Music: A to Z 10.30.09: S is for…

Posted by Chris Crowing on 10.30.2009

… Serj Tankian/System of a Down, Skunk Anansie, Slayer, Slipknot, the Smashing Pumpkins, Stereophonics among others including Soundgraden, Satyricon and Seether. Also responses to your comments and thoughts about how awesome it is when your band comes together.



I was going to pare this week down to three acts, one of which would have been more obscure, but the letter S is really the last one in the alphabet where there is a genuine plethora of acts close to my heart. However, I don't want to splurge over my length limit again so I've picked the six acts which I feel I have the most to say about. I fairness, I have to say that the following acts were all very close to being included and will get a quick, brief blurb and a video, short of a proper article.

Satyricon

Norwegian Black metal with increasingly radio-friendly overtones. One of my preferred ‘blacker' bands for my playlists as they jar less with the usual groove metal and alt.rock, but add a nice snarl to proceedings. It really amused me when I went to see them and some of the very crusty BM types were standing at the back and heckling the band for not being real black metal.

Who's laughing really, the ageing neo-Nazi who paid to see a band he no longer respects, or the perfectly honest band who are (d)evolving their sound and happily taking your money? How I laughed. Drummer Frost's other act 1349 are also very worth a listen…



Seth Lakeman

English folk artist who largely manages to steer clear of the hateful, tourist trap, chocolate-box kind of folk music (y'know, Morris Dancing, the white heather club, songs perpetuating ancient regional hatreds…) while managing a pop-friendly aesthetic and retaining the passion and integrity of true folk music. His songs tell wonderful stories and his fiddle playing is simply wonderful…



Seether

One of my favourite mainstream alt.rock bands (yes, I know that is a double-negative but you know what I mean) with a tendency for catchy songs with just enough bite and growl to them. "Remedy", "Gasoline" and "Fake It" are all regularly included in my iPod playlists.



Snow Patrol

Northern Irish indie rockers who made their name from my home town of Dundee. Folks I know back home tell me they are lovely boys who have done a lot to try and help out other local acts up the ladder, including my friends the Hazey Janes. They also posses a clutch of quality songs which comes about as close to Foo Fighters-esque alt.rock perfection as it is possible for a band stuck in the mundane British indie scene to achieve.



Soundgarden

I know I really should have more to say about Soundgarden, but of the Grunge Big Four, they are the one lost in the shuffle for me. That's not to say that they are not awesome, because "Black Hole Sun", "Outshined", "Rusty Cage" and "Jesus Christ Pose" are all brilliant songs in their own way. However Pearl Jam have more accessible blues based emotiveness, Alice in Chains have more of the ‘metal band who also do stunning vocal harmony folk music' thing and Nirvana are Nirvana… Doubtless that'll upset some people, and I'll admit if I'd been 18 rather than 11 at the time I'd probably think differently, the other three just got to me first...

Soundgarden were awesome, a massive part of what defined alternative music in the 90s and Chris Cornell has one of the most distinctive and characterful voices in rock. Sadly, I have little more to say…



Stone Temple Pilots

Similarly, while I love STP I don't have much to say about them. From "Sex Type Thing" to "Big Empty" and "Plush" they have a bunch of classic tunes which just go to show off the depth and variety of alternative music in the halcyon days of the mid nineties. However, by the time I was consciously aware of rock music they were a spent force and all I know of them is very much retrospective. I guess that is my loss. I have discovered that my beloved Metallica thoroughly ripped off "Sex Type Thing" on the Load record. Listen to "Thorn Within" and tell me I'm wrong…





As The Crow Flies – The Closer They Get

In practise with my band last week, I had a small epiphany where we seemed to resemble Pearl Jam quite a lot, and it gave me a warm feeling inside. That is not to say that we sound like Pearl Jam (I wish), owing more in musical style to a peculiar mix of alt rock like Incubus and the Foo Fighters, nu-metal like Deftones, Linkin Park and even Limp Bizkit as well as some more meaty influences like Metallica, Gojira and Killswitch Engage. Sound interesting?

What I mean by ‘sounding like Pearl Jam' is that we are actually a band, where each player's not necessarily difficult part is a key part of a more complex and rewarding whole. This is the first time I've been in a band which was truly such a collaborative, symbiotic machine (either having been the band leader responsible for all melody over and above basic rhythm or a supporting player for someone else's pretentious, all-consuming musical vision) and it feels great.

In fact, I'm easily the worst player in my band, despite being the nominal front-person – although happily, vocal duties are increasingly being shared, which in this environment is remarkably liberating.

