Album Rating: 5.0

Big props for Hell tho

Album Rating: 4.5

personally i'm rooting for a meteor to strike us at this point if the world's gonna be turning into a fash nightmare

foul art indeed

quote-
https://springerin.at/en/2003/4/kritik-der-imperialen-vernunft/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PneRbPrCsZE

god damn

Totally understand and respect that perspective, ven. It is simply one I do not share. Don't want to turn this into the millionth iteration of the dusty old 'separating art from the artist' conversation except to say that I, unlike some (many?) people, have long treated it as a binary concept. Either I stop consuming art (movies, books, music, whatever) from ALL shitty people, or I accept the fact that terrible human beings are still capable of achieving/creating great things, however grim that sad reality might be. Is it fair of me to self-embargo GBK's music, yet go home and watch CHINATOWN after work? On the scale of human shittiness, what ranks as worse - Nazism, or drugging & sexually molesting a 14-year-old? Then you have to ask yourself where is the definitive line drawn? I see you have some Neurosis albums 4'd and 4.5'd. Is Scott Kelly physically and emotionally abusing his wife and children for the better part of two decades not abhorrent enough of an act for you to write them off? How about Woody Allen films? He was never convicted of a crime (because he never technically committed one) but likely grooming your underage stepdaughter (regardless of how many times you've "met" her) and then marrying her when she turns 21 (as a 56-year-old) seems pretty morally wrong, doesn't it? The more you dig, the more you learn that the number of shitty people out there is staggering. Why bother consuming art at all?

[con't...]

I've not said all that to in any way insuniate that you are "wrong" for treating the situation as you do (you are not). I'm sure most—if not, all—people would argue that it need NOT be a binary view. I'm only trying to illustrate the mental gymnastics it would take for me personally to start writing off certain artists for their wrongdoings and what a convoluted, hypocritical mess that would almost certainly become. It might be a very self-centered view but quite honestly I have neither the time nor energy to keep track of which arists have done shitty things and how highly they rank on the shittiness scale to remember whether I'm allowed to listen to them. And the reality is that for many of these artists - GBK most certainly included - whether I engage with their art or not is totally irrelevant. I downloaded their albums via Soulseek (no compensation) and I can't tell you the last time I bought merch from literally any band. So what do I stand to gain from prohibiting myself from merely listening to their music, other than a self-imposed sense of, idk, moral superiority?

Again, not trying to argue or say you're wrong in any way (b/c you're not), just trying to demonstrate my viewpoint and why I can no longer (sadly?) be bothered to stew over such things. I'm sorry if that offends you and I'm sorry you think my inclusion of a GBK album is "fucking disgusting". But everyone is entitled to their own opinion, of course. Humans are complex.

i ain’t reading all that

Don't blame you. My fingers hurt.

Album Rating: 5.0

tl;dr (not all of it anyway, lol)

ahem, mostly agreed I think. Yes, this argument has been regurgitated ad nauseam (hence my reluctance to read some of your presumably pleasing words) and I already know your stance well by this point

although I did notice and appreciated this...

"It might be a very self-centered view but quite honestly I have neither the time nor energy to keep track of which arists have done shitty things and how highly they rank on the shittiness scale to remember whether I'm allowed to listen to them" (2)

sound bloody exhausting tbh. People are shitty. Listen to the art itself as shitty people can make great and poignant art. Don't give money to the ones you absolutely KNOW are shitty. That's my mantra. Easy to follow. No guilt cos idgaf

I also have nothing against those that actively choose to do the opposite

great album check the vid I posted

Album Rating: 5.0

Yeah, the points made are easy to agree to.

I will add, though, that by knowingly including shitty people's art to 'my fav X' lists or even by rating said art highly (say, on Sput/RYM or IMDB/Letter), you are actively promoting those people, raising awareness for their art, and consequently increasing the odds of other people potentially not knowing about those artists' (alleged or factual) deeds increasing those artists' wealth. In that way, you are still passively supporting shitty people. Not blaming you - I'm guilty of it, too. Just saying the moral dilemma doesn't end with your own enjoyment of art created by controversial or de facto criminal human beings.



"great album check the vid I posted"

Insane gig, agreed.

I will add, though, that by knowingly including shitty people's art to 'my fav X' lists or even by rating said art highly (say, on Sput/RYM or IMDB/Letter), you are actively promoting those people

Precisely (part of the reason) why my stance is all-or-nothing and I suppose in this case I've chosen 'nothing'. The web of potential indictments one could make upon themselves (as you've done above) is too potentially massive for me to begin to mentally evaluate, so I figure while it's nevertheless a mostly self-centered response (as noted above), it's perhaps still more "honorable" (?) to at least be forthright and admit I've absolutely zero interest in engaging in those ethical politics at all vs. trying to act like I've given it a second thought when I clearly have not. Maybe that makes me shitty-by-complacency but as Demon eluded to, this is a hobby for me, and one that I'd prefer not to morph into another full-time job. I listen to stuff. If I like it, I listen to it again. If not, I move on. It doesn't go much deeper than that, alas.

It's better to be truthful and morally "wrong" than to be a hypocrite.

can we please stop pretending this is listenable thanks

Album Rating: 5.0

"Though justice be thy plea, consider this:

That in the course of justice none of us

Should see salvation."



Still wouldn't buy a Tesla though.

Album Rating: 5.0

Finally, some sanity!

yeahhh idk the "separate the art from the artist" concept kind of goes out the window when the art itself is also explicitly nazi lol. for me thats the distinction between GBK and something like burzum or DsO. i'm not gonna sit there with a straight face and listen to a song called "the shitagogue" because like venin said, i just can't mentally separate the riffs from the aesthetic/lyrics at that point

And I'm sure many people feel the same in re Leni Riefenstahl's TRIUMPH OF THE WILL. It's a valid stance.

Album Rating: 5.0

"to each their own"

The German translation of that phrase 'adorns' the main gate of the Buchenwald concentration camp to this day, by the way. I'm positive you didn't factor that in and most likely weren't even aware of that. These issues go beyond mere music.