The US state of Alaska has temporarily paused plans to make homegrown rockers Portugal. The Man one of the artists that feature as their official hold music.
Think back to some of the most boring and frustrating experiences in your life for a second. There’s a pretty good chance that many of these moments were spent on hold, trying to get your call connected to an agency that ultimately just wants your money.
Of course, plenty of musicians have tried to give the dreaded hold music a modern twist, but few have been too successful.
However, folks in the US state of Alaska have had current plans to revamp their official hold music put on… well, hold.
Back in November, it was revealed that state phone lines in Alaska were set to receive a modern update, with a number of homegrown songs chosen as the ‘official hold music’ for the state.
In addition to Portugal. The Man’s ‘Feel It Still’, the likes of Whiskey Class’ ‘Flicker Of Light’, Harm’s ‘Mother Carries’, Feeding Frenzy’s ‘Bluebird’, and the Native Jazz Quartet’s ‘Shaax’ Sáani’ were all set to be put into constant rotation.
Check out Portugal. The Man’s ‘Feel It Still’:
However, as Stereogum notes, this new campaign has been halted for the time being, with members of the public reportedly raising concern over lyrics in the songs.
Matt Shuckerow, a spokesperson for the Alaskan Governer Mike Dunleavy explained that the current intention was to revive the project soon, implementing plans to switch out the music from time to time.
“The emphasis here is the desire is to change the music out to feature Alaska artists on a more regular basis,” Shuckerow said, noting he was still waiting on an updated list of suggestions from the Alaska State Council on the Arts.
The issue of lyrical content was first raised back in November by blogger Suzanne Downing, who noted that Harm’s ‘Mother Carries’ features a “discordant, trauma-driven message [that] might just drive a distressed caller over the edge.”
When asked for comment recently, Downing explained that the majority of the musical selections are “probably OK,” adding that “some of it is like, you don’t really want to listen to it on hold. It’s not even pretty or melodic in any way.”
It’s not clear yet when the project will be revived, though it was reported back in November that Portugal. The Man had donated the use of their song to this project. Here’s hoping their tune makes the cut next time around.
Check out Harm’s ‘Mother Carries’:
