Music sucks today
A local radio station put on a March Madness like competition between 64 bands. These bands were broken up by the decade where they were most active or started. (70's, 80's, 90's, 00's). The listening public of Philadelphia call in or text their vote to determine the winner of each competition. The winner of this year's event was Breaking Benjamin. Because of this competition I can prognosticate on the general music industry as a whole.
In the 70's you had bands like Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, the Ramones, Black Sabbath, Aerosmith keeping rock/metal scene alive. In the 80's you had Metallica, Motley Crue, Van Halen, and Thomas Dolby. Even in the 90's Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Alice In Chains kept things fresh and new.
As record companies become engulfed by two or three giant ones, the music begins to sound more monotonous and repetitive. Now your bands are created by looks that appeal to a certain genre.
There is "Metal." A great example of today's radio metal is Disturbed. They were manufactured for the metal crowd, but not the true metal crowd. You would never hear Cradle of Filth on the radio, but Disturbed fits well. A polished sound that is still dirty and religious oriented. You can hear blue and white collar workers rebelling against society by popping in their 10,000 fists cd and screaming "Ooh Wah AH AH AH."
Then there is the Frat Rape Rock, as I call it. These bands are rock based, but appeal to the frats of America. For some reason it is not cool to have Brown Sugar by the Stones come on as you are slipping Roofies in a girl's drink. You need a song that is a bit harder rocking, but not too hard. You don't want to scare the girl away. So your vocalist has to have a dark, scratchy voice, but the ability to harmonize during the chorus. Examples of these bands are Three Days Grace, Stone Sour, Cold, and Breaking Benjamin.
It is these bands that are the top playing on all rock radio stations around America, be it due to popularity or payola. So the question comes up, if there is no good music on the radio who should we listen to that is current? Well my friends, I have listed a few bands that are helping to keep music and rock n' roll alive.
Velvet Revolver - Mix 3/5ths Guns N' Roses with 1 part Stone Temple Pilots and 1 part Suicidal Tendencies and you get something that is fresh, new and still loyal to the musical roots. They are dirty, coked out rockers and make no apologies for it. Matched with a fun, hard rocking, concert allows them to keep Rock N Roll alive. Pick up Contraband.
The Killers - Ok, so these guys have gotten more popular and as we all know popular leads to a backlash. They have come a long way from playing Vegas clubs. They are now selling out stadiums in Europe and amphitheaters in the States. Combining Bowie with New Order to create their sound and Springsteen-esque lyrics makes them a perfect candidate. Pick up Hot Fuss or Sam's Town.
Lamb of God - For American Death Metal there is no better. This band has an unrelenting live show and a touring schedule that makes Metallica's 80's tours look lazy. Exodus, Megadeth, and Metallica's thrash combined with dark, religious lyrics allows you to listen to this band and not feel guilty. Disturbed can't even lick the sweat dribbles off these guy's testicles. Pick up Ashes of the Wake to understand the fury and ferocity of this Virginia band.
Muse - Rock trio with an idiosyncratic style that blends classical baroque, heavy metal, and electronica. They utilize Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" when they perform live. Live shows are usually accompanied by off-the-wall speeches from the eccentric frontman Matthew Bellamy, which range from global conspiracies to extraterrestrial life. Pick up Absolution or Black Holes and Revelations.
Randy Blossom (http://www.myspace.com/randyblossom) - Randy is an unsigned solo artist based in Fairfield California by way of the San Fransisco Bay. He has his head firmly in his roots (Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd). You can easily hear the influence of these artists in his music. Staring at the Sun is a great Zeppelin inspired song while The Blue sounds like an Alice In Chains demo which was accidentally left out of their catalog. Check out his myspace site for more information on his latest recording due out in mid 2007. You can also hear samples of his music and purchase cd's, if you so desire.
In the 70's you had bands like Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, the Ramones, Black Sabbath, Aerosmith keeping rock/metal scene alive. In the 80's you had Metallica, Motley Crue, Van Halen, and Thomas Dolby. Even in the 90's Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Alice In Chains kept things fresh and new.
As record companies become engulfed by two or three giant ones, the music begins to sound more monotonous and repetitive. Now your bands are created by looks that appeal to a certain genre.
There is "Metal." A great example of today's radio metal is Disturbed. They were manufactured for the metal crowd, but not the true metal crowd. You would never hear Cradle of Filth on the radio, but Disturbed fits well. A polished sound that is still dirty and religious oriented. You can hear blue and white collar workers rebelling against society by popping in their 10,000 fists cd and screaming "Ooh Wah AH AH AH."
Then there is the Frat Rape Rock, as I call it. These bands are rock based, but appeal to the frats of America. For some reason it is not cool to have Brown Sugar by the Stones come on as you are slipping Roofies in a girl's drink. You need a song that is a bit harder rocking, but not too hard. You don't want to scare the girl away. So your vocalist has to have a dark, scratchy voice, but the ability to harmonize during the chorus. Examples of these bands are Three Days Grace, Stone Sour, Cold, and Breaking Benjamin.
It is these bands that are the top playing on all rock radio stations around America, be it due to popularity or payola. So the question comes up, if there is no good music on the radio who should we listen to that is current? Well my friends, I have listed a few bands that are helping to keep music and rock n' roll alive.
Velvet Revolver - Mix 3/5ths Guns N' Roses with 1 part Stone Temple Pilots and 1 part Suicidal Tendencies and you get something that is fresh, new and still loyal to the musical roots. They are dirty, coked out rockers and make no apologies for it. Matched with a fun, hard rocking, concert allows them to keep Rock N Roll alive. Pick up Contraband.
The Killers - Ok, so these guys have gotten more popular and as we all know popular leads to a backlash. They have come a long way from playing Vegas clubs. They are now selling out stadiums in Europe and amphitheaters in the States. Combining Bowie with New Order to create their sound and Springsteen-esque lyrics makes them a perfect candidate. Pick up Hot Fuss or Sam's Town.
Lamb of God - For American Death Metal there is no better. This band has an unrelenting live show and a touring schedule that makes Metallica's 80's tours look lazy. Exodus, Megadeth, and Metallica's thrash combined with dark, religious lyrics allows you to listen to this band and not feel guilty. Disturbed can't even lick the sweat dribbles off these guy's testicles. Pick up Ashes of the Wake to understand the fury and ferocity of this Virginia band.
Muse - Rock trio with an idiosyncratic style that blends classical baroque, heavy metal, and electronica. They utilize Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" when they perform live. Live shows are usually accompanied by off-the-wall speeches from the eccentric frontman Matthew Bellamy, which range from global conspiracies to extraterrestrial life. Pick up Absolution or Black Holes and Revelations.
Randy Blossom (http://www.myspace.com/randyblossom) - Randy is an unsigned solo artist based in Fairfield California by way of the San Fransisco Bay. He has his head firmly in his roots (Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd). You can easily hear the influence of these artists in his music. Staring at the Sun is a great Zeppelin inspired song while The Blue sounds like an Alice In Chains demo which was accidentally left out of their catalog. Check out his myspace site for more information on his latest recording due out in mid 2007. You can also hear samples of his music and purchase cd's, if you so desire.
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