Lou Reed and Metallica – “Sweet Jane”
Posts Tagged ‘Music’
Chinese Democracy
Posted: April 4, 2011 in Music, Pop CultureTags: Axl Rose, Chinese Democracy, Guns n' Roses, Hell Freezes Over, Music, Pop Culture
2011 Update: I found this unpublished draft of my review of GNR’s “Chinese Democracy” album sitting in my WordPress posts, originally written in 2008 but never published for reasons I’ve since forgotten. I’ve tweaked it a little for clarity, but the fundamental editorial points remain unchanged.
So it looks like hell finally froze over and Axl Rose finally released the much anticipated Chinese Democracy, which has been in the works for well over a decade.
One of the sources of friction between Axl and the rest of the original Guns lineup, besides the fact that by the end of their heyday, he owned the name and the rights to the band exclusively and could hire and fire people at his will, was musical direction. Axl was very much influenced by industrial music (listen to the Use Your Illusion II track “My World”), particularly Nine Inch Nails (historical irony: one of NIN’s early breaks was as the opening act for Guns n’ Roses and Skid Row during a European tour back in 1991) and that influence is abundant on Chinese Democracy.
Thankfully I didn’t have waste time or money buying or downloading the record, but it’s still an hour of my life I’ll never get back again. The guitars and vocals, which were the driving force of every previous Guns n’ Roses record, are an absolute mess. It’s not that the musicianship is bad or amateurish. It is high quality production and technically proficient, but there’s no attitude or groove to any of it. Rolling Stone’s David Fricke gave it a rave review recently. I read it and am left wondering whether he and I listened to the same record.
I remember reading an interview with Slash ages ago where he said something to the effect of, “I thought The Fragile was an amazing record, but I wouldn’t want to make it.” The bottom line here is Axl tried to make a Nine Inch Nails record and failed. Call it whatever you want, but don’t call it Guns n’ Roses.
This is the best news I’ve heard all day.
And now, thanks to a press release touting singer Mike Patton’s involvement in the “major motion film ‘Crank 2: High Voltage,’ ” we know that Faith No More — the much-celebrated, much-missed art-rock act that he fronted from 1989 until its dissolution in 1998 — are finally reuniting.
That news was, er, broken, in the final line of the press release sent late Monday night, which listed Patton’s upcoming performance schedule, including a stop at the Coachella festival and “the highly anticipated reunion tour with Faith No More in Europe this summer.” Needless to say, long-suffering FNM fans were pumped.
But is the news true? MTV News contacted Patton’s publicist, who told us that yes, the Faith No More reunion is happening … and no, they’re not going to be playing any dates in the U.S. (sorry, Coachella fans). This is will be a strictly European affair.
Faith No More is one of the most influential and underrated rock bands of the last 20 years, so for them to come back now, hopefully to audiences appreciative of their legacy, is a great thing for rock music. I’ve seen Mike Patton with Fantomas and Tomahawk, and his vocals and live performances are absolutely amazing. What’s unclear is which members of the band are on board for the reunion, but I’m hoping at this point for the Real Thing/Angel Dust-era lineup. In the meantime, check out this live performance of “From Out of Nowhere” at Brixton Academy:
Live Performance
Posted: February 20, 2009 in MusicTags: Dead Kennedys, Foo Fighters, Music, Serj Tankian
TicketBastard
Posted: February 11, 2009 in MusicTags: Bruce Springsteen, Charles Schumer, Music, Ticketmaster
Schumer Calls for Ticketmaster Probe Over Suspicious Springsteen Sales
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., call for an investigation into Ticketmaster, after Bruce Springsteen fans complain about being ripped off.Sen. Charles Schumer wants to show Ticketmaster who’s boss, after hundreds of Bruce Springsteen fans complained they were ripped off by the ticket seller’s Web site.
Fans reported that when they tried to buy tickets for Springsteen’s upcoming tour last Monday, they were redirected from the Ticketmaster site to a subsidiary, TicketsNow, which specializes in reselling tickets above face value.
Schumer, D-N.Y., on Sunday joined Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., in calling for the Federal Trade Commission to investigate.
“It was a classic bait-and-switch,” Schumer said. “‘We don’t have the tickets at $75, but maybe this site has them at $200.’ Guess what? The same people owned both sites.”
And this angry Canadian customer has my full support too.
Scalping suit filed against Ticketmaster in Canada
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) – Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc was hit with a C$500 million ($410 million) lawsuit in Canada on Monday, alleging the company broke the law by reselling tickets at inflated prices. A Toronto man who tried to buy two tickets to a November 2008 concert by the band Smashing Pumpkins alleges Ticketmaster’s website said none were available, but redirected him to the website of the company’s TicketsNow resale unit.
I’ve loathed Ticketmaster for years. They rip you off on surcharges and it is very difficult for the average fan to get a good seat for a major act like Springsteen because the system is so stacked in favor of scalpers. As if these third party ticketing agencies weren’t bad enough, now Ticketmaster wants a piece of the action by creating their own company?
I hope they get taken out to the woodshed for this, by state and/or federal lawmakers.
Icepicks and Nukes 