Music's 3R's 09.28.09: Rock Hall Noms, White Stripes Documentary, Beatles Sales, Manson/Swine Flu, Eminem vs. Mariah, More

Posted by Aaron Titan on 09.28.2009

From the 2010 nominees for the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame, the new White Stripes doc, Anvil, The Beatles recent sales, and new Alice in Chains to Eminem’s drama with Mariah and Apple, Marilyn Manson’s supposed swine flu scare, and more, 411's Aaron Titan brings you all the Right, wRong, and Ridiculous in the music world in this week’s Music 3R's!



Greetings

This is Aaron Titan here reporting on The Music 3'Rs. What was Right, wrong, and Ridiculous this week in the music world? Well, thank goodness I'm here to tell you – though I don't mean to offend you, as I'm sure you could gage this for yourself…but who has the time for that right? Well, this no-social-life-having S.O.B. sure does, that's who!

Before we get started, I wanted to touch base on what I've been jamming out to in the last week or so. I usually get on a music genre kick for about 3 weeks at a time and lately, I've been listening to a lot of hip-hop. Two particular albums have been on repeat either on in my car or on my Mac:



The first one is the classic Paid in Full by Eric B. and Rakim. Recognized by many as one of THE GREATEST hip-hop albums of all time, Paid in Full really packs a punch in such an organic way. It's just a fresh MC and a solid DJ spinning cuts and scratching. Can't beat that with a stick or an auto-tune machine! Plus, Rakim is extremely dope. I had a chance to see him perform at the Rock the Bells 2008 Festival and he was better as his age than most – if not all – of the MCs that day.



The second is an extremely new album that could end of being quite a classic: Kid Cudi's Man on the Moon: The End of Day. I downloaded this about 2 weeks ago and have just had it on fucking repeat at work and home. Cudi is such an honest MC and let's himself be vulnerable in an age where a lot of MCs put up a tough-guy front. The beats are fresh and the atmosphere of the album is extremely chill and enjoyable. He's doing something different and is bringing the art of the concept album to the hip-hop table in such a fun way. Go buy this now!

Okay, enough giggles and shits! Let's get to work. But first…

The Column

For those unfamiliar with the 3R's concept, here's the breakdown. I will be reporting and commenting on happenings in the music world and categorizing all the hoopla into three sections: the Right, the wRong, and the Ridiculous. The Right will feature news, albums, and announcements music-related that I'm personally stoked about. The wRong will be the bad versions of all three of the aforementioned. The Ridiculous is the worst of it all, that which makes good ol' Mr. Titan shake his head in perplexing amazement.

The Right



Rock Hall 2010 Noms:

Last week, the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame 2010 Nominations were announced. Up for possible induction next year are the following acts:

ABBA
The Chantels
Jimmy Cliff
Genesis
The Hollies
Kiss
LL Cool J
Darlene Love
Laura Nyro
Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Stooges

I'm all for veteran groups that have been around 25 years (or have at least have albums that were considered influential enough for that long). Again, awards don't mean a whole lot – as I stated about the VMAs and Grammys in the past– in the grand scheme of things, but it's always nice to honor classic acts and veteran musicians that truly matter.

Based strictly on my fandom, I would really like to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers get in this year. They are a band I've listened to since childhood and finally got to see live as the Lollapalooza 2006 headliners. They are a band that is still very much relevant after all these years. I mean, for as long as they've been around, to put out a fantastic (and massive) album like Stadium Arcadium just a few short years ago truly speaks to the greatness of this band. Chad Smith said the band is starting to write the next album, which can only mean good things on the horizon for 2010.

I'd also like to see The Stooges get in. I had never really listened to Iggy Pop and crew before until getting my hands on their classic album Raw Power this spring. They're still out there playing shows and it's be nice for them to be inducted in 2010. Kiss has always been a huge band worldwide and I knew it was only a matter of time until the Rock Hall could keep the doors closed on them. I fully expect them to get in next year. LL Cool J is more known for his acting these days and hasn't really put out anything super huge music-wise in a while, but hey, he gave us "Mama Said Knock You Out," so I guess he could get in.





No matter what happens when the formal announcement concerning the official 2010 inductees makes it way to us in January, I'll still be interested as I will be visiting the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland just a few short weeks after the induction ceremony takes place in New York in mid-March.

But hey man, when the fuck are they going to let Rush in? Those guys fucking rule and still play awesome shows! I saw them in 2008 on the Snakes & Arrows Tour and they played an opus of a show clocking in at 3 hours. Three cheers for Rush!





