Not to be cliché, SlowdiveMusic Blog has been and continues to be a labor of love. From as far back as I can remember, I have spent hours listening to music; not just the kind of listening that we all do as background noise, but quite literally playing an album in the dark and just listening. Starting the blog, though I had a bit of internal resistance, was one of my best decisions, because it really has reconnected me with my love of music and forced me to listen to some music I may never have come across otherwise. And after three years, and the support of many like you reading this at the moment, I am willing and able to stare down 2012 and continue to grow SlowdiveMusic Blog. But I must take a moment to thank a few individuals who have helped/inspired me in one way or another: Mirage (for sticking around this long), Painted Bird (for challenging my musical tastes), Candyman (for being the best damn editor ever), Candyman’s less likable other half (for telling me my musical tastes suck, which means I am on the right track!), and my dear friend and fellow commuter (for always giving me perspective, now it’s time for you to write as well). And of course, DJ Chauncey D, who is well aware of the mayhem going on in my life at the moment; he reached out to me and suggested I do something different – instead of any ole editorial for the third anniversary, that he would interview me. I thought, “Why not?” and took the time to Answer 5. Enjoy!
1. What band or artist that you have not interviewed yet would be your dream interview?
Well, I would love to interview Robert Smith [of The Cure fame] and Annie Lennox. And since I am curious as all hell, there are tons of others – Damon Albarn, Eva Amaral, Brett Anderson, Andy Bell, Matthew Bellamy, Bjork, David Bowie, Vincent Clarke, Ray Davies, PJ Harvey, Madonna, Martin Gore, Stefan Olsdal, Roland Orzabal, Trent Reznor, Siouxsie Sioux, Tom Smith, Alan Wilder, etc… And of course anyone we review on the blog has an open invitation for an interview. So feel free to reach out!
2. If you were to write a song, what band or artist would you want to record/perform it?
I am not sure I would want to write a song for another person or band to perform; I am usually attracted to artists who compose their own music and pen their own lyrics, as opposed to being producer driven. With that said, I would love to be in the studio as one of my favorite artists are recording to give the thumbs up or down.
3. What is your major motivation for creating and maintaining this blog?
I have always been bothered by bad reviews that are based on misguided personal or corporate expectations, as opposed at listening to an album without prejudice. And then most of these reviews are trite and full of bad one-liners. I thought that there should be better quality, both in reviewing and writing, and I thought I could help fill that void somehow. But the real motivation has always been to sing the “unsung” heroes. Whether nascent bands that garner little coverage or veterans that are ignored and passed over in favor of new, corporately sponsored young faces, I wanted to put out there some great music that is often ignored.
As time goes on, I am writing more and more about indie artists, indie in the sense of being truly independent, such as The Android Angel (as opposed to the kind of “indie” band that really is a euphemism for festival bands). There is just so much out there that never really gets noticed. That is part of the reason why I have never written a negative review – there is just so much out there, that I don’t want to waste time telling anyone why I simply don’t like one title or other. (Believe me there is a ton of shit that I hate out there!)
I release that the decision of not sharing music or posting videos that are only from official sources (musician, label, director, etc…) makes SlowdiveMusic Blog less appealing. These decisions have been made and upheld in order to create a blog where artists would come to be interviewed, keep us in the loop of what they were doing, and share music for the sole purpose of reviewing (and only shared when they request it). The lack of downloadable music may make me less competitive than most sites, but it proves SlowdiveMusic Blog’s integrity and journalistic standard. But, as we are a blog, there is one thing that we must always do and that is to disclose any and all exchange of music for reviews. We always do this by writing in red texts before the post, the cue to our readers that there in fact has been some exchange. Regardless, we continue to only review music that we believe in.
But I really would like to point out something a bit political at this time: we are currently facing the Stop Internet Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) as major legislation in the USA. As a person, a blogger, and, yes, a journalist, freedom of expression is very important to me, and I hope that everyone realizes the importance of this freedom – something that I think we will all be more focused on in the coming months. Educate yourselves on these legislation and others like them internationally; where we want to preserve the rights of all artists and entrepreneurs, we do not want any government potentially having the ability to strangle our freedom of expression.
4. Here's a two-parter: Which present day musician/band do you think is grossly overrated? Underrated?
This is indeed a hard question to answer. Where do I start?