Basically, it's all coming together and I really think we've got a shot at creating something to be proud of in later life, and I'm sure we'll play some storming gigs when the time comes, hopefully before the turn of the year. I'm old enough and cynical enough to know any chance of being PAID to play is pretty damned slim, but like a local level prize fighter, I see myself as being along for the journey because I love it.

I appreciate there is a towering arrogance in writing about my own band like this, but I always enjoy reading blogs by other bands, and at the end of the day if you don't care, please skip on down to the real acts I'm talking about below.

If you are interested, you can follow our progress on MySpace and I'll be building our web presence over the next few months as we get our first recordings and gigs organised. Thanks for your attention…



* Please note, all 'Best...' designations are merely this writer's opinion, and stand as a recommendation for new fans, rather than an attempt to make a definitive statement. I'll likely change my mind by next week anyway.

Serj Tankian / System of a Down

What: Alternative Rock / Nu-Metal Icons
From: Glendale, California
In the Beginning: Originally formed as Soil the band developed their lineup and released independant records and played many gigs before gaining their big break by coming to Ric Rubin's attention, resulting in their self titled debut album...
Best Album*: System of a Down (1998), Toxicity (2001), Mezmerize (2005), Elect The Dead (2007)
Best Song*: "Sugar", "Suite-Pee", "War?", "Know", "Prison Song", "Science", "Chop Suey", "Forest", "BYOB", "Question?", "Sad Statue"
Recently...: SOAD went on hiatus in 2006, with Daron forming Scars on Braodway and Serj embarking on his solo career. The band have not officially split up, and the various members seem to delight in teasing a potential reunion...

Yes I've merged two acts into one, but I pretty much regard Serj's solo work as a continuation of what made System so awesome. I feel validated in this because Scars on Broadway were a huge disappointment and Daron appears to have turned into a complete flake.

In the beginning I completely dismissed SOAD because of his they looked in the pictures I saw of them in Kerrrang! Magazine. They looked to be one of those 2nd generation nu-metal bands who had adopted the face-paint and goggle-eyed expressions along with sloppy bass-lines over things like good song-writing. Yes, I basically lumped them in with Coal Chamber before I had actually heard them. Big mistake.

Eventually I did gain an appreciation for their first album – in fact it is probably their best, although I didn't full appreciate it until after Toxicity had smoothed the way.



Full of elegant, off kilter rhythms with truly intelligent and impassioned political, spiritual, and sociological lyrics, System of a Down came to prominence at just the right time to take over from Rage Against the Machine as the most important rock band in the world.



While "Chop Suey" was probably the song that broke them into the mainstream, the whole Toxicity record is a more polished, if slightly less interesting distillation of what makes the debut record so awesome. My favourite songs here have to be "Science", "Psycho", "Bounce", "Atwa" and "Aerials" for showing off the full range from the sublime to the ridiculous, from crushing riffs to startlingly beautiful ethnic instrumental passages and laid back bass-lines. It's simply awesome, and is a serious contender for album of the decade.

While Steal This Album wasn't the best or most cohesive effort, the double header that was Mezmerize and Hynotize was the high water mark of SOAD's popularity and ambition. For my money, Mezmerize is that far more enjoyable record, even if songs like "Cigaro" and "Violent Pornography" are just cringe-worthy a few years down the line, as opposed to the in-joke they were at the time. Lead singe "B.Y.O.B" remains one of my fondest musical memories, hearing it for the first time in a club and trying to dance to it, all the time thinking ‘this is amazing.' It still ticks all the right boxes now…



The album also had moments of sublime beauty and heart-warming emotion in "Question?", "Sad Statue" and "Old School Hollywood." I find it hard to believe it was four whole years ago…

The double header of records proved to be System's swansong, with the band going on ‘indefinite hiatus.' Front-men Serj Tankian and Daron Malakian went on to produce self-title offerings and form new act Scars on Broadway respectively.

I was horribly disappointed by Scars on Broadway, as it was messy, confused and somewhat generic alternative rock. Nothing more to say there…

Serj on the other hand crafted an interesting, intelligent piece of work with his Elect the Dead record coming across like a partial evolution of the more interesting parts of Mezmerize and Toxicity, with more emphasis on Serj's expressive voice and talent for whimsical piano lines, welded onto some pleasantly chunky guitars. An articulate, intelligent, motivated and passionate record, it seems that thus far, Serj is carrying the torch for all that made System of a Down such a vital, necessary act.



