What is "Hype" ?
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Topic: What is "Hype" ?
Posted By: Wilcey
Subject: What is "Hype" ?
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 16:24
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What is "hype" ???
In many reviews you can read phrases such as
"despite the hype" or "there was a lot of hype, but..." over the last few days
I've been thinking what exactly is hype? (please understand I have had other
thoughts, I am not entirely vacuous, I just give a good impression)
So, is "Hype" merely the buzz surrounding a new
album that you don't like? Would you describe this thing as "hype" if you were
in agreement and love it as much as everyone else? Is "Hype" something you only
see if you feel that you are the only one seing a naked emperor? Or, indeed is
it a different animal altogether?
Do we feel "hype" used in this way is a derogative
term? is it born out of some feeling that a particular album is getting more
attention than it deserves? And how do we measure what an album "deserves" ?
surely it's an organic thing, when an album is 'born' it is so with a certain
ammount of chest puffing from it's parents (although I am sure they are
nervously hoping that you'll agree it's a beautiful baby and no one will mention
Aunt Hida's nose, or the Winston Churchill look of the sprog) once that initial
moment is over it's kind of over to the record buying public to either talk, or
not, as is their want. The judgement on the sweet child is yours, so does that
mean it's you who creates the loathesome hype?
Or do we actually think "Hype" is a good thing?
So how do you define it, where does it come from,
and is it good, bad or ugly ?
W x
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Replies:
Posted By: Atkingani
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 16:34
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I went to the English-Portuguese Michäelis Dictionary (a fine one btw) and found it.
hype2
n 1 sl publicidade, propaganda ou promoção espalhafatosa. 2 engodo, mentira. Engodo means 'bait' and mentira is simply 'a lie'.  ------------- Guigo ~~~~~~ |
Posted By: Mr ProgFreak
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 16:43
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Hype is definitely a negative word. IMO it's what happens when something is getting increasingly popular not because of its inherent qualities, but because everybody's talking about it and other people assume that they need to check it out in order to be "cool" ... like with the new Bond movie, most people don't think it's good but they go see it anyway ... and if the hype is particularly effective, you would even be ashamed to admit to your friends that you don't like it. ------------- https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike" rel="nofollow - https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike |
Posted By: Logan
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 17:04
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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. |
Posted By: mithrandir
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 17:13
| kind of like the term "overrated" which is pretty much the catch all word for the internet so you avoid actually having to "think" about why you don't like the object you want to insult, there's also a front of superiority in using such a term - as if they are oh so experienced and they, and no one else, knows where that bar should be set in knowing what is under and/or overrated.... |
Posted By: BroSpence
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 17:32
| 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. |
Posted By: limeyrob
Date Posted: November 16 2008 at 17:44
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Usually the more something is hyped the crappier it is. The only exception I can think of is Star Wars - no genuinely, not just cos I have just seen it on TV.
Which you can't say about prog music. Though I think some better selling is definitely needed. Neither HMV or Zavvi in Leeds had Pure or the new Marillion albums. Come to think of it I don't even think they had any Pendies at all. Grrrr!!
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Posted By: Queen By-Tor
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 02:07
Hype... the reason I can't accept "Pure" into my life 
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Posted By: npjnpj
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 06:12
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Although the word has negative connotations, it needn't necessarily be so. Generally, it means a large amount of promotion put into a product, mostly financial / advertising in all possible forms. Quite often, the product will fall short, but sometimes it's considered adequate, for instance you'll quite often come across a phrase such as: "The artist's album manages to live up to the hype surrounding it'". But as this doesn't happen all that often, the meaning is generally considered to be negative. |
Posted By: Dean
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 07:05
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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.)
In recent times Hype is measured by volume and media saturation rather than just exaggeration or inflated claims (some would say 'overrating' though my interpretation of that particular word appears to be different from everyone else's). Overrating comes from the fans and followers, hype comes from the PR/marketting department.
------------- What? |
Posted By: BaldFriede
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 07:16
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"Hype" is having a singer shot to posthumously rise him to fame and raise his album sells, as it happens in the novel "Hype" by Robert Calvert, the singer of Hawkwind. His album "Hype" is made of songs by that singer, Tom Mahler, as the sleeve notes say. -------------  BaldJean and I; I am the one in blue. |
Posted By: Dick Heath
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 07:35
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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. ------------- The best eclectic music on the Web,8-11pm BST/GMT THURS. CLICK ON: http://www.lborosu.org.uk/media/lcr/live.php - http://www.lborosu.org.uk/media/lcr/live.php Host by PA's Dick Heath. |
Posted By: Slartibartfast
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 08:27
 Hype is short for Hyperbolic Paraboloid. And if you think deeply enough, this might actually be applicable to your musical question. ------------- Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened... 
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Posted By: Dean
Date Posted: November 17 2008 at 08:29
...as opposed to a Hyperactive Paranoid  ------------- What? |