Sorta' Side Note of the Week: Speaking of bands that have been rocking for decades, I finally got the chance to see the critically acclaimed documentary Anvil: The Story of Anvil. Anvil is a thrash band that released their first album in 1981 and have been a major influence on such notable metal acts as Metallica, Slayer, Guns N' Roses, and Anthrax. They gained some prominence but kind of fell off and never really gained the type of fame they – and their small loyal fanbase and peers – felt they truly deserved. They were plagued by evil record company executives and poor management and fell into mediocrity and even less.

The documentary chronicles the band's failed European tour a few years ago and attempts to get funding and a record deal for their thirteenth studio album, aptly entitled This is Thirteen. This movie depicts a band working shitty day jobs just to get by while sticking to their guns and a dream. What a compelling movie that essentially, is a true, real-life version of the band Spinal Tap! Take 80 minutes out of your day to catch this one. It's about more than just metal, but about chasing a dream and doing what you love.



White Stripes Documentary: Director Emmett Malloy recently debuted a documentary he shot about The White Stripes on their Canadian summer 2007 Icky Thump Tour. The film is called The White Stripes: Under the Great White Northern Lights. It's apparently an intimate look at these two musicians (moreso than we've seen in the past); likewise, the film examines Canadian culture as Jack and Meg "eat raw caribou, meet tribal elders, walk along frozen tundra, don traditional kilts and fire a canon" according to RollingStone.com. The group also toured a lot of smaller places in Canada where they weren't as well known, making the documented dates that much more interesting to viewers. The film was shot both in black-and-white and color.

I'm interested in seeing this eventually as I find Jack White to be a very intriguing guy and one hell of a musician. I haven't really seen Meg much in the press except behind a drum kit, so an intimate portrayal of her also catches my interest.



New Alice in Chains: Alice in Chains began streaming their new album, Black Gives Way to Blue last week, and I had the chance to give it a whirl. Honestly, it sounds exactly like I expected a 2009 Alice in Chains album to sound. Is that a bad thing?

Not really. I mean, I've always been a casual AIC fan, so it wasn't like I was chomping at the bit for them to go out and find a new lead singer to carry on with. It's definitely a positive thing that the band connected with new frontman William Duvall to make a pretty solid album. The album rocks overall and has great guitar riffing from Jerry Cantrell, a musician I've always respected. The only thing that was disappointing about the album was that I was so hyped up for the title track featuring Elton John, though it's not as piano-driven or fantastic as I wanted an AIC/Elton collaboration to be. Minor gripe, but still!

Honestly, good for these guys getting together to make music again after such a devastating loss of their original lead singer, Layne Staley. I think this album is going to be the precursor to an even bigger follow-up. It's kind of like how some of these veteran supergroups or side-projects have worked out.

Look at the debut Audioslave album for example. The follow-up, Out of Exile blows that away in my opinion. Same for Stone Sour with Come What(ever) May or The Raconteurs' Consolers of the Lonely. These groups' debut albums were made in the spirit of fun, but once the band went out on tour and really found out what they had going for them, they went back to the studio with motivation, confidence, and a more cohesive, driven unit to produce killer sophomore sets. I think the same with be said for this new version of Alice in Chains.



Mini Beatlemania 2009: So holy shit, The Beatles sold fucking 2.5 million albums in 5 days last week and show no sign of slowing down about 40 years or so after they got started. Damn! The Beatles remasters and Rock Band game were both released on 9/9/09 much to music fans' delight. Whatever stars there are that align, they really fucking align for this band. Kudos to them though, as the music is that good and Paul and Ringo deserve the money they still make from what they created with The Beatles. Yoko…well she should donate her/John's share if she's still that serious about all that peace business. I digress…

I had the chance to play Rock Band: The Beatles last weekend and had a rip-roaring time doing so. There were about 7-8 of us, but the game lends itself well to larger groups as you can get 2/3-part harmonies going on the vocals. The game allows for multiple microphones which make seemingly simple tunes like "I Want to Hold Your Hand" or "Good Morning" increasingly difficult to pull of. Since I'm not a trained singer by any stretch of the imagination, it was no surprise that I/we sounded like shit, but gosh-darnit, what fun it was! My favorite snapshot of the evening had to be the group of us with either an instrument, microphone, Miller High-Life can, or volatile mixture of Old Smuggler's Whiskey & coke in tow singing "Yellow Submarine" while our lead vocalist led us in changing the lyrics to:

"We all live in a yellow submarine, a FUCKING submarine, a FUCKING submarine!"

Great game, great animation, and killer arenas to play in. Having taken a Beatles history class in college, I was able to appreciate playing in Shea Stadium, the Ed Sullivan Show set, or the Apple Corps rooftop in "Let It Be" fashion.