Skunk Anansie

What: Much missed Britrock act, enjoying a Lazarus-like return...
From: London, England
In the Beginning: Playing their first shows in 1994, the band quickly gained recognition from sources as disparate as Kerrang! magazine and Howard Stern leading to the sucess of their first records...
Best Album*: Paranoid & Sunburnt (1995), Stoosh (1996)
Best Song*: "Weak", "Yes, It's Fucking Political", "I Can Dream", "Pickin' On Me", "Hedonism", "Charlie Big Potato"
Recently...: Reuniting and playing their first gigs back in Aopril this year, their greatest hits record is to be released on 2nd November and they have a full-on tour booked for the end of the year.

One of those bands who's music formed the backdrop, if rarely the focus of my education in the late 90s, it wasn't until later that I started to give Stoosh and Paranoid & Sunburnt some serious time as the nostalgia for that lost and halcyon time started to take effect.

Skunk Anansie were always one of those acts who could play across the range of hard rock, from the ballad to the ball-breaking anthem. With a distinctive look, from Ace's shaved head, Cass' dreads and Skin's leonine presence behind the microphone, I regard them as one of my top ten alt.rock bands of all time.

The multi-racial line-up has a marginal effect on Skunk Anansie's appeal, allowing them to tackle certain issues headlong when a single-race band would often be prone to dance around an issue. However, only the stunningly awesome "Intellectualize My Blackness" is overtly about racism, but the grey area edginess that the band have at their disposal powers a great many barnstorming tracks, from "Yes, It's Fucking Political", to "I Can Dream" and "All I Want."

-

However, Skunk Anansie are more than just an agit-rock band, all screaming, shouting and no empathy and they clearly understand that often the greatest effect can be achieved by taking it down a little bit. They have a clutch of truly awesome semi-acoustic tunes from the compilation-friendly single "Hedonism" to "Brazen (Weep)", "Pickin' On Me" and "Follow Me Down."



While the last album of their original run, the awesomely titled Post Orgasmic Chill didn't have the depth or character of Stoosh or Paranoid & Sunburnt, it does have it's share of good songs, none more so than the lead single which is simply an epic rock song with a huge chorus and just a hint of quality drum & bass for good measure…



Like a great many bands of much awesomeness (Dub War, Symposium, My Vitriol and 3 Colours Red to name a few) Skunk Anansie drifted apart around the turn of the new millennium, leading to a serious dearth of alternative talent and local dynamism in the UK (that isn't unpatriotic, it's just true – only in the past few years has alt rock started to make a comeback in Britain as anything more than a pale imitation of American themes.)

While Skin had a worthy, if not particularly successful solo career (notable songs including "Mony" and her appearance on Maxim Reality's gloriously dark "Carmen Queasy") it didn't really make up for the loss of the band as a whole. Of course, hearing that they had gotten back together (reclaiming drummer Mark Richardson from a spell behind the drum stool of Feeder) and would be releasing a greatest hits album with three new songs in it, as well as touring pretty well made my year…



With a solid, sometimes innovative, always impassioned power trio and one of the very best front-persons iof the last 25 years, Skunk Anansie ride VERY high in my estimation. If you used to like them, dig out those old CDs and if you've never had the pleasure, buy the upcoming greatest hits and try and catch a show. You will thank me…

Slayer

What: Thrash metal overlords, remaining true to the faith...
From: Huntingdon Park, California
In the Beginning: Formed in 1981, their break came when Brian Slagel (who had been instrumental in Metallica's earlier rise) saw them and put them on his Metal Massacre III compilation, leading to their full debut Show No Mercy
Best Album*: Reign in Blood (1986), South of Heaven (1998)
Best Song*: "Raining Blood", "Angel of Death", "South of Heaven", "War Ensemble"
Recently...: Having been keeping busy, winning Grammy awards in 2007 and 2008 and maintiaining their worldwide touring platform 'the Unholy Alliance' shrewdly often sharing top bill with a younger act (such as Slipknot, Mastodon or In Flames.) Their new record, World Painted Blood is due for release on November 2nd/3rd.

Of course I couldn't exclude Slayer – the likes of AndrewCrow would never forgive me.

Slayer is the archetypical extreme metal band, a bunch of ugly guys singing unrelentingly brutal songs about some truly terrible things at a volume and speed to unravel the mind and seriously offend the morally righteous. In the eyes of a great many people, the proper way to spell metal is S-L-A-Y-E-R, and rightly so.



I won't claim I'm their biggest fan, as my heart is given with most intensity to Metallica and with most regularity to an ever expanding pantheon of alternative rock bands. That doesn't mean I can't appreciate Slayer for their several fistfuls of top notch riffs, the utter legend which is Dave Lombardo's drumming and their often incisively brutal lyrics.

