What is "Hype" ?

I went to the English-Portuguese Michäelis Dictionary (a fine one btw) and found it. 

 

The hype definition from OED:

1. extravagant or intensive publicity promotion
2. cheating; a trick
v.t 1. promote (a product) with extravagant publicity
2. cheat; trick

Also for hype:
1. a drug addict
2. a hypodermic needle or injection

For me, if I were to use hype to describe what has been said about an album 9and in the marketing) it would mean that I feel that the praise is too extravagant (hyperbole), and there is too much of it, and that I think it's being too intensely publicised, promoted and too effusively praised (claims are exaggerated), but does not live up to the praise/ buzz (unrealistic expectations).

Often albums are hyped before they come out which can create too high an expectation.  Saying something like, "Everyone should buy this; this is the greatest album ever" is hype.  And then one has the hype-machine.

This is what Tom Delonge (formerly of blink 182) said about his then upcoming debut from his the new project, Angels and Airwaves, in an interview for promotional purposes.

"[It's] the best music made in decades" and "much more powerful, emotional and melodic than Box Car Racer and blink put together."

"It sounds like it has the conceptual depth of Pink Floyd, the anthemic architecture of U2 but with Tom from Blink writing all the melodies. All the songs are very cinematic, anthemic and epic-sounding. The music sounds angelic. Every song gives you the chills and you feel like you want to cry but you're conquering the world at the same time. It sounds like stadium rock done by a band that's meant to be the absolute biggest band in the world."

"The songs are all six minutes long, and [the music] feels like you're going to cry but you put your fist in the air and you can conquer the world... It's built on a punk-rock foundation, but it definitely doesn't sound like blink."

"Imagine if you were in a jet plane, soaring through the clouds. That's what it sounds like."

Oh, and his statements lacking in modesty.

Edited by Logan - November 16 2008 at 17:18

Hype as in building up or promoting a subject to an extraordinary, ridiculous point where people start believe it is good before even remotely hearing or knowing about the subject.   Also to the point where you wonder why it was hyped.  Like the Arctic Monkeys, The Raconteurs, Cat Power and I suppose Obama would fit in the category too.  

Hype... the reason I can't accept "Pure" into my life

As Greg points out Hype is derived from Hyperbole, meaning an exaggerated statement that is never meant to be taken literally (I've told you a million times, don't exaggerate) and originally referred to the over-blown statements made about a product (the greatest story ever told... washes whiter than white... etc.)

Hype is heard every time an album is advertised on British TV. Use of the words, 'fantastic', 'incredible', 'brilliant' usually indicate the opposite and used in some form of desperation. And most albums advertised on UK TV  in 2007, are now completely forgotten i.e. most of the public, most of time, see through the hype.

...as opposed to a Hyperactive Paranoid