Overrated in the pop world: Lady Gaga. I want to state for the record (again), I do not think she is talentless; I just think that her eye is more on making faux-statements and lowest common denominator music to appeal to the masses. I think that like Madonna, when she is no longer part of the hype machine and MTV and other mainstream outlets start to favor younger, fresher artists, Lady Gaga will write and produce her best music – her own “Ray of Light.”
Outside of the pop world, I would say White Stripes – should I run for shelter and hide after saying that? Perhaps it is because I could never connect to the majority of their music; I know they were talented, but I just never got it.
As for the underrated, let me answer this in three parts: foreign, indie, and major.
I think that most Americans and Brits tend to listen only to music that hails from English-speaking country, though Australian, Canadian, and New Zealander music is often ignored. Furthermore, I have always said that there is something to be said about French, German, and Scandinavian musicians, who not only have access to American and British music, but also their own national, continental, and even international music. The rise of bands like Abba is not the rule, but rather the exception to the rule of bands that rise to international prominence that do not hail from English speaking countries. So current bands I think are underrated include Destronics, Kent, Northern Portraits, and Second to name a few.
In terms of indie bands, the list could go on forever, but Murder By Death, Microfilm, and Kyte comes to mind immediately. Then there is Diego Garcia, whose album “Laura” we thought was the best album of the year. And I would be remiss if I did not mention Clara Engel – beyond brilliant and talented.
In terms of “major” artists, there are many veterans that are often underrated, like Duran Duran or Erasure in their later years. But if there is one band that I really think is underrated, it is Editors – every time I listen to them again, I like them more and more.
5. What is one of the most amazing situations that has occurred in your life that you can completely thank your creation of SlowdiveMusic for?
Well, my highlight came very early on, when I interviewed Steven Severin [of Siouxsie and the Banshees’ fame]. His music filled and continues to fill hours of my life. But I have also gotten to interact with many musicians that I admire, like Christophe of Transbeauce who is brilliant.
But what I really want to say is that at the end of it all, this is an arduous process; people are usually impressed that I have kept a blog going for this long, though we hit a rough patch with consistency last year. As any avid blogger will tell you, this is like having a second job that does not pay – and the investment in time, financially, and emotionally can really take a toll. What I am most amazed at is that I am stubborn enough to keep going at it, with some new ideas to unfurl.
Eurythmics’ “When Tomorrow Comes” from the EurythmicsVEVO YouTube Channel.
Kent’s “Hjäta” [“Heart”] from the KentVEVO YouTube Channel.
Murder By Death’s “White Noise” from vagrantrecords YouTube Channel.
Editors’ “Bullets” from the EditorsVEVO YouTube Channel.
Siouxsie and the Banshee’s “Dazzle” from the bansheesofficial YouTube Channel.
Read more ...
Showing posts with label Editorial. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Editorial. Show all posts
22 January 2012
10 September 2011
Revival or Continuation?
History lesson!
September 1941, The United Kingdom and The Soviet Union forced the Shah of Iran, Reza Shah, to abdicate and hand his power over to his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, since it was thought that his father would ally himself with Nazi Germany. Nearly four decades later, when Mohammad Reza Palhavi, the handpicked sovereign by Western powers, was overthrown, the hostage crisis that would plague the end of the Jimmy Carter administration started. During this time in the 1970s, Saddam Hussein would rise to power in neighboring Iraq, a country that the United States had their eyes on as a strategic location in the Middle East (against the Soviet Union). At the same time, Operation Cyclone was taking place in Afghanistan; this was a decade long operation to finance and train the Afghan mujahideen against the Soviet Union in their war. Of course, all the time the world economy was coming to a grinding halt, the world was becoming acquainted with the word “recession” by the mid-80s, oil dependency would become a national security issue, and a housing crisis (led by a saving and loans crisis in the mid-80s) would manifest in the USA. Gone were the liberal days of the late 1960s and 1970s, nothing was free, not even love, and in came austerity, conservatism, and the Reagan/Thatcher era.