My favourite Slayer song has to be one of their more modestly paced efforts (relatively speaking of course), and I guess you could argue that their move to a slower, more groove laden sound on the South of Heaven record actually beats Metallica and Pantera to the punch as the primogenitors of groove metal. Just for the sake of argument…



I'll admit that while I respect Slayer for their career-long dedication to brutal heaviness, it does tend to bore me after a point – hence my preference for bands with more variety in their output. Of course, there has been changes in Slayer's canon, from their initial speed metal, to being one half of the axis which defined thrash (spinning wildly between Reign in Blood and Master of Puppets) to the increasingly evident hardcore influence in their music, and even their dalliance with nu-metal when Dave Lombardo was off doing other things.



I'll admit that "Bloodline" is one of my favourite Slayer tunes, for its silliness and simplicity if nothing else. It translates disturbingly well to a jaunty acoustic guitar tune, with Richard Cheese-like vocals…

…OK, don't look at me like that!

For their continuing service to the thankless task mistress we call metal, for having at least five of the best riffs ever written and for just existing this long, with little compromise, I go down on one knee and doff my cap to the men, the mythos, the legend which is Slayer.

Slipknot

What: Nu-metal shockers, turned mainstream metal titans
From: Des Moines, Iowa
In the Beginning: Formed in 1995, the lineup constantly evolved until DJ Sid Wilson and percussionist Chris Fehn were brought in during 1998 immediately prior to signing with Roadrunner Records.
Best Album*: Slipknot (1999), Volume 3: the Subliminal Verses (2004)
Best Song*: "Surfacing", "Eeyore", "Left Behind", "the Blister Exists", "Duality", "Circle", "Before I Forget", "Dead Memories", "All Hope is Gone"
Recently...: Following the release of All Hope is Gone the band embarked on the customary expansive world tour, and at this time a new album is mooted for 2010, as well as a potential Stone Sour record from Taylor and Root, Shawn Crahan releasing a biography and a re-release of their debut album. Busy, busy, busy...

As I've said a few times in various submissions to this website, I originally hated Slipknot. I hated them because the little I heard of their music sounded like sloppiness masquerading as heaviness, and to my eyes their ‘extreme' image and pronouncements were the worst and most obvious forms of causing controversy to garner attention and fame, straight from the WASP / Marilyn Manson playbook. They had a double page spread in Smash Hits magazine, and claimed that their boiler suits and masks were anti-commercial – which is a nice story, but an out and out lie if you think about it, because…

1- They were selling replica masks and boiler suits for $40 a throw and

2- Slipknot were clearly a bunch of unremarkable looking, somewhat out-of-shape guys, and given the music they were making, they really needed a gimmick to stand out.

…but I guess you play the game when the world turns round and asks you to, right?

I did have to have a chortle when I read that Slipknot were apparently a ‘grunge' band and that "Wait & Bleed" was their most Nirvana-like song. WTF? I think my current utter contempt for the majority of music journalism stems from that time period where I realised I knew more than most of the chinless, feckless tools who get paid to write about music they don't even like, care or know about.

Jealous much? I'm not so much jealous as righteously furious and indignant!

It took a long time for the power of their music to actually push through into my somewhat cynical and jaded mind, and while I thought the singles like "Spit It out" and "Wait & Bleed" were OK, it didn't change that I thought the band were pretty poor technically and just a pop metal fad…

Of course my attitude has changed, and having seen them live three times in very different venues, I can say that they are a live force of furious power, and one of the album tracks from the debut record is easily one of the best pitting tunes I've ever heard…



I started to soften my attitude to Slipknot over a few years, my stance moving from hatred to apathy, and all of a sudden to near adoration when Iowa bumped the hated Westlife from the UK #1 spot. How I laughed.

Of course, Iowa is possibly their weakest album (second album's usually are) but it does contain the awesomely tight and direct "Left Behind" which was the true catalyst for me thinking that perhaps this was a band worth taking seriously…



Yes, "Left Behind is actually quite a straightforward pop-metal song, but it is tight and well put together and that takes it above the somewhat messy sound of their debut (which I put down to Ross Robinson's increasing laziness.) Better was to come.

With my newly-interested state of mind, the news that master producer Rick Rubin was to helm the band's next album piqued my interest and Volume 3: the Subliminal Verses did not disappoint.

Around the same time that the album was released I saw the band live for the first time, supporting Metallica at Download: Scotland and the double whammy of a truly impressive record and first experiencing their unbelievably good live show was the final nail in my conversion from cynic to Maggot.

