Posers In Rock Music
Josh Adams
Mar 27 2014, 01:36 PM
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I found something really interesting on urbandictionary.com while I was scouring the internet for old words I used a few years back that remind me of being a young teenager. One of them was calling other people posers (or what the equivalent word was in my neck of the woods: wannabe).

Poser Rocker: someone who doesn't know the difference between alternative rock, classic rock, heavy metal, death metal, pop punk, nu metal and possibly even indie. however, this poser will buy a guitar and take up lessons, in a way that will make you cringe seen as 90% of guys have alrealdy jumped on this bandwagon already. they act like they're really 'kwl' and go around proclaiming how good 'rock' is and telling everyone to listen to some 'decent' music, when they dont even know what theyre talking about. their music taste will probably change in a year anyway!! http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=poser-rocker

For some reason I cringe at the use of the word now. When I was a teenager and a pretty prolific rock fan (much more so than I am now, my taste has varied) I could “see” posers left, right and centre. People who had only just picked up the guitar and apparently overnight had developed a life-consuming interest in Metal (or whatever), with their schoolbags and uniform all of a sudden covered in band merch. I’d never seen a reason to advertise my music taste in such a way, and it probably p****d me off a bit to see people walking around in costume, representing an interest they’d only had for five minutes.

To me at least, when I picked out ‘wannabes’ from ‘real rock fans’ (please don’t judge me, I was young) I would usually notice a sudden change in personality or shift in friend group. I know of one guy who was the bubbliest, funniest and most spontaneous guy you’d ever met but all of a sudden he started becoming sad and withdrawn. The change was so dramatic and so cliché. The first sign was when he would doodle band names, broken hearts and checkered patterns across his pencil case. A week later he was suddenly emo. And a proud longstanding one too, apparently. I quizzed him about some of the bands he’d recently taken an interest in and it turned out he couldn’t name a song off of any album bar one.

Now had he admitted to me that he was “getting in” to said band, I wouldn't of taken a blind bit of notice. But the fact he’d so suddenly embraced this persona of ‘the emo’ in a matter of days (to me) was evidence that he preferred the lifestyle and the idea of being an emo more than he did the music. And that somehow the lifestyle had driven him toward the music, rather than the other way round. Worst of all, two months or so down the line he’d evolved into this pop music hating, hip hop hating idiot who suddenly was the world’s authority on anybody that wore black and played the guitar. I knew otherwise though.

Although, the Urban Dictionary definition is something that would totally apply to me at the time that I was secretly denouncing recent converts to Guitar music as ‘wannabes’ in my head. I might have been a pretty avid rock fan but if you’d of sat me down and tried to quiz me on the differences between Alt. Rock, Classic Rock and Indie – I’d of fallen to pieces.

What’s your criteria for a Poser (Wannabe, whatever)? Or are you like me and have grown out of such things because you've left your childish, crowd-following, judgmental self behind? That’s a joke by the way. I’m still a judgmental idiot only now it’s my little secret wink.gif
Well, and yours. Just promise not to tell anyone.

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klasaine
Mar 27 2014, 02:31 PM
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Here's the definition from the Cambridge English dictionary - "Someone who pretends to be something they are not, or to have qualities that they do not have". In French it means to effect an attitude or pose.
I suppose everybody's a poseur in the beginning (especially if you pick up an electric guitar past the age of 7 or 8). But hey, ya gotta start somewhere. We all grew out of it.

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This post has been edited by klasaine: Mar 27 2014, 02:32 PM
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Darius Wave
Mar 27 2014, 05:00 PM
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Ha ha ha biggrin.gif Nice punchline Ken smile.gif Probably we're all poser at some level of playing but then comes the moment when we realize it's not worth it because people detect poser immediately smile.gif

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klasaine
Mar 27 2014, 05:36 PM
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In the beginning you don't know you're a poseur. You just think you're cool ... think about that.

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Josh Adams
Mar 28 2014, 03:22 PM
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QUOTE (klasaine @ Mar 27 2014, 01:31 PM) *
Here's the definition from the Cambridge English dictionary - "Someone who pretends to be something they are not, or to have qualities that they do not have". In French it means to effect an attitude or pose.
I suppose everybody's a poseur in the beginning (especially if you pick up an electric guitar past the age of 7 or 8). But hey, ya gotta start somewhere. We all grew out of it.


