Kevin's Watch

Look out for Ringleader of the Tormentors - his new album in April.

sgtnull wrote:RHCP: I like them, but man they can be self-indulgent. the cds are hit or miss with me. when they are on, it is beautiful, a great groove. maybe the should just release eps?

So true.
I've got a bunch of Chili Pepper CD's...I like between 1/2 and 2/3 of the songs on each.
Most musician when making a new album bring a pile of songs to the studio, and pick the best dozen or so. The Chili's just keep them all. (or so it seems)

As far as the Beatle thing goes. I'd like to think that you had to be there, but I know plenty of people who were too young to be there and still really like them -lucimay being a good example.

But I too just don't get it. I don't get why they were/are sooo popular. Maybe it's becasue of their integrity. Like in stead on keeping on writting songs like Please Please me, and I want to hold your hand--and other poppy pop song like that; they evolved, they each got better as musicians, and their songwrittingmanship got better.

An example. When the NEw Kids on the Block first came on the scene they were compared to the early Beatles..not their songs, but their popularity; as in all you could hear at a concert was girls screaming. But they didn't change, they kept on writting pre-pubescent pop songs, and people lost interest. Now I'm not saying that musically the NKOTB were anything like the Beatles (even the early Beatles); what I am saying though, is that if inbetween albums they tried to learn something about music, and how to play and write, other than just sing; they would have gone down in history as a good band, not a flash in the pan jke that they did.

drew wrote:As far as the Beatle thing goes. I'd like to think that you had to be there, but I know plenty of people who were too young to be there and still really like them -lucimay being a good example.

oof!! i WAS there, driver!!! i was six when i first heard them. i collected all the 45's for my little record player and learned how to sing harmony from them. i grew up listening to them. i wasn't exactly in Liverpool, but i was there for the "hype" and "fanfare" of the Beatles phenomenon in the US. but it was the MUSIC that drew me in. not the hype.

and you're right, they did evolve. but they also captured, in the early years, the zeitgeist of the times, and they conTINUED to do that as long as they were together. their music reflected something about British AND American culture...they were the "sound" of the culture, so to speak. they incorporated the Rockabilly thing that Buddy Holly started and then added Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis for raw energy and edge. they more or less picked up the torch of progressing Rockabilly to Rock and Roll and carried it for quite a while. as did other bands, like The Stones. the British muscians saw something in American music that we OURSELVES, as a predominantly WHITE culture, were missing.

that's what i think, anyway.

Oasis: all hype.
Janet Jackson: the whole jackson thing actually.
the Cars: dull, dull, dull.
Billy Idol: what was I missing?
Stray Cats: one note. failed to amuse.

Oasis had talent, they just chose not to use it to the best of their abilities, and instead rely on contraversy to sell albums.
Not a fan of the Jacksons myself; but they sure are popular-I'd say they have talent.
The cars are dull, very repetitive. They've got the whole one song that lasts an album thing.

sgtnull wrote:Oasis: all hype.

Hardly. Excellent band that never made it big over here.

sgtnull wrote:Janet Jackson: the whole jackson thing actually.[/i]The whole family's extraordinarilly talented, with Janet being the best of them. They're a bunch of wierdos, but they definately don't suck.

sgtnull wrote:the Cars: dull, dull, dull.

I understand why some people don't like The Cars, but based on their production alone, they don't suck.

sgtnull wrote:Billy Idol: what was I missing?

Throwaway music, I can take it or leave it.

sgtnull wrote:Stray Cats: one note. failed to amuse.

Not a big fan, but Brian Setzer rules!

Setzer was wasting his time with the Cats. I got the point that he could do rockabilly, but it was limiting.

Oasis was dreadful. overblown claptrap better done by the Beatles the first time around.

the Cars: I grew up hearing them every single day. and it is all the same song. no depth, what were those songs about again?

Anyone who thinks Oasis was a Beatles ripoff hasn't listened to Oasis.

Cail wrote:Anyone who thinks Oasis was a Beatles ripoff hasn't listened to Oasis.

Well said. Oasis are a fantastic band - with some similarities to the Beatles (and what British band doesn't have some element of the Beatles in them?). The Gallagher brothers have their own, unique style.

What's the Story (Morning Glory)? is a really good album. But Oasis's new stuff is dreadful. Billy Idol, like Cail said, is sort of fluff. I'd listen to it in the car, I guess. Janet Jackson - I'd judge her, but I don't care enough. The Stray Cats own - one of the best rockabilly revivalist bands, I would say. The Cars are repetitive, sure, but some of their songs hold up very well.

But what's this about Oasis never making it here? I thought they are really popular.

