Many thanks for the well-thought out comments and feedback. I've taken a few selected quotes from above and copied them below, but there are many, many good points.

@JohnJohnJohn - you can produce any kind of music with BIAB but it may take more work, creativity, etc. to do it!
@Charlie Fogle - The value of BIAB to modern artists lies not in the songs created, but rather the sounds and varied instruments that are available.
@Rob Helms - any type of music is going to take effort to master,and make it sound new.
@jazzmammal - What kind of music are you talking about Ed?
@Jim Fogle - One resource is direct input RealTracks. One issue PG Music faces is there are not many forum members that like modern pop music

Here's what I'm taking away from what I've read. BIAB is a powerful tool, and it's limited mainly by the creativity and resourcefulness of the user. Making music sound new is not just a matter of picking a style, throwing a few chords together and hitting generate. In fact, I really get it now - all the elements of "modern" music (I'll try to define it further down), are there in BIAB, but it's mashed up, mixed in, and sampled, and so forth, in new and different ways. Good old hard work (and some talent I'm sure) is the only way to get there.

I'm really glad that @Jim Fogle brought up the topic about the forum members music preferences, because that was the impression that I had, but didn't want it to come across the wrong way. I grew up listening 70's - 90's music, and that's very much ingrained in my soul now, but I do try really hard to keep myself open to all types of music, because I understand that each generation has to redefine it for themselves, and I think it is natural that it rebels against previous styles, while at the same time building on them and flip-flopping them in ways that are totally unexpected. Anyway, I really enjoy stretching myself into new musical areas, even if what I may create is total garbage (most of the time), because I just love the creative process. But I believe that this forum is a place where any passionate music creator/composer/performer can feel comfortable. P.S. - I will definitely tap more into the RealTracks.

@jazzmammal - That's a great question about what type of music. It's really hard to describe in a concise way without just referring to what it is *not*. But that's cheating, so let me try. I readily admit that my exposure to current music is pretty limited, based on what I can get from YouTube, and some of the streaming services, but it would include a lot of poppy stuff such as Charlie Puth, Kacey Musgraves, Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles, and the Weeknd but also Jason Aldean, Father John Misty, Jay-Z,Lil Naz X, and others, but I also really like Jazz, Blues, Celtic, Bluegress, Country, and on, and there is certainly new, modern, music emerging in those genres too. So I don't have a good answer but gave it a shot smile.

@JohnJohnJohn - that link to the Rolling Stone article is outstanding, I'm going to take my time and work through it. Just the first few tracks that I played were great, and eye-opening, and I was just thinking how "modern" music can be such an awkward phrase, and does not do justice to that wide array of styles and performances.

Thanks to all for the very engaging discussion - I hope this is helpful to others who find themselves in the same boat as me. I'm really energized now and looking forward to pushing my limits in BIAB. If there's still room for some friendly debate for this thread, I'm all for it, and will keep watching.

Ed Z

Soundcloud profile
https://soundcloud.com/user-415064494
BIAB user since 2019
iPad Mini, Garageband for iOS, BIAB for Windows 2020 UltraPAK, Xtra Styles packs 6-9, Windows 10 Lenovo PC, Kontakt Player, SpitFire LABS, SampleTank 4 CS, some Soundfonts