411 Music Fact or Fiction 01.11.12: Starring Lou Reed As Captain Kirk

Posted by Joseph Lee on 01.11.2012

Are we interested in a 3D Metallica movie? Should Adele have to "sex up" her image? Will we check out Van Halen on tour? 411's Adam Hill and Jeremy Thomas debate these topics and more in this week's 411 Fact or Fiction: Music!


Welcome to another edition of Fact or Fiction: Music. I'm your host, Joseph Lee.

This week, Adam Hill returns to the FOF to take on Jeremy Thomas.

Round 1
1) Adele shouldn't have to "sex up" her image.
Adam Hill: FACT. No, she shouldn't have to and actually, I don't think this is in fact about her ‘sexing up', though that is a phrase used by the ‘source' that broke the story. What we know is that she is planning to live and eat more healthily and try to lose a little weight, which makes sense really. She has encountered a number of problems with her throat in recent months and had to have surgery and the like to repair the damage. I would imagine she has been told to take better care of her throat and vocal chords, including watching what she eats. Also, it would appear that this isn't just about her music either. Come on, no one was more successful in music than Adele last year and there is no way her being slimmer would've made any difference to her success. The reports suggested that she is keen to branch out into other areas of entertainment, such as acting and fashion work. She is, after all, a stage school graduate so it is no surprise that she would want to try out other disciplines, and what better time than now when her stock has never been higher?
Jeremy Thomas: FACT. Although I, like Adam, question the veracity of this report. Adele has always been pretty outspoken about the fact that she doesn't really try to be Britney Spears or Katy Perry, and we all know that obviously she doesn't have to. Yes, she's lost twenty-five pounds by all accounts but that seems to be health-related, not sexiness-related. Twenty-five pounds won't turn her into a sexbot. What she's doing is taking better care of her body after her health scare, and there's nothing wrong with that. But the question isn't whether she is, the question is whether she should have to. And again, clearly, the answer is no, she shouldn't have to. Look, the woman has had her first single on the top 100 for fifty-two weeks straight. 21 hasn't left the charts for almost as long; hell, it's barely left the top five. A year after it first hit the top, it's on top again. And all of that was done without being sexed up. She could sex up I suppose, and be more like Katy Perry, if she wants to see less albums. Teenage Dream sold about three million copies worldwide in a year and a half; 21 has sold sixteen million copies in a year. Sounds like she's doing just fine to me.
Score Card: 1 for 1

Round 2
2) The Black Keys were right about Nickelback.
Adam Hill: FICTION. Bear with me on this one, I have a theory and it's not about bunnies. Do I agree with Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney's assertion that Nickelback are shit? Sure, I've never been a fan and frankly, I can't see me ever being one. Do I agree that Rock and Roll is dying because of their success? Nah, not so much. There have been bands like Nickelback in every generation, which have been really successful without ever really offering anything interesting or good. Even when rock and roll was in its heyday, there were acts that were just meh and they had no impact on the sustainability of the genre. Also, rock and roll isn't really dying, sure it may not have as great a chart presence as it once did but there is a lot of great rock being made out there, you just have to go and look for it. Also, the music industry is cyclical, it won't be long before rock comes back with a vengeance and people will start bemoaning the death of pop, or dance, or hip-hop. This has all happened before, it will all happen again.
Jeremy Thomas: FICTION. First off, kudos on the Buffy reference, Adam. Second, I don't hate Nickelback like many do. I don't think they're good, but they make nice, safe, listenable rock. There is a market for that and while I generally prefer my rock unsafe and far less bland, I can listen to Kroeger and company without changing the channel. However, I'm not going to deny that they're no a good band. That being said, blaming the death of rock n' roll on Nickelback is retarded. Rock was at a nadir long before Nickelback came along. The rise of pop music always signifies the fall of rock, and that's what happened to put rock on the ropes. All the way back to the early '00s, rock has been taking a backseat to many other genres and the only way its made inroads has been by shifting gears to emo bands, rap-metal and other blendings with more popular genres. That being said, I agree with Adam that rock isn't dead or dying. It's just taking a nap while the other genres hold sway. There will come a time when pop music falls from its perch, hip-hop stops ruling the charts and/or people finally get sick of country, and good old rock will make its return. Also, Nickelback isn't the biggest band in the world; I think the Keys are given Chad and his bandmates a bit too much credit there.
Score Card: 2 for 2