From the easily accessible singles like "Duality" and "Before I Forget" through the take-no-prisoners rhythmic assault of "Three-Nil", "the Blister Exits" and "Welcome" to the final stunning achievement, Slipknot managing to have not one but TWO very lovely, fragile ballads on the record, yet have them remain in tone with the rest of the album. For all that Volume 3… is the most complete, tight and awesomely orchestrated Slipknot record from a purely metal point of view, for my money the layered harmonies and the fragile insanity suggested by "Circle" and "Vermillion Pt. 2" are the crowning achievement that moves them from good to great. I fully expect the likes AndrewCrow to disagree…



Returning last year with the curious All Hope is Gone, Slipknot moved Corey's more melodic ‘Stone Sour voice' more towards front & centre, and I think that the best songs on the album ("Sulfur" and "Dead Memories") benefit from the change in approach. I do feel that the record is less cohesive and less rewarding than Volume 3.

"Psychosocial" is catchy, but fundamentally a bit hollow and by-the-numbers (as well as stealing it's core riff from Metallica's "Ride the Lightning"), many of the songs seem like an overt, yet half-hearted attempt to recreate the chaotic noise of their earlier records and while I personally enjoy "Snuff", "Sulfur" and "Dead Memories" the most on the album, I do fear that the jarring difference in tone between them and "Butchers Hook" for example means the album loses a little punch, clarity and long-term appeal.



From supposed scene-jumping 2nd generation nu-metal pariahs, to one of my favourite bands, especially in the live environment, Slipknot have come a long way with me. It seems they are still trying to evolve their sound, and if there is to be another album, I'm VERY interested to see which way they jump…

I just realised I never included Stone Sour in the list of bands I like but don't have enough to say about. Suffice to say that they rock, just in a far more conventional way than Slipknot do…

the Smashing Pumpkins

What: Alternative Rock Idols
From: Chicago, Illinois
In the Beginning: Formed in 1988, quickly gaining local celebrity ahead of recording debut record Gish with iconic producer, Butch Vig...
Best Album*: Siamese Dream (1993), Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness (1995),
Best Song*: "Cherub Rock", "Disarm", "Today", "Tonight, Tonight", "Bullet With Butterfly Wings", "Zero", "Ava Adore", "The End is the Beginning is the End" "Stand Inside Your Live"
Recently...: Reformed in 2006 with only Corgan and Chamberlain from the classic lineup. Zeitgeist was released in July 2007 to mediocre reviews, although the American Gothic EP was more critically succesful. Chamberlain has now left the band, and their newest record Teargarden by Kalaidescope is to be released free, track by track online...

Ever since I first saw the video for "Tonight, Tonight" on the ITV Chart Show and paid £18 (at the time about $36) for a copy of Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness, I have been a huge fan of the Smashing Pumpkins…



Their ability to sweep between the truly moving, fragile grandeur of songs like "Tonight, Tonight" or "Disarm", through the quirky slow paced tunes like "Today" or "1979" to the biting wrath that characterises songs like "Zero" or "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" gives them a canon of songs of great variety, with a tune for every emotional or social situation. In truth, there are not many bands who can say that.

I'd even go to the lengths of saying that the Smashing Pumpkins have had more impact on my own musical style than any act not called Metallica or the Foo Fighters. Whether that is praise or not is entirely down to yourself…

While adoration and acclaim for Siamese Dream and Mellon Collie… is almost universal, when the Pumpkins split from long term and legendary drummer Jimmy Chamberlain and produced and almost ambient-electronica alt.rock record called Adore they shattered their fan-base down the middle.



I'll admit I quite like Adore, although not as much as the previous two records and apart from the awesome lead single it tends to be used as a chill out background record. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

More impressive is the song they submitted for the Batman & Robin soundtrack, the awesomely titled "The End if the Beginning Is The End." In fact, it was actually a fair bit better than the movie…

The first era of the Smashing Pumpkins ended with the huge release of Machina/the Machines of God and the much lower key, largely online release of Machina II. I really liked Machina, being the first SP record I'd bought in real time (if you get what I mean) and I really love songs like "the Everlasting Gaze", "Stand Inside Your Love" and "Raindrops and Sunshowers."



I saw the Smashing Pumpkins on that last tour (wonderfully titled the Sacred & Profane tour), and in retrospect they were clearly a band out of time with each other and out of love with what they were doing. Many songs of great beauty and power were reduced to extended jams, with the biggest crime being committed against "Stand Inside Your Love" which was performed too loud and in a howl of distortion, which does poor service to such a beautiful tune…

The fact that they spent ostensibly their last ten minutes onstage in Scotland with their backs to the crowd building a mountain of feedback was NOT the feeling I wanted to take away from the show.

