After reading Adorno, the pursuit of writing music that is both transgressive and popular seems impossible. Pop and other established genres constantly reiterate the normative approach to music that has dominated the music industry for decades and deviations from the norms tend to make people uncomfortable. The two goals seem to contradict each other in his opinion. After hearing his music however, which was chaotic and deliberately dissonant and jarring,  I thought he might be taking himself too literally. Transgressive music can still be pleasant to listen to, while also disorienting listeners. Modern artists like the Books, the Dirty Projectors, and Paul Lansky are frequently reintroducing us to sounds as music and are even gaining popularity because of their innovation and not because of promotions.

Here's a collaboration the Dirty Projectors did with Bjork- another boundary-breaking artist who cares less about how pleasant sound is and more about what can be accomplished musically with sounds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OquMlYFtnEhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OquMlYFtnE