The aspects of these bands that you find "boring and generic" are actually what the majority of music listeners (who spend money on it) identify with it. That's ego-identification; the same thing that makes you mad when your favorite team loses, that makes people feel "patriotic," or whatever. Everyone thinks their own taste is the best taste. Given that fact, and given the sorts of symbols and meanings that most music-buyers identify with, is the reason. The question lying under that is, why do most people with the economic means to invest in musicians seem to favor these symbols and meanings over others (the ones that you and I identify with). Individuals in positions of power or comfort, and any individuals aligned with them, are not interested in aesthetics that challenge the existing social order.
- Dylan Thomas Walter
