I find it interesting how we all see these things so differently.
As some may know I teach music and run a small studio. Part of my job is to deconstruct/reconstruct music for students to discus/analyse and create their own recordings. I deal daily with everything from Rick Astley to Slipknott and everything in between. My point really in all of this is that I try to find the good in what's in front of me regardless of personal taste. That's why some of the critiques on here seem to me to be a bit lazy. It's perfectly possible to find the good in art while still saying 'this is not to my taste'....
Very interesting job on teach music/producing you have.
I like to be on a recording studio. Now i am living in Lisbon. Cause of this, i record stuff from home.
I like a large variety of musical styles.
I don't think that my critics are about musical genres/styles. My critics are all about viscerality.
The song needs to mean something.
Can't agree with you 2manyguitars. I dabble at teaching music myself, mostly Mark's music in fact, and settled on the course to learn all his songs in depth. So I am almost "obligated" to "like" them all, even masterpieces like "Hot Dog" or "Follow The Ribbon". But I truly love all his stuff. It's the soundtrack to more than half of my life. I wait for all new releases, and I feel at home with his music, no matter how many other artists I listen to, and like you and Rolo, I listen to a lot.
Most people here are truly die-hard fans, some of them follow Mark right from the beginning, so for his entire career. I was fortunate to witness his career in real-time from 2005. My criticism is based on my experience of listening to his music for 19 years and music released in the past. All the guys who seem to be grumpy all the time here, are all usually writing good stuff, not lazy stuff at all. Lazy criticism is something like a 2-word review from Spinal Tap.
LE is unbelievable in his understanding of MK's lyrics for example, and I read his words carefully. Other complaints are also understandable. All of my MK-fan friends I regularly speak to who are not present on this forum agree two latest songs by Mark aren't his best, to say the least, and we are not terribly impressed. Will we love Mark's music less? Hell, naw!