Personally, I can't stand Green Day. I was a big fan of Dookie, a good album, but aside from the joke songs on that album, nothing they've ever made really inspires me at all.

What's The Story did OK, but they haven't done well since. I think Be Here Now is an unbelievable album, Heathen Chemistry is pretty good, as is Standing on the Shoulders of Giants.

You know, I considered deleting this thread to begin with, as I'm much more of a fan of positive threads than I am of negative ones. But so far, I think most of us are being reasonable here. I know this is total opinion here, and everybody has a right to their opinions, but sometimes it's hard to believe some of these posts aren't posted for the sole purpose of upsetting others......Maybe I'll just retitle it "This Band ROCKS!" and delete att the posts I think suck. Then I'll probably edit all of Null's posts to say something like "Boston is freaking awesome, man!"...heh, I love being Mod!

Now, back to sucky band stuff:

Cars: I always liked the 1st 3 or 4 albums, but the last few didn't do it for me.

Green Day: I liked Dookie, but not anything since.

Oasis:I've not heard much Oasis, but I know enough of them to say that not only do they not suck, but it's insulting to both Oasis and the Beatles to categorize them as "overblown claptrap" better done by the Beatles.

Smiths: Heh, don't think they were mentioned here, but I would appreciate it if someone (I'm thinking Lord Mhoram) sent me an mp3 so I can hear what I missed.....

I'd be happy to send you any Smiths songs (since I have basically all of them). Just tell me how to send you an mp3, dAN.

I'll be honest with you, I utterly fail to see what the ruckus was/is about The Smiths. They had a small following back in the day, but they were a blip on the alternative radar (when compared to a band like The Cure). I've tried listening to them, but I think Morrisey's got a horrid voice, and the songs are pretty blah.

Sheesh.....I knew I should have locked this thread.....

Cail,

Well I won't argue with you about the quality of Morrissey's voice/their songs, but I can tell you that you'd be surprised with the scale of Morrissey's cult. There have been numerous documentaries about it. He's got quite a wide audience, and his last album was really high in the US charts, and they're very very popular in the UK.

well the guitarist made the Smiths. because Morrisy solo is worse than Nyquil. I think maybe you need to be young to love the Smiths. because Meat Is Murder doesn't hold up that well. and Girlfriend In A Coma???

Boston sucks.

I liked the Cure for their singles, but they did not wear well. maybe 40 year olds should lose the mascara and leather britches?

in fact emo tends to suck.

The Cars - Love it. I agree with Dan that Hearbeat City and Door To Door lacked that special something for which I really got into the band in the first place, though I do like plenty of single tracks on both of those cds. I still follow Ric Ocasek's solo career though its been a rough ride. If you don't like the Cars you probably don't like much about late 70s early 80s new wave type music and if you get off on live shows the fact is the Cars were pretty boring live unless you were an ultra fan like me. Of course I don't think they suck.

The Smiths - Never heard a single track. I'll find something and come up with an opinion. Based on what some people have said though I think I'd like it.

U2 - I was a big fan of U2 back in the 80's but after the Joshua Tree I fell away from the pure faith. The band became something different than what I wanted. Some people probably started really liking them when they really went commercial. I liked them for their unique sound and rebelious alternative attitude. SUCK is a strong word but I don't care for anything they've done since Joshua and just hearing or seeing them now makes me change the channel. My issue not theirs.

Oasis - My wife loves the band. I've heard lots of tunes but outside of Champagne Supernova I couldn't tell anything more about them. Not bad, just didn't hook me. Don't deserve to be included in the Suck category.

GREEN DAY - I agree with Dan. Dookie has a few memorable songs but there is something off about Green Day. I love their sound. Bands that remind me of the Ramones "get in and get out" approach to song writing is a good thing. Maybe Green Day got away from fast simplistic tunes and started down a more conventional path.

BOSTON - I don't think they suck. I like BOSTON and DON'T LOOK BACK just fine. There are a few weak songs on those cds but for the most part a huge percentage of Boston's material is generally considered successful. Now if you wanna make the argument that Third Stage and everything after it SUCKS then I'd have difficulty denying that.

Hmmm.

Maybe its the town that is the problem. If you hate Boston Mass. you probably don't like anything associated with it. So you'd hate Boston the band and the Cars, the Red Sox etc. Hmm.....

**begins to regret even saying Night Ranger **

So far, having heard four of their tunes, I'm a fan of the Smiths. I see Null keeps disfavorably comparing them to the Cure, but I have to say they're more to my liking than the Cure; more groove-oriented, like Bauhaus, which is one of my favorite bands from that era. Plus, Morrisey has the ability to sing on key that the Cure singer unfortunately hadn't quite mastered.....the Smith's bassist is pretty killer, too!