But I guess if you're starting at 7 or 8 its a bit different. At that age I wouldn't of known what was cool if someone came and slapped me round the face with it. So I don't think being a 'poseur' would be possible at 7 or 8, me personally.

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klasaine
Mar 28 2014, 04:14 PM
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That's exactly what I'm saying.
'Unless' you start as a little kid, or live in a very remote area of the world - if you start guitar playing with rock music on an electric guitar you'll be a poseur for a little while at least. It's part of the process.

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Josh Adams
Mar 29 2014, 04:42 PM
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QUOTE (klasaine @ Mar 28 2014, 03:14 PM) *
That's exactly what I'm saying.
'Unless' you start as a little kid, or live in a very remote area of the world - if you start guitar playing with rock music on an electric guitar you'll be a poseur for a little while at least. It's part of the process.


Aha! I got you, obviously I can't read sad.gif

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Darius Wave
Mar 29 2014, 08:11 PM
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smile.gif Part of a process You say smile.gif Might be truth wink.gif

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capasso2
Mar 29 2014, 09:19 PM
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QUOTE (Darius Wave @ Mar 29 2014, 07:11 PM) *
smile.gif Part of a process You say smile.gif Might be truth wink.gif


Poser isn't a word i've used since High School lol, Maybe Earlier. I don't think the word holds any water once you've become an adult, but let me introduce this topic into the thread. Ever come across a guitar player, Who was maybe an intermediate player, maybe been playing 5+ years. I don't just mean owning a guitar for 5 years, these kind of people can play cover songs all day long, whip out the minor pentatonic scale on you, maybe even know the names of the notes and chords. But for some reason in my experiences jamming with people in my area(I used to work at a music store, and went through many bass player audtions on crags list), I've come across an insanely large amount of players who can not play a 12 bar blues if their life depended on it.

I mean their fingers could handle it if you showed them what to do, but they don't know the chord changes of it. IT DRIVES ME NUTS!!!. I've met kids that can sweep pick my face off, but can not hold a blues rythym lol. I'm Reinventing the word Poser right here and right now to embody those players everywhere. Maybe they don't like blues or whatever.....but how can you be a guitar player and not appreciate the blues? Its where all of our other guitar-driven music came from.

Posers-Guitar players who show proficient skill and technique in Rock/Metal/punk/alt ect , but do not know the 12 bar blues lol

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Josh Adams
Mar 30 2014, 07:02 PM
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QUOTE (capasso2 @ Mar 29 2014, 08:19 PM) *
Poser isn't a word i've used since High School lol, Maybe Earlier. I don't think the word holds any water once you've become an adult, but let me introduce this topic into the thread. Ever come across a guitar player, Who was maybe an intermediate player, maybe been playing 5+ years. I don't just mean owning a guitar for 5 years, these kind of people can play cover songs all day long, whip out the minor pentatonic scale on you, maybe even know the names of the notes and chords. But for some reason in my experiences jamming with people in my area(I used to work at a music store, and went through many bass player audtions on crags list), I've come across an insanely large amount of players who can not play a 12 bar blues if their life depended on it.

I mean their fingers could handle it if you showed them what to do, but they don't know the chord changes of it. IT DRIVES ME NUTS!!!. I've met kids that can sweep pick my face off, but can not hold a blues rythym lol. I'm Reinventing the word Poser right here and right now to embody those players everywhere. Maybe they don't like blues or whatever.....but how can you be a guitar player and not appreciate the blues? Its where all of our other guitar-driven music came from.

Posers-Guitar players who show proficient skill and technique in Rock/Metal/punk/alt ect , but do not know the 12 bar blues lol


Same, I haven't used it since I was at least 13 (which is secondary school in the UK).

I know what you mean, people seem to be focused on the (like you said) rock/metal/punk usual lot and not so much on history. Most 'rock fans' I know of (not necessarily guitar players) don't even know the Blues was the beginning of rock music. Sad, sad world sad.gif

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This post has been edited by Josh Adams: Mar 30 2014, 07:03 PM
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