Of course, the Pumpkins have reformed since, although the absence of D'Arcy and James Iha means the current incarnation is only the Smashing Pumpkins because Billy Corgan says it is. What makes this different from Zwan or Corgan's solo work, in anything but name?

However, having seen the new incarnation last year, this sentiment feels like splitting hairs, as that show was everything the Sacred & Profane gig should have been, with the classics played with appropriate emotion, distortion and pathos – the live version of "Tonight, Tonight" sent shivers of sheer joy and wonder up my spine. In truth the new incarnation's work is quite good, and while the Zeitgesit record was disappointing, the American Gothic EP was a far more interesting and emotive work.

For all that Billy Corgan is a whiny little gnome, he has managed to craft some of the most beautiful and honestly emotional alternative rock music ever, and if you can't in all conscience regard the current band as the true Smashing Pumpkins, I would never bet against a reunion with D'Arcy (or Melissa) and James…

Stereophonics

What: Britrock Survivors
From: Cwmaman, Wales
In the Beginning: Formed in 1992 as Tragic Love Company the band played 'every student dive and shitty pub' in Britain before becoming the first act signed to V2 records...
Best Album*: Word Gets Around (1997), Performanxe & Cocktails (1999)
Best Song*: "A Thousand Trees", "Local Boy in the Photograph", "Not Up To You", "the Bartender & the Thief", "Just Looking", "A Minute Longer", "Dakota", "Maybe Tomorrow"
Recently...: New album Keep Calm & Carry On set for release on November 16th, and a full scale UK tour is set for March...

The Stereophonics were one of the indie bands who survived the cull that followed my conversion to louder things in the mid-late nineties, if only because their songs were well put together, easy to learn and went down a storm at parties.

Actually, that's a little harsh because the band have a ten year career (wow, am I that old already?) with a regular stream of quality songs.

Their debut album Word Gets Around is still regularly on in my house, (much to my girlfriend's annoyance) as it is some of the most pleasing-on-the-ear easy listening rock music I've ever heard. Songs like "Local Boy in the Photograph", "A Thousand Trees" and "Traffic" are awesome anthems, infused with small-town stories, and the more down key numbers like "Not Up To You", "Billy Davey's Daughter" and "Same Size Feet" only show the depth of song writing insight on the record.



Their second record Performace & Cocktails was an evolution, with longer songs, a greater range of influences and ambition and more variety in the lyrics, from small-town intrigues to the thoughts of a relatively young band out and about in the big wide world for the first time.

While I probably still prefer Word Gets Around, I still remember walking into town on a free period from school to buy Performance & Cocktails on the day it was released. From the big rock numbers like "Roll Up & Shine" and "the Bartender & the Thief" to the introspective "Just Looking" and "A Minute Longer" as well as the mid paced tunes in between such as "I Wouldn't Believe Your Radio" it's a well balanced record, written by a band on the upswing of their career.



Following their stunning first two records, the Stereophonics were one of the bigger bands in Britain, and IMHO they started getting dull at this stage. While the lead single ("Mr Writer") to their third record, Just Enough Education To Perform was a gloomy, caustic bite which lit me up in all the right places, the band seemed set on a course of almost pub-rock mediocrity and the other singles for the album "Have A Nice Day" and "Handbags & Gladrags" were less than impressive. I mean a Rod Stewart cover, with not a hint of irony? Please!



Indeed the loss (firing) of very likeable and in no way cool or fashionable original drummer Stuart Cable, and the hiring of a new drummer and session guitarist seem to combine with an exponential growth in Kelly Jones to make the band a much less appealing force than on the first two records. That isn't to say they haven't produced good tunes, as the next song shows but I just can't love them anymore…





First up, let me apologise for saying I had no comments two weeks ago, but all those who did post did so after the weekend, when I tend to think my column has sunk into 411's archives...

In order to make up for that lapse, I'll post lev's pertinent contributions over two weeks.

Firstly...Great discussion about pop, Chris. Wasn't expecting it but glad you wrote it. It's always enjoyable reading your column because like me you appreciate that variety, like life, is the spice of music. I have mix CD's that play Slayer one minute, Lady Gaga (sue me, it's catchy) the next minute, then the theme from Lexx the minute after that. I've also given some new bands a chance after reading your columns and rediscovered some old favourites so good stuff all round.

I still say you need a better slot than Friday - this is one of the most interesting columns on 411 Music (who the hell cares about Top 5 songs from 2000 whatever?) yet it's Monday afternoon and your column is already almost buried away.

