My Ears Are Ringing

It might get loud?  It does get loud.  Gibson has this list of The 10 Loudest Rock Bands of All Time.

Here’s the list:

Motorhead

The Who

MC5

AC/DC

My Bloody Valentine

Deep Purple

Led Zeppelin

Manowar

Leftfield

Kiss

Wish I’d seen The Who.  Ditto doubly for AC/DC. 

The article says excessive volume is as pointless and painful as shouting in the midst of a tornado, and they have a point.  But I think the music itself enters into the picture.

Rock music is supposed to be loud.  And a little bit of temporary pain is kinda fun – once in a while.  Unfortunately, too many bands use volume to cover up their sins.  They substitute volume for skill and discipline.  Some acts may wear the noise as a “badge of courage”, but the best acts impress at any volume.

Take Zeppelin, for instance, which for over two decades was the best concert I’d ever seen.  Maybe the decibel level was over the top, but you know, you could go home and listen to one of their acoustic numbers – at low volume – and know you were listening to masters.

No question excessive volume is not good for you, but it’s never about the volume, man.  It’s about the music.