I was going to say something similar to what Jorge said and cite electronic music and shoegaze as examples.

Yeah, ditto for ambient/drone.

Jam bands are horrifying, sure, but it's not because they're "background music".

They're kinda playing music for anal-retentive musicians. Those who are able to keep track of obscure chords, time signatures and how many frets your guitar has are in it to win it.

I want to clarify. I don't believe the musicians creating the music are trying I make background music. I'm saying a good portion of the fanbase may enjoy this as such.

With even more stereotyping - i live in a place where
This music is completely rampant. It's the norm. Along with dubstep. It's background music and an excuse to get dressed up and get fucked up.

I also have jazz snob friends. When they listen to it they stop what thy are doing and it's much more about the music.


Again - yes I know I'm making blanket statements. I'm just stating what I've experienced and I don't feel I'm far off.

What jam band fits this description? Some Phish songs, maybe, but most jam band music isn't nearly that sophisticated. Usually it's just overlong vamping on simple chord progressions and basic rock/funk/reggae rhythms.

I just can't get past the ridiculous songwriting. They all just sound like total airheads, even when they're not doing "joke" songs. It's easily the most emotionless genre of music ever to attain such a level of success--I can't remember ever having heard a single song where it seemed like the guy singing had even the tiniest thing to get off his chest.

The Grateful Dead transcends all of this for me, by the way. Despite their legacy, I maintain they were still a songs first, jam second band. Phish sometimes are that, too. None of the other ones are.

Kev, you're a total dude. Great post. I kinda feel bad that you took my post seriously, but the result was pretty grand.

I have a defective online sarcasm detector.

From where I sat it sounded like you were confusing Entire Genre That Only Needs One Thread #2 with Entire Genre That Only Needs One Thread #1.

Man I fucking love The Dead and Phish.

Other than xxxxx, what else is there?

i had a lot of fun at a WSP show once. They seem like solid dudes.

I went with a friend to the first Bonnaroo in 2002, back when it was all jam bands and the occasional conscious hip hop group. The thing I remember most was how impossible it was to find non-vegetarian options for meals. Eventually I found a tent that sold cheese pizza and subsisted on that for about three days.

Is pearl jam a jam band?

Allman Bros Band

I'd say those 3 deserve their own threads and the rest can be lumped into one, and like a few of them a little bit.

I once dated a girl who was in love with Widespread Panic. One night we drove two hours down to Charleston to see the guitarist(Jimmy Herring?) of WP play in a small club. I wasn't familiar with their music, so for me it was two and a half hours of watching her and 100 other hippies in front of the stage doing that 'I'm so into the music' hippie dancing. You know, eyes closed, head back, arms hanging limp by their side, swaying their body back and forth.

To make things worse, the dude is like 60 with gray hair and a pony tail and an unkempt neckbeard. She thought he was handsome and sexy.

We broke up a week later.

not one mention of dmb? im pleasantly surprised, thank you to everyone who posted in here

How can I decide which Phish soundboard to listen to? I have almost 300 of them.

smoke a bowl man, the truth will reveal itself

in the last year or so, i think i hooked up with one too many hippie chicks that got me into this shit

Has anyone mentioned Rusted Root? Are they considered a jam band?

Wasn't that a clothing line in the mid nineties?

Stussy?