And I merely suggested you talk about Pink, Paramore, or Prince just to see you try something you normally wouldn't do. If you can grow and expand your own tastes from writing this column just like you hope your readers will, well, that's gotta be a good thing, doesn't it?

Now Pink. I admit out of all the female pop stars she is my favourite. That's not to say I'm going to act like a screaming teenage girl and get all hissy over her music and ability, but I always understood that move to rock from hip-hop was her own choice and something she had to fight the record company to do. And it was funny how Kelly Clarkson, Christina Aguilera, etc, turned to a more rockier sound immediately after Pink found success with that Misunderstood album. Basically I always assumed what you hear now is her real voice and attitude shining through rather than the posing that you so rightfully despise.

If I can I like to track down a good quality live performance from an artist of any genre. An acoustic performance is even better. And like you I look at the passion behind the performance. To quote yourself:

‘You can tell it in the eyes of the artists. Some folks are born to sing, born to rock and it shows in their eyes.'

From what I've seen of Pink I always felt that the songs really mean something to her. And as for being an average singer, well, her voice is different but oddly powerful at least to me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5T5uhd4m7c

Hope that link works.

Damn, I guess I had more to say about Pink than I intended. I'll probably get flamed for that but who cares.

Paramore. Haven't heard too much from them but what I've heard I like. A bit of Youtubing quickly tells me that are insanely popular with the kids at the moment, and therefore, rightly or wrongly, insanely despised by the Internetters. Again, I'll look at a live acoustic performance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxCOY4MFg0g

Can't help it but I like it.

Looking forward to your next column, mate....

and this week he followed up with...

Good column, mate.

I followed up that pop comment from two weeks ago with a comment last week containing two live videos of Pink and Paramore.

Off topic, I know, but did you get a chance to watch those videos? Interested if you still feel the same way about these acts ...

First up, I won't take disparagements of the ever-awesome Top 5, 'cause I really enjoy writing for that, and most of my fellow scribes feel the same. While I appreciate the sentiment that you'd rather I was posted on a Monday, the fact is the Top 5 gets a LOT more hits than me...

On topic, I completely respect your personal taste and indisputable right to like Pink and Paramore, but I will continue to disagree. As your videos show, these acts are without doubt talented, and more than capable of putting on a good show, displaying musical ability and a deal of charisma.

However, it's not nearly enough - Pink for example is a third rate singer, and if you term her current style 'rock' I am almost embarrassed to converse with you. It's contrived, rock-themed pop at best, and even within that most disparaging of definitions it is generic, whiny, derivative and uninteresting. The majority of Pink's big hits actually rip off generic lines, themes or melodies – "So What" being a key example.

While I can see your point about several pop stars taking a more ‘rock' direction around the time of Misunderstood, I'd more likely attribute that to a general shift towards rock across the whole zeitgeist of the time, between the popularity of nu-metal, the rising Emo tide, the success of acts like Avril Lavigne and the fact that since the early noughties, rock has been disturbingly fashionable.

Pink is one of those acts who seem rocky to those who don't ‘get' rock. Having a guitarist onstage and shouting does not make you rock. Being loud and opinionated does not make you intelligent or passionate. It's true there is a fire in Pink's eyes, but IMHO it comes across as a passion for FAME, not for music. Of course, that is just my take, and I respect your right to differ.

Paramore I would quite like, IF they didn't pretend to be edgy. They are not. If they accepted their role as perky pop-punk for the kiddies, I'd prefer them to most of what clogs up the charts. However, they aspire to a musical, ideological and cultural status above their station and it bugs me – don't whine about fashion when you have started wearing couture clothing, it's obviously hypocritical. You can hate the concept fashion as a whole and I will applaud you, but don't just hate other scene's fashions ‘cause that makes you just as bad as the jocks and beautiful people you claim to hate.

Like you say Lev, it's good to try and grow and expand my own tastes, and one of the reasons I enjoy writing about music is that it forces me to observe, evaluate and understand my own tastes and prejudices. For example, I no longer really count myself as a metal guy in the main, don't hate Emo with the same burning vitriol I used to and also have a lot more tolerance for pop music and have spent many hours rediscovering bands I loved once upon a time. Your thoughts and arguments are welcomed, valued and I hope to have more ideological jousts with you in the future.

I also have to pay attention when one of my fellow 411 Scribes takes the time to comment, and two week's ago the very talented and insightful Weng said... Epic column this month!

An interesting defence of pop music. I personally wouldn't have highlighted Destiny's Child, but I can see why you did. And I know Lady Gaga is processed to hell, but the one thing about her is that if you hear one of her tracks, you can identify it as her straight away, unlike a lot of other artists out there. That's pretty hard to pull off nowadays.