I know I said I'd report on Guitar Hero 5; however, pirate whiskey on International Talk Like a Pirate Day took over and ended our affair earlier than any of us intended. Sorry.

The wrong: The Eminem Edition

Shady Vs. Apple: Court proceedings recently began between Eminem's music publishing company, Eight Mile Styles and Apple. Supposedly, Eight Mile Styles didn't give permission for Apple to sell Eminem's music for download through iTunes, but Apple did so anyways. The only Eminem song they gave consent to Apple to use was "Lose Yourself," and Eight Mile Styles claims this was a limited-time-only sort of deal. On the other hand, Apple claims it pays Eminem's Aftermath label 70 cents per 99-cent download, 9.1 of which goes to Eight Mile Styles.

Even though this is a probably a case of Eminem's lawyers or whatever telling him it would be in his best interest to take Apple to court, why make enemies with iTunes? Regardless of your opinion on digital music, it's no secret that iTunes is a medium that a fuckin' lot of people ascertain new music from daily. If I was a musician, I would think it would be in my best interest to get my tunes out to as many fans as possible. The internet is a great way to do that, and iTunes is pretty much the biggest online music store in existence. Work it out in an amicable way and get your shit out there for people to hear Eminem. It just makes sense.

Shady Vs. the Cannons:



Yes, that's some scathing shit, but why waste time on this? I mean, Eminem clearly perfected the art of the diss track on The Marshall Mathers LP, but it ain't 2000 anymore. Relapse was such a great album, but I don't think I'm the only one that thought "Bagpipes from Baghdad," the diss track that started all of this, was probably the worst track on the set. I hear Relapse 2 is dropping in November sometime, so hopefully this is the last of the attention Mariah Carey is getting from Marshall for a while. Let's have more tunes like "Medicine Ball," "3 AM," and "Déjà Vu" and less shit like this. It's not something that's gonna' be relevant longterm so why waste time on it?

The Ridiculous



Mansonswine Superstar: On his Facebook page, shock-rocker Marilyn Manson revealed that he has been diagnosed with H1N1, better known as swine flu. He wrote:

So I have officially been diagnosed, by a real doctor, with THE SWINE FLU. I know everyone will suggest that fucking a pig is how this disease was obtained. However, the doctor said, my past choices in women have, in 'no way' contributed to... me acquiring this mysterious sickness. Unfortunately, I am going to survive. M."

That sucks. Well, maybe. His management and tour promoters came out a few days after he posted this health news saying that Manson doesn't have H1N1 and will be making all his previously scheduled tour dates that are on the horizon. Should Manson fans be worried about catching anything at these shows? Maybe, maybe not. In reality, weren't you already at some sort of risk for catching something from a less-than-healthy goth chick anyways?

Perhaps, if this is actually true, it'll get Manson a little less intoxicated and a little more straight-headed. I saw Manson on this summers Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival and to be frank, he sucked. He sucked badly. I had high expectations going in because his set on Ozzfest 2003 I saw was incredible, but fast-forward 6 years, and it appears the guy doesn't have it onstage anymore. He looked fucked up out of his mind, rambled on between songs trying to make jokes that were bombing badly, and fed off an oxygen mask frequently to keep himself together. Perhaps the Antichrist Superstar is getting the wake-up call he needs to be great again. I've been a Manson fan for a while now, and I will go as far as to endorse his 2009 album The High End of Low. Manson's always been entertaining if nothing else, but this summer when I saw him live, he just wasn't.

To Brian Warner (aka Marilyn Manson):

I'm not sure why you would go to the efforts of putting out a hoax concerning an illness that people worldwide are legitimately concerned about. If you have H1N1, then you know what, I wish you well and hope you get the treatment you need to get healthy. If you don't, why not spend more of your efforts making that movie about Lewis Carroll you've been talking about forever. I thought your name was Brian Warner, not Brian Griffin, a fictional dog who's been working on his novel "Faster Than the Speed of Love" for years.



Most people reading this are probably wondering why I'm even taking the time to talk about you. Well, I still believe that you're capable of performing at a respectable level. I still think you've got another classic album in you. Let Twiggy really come in and kick some ass on the next album, but don't even think about that until you get your shit together. You sucked this summer and I would've wanted my money back; however, Slayer owned and made the whole day worth it. C'mon Brian. Remember these days?



You were so awesome at stickin' it to the man back then, which is what rock n' roll is all about. Now, you're just pissing off the people around you trying to help you succeed. C'mon man!

Sincerely,

Aaron Titan

Hasta Luego

Well, that's that! Another week kicks off as another Titan-penned column comes to a close. Leave comments below, whether positive or negative. I appreciate it, either way. As always, see you here same time next week with another edition.