Do you like country music? Why don’t you like country? How can you hate this music? I swear I have been asked some version of this question at least 15,000 times. Funny how if you say you dislike country, people will want to know why. If a metalhead asks if I like Finnish Black Metal, and I say no, they go “oh, your loss.” And that is the end of it. But country fans? They cannot fathom how anyone would dislike their favorite music.
Now, to answer the question. I do not hate country music. I am not a fan of country, but I do not hate it. Modern country, or maybe country pop is not really my thing. Morgan Wallen, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryant…just not my type of music.
But…music is complicated. As you all know, I love folk rock, which I picked up from my dad. I grew up listening to Bob Dylan, John Prine, and many others. If you listen to John Prine, you might ask if he is country, and I would say he probably falls under the subgenre of country folk, and if you follow that vein, you can see where certain bands are more similar to that style than modern country.
For example, I like Zach Bryan. He is country, but I feel like he is more similar to John Prine than someone like Jason Aldean. Hell, Zach Bryan does a song with The Lumineers. My dad was also a fan of Alabama and Hank Williams Jr. Those are definitely more traditional country, albeit with a little more rock influence.
Also, when I was a kid, I would go to camp with my pap, and we would listen to country music. The more traditional stuff though like Randy Travis, Alan Jackson, and Garth Brooks. And come on, who doesn’t love some Faith Hill and Tim McGraw? I am not some kind of monster here. There is probably a period from about 1990 to 1996 when I probably heard all of those songs every weekend on the way to Kettle Creek.
Lindsey often asks why I like someone like John Prine, but not other country. She thinks Prine sounds like country, so it would make sense if I liked country. And I tried to explain that there is a difference. I am sure someone with a more musical background can explain it better, the difference between folk and country. Or maybe it is like that old saying about pornography “I cannot define it, but I know it when I see it” (I may be paraphrasing that one). That is how I feel about country. It all comes down to a feeling. Maybe it is the message of the songs, maybe it is just the right amount of twang. I do not know, but I know when I hear certain songs, I either like them, or I do not.
So basically this is a long way of saying…I am not a country fan, but I do like some stuff. Probably could have just said that at the beginning and made this a really short post.
And come on…country or folk: this is a great song, probably the only redeeming quality about WVU!