Round 3
3) You would watch a 3D Metallica film.
Adam Hill: FICTION. Unless it is some kind of crazy adventure featuring the band in increasingly ridiculous and dangerous scenarios, where objects come flying out of the screen at you that is. Can a concert film be additionally interesting in 3D for example? Or is it just another concert film, with the added interactivity of having to duck each time Lars drops a stick as you think it's going to hit you? Double fiction if it features Lou Reed. Fact if it features Lou Reed playing Captain Kirk in a Star Trek storyline.
Jeremy Thomas: FICTION. Don't get me wrong, I would love a concert film from Metallica as long as they're not performing anything Lulu or most of St. Anger. I just don't watch 3D movies because of an eye condition that makes them more or less impossible for me. So no, out of technicality, this wouldn't be my cup of tea.
Score Card: 3 for 3

SWITCH

Round 4
4) You enjoyed Rick Ross' latest mixtape, Rich Forever.
Jeremy Thomas: FACT. I'm surprised to say this, as I'm not really a huge Rick Ross fan, but Rich Forever was actually quite good. He has a ton of guests on here and that's to be expected, but they're all more or less at the top of their game and this may be the first guest-heavy album in the past year or so with no Lil Wayne or Pitbull, which is only a positive thing in my book. I wouldn't say I'd go out of my way to buy it but since you don't have to, I will say that I enjoyed it for what it was and am definitely looking forward to God Forgives, I Don't more than I was before.
Adam Hill: FACT. Absolutely, and this has got me pretty stoked about his new album, which I guess was the point of releasing the mixtape. Not only is the tape crammed full with some amazing artists, sweet beats and an all out head-nodding feel, it is probably better than a heck of a lot of proper hip-hop releases from last year. I would certainly rather listen to this than Watch The Throne any day.
Score Card: 4 for 4

Round 5
5) You plan on seeing Van Halen on their 2012 tour.
Jeremy Thomas: FICTION. I don't do a lot of concerts; it has to be something I'm really, REALLY inspired to see if I'm going to go see it. And while I like Van Halen as much as any red-blooded guy in his thirties, I'm not going to drop $100 so I can go see them over a ton of other artists I like more that I could spend the money on. More power to them, but concerts just aren't my thing.
Adam Hill: FICTION. Two simple reasons why. One, I live in the UK and at the moment I haven't seen any UK dates so, you know, logistics and all that. Two, the ticket prices I have seen quoted are around $90 - $120 which just seems more than a little excessive. If they were coming to the UK and had more reasonably priced tickets, then yeah, I'd be there but as it stands, not going to happen.
Score Card: 5 for 5

Round 6
6) It's disappointing that Howard Jones has left Killswitch Engage.
Jeremy Thomas: FICTION. I'll be honest, I wouldn't know a Killswitch Engage song if I heard it. So while I think it's sad that Jones had to leave because of complications with his health problems, I wouldn't call it disappointing from a musical perspective. Jones himself said that because of his diabetes, he hasn't been able to get excited about his music and that his bandmates saw it before him. It would be better for him to step aside and take care of himself and have the band get someone in who is passionate and who can get excited. So yes while it is undoubtedly unfortunate, I wouldn't say it's disappointing from the perspective of a fan (of which, admittedly, I am not).
Adam Hill: FACT. Sure, I've not really heard much to be honest but it's always sad when someone has to give something up that they love for health reasons. No doubt the band will carry on he wasn't their first singer after all, and Jones himself has said that the new record kills, but his health has to come first and it makes sense for him to step away at this time. Fingers crossed he is able to treat the diabetes to the extent that he feels he can take on the role again, or something similar with another act, without it having a detrimental effect on his wellbeing.
Score Card: 5 for 6

Anything you agree with? Disagree with? Sound off in the comment section.

As someone who is a huge KSE fan, I'm very disappointed by this news. But maybe it means Jesse Leach will go back. Anyway, these two almost had a perfect score, but were tripped up by the last question.