I acknowledge fully that I have oversimplified a lot of history here, and I am not claiming to be definitive in any way, but rather ruminating and proposing a theory on why there is so much revival going on at this moment; so I ask that you kindly placate me and play along. If you were to shift the years a bit, to switch the names of the wars and the players, and consider all of the financial turmoil the world is in today, it would be easy for any of us to say that history is repeating itself … so why not music?
In the mist of the 1970s, punk rock would come into existence; in part an aesthetic movement that beckoned for simplicity in music, away from the virtuosos like Jimi Hendrix; it was also highly political. From “Anarchy in the UK” to “London Calling,” these young musicians questioned the status quo in a way that musicians had not in over a generation. Unfortunately, as punk rock became sonically repetitive after the first wave and separate “punk” scenes started to form and become established, its own politics in its different subgenres became reified, codified, and unquestioned by those who supported it. Though punk rock’s first wave lasted for a brief moment and its subsequent waves would fade in global relevance, it gave birth to the post-punk movement.
(The Sex Pistols’ “Anarchy in the UK” from the SexPistolsChannel YouTube Channel.)
As the 80s rolled in, pop music became more and more mindless, as most entertainment does during hardships; most people use entertainment as a means of escape, not a method to question their circumstances – just listen to the radio or watch “reality” television and you can experience this. (Please note, by “reality” television I am referring to the entire genre of shows that are supposedly premised on real life situations without scripts.) Very few musicians would question the status quo, but in the mainstream Bruce Springsteen led the way, delivering one punch after the other against the status quo in the name of the working class. And a few pop musicians, namely Madonna, would push the envelope with suggestive imagery against the status quos of religion and sexuality. But underneath the mainstream, post-punk, which may have been somewhat resistant to take up politics directly, embraced the hardship and bleakness of its time: a feeling that the world would never be the same and that existence was full of despair. These very notions were reflected in the psychic construction of the music, as musically and lyrically these bands started to get darker and more introspective, mirroring the times. Love songs were rarely happy, and the idea that “death is everywhere” [“Fly on the Windscreen” by Depeche Mode] was becoming more and more prevalent. Just take Siouxsie and the Banshees’ first single, “Hong Kong Garden.” Not as dark as what would soon follow, the despair of the world is reflected in stream-of-consciousness: “Harmful elements in the air, symbols clashing everywhere, reaps the field of rice and reeds while the population feeds, junk floats on polluted water, an old custom to sell your daughter…” Why not a fractured stream-of-consciousness, as the very world was becoming fractured? The darkest moment in the post-punk era, demonstrating pure existentialism, would come in 1982 from The Cure, juxtaposing the value of human life with corporate imagery (limousines and skyscrapers): “It doesn’t matter if we all die, ambition in the back of a black car, in a high building there is so much to do….” (“A Hundred Years”) But others, such as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, would be just as bombast, questioning the faith people place in a “God”: “Hey God, there’s nothing left me to hide. I lost my ignorance, security, and pride. I’m all alone in a world you must despise. Hey God, I believed your promises, your promises and lies.” (“Terrible Lies”)
From romance and love to politics and life, post-punk rockers reflected the psychic reality of the world they were forced to live in.
(Wire’s “Heartbeat” from the wirehq YouTube Channel.)
(Killing Joke’s “Eighties” from the emimusic YouTube Channel.)
But it was not only the post-punk rockers (and their gothic and industrial offspring) that reeled about the time they lived in, new wave and synthpop musicians took their subtle and less subtle stabs at the beast. Perhaps the most known would be Depeche Mode’s “People Are People,” rallying against the xenophobia and racism that the masses were capitulating to – best reflected in the anti-American / anti-Soviet feelings that led nations not to send athletes to Moscow or Los Angeles. And there was Pet Shop Boys, with their tongue-in-cheek critique of an economic world where only thievery (by the educated) can make money. And if racism, xenophobia, and class warfare were risqué topics to sing about, imagine how social conservatives felt about Bronski Beat! In an era where same-sex marriage was not even part of the debate, Bronski Beat put homophobia and violence against gay men in the forefront with their song and video for “Small Town Boy.”
(Depeche Mode’s “People Are People” from their MySpace Videos Page)
(Pet Shop Boys’ “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)” from the emimusic YouTube Channel.
(Bronski Beat’s “Small Town Boy” from the JsomervilleOfficial YouTube Channel.)
