What will the 2000s be remembered for musically? Some great music has come out, but aside from the 2001-2 garage rock explosion, there hasn't been any semblance of order--VH1 won't have any idea how to assemble their top 100 list. Much of ths has to do with the fact that there's no strong cultural identity for us to attach to. In the '90s, grunge and the alternative bands that followed came in as part of a general movement toward detachment and irony. But we're in the post-post-modern era, and even irony seems reprocessed--where does that leave us?
Obviously this question goes far past the scope of music. There's hardly any sense anymore of what is "cool" in any realm--I guess you could argue that it's cool to be young... and female, or a gay man. I think that has a lot to do with the fact that human sex appeal is a constant and continues to be the driving force behind most marketing at this point (I actually saw an electrician's van the other day parked on 10th street with a stock photo of an attractive woman smiling next to the logo) and less to do with any actual identity. Some would argue that that's a good thing, and I definitely agree that there are upsides. But I think it is also a state that lends itself to apathy, since nobody is in synch enough with each other to get pissed off or very happy about anything.
Anyway, historians will work that one out. In the meantime... I just wonder what they'll say was the song of our generation. The 90s had "Smells like Teen Spirit." What'll ours be? "Umbrella"?
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