Overrated/Underrated is really a comment on people's perceptions of an artist, not the artist themselves. Get too much love and the artist becomes overrated; ignored and they become underrated. The artist hasn't changed, only our perception of them.
I'm surrounded by a lot of musicians, so we lean towards the dudes who are off the map or more complex. In my world, the Beach Boys are never underrated because we're always picking apart their moving harmony parts and analyzing Brian Wilson's weirdo arrangements. The songs may have become background muzak to today's crowd, but most musicians still worship at Wilson's savant gift.
But I'm not a snob. I was never a big Stones fan, but I recognize a catchy groove when I hear it. And however you judge charisma, Jagger has it in spades. Their sound has never strayed far from their wheelhouse, but it's rock comfort-food.
Here's a nominee for underrated: Yes. I never cared about the band either way before. I know they get dismissed as pretentious, overproduced prog-rock, and really... does every song have to be 8 minutes? But I was just listening to a few of their tracks from the 70s and early 80s and, holy shit, were these guys amazing musicians! Great melodies sung by one of the most unique voices in modern music, plus arrangements that fuse together creatively and perfectly. Yeah... the tunes are still too long, but if you have the patience, Yes is worth revisiting.
I'm surrounded by a lot of musicians, so we lean towards the dudes who are off the map or more complex. In my world, the Beach Boys are never underrated because we're always picking apart their moving harmony parts and analyzing Brian Wilson's weirdo arrangements. The songs may have become background muzak to today's crowd, but most musicians still worship at Wilson's savant gift.
But I'm not a snob. I was never a big Stones fan, but I recognize a catchy groove when I hear it. And however you judge charisma, Jagger has it in spades. Their sound has never strayed far from their wheelhouse, but it's rock comfort-food.
Here's a nominee for underrated: Yes. I never cared about the band either way before. I know they get dismissed as pretentious, overproduced prog-rock, and really... does every song have to be 8 minutes? But I was just listening to a few of their tracks from the 70s and early 80s and, holy shit, were these guys amazing musicians! Great melodies sung by one of the most unique voices in modern music, plus arrangements that fuse together creatively and perfectly. Yeah... the tunes are still too long, but if you have the patience, Yes is worth revisiting.