Of course I would be remiss if I did not engage, arguably, the most iconic moment of the 80s. Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” was a catchy tune and video hiding a polemic. The most enigmatic song ever written: the band has never revealed what sweet dreams are make of, you are doing the using and abusing, or who is receiving the using or abusing! And in this famous and iconoclastic incarnation – red head, androgynous, dressed in a man’s suit, and a favorite Halloween costume of many of my friends – Annie Lennox proves that women do not need to sell sex(uality) in order to sell records. The most telling indictment of the time is how the video is set in a corporate office space, as she sings, “Some of them want to use you; some of them want to be used by you. Some of them want to abuse you; some of them want to be abused by you” – in essence the very core of a how a capitalist system must survive. The only escape in the video is through mediation that leads you to a fantasy world of masque wearing cello players. And this is not any ole mediation, but rather religiously inspired mediation, as denoted by the bindi and the cows, all religious images of Hinduism – an Eastern religion, the exact opposite of what was being represented by the Western world.
(Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These)” from EurythmicsVEVO YouTube Channel.)
As the economic, political, and social conditions changed, so would the music. At least in the Western world, the 1990s would be a decade of relative peace, international cooperation, and economic expansion. Bill Clinton was in the White House and the formal establishment of the European Union and the creation of the Eurozone was well on its way in Western Europe. As Westerners enjoyed “golden days,” the need for a counterculture that attacked the status quo lessened. Even conservatives and liberals, who have never seen eye-to-eye but managed to work together, never expressed the vitriol we see in national politics all over the world today. Hence music changed: grunge and Britpop would see mainstream success on different sides of the pond, and R&B really became international as electronic / rave culture emerged.
Soon, however, political leaders would lead the world down the pathways of history, and once again there was Western involvement in the Middle East, to a level not seen since The Crusades (you know the religious campaign to kill every Muslim in sight, but not the Jews as “Christian” fundamentalists need them for their “end time”), including deposing one said leader of Iraq. The world financial markets would implode by 2008 and not truly recover over the next few years (did someone say downgrade?), the housing market and banking sector worldwide would come unraveled, and oil dependency has once again become a national security issue (though the USA gets most of its oil from Canada, Mexico, and Venezuela, three nations I highly doubt are plotting to mount a war to destroy the USA). I am not saying that the 1990s were completely frivolous; what I am saying is that you will be pressed to find as many “countercultural” movements that were not part of corporate, marketing scheming. The entire pre-packaged angst of the commercialized music such as grunge post-Nirvana had more to do with turning over a profit than mediating social reality. Now I am not saying that there were not moments of lashing out against the status quo, but they were isolate moments or artists. Two great examples come to mind. The ever tongue-in-cheek Pulp takes on class-consciousness in their classic “Common People,” and Blur’s “Girls and Boys” riotous take on sexual(ity) freedom, with the advice, “Always should be someone you really love.”
(Pulp’s “Common People” from the PulpVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(Blur’s “Girls and Boys” from the emimusic YouTube Channel.)
As for the world we live in now, I can only think of one quote to sum it up, and I will risk being called a communist; according to Karl Marx: “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.”
I am not one given to phenomenalistic thought, nor do I believe I should accept any trend as a random given – things do not just happen, there is always something motivating it: a cause and effect. I don’t think that the members of bands such as Interpol woke up one morning and said, “Screw this power-chord, grunge influenced music, let’s sound more like Joy Division and The Cure.” For that matter, I don’t think that the media that mocked The Cure for over a decade would then turn around and hail them as iconic, God-Like Genius, as NME did, for no reason at all. I don’t think that bands like La Roux decided one day to throw out all of their digital technology to sound more like and be anti-romantic like early/mid-80s Depeche Mode just for the fun of it. There is a cause and effect here; both sets of bands exist under near identical economic, political, and social conditions. Even if post-punk had never existed, musicians would have gotten darker during these days; it is the natural reaction of creative artists to their times. Sure there are many acts that have simply jumped the bandwagon, but there still remains a core of bands that are expressing themselves as did their forefathers and mothers; for them, this is not an era of revival, but rather one that continues and adds on to what came before.