Destiny's Child are perhaps not the best example of well-arranged so-called rhythm & blues but I've always liked the dynamic of "Say My Name" even though later DC songs are pretty banal. A better example of what I was trying to say simply didn't occur to me.

Re: Lady GaGa - I can see how she might sound more impressive to American ears, but to my European ears, the excessively processed vocals over rhythmic beats have been ever present in what I tend to call Euro-Pop for about fifteen years.

The generic mix & match female vocals over the works of Armand Van Helden or Cascada have displayed these processed characteristics for many years. Even more prominent artists like Britney Spears, Madonna and even the usually fabulous Kylie Minogue have used similar techniques more than a little.

As such, I simply can't say that Lady GaGa is distinctive – although perhaps in a market swamped by wannabe Divas and 3rd rate ‘hip-hop' stars, her polished product might stand out as something new and distinctive. To me, it's just not…

I will admit that I've seen video of GaGa singing quite impressively without the drenching effects and overpowering hi-NRG synths, so the lady (if she is indeed a lady) has talent. However her big songs thus far are lyrically depressing, over-processed and over-played to the point of soul-destroying ubiquity. I continue to NOT be a fan.

Now were back up to date and first up, regular commenter Hdj360 has this to say...
Again, missed your column last week. Just got a new job and been working like a dog... Not really but you get my idea. We have a deal! I will check out the selected bands you told me about and hit you up on my review next week just as long as you check out some Breaking Benjamin!

S: Satyricon, Slayer, Slipknot, Static X, Shadows Fall, etc. Lol

Fair suggestions as ever Hdj… I will take up your challenge to check out Breaking Benjamin in more detail. You'll have my thoughts in a few weeks.

Likewise, Jcon weighs in with this...
Muse > Radiohead

And S should be a good week with all the available options, just some could be Soundgarden, Slayer, Shinedown, The Smashing Pumpkins, Sublime, System of a Down, Stone Temple Pilots, Sevendust, Screaming Trees, just to name a few. (I'm just really hoping Soungarden)

Again some fair suggestions, some which I took, some which didn't and some, including your biggest request which I sorta dealt with but not fully. I hope you're satisfied with the final mix.

Oh, and Muse are NOT greater than Radiohead – they are very, very different*. The point I was making was my annoyance at the tendency of the UK music press to declare any promising act-on-the-rise to be ‘the New Radiohead' or ‘the new Oasis' or whatever. It is unhelpful, unfair, and often wrongly applied.

For example - Radiohead rely on their sense of almost ambient atmosphere and Thom Yorke's insular, idiosyncratic, VERY nihilistic vocals for their best effect. Basically they are an aniti-social, insular, introverted act. Muse on the other hand are full of action and dynamism, with their best work full of outwardly soaring vocals, spiralling guitars and engaging rhythms. Basically they are an impassioned, extroverted act. Completely different, only loosely comparable.

The press lumped them together because they were more musically impressive than your average indie band, and Bellamy's voice is perhaps similar in pitch to Yorke's, if you don't pay too much attention. Radiohead could have written "Showbiz" if they had a bit more aggression but they would never write "New Born" or "Hysteria." Get it?

* Of course, if you prefer Muse to Radiohead, that is entirely up to yourself, but I regard them as being somewhat equal, if very different in style and application. However, I would also say that both acts have lost their way in recent years.

Lastly, the dubiously monikered Frusciante says...
Really R isn't for the Red hot chili peppers? rare mistep from you there Mr. Crowing

Well, Frusciante – if that is your real name – I'll admit, it's a bit of an oversight especially seeing as I used to regard the RHCP as one of the most influential and distinctive acts in big-name alternative music, with Blood Sugar Sex Magic having a place in my old theory of the ‘alternative music starter kit.'.

Up until By The Way they were fantastic, dynamic, catchy, affecting, and generally awesome, while also managing to sound nothing like anyone else. Yeah, I guess it was a misstep.

At their best the Chilli Peppers are capable of genuinely moving, affecting ballads ("I Could Have Lied", "Under the Bridge", "Scar Tissue", "Road Trippin'") as well as catchy, dance-floor filling alternative anthems ("Suck My Kiss", "By The Way.") However, my favourite RHCP songs are the B-sides to the "Scar Tissue" single, named "Gong Li" and "Instrumental #1" – just awesome.

Yeah, I really should have included the Chilli Peppers last week, and the lapse is to my eternal discredit. I shall try to redeem myself with this video as a sign out for this week.



Slainte,
Chris Crowing

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