LOST IN THE MIST

Last week I wrote a piece about the influx of A.I.-generated songs appearing on Spotify and YouTube. Over the next few days, a thought occurred to me that many of the people who moan about A.I. music have no problem with A.I. movies, either fully animated or used for special effects in live action. 

The album every child wanted to find under
the Christmas tree.

Going back to the late 1970s, music fans and critics alike praised the punk
movement for allowing bands to place spectacle over, uh, music. Anyone remember The Plasmatics? Their performance on the late-night sketch comedy series Fridays scared the hell out of me back then. You can see it here in case you didn't have the pleasure the first time.

Jump ahead a couple of decades. Portable synths could now replicate any instrument with remarkable clarity. Again, music-adjacent folks were delighted that "anybody" could sound like a real band. Democracy in action, and good for them. 

So why shouldn't I join in on the fun? I had the lyrics for a song hanging around and, having no musical talent, asked the Suno website to provide the melody and instruments. I typed in "Male country singer with acoustic guitar" and described the image to accompany it. 

A moment later, it offered me a real, honest-to-gosh song. Click the link:

Lost in the Mist by kevinkusinitz | Suno

Is it an instant classic? Nah. More like what used to be referred to as a parlor trick. But for songwriters who can't get music publishers to buy their works, it provides, at the very least, instant gratification. And for those who want to upload the songs to Spotify on the chance they can make a few bucks...well, again, democracy in action and good for them!

Musicians will not be put out of business. Audiences will always prefer to see real live people sing and play instruments rather than someone hit a button on their laptop. Especially if that someone is a goofball like me.

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