A few things, though, have definitely changed; for starters, freedom of speech is not what it used to be. Not that the establishment ever took criticism or people pushing the envelope passively, but when Frankie Goes to Hollywood was inviting us to “Relax, don’t do it, when you want to cum” [“Relax”], they were criticized and even banned on the BBC, but not lionized the way people are today. If you dare go one step further and criticize the establishment, you are not patriotic and are branded an enemy of the state – remember The Dixie Chicks controversy? And when one party does not agree with the other, the disagreeing party simply puts the legitimacy of the other in question, like the birthers have done to President Barack Obama or all the mud slinging in the British press. Which is why when even Glenn Beck praised Muse’s latest album, “The Resistance” (apparently not realizing that Matthew Bellamy is a leftist!), it was a bit of shock. He later “retracted” his endorsement, not because Muse’s people e-mailed him (that is a myth started by Beck himself), but rather someone must have told him he was off the mark with his interpretation and endorsement of the album. A hundred times more bombast than anything Springsteen wrote, Muse not only believes in standing up to the establishment, but in revolution: “Interchanging mind control, come let the revolution take it’s toll; if you could flick a switch and open your third eye, you’d see that we should never be afraid to die.” (“Uprising”)
(Muse’s “Uprising” from their MySpace Video Page.)
Uprising
Muse | Myspace Music Videos
And as things become more and more bleak, the entertainment market has cranked out more garbage to help us to escape and forget about these hard times. Musicians and entertainers get younger and younger – nothing says good times like the innocence of youth and “youthful” indiscretions of the 20-somethings. But the shelf life of these musicians is becoming shorter and shorter. And then there is “reality” television – nothing says reality like racing around the globe, hoping a bachelorette picks you, living on an island with strangers, etc… The most insulting “reality” based show is “Secret Boss” – a rich millionaire in disguise interacts with the “common man” and at the end of the show gives them a measly hundred thousand. First off, it is condescending. Second, s/he can afford to donate more than that. Third, s/he should not hide behind tax loopholes (or at least donate all the money they saved from them!). Fourth, the only reason “reality” television is prevalent is because networks do not have to pay writers and all the other expenses that come with the creativity from a real staff!
But under it all, there are these post-punks and new wavers who are most definitely reacting the same way that Susan Ballion, Ian Curtis, Peter Murphy, and Robert Smith did decades earlier. Take Editors, admittedly my favorite band of the past few years, the song “The Racing Rats” takes up the mantle of existentialist wonder: “If a plane were to fall from the sky, how big a hole would it make in the surface of the earth…” But there is never any mention of the people on the plane, because life is near irrelevant in a world were “you knew you were lost but carried on away” futilely – harkening back to Robert Smith’s statement: “It doesn’t matter if we all die.” But when Editors questions the very existence of God in “Papillon” (perhaps based on the memoir of the same name by Henri Charrière, a convicted felon), as vocalist Tom Smith subtly slips in, “If there really was a God, he’d have raised a hand by now” into the song, it is a chilling attack on the very foundation of much of Western Thought. Trent Reznor was speaking to “God” in “Terrible Lies,” Editors questions/dismisses his very existence!
(Editors’ “The Racing Rats” from the EditorsVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(Editors’ “Papillon” from the editorsofficial YouTube Channel.)
Even in the post-punk of White Lies, there is a bleak view of relationships and love. Though not conveyed relevantly by the video, Harry McVeigh sings, “I don’t need your tears, I don’t want your love.” And the same feeling of isolation and longing to connect with another that was prevalent in the 1980s post-punk is revisited by Yeah Yeah Yeahs in “Maps.”
(White Lies’ “Bigger Than Us” from the WhiteLiesVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Maps” from the YeahYeahYeahsVEVO YouTube Channel.)
And just as women took the forefront during the 80s, a new generation of women has been on the rise that refuses to conform to the social roles that women are marginalized to. Moreover, as in the 80s, many of these women are making creative waves and are part of the revival movement bringing back new wave and synthpop. These are not the women of 90s pop or contemporary mainstream, humbly asking for their men to come back, heartache, or bubble-gum throwaway music with fairy tale endings. And more importantly, like Annie Lennox, these are not women selling sex to sell an album. These are engaging artists who have proven that music can be fun and contemplative at the same time. For example, Anna Matronic of Scissor Sisters and Eleanor Kate Jackson (an androgynous red head … reminds you of anyone else?) of La Roux are the free agents that are autonomously doing the dumping or refusing to show their vulnerabilities, and not the hapless victims of romance.
