or all you're left with is failed jazz musicians, Yngwie Malmsteen wannabes, and drummers attempting to be drum machine.

Brutal death metal. When done right (read: rarely, if ever) it really does become "death metal with more death metal in it" - structures twist in more logic-defying ways, riffs come in greater variety and grind you to dust faster, and the drumming becomes a singularity of impossible kit abuse. However what happens roughly 90% of the time is the sort of clustered disorganized stitched together mess of Cannibal Corpse/Cryptopsy/Suffocation/Devourment dicking-about that basically throws in everything and the kitchen sink and in the process, loses any sense of coherency it could have had.

Rap. Eminem is a genius in what he writes, rhymes, and his storytelling in his music is outstanding.

On the other hand, you have "smoke weed bitch ain't shit blunts fat ass joint gangsta ass nigga ho trick muthafucka gangsta"

Drum and Bass.

As far as I'm concerned, the genre is split 50/50 between pure genius and complete shit.

Okay, since we've been avoiding it, going for the obvious here: Pop music. On one hand, we have works of genius like The Beatles or ELO or even (when she wants to try) Lady Gaga, the catchy-but-that-is-all-you-need-since-the-melody-is-nice-and-the-lyrics-are-inoffensive-or-even-singable like Madonna or Michael Jackson or Kelly Clarkson...and then you have the utter crap you need to wade through like Soulja Boy or simply mediocrity like Flo Rida or Ke$ha (though I will admit I love "Your Love is My Drug" and that, sick of it as I still am all this time later, I'll probably someday feel nostalgic for "Tik Tok").

Lots of people say that, but I've never understood it.

I mean, Jump-Up isn't 50% of D'n'B

Actually I listen mostly to hardstep/tech/neuro where this tendency is pretty pronounced. Jump-up is a perfect example, too, though. Just compare Tantrum Desire to most of what you find on UKF in the subgenre.

Edit: Ha, actually just understood your joke properly. But yes, there's plenty of awful stuff from every subdivision you care to argue for, some subgenres have a disproportionate amount of shit or gold.

edited 11th May '12 6:58:03 PM by Sarkastique

As much as I like the genre, Dubstep. A third of it will have you nodding your head, another third will relax you, and the last third will make your ears bleed.