Rant mode on.

I frequent the Paltalk "live" rooms quite a bit, and I note a common practice, referred to above.

Someone plays/sings something, and it's horrendous. It's spectacularly awful! The singer has a bad voice, no idea of rhythm, couldn't find a pitch if life depended on it, and doesn't know or care about the words. But there are comments of "AWSOMEEEEEEEEE!!!!" and so forth. I've seen that expression used so much in totally inapplicable situations that I won't use it even when the performance was, in fact, inspiring of awe, as so many are.

Another observation. There is one singer who is VERY frequently heard in Paltalk live circles, who, I gather, patterns his/her (I won't say which) singing on a certain well-known performer who must have a very distinctive voice. His/her guitar playing is in fact very good, and the speaking voice is pleasant. But when the singing starts the tone is awkward and grating, sounding whiny and petulant--I assume from an attempt to approximate the well-known performer's sound. I always turn the sound down during this singer's turns because the effect is so grating. And yet I have more than occasionally seen a comment like, "Oh, (performer) you have such a great/awesome/beautiful (choose one) voice!" I have great difficulty thinking that ANYONE could mean that comment.

Now certainly we're all there as friends, and one doesn't want to make somebody feel bad. But the almost-automatic entry of not merely approving but on-the-surface enthusiastic comments calls into question the validity and even the honesty of compliments generally.

My own practice is to say nothing if it's not good, or if the performer seems to need encouragement to get beyond a present bad state I will say something like "That's a good song!" If the singing is bad but the instrumental work was good, I'll compliment the playing and hold my tongue about the singing.

End of rant.

Dave Oesterreich