(Scissor Sisters’ “Kiss You Off” from the ScissorSistersVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(La Roux’s “Bulletproof” from the LaRouxVEVO YouTube Channel.)
Very similar economic, social, and political conditions between three decades ago and now, and the result most definitely seems to be the production of music that is very similar. And the most telling evidence that this is the case is how the music is being received. It is not just the musicians who are being affected by these conditions, but we, the audience, as well. If this were not the case, we would not accept Editors, La Roux, Muse, Scissor Sisters, White Lies, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and their brethren as urgently relevant. Though I wish I had the time and space to really flush this post out to be more definitive, I think I can say without reservation that what is happening is not really revival. What is happening now is a continuation of what started in late 70s / 80s. Of course we can accuse some entertainers of just jumping the bandwagon (I will always call them out for it!), but for those of us who loved that first wave of post-punk and new wave and all the other genres associated with them (from coldwave to synthpop, goth rock to electronic body music) this moment of time is offering up an entire generation of new artists that are working on and expanding those traditions, and I assure you that tomorrow icons are amongst these very artists. Read more ...
September 1941, The United Kingdom and The Soviet Union forced the Shah of Iran, Reza Shah, to abdicate and hand his power over to his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, since it was thought that his father would ally himself with Nazi Germany. Nearly four decades later, when Mohammad Reza Palhavi, the handpicked sovereign by Western powers, was overthrown, the hostage crisis that would plague the end of the Jimmy Carter administration started. During this time in the 1970s, Saddam Hussein would rise to power in neighboring Iraq, a country that the United States had their eyes on as a strategic location in the Middle East (against the Soviet Union). At the same time, Operation Cyclone was taking place in Afghanistan; this was a decade long operation to finance and train the Afghan mujahideen against the Soviet Union in their war. Of course, all the time the world economy was coming to a grinding halt, the world was becoming acquainted with the word “recession” by the mid-80s, oil dependency would become a national security issue, and a housing crisis (led by a saving and loans crisis in the mid-80s) would manifest in the USA. Gone were the liberal days of the late 1960s and 1970s, nothing was free, not even love, and in came austerity, conservatism, and the Reagan/Thatcher era.
I acknowledge fully that I have oversimplified a lot of history here, and I am not claiming to be definitive in any way, but rather ruminating and proposing a theory on why there is so much revival going on at this moment; so I ask that you kindly placate me and play along. If you were to shift the years a bit, to switch the names of the wars and the players, and consider all of the financial turmoil the world is in today, it would be easy for any of us to say that history is repeating itself … so why not music?
In the mist of the 1970s, punk rock would come into existence; in part an aesthetic movement that beckoned for simplicity in music, away from the virtuosos like Jimi Hendrix; it was also highly political. From “Anarchy in the UK” to “London Calling,” these young musicians questioned the status quo in a way that musicians had not in over a generation. Unfortunately, as punk rock became sonically repetitive after the first wave and separate “punk” scenes started to form and become established, its own politics in its different subgenres became reified, codified, and unquestioned by those who supported it. Though punk rock’s first wave lasted for a brief moment and its subsequent waves would fade in global relevance, it gave birth to the post-punk movement.
(The Sex Pistols’ “Anarchy in the UK” from the SexPistolsChannel YouTube Channel.)
