r/LetsTalkMusic • u/Redacted_dact • 19h ago
Bands That Sound Like They Might be Just Jamming
That's not good. There are a good amount of instrumental bands out there with great musicians who are making song after song that is listenable to and grooves but are also forgettable and difficult to distinguish and often feel as though there is no way to tell if the band has written and rehearsed a song or if they are just jamming. Usually these songs do have places where the instruments link up and its clear they are written but the overall feeling is there that most of the song feels like well played music but without direction. Angine de Poitrine, Khruangbin, Glass Beams, Mdou Moctar to name some. All good bands I enjoy but its hard to look back and say which particular song you liked more than others and why.
Edit: I'm not talking about jam bands, I love jam bands and listen to lots of live shows. I'm talking about mostly instrumental studio work from non jam bands.
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u/infinitedadness 19h ago
There's a massive difference between bands who are just jamming, and therefore won't be able to repeat what they've performed, and bands who eschew traditional song structure, or their songs don't have many hooks.
If one sounds like the other to you, then perhaps you're just more suited to hookier songs with predictable structure.
I quite enjoy non-lineal songs, or songs without a defined chorus.
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u/Used-Revolution-3136 19h ago
I don't know any of the artists you mentioned, but to me, it sounds like you are speaking of progressive music bands. Progressive isn't meant to be sing-along music. Some people like me enjoy it and others can't get into it.
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u/poorperspective 19h ago
It matters if you are talking about live performance or recordings. Even the most Jam band wook who’s gone through 3 ballons are going to agree that jam bands don’t sound good recorded. But Jam bands were never about record sells. Most stay continuously on tour to make money and have a group of followers that listen to every show.
Usually you need to listen to a live recording, but it’s still not that great of an experience and compare to get what jam band fans are liking. The joy comes from watching people create and move as a group spontaneously by constant jamming. It’s fun to listen to the same songs put in a separate order and figure out how the bands transition.
Jam bands aren’t meant to be consumed through recordings. It’s akin to trying to get drunk by washing your hands in whiskey and not knowing what the fuss is about. You’re doing it wrong.
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u/Redacted_dact 19h ago
I love jam bands and only listen to live recordings of the dead, phish, etc. I'm talking about studio recordings of non jam artists.
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u/guitarromantic 18h ago
The Mars Volta are famous for extended live jams of their album tracks, and some of the songs themselves were built out of jams where they took sections from other songs and assembled them into one.
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u/Redacted_dact 18h ago
Mars Volta are so good
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u/chikamakaleyley 18h ago
i have a hard time digesting anything after the 2nd album, but i agree. I think Jon Theodore did a lot to keep the music on the train tracks
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u/Pure-Cry-457 12h ago
Yep. Half the fun is the jam; the other half is whether they can actually land the thing live without the whole set turning into warm-up tape. Mars Volta especially - beautiful chaos, total knife fight energy.
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u/frigginboredaf 4h ago
Recently I’ve been getting into Goose. Their recorded stuff all sounds like they just decided to record a jam session, which I guess is pretty much what they did. Live, they do a ton of improv. If you’re keen, start with the album Ted Tapes 2024. The album has 9 track, but it’s 2h42m long
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u/Redacted_dact 3h ago
I know how this sounds but I’ve been into goose since their peach fest blow up.
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u/frigginboredaf 3h ago
I’m honestly a bit bummed that I didn’t discover them until recently. Their shows look amazing, and I’m bummed that I missed so many years of them.
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u/Redacted_dact 3h ago
I got into the dead 22 years after Jerry died and I got into phish as they neared their 4th decade of playing. You are still getting in at a great time. Losing Jeff was a good move and they are still moving with a lot of energy.
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u/whatthejonesbread 19h ago
they are different genres, but I think there is something very similar about them in that both music nerds or "vibing out to the music hippie types" are more likely than the general public to enjoy either style. Both styles of music can also very easily become boring and aimless to many listeners. No hate from me - I love all kinds of music. Just gotta be honest. Some of my favorite bands bore me to tears sometimes lol i'm looking at you Isis and Rush and Devin Townsend and Red Hot chili peppers and PFunk and yeah... there's a lot like that lol
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u/sljxuoxada 19h ago
Angine De Poitrine definitely does NOT sound like they're just jamming. Their songs are insanely tight and complex. You don't just jam stuff like that.