As the 80s rolled in, pop music became more and more mindless, as most entertainment does during hardships; most people use entertainment as a means of escape, not a method to question their circumstances – just listen to the radio or watch “reality” television and you can experience this. (Please note, by “reality” television I am referring to the entire genre of shows that are supposedly premised on real life situations without scripts.) Very few musicians would question the status quo, but in the mainstream Bruce Springsteen led the way, delivering one punch after the other against the status quo in the name of the working class. And a few pop musicians, namely Madonna, would push the envelope with suggestive imagery against the status quos of religion and sexuality. But underneath the mainstream, post-punk, which may have been somewhat resistant to take up politics directly, embraced the hardship and bleakness of its time: a feeling that the world would never be the same and that existence was full of despair. These very notions were reflected in the psychic construction of the music, as musically and lyrically these bands started to get darker and more introspective, mirroring the times. Love songs were rarely happy, and the idea that “death is everywhere” [“Fly on the Windscreen” by Depeche Mode] was becoming more and more prevalent. Just take Siouxsie and the Banshees’ first single, “Hong Kong Garden.” Not as dark as what would soon follow, the despair of the world is reflected in stream-of-consciousness: “Harmful elements in the air, symbols clashing everywhere, reaps the field of rice and reeds while the population feeds, junk floats on polluted water, an old custom to sell your daughter…” Why not a fractured stream-of-consciousness, as the very world was becoming fractured? The darkest moment in the post-punk era, demonstrating pure existentialism, would come in 1982 from The Cure, juxtaposing the value of human life with corporate imagery (limousines and skyscrapers): “It doesn’t matter if we all die, ambition in the back of a black car, in a high building there is so much to do….” (“A Hundred Years”) But others, such as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, would be just as bombast, questioning the faith people place in a “God”: “Hey God, there’s nothing left me to hide. I lost my ignorance, security, and pride. I’m all alone in a world you must despise. Hey God, I believed your promises, your promises and lies.” (“Terrible Lies”)
From romance and love to politics and life, post-punk rockers reflected the psychic reality of the world they were forced to live in.
(Wire’s “Heartbeat” from the wirehq YouTube Channel.)
(Killing Joke’s “Eighties” from the emimusic YouTube Channel.)
But it was not only the post-punk rockers (and their gothic and industrial offspring) that reeled about the time they lived in, new wave and synthpop musicians took their subtle and less subtle stabs at the beast. Perhaps the most known would be Depeche Mode’s “People Are People,” rallying against the xenophobia and racism that the masses were capitulating to – best reflected in the anti-American / anti-Soviet feelings that led nations not to send athletes to Moscow or Los Angeles. And there was Pet Shop Boys, with their tongue-in-cheek critique of an economic world where only thievery (by the educated) can make money. And if racism, xenophobia, and class warfare were risqué topics to sing about, imagine how social conservatives felt about Bronski Beat! In an era where same-sex marriage was not even part of the debate, Bronski Beat put homophobia and violence against gay men in the forefront with their song and video for “Small Town Boy.”
(Depeche Mode’s “People Are People” from their MySpace Videos Page)
(Pet Shop Boys’ “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)” from the emimusic YouTube Channel.
(Bronski Beat’s “Small Town Boy” from the JsomervilleOfficial YouTube Channel.)
Of course I would be remiss if I did not engage, arguably, the most iconic moment of the 80s. Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” was a catchy tune and video hiding a polemic. The most enigmatic song ever written: the band has never revealed what sweet dreams are make of, you are doing the using and abusing, or who is receiving the using or abusing! And in this famous and iconoclastic incarnation – red head, androgynous, dressed in a man’s suit, and a favorite Halloween costume of many of my friends – Annie Lennox proves that women do not need to sell sex(uality) in order to sell records. The most telling indictment of the time is how the video is set in a corporate office space, as she sings, “Some of them want to use you; some of them want to be used by you. Some of them want to abuse you; some of them want to be abused by you” – in essence the very core of a how a capitalist system must survive. The only escape in the video is through mediation that leads you to a fantasy world of masque wearing cello players. And this is not any ole mediation, but rather religiously inspired mediation, as denoted by the bindi and the cows, all religious images of Hinduism – an Eastern religion, the exact opposite of what was being represented by the Western world.
(Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These)” from EurythmicsVEVO YouTube Channel.)
As the economic, political, and social conditions changed, so would the music. At least in the Western world, the 1990s would be a decade of relative peace, international cooperation, and economic expansion. Bill Clinton was in the White House and the formal establishment of the European Union and the creation of the Eurozone was well on its way in Western Europe. As Westerners enjoyed “golden days,” the need for a counterculture that attacked the status quo lessened. Even conservatives and liberals, who have never seen eye-to-eye but managed to work together, never expressed the vitriol we see in national politics all over the world today. Hence music changed: grunge and Britpop would see mainstream success on different sides of the pond, and R&B really became international as electronic / rave culture emerged.
Soon, however, political leaders would lead the world down the pathways of history, and once again there was Western involvement in the Middle East, to a level not seen since The Crusades (you know the religious campaign to kill every Muslim in sight, but not the Jews as “Christian” fundamentalists need them for their “end time”), including deposing one said leader of Iraq. The world financial markets would implode by 2008 and not truly recover over the next few years (did someone say downgrade?), the housing market and banking sector worldwide would come unraveled, and oil dependency has once again become a national security issue (though the USA gets most of its oil from Canada, Mexico, and Venezuela, three nations I highly doubt are plotting to mount a war to destroy the USA). I am not saying that the 1990s were completely frivolous; what I am saying is that you will be pressed to find as many “countercultural” movements that were not part of corporate, marketing scheming. The entire pre-packaged angst of the commercialized music such as grunge post-Nirvana had more to do with turning over a profit than mediating social reality. Now I am not saying that there were not moments of lashing out against the status quo, but they were isolate moments or artists. Two great examples come to mind. The ever tongue-in-cheek Pulp takes on class-consciousness in their classic “Common People,” and Blur’s “Girls and Boys” riotous take on sexual(ity) freedom, with the advice, “Always should be someone you really love.”
(Pulp’s “Common People” from the PulpVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(Blur’s “Girls and Boys” from the emimusic YouTube Channel.)
As for the world we live in now, I can only think of one quote to sum it up, and I will risk being called a communist; according to Karl Marx: “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.”
I am not one given to phenomenalistic thought, nor do I believe I should accept any trend as a random given – things do not just happen, there is always something motivating it: a cause and effect. I don’t think that the members of bands such as Interpol woke up one morning and said, “Screw this power-chord, grunge influenced music, let’s sound more like Joy Division and The Cure.” For that matter, I don’t think that the media that mocked The Cure for over a decade would then turn around and hail them as iconic, God-Like Genius, as NME did, for no reason at all. I don’t think that bands like La Roux decided one day to throw out all of their digital technology to sound more like and be anti-romantic like early/mid-80s Depeche Mode just for the fun of it. There is a cause and effect here; both sets of bands exist under near identical economic, political, and social conditions. Even if post-punk had never existed, musicians would have gotten darker during these days; it is the natural reaction of creative artists to their times. Sure there are many acts that have simply jumped the bandwagon, but there still remains a core of bands that are expressing themselves as did their forefathers and mothers; for them, this is not an era of revival, but rather one that continues and adds on to what came before.
A few things, though, have definitely changed; for starters, freedom of speech is not what it used to be. Not that the establishment ever took criticism or people pushing the envelope passively, but when Frankie Goes to Hollywood was inviting us to “Relax, don’t do it, when you want to cum” [“Relax”], they were criticized and even banned on the BBC, but not lionized the way people are today. If you dare go one step further and criticize the establishment, you are not patriotic and are branded an enemy of the state – remember The Dixie Chicks controversy? And when one party does not agree with the other, the disagreeing party simply puts the legitimacy of the other in question, like the birthers have done to President Barack Obama or all the mud slinging in the British press. Which is why when even Glenn Beck praised Muse’s latest album, “The Resistance” (apparently not realizing that Matthew Bellamy is a leftist!), it was a bit of shock. He later “retracted” his endorsement, not because Muse’s people e-mailed him (that is a myth started by Beck himself), but rather someone must have told him he was off the mark with his interpretation and endorsement of the album. A hundred times more bombast than anything Springsteen wrote, Muse not only believes in standing up to the establishment, but in revolution: “Interchanging mind control, come let the revolution take it’s toll; if you could flick a switch and open your third eye, you’d see that we should never be afraid to die.” (“Uprising”)
(Muse’s “Uprising” from their MySpace Video Page.)
Uprising
Muse | Myspace Music Videos
And as things become more and more bleak, the entertainment market has cranked out more garbage to help us to escape and forget about these hard times. Musicians and entertainers get younger and younger – nothing says good times like the innocence of youth and “youthful” indiscretions of the 20-somethings. But the shelf life of these musicians is becoming shorter and shorter. And then there is “reality” television – nothing says reality like racing around the globe, hoping a bachelorette picks you, living on an island with strangers, etc… The most insulting “reality” based show is “Secret Boss” – a rich millionaire in disguise interacts with the “common man” and at the end of the show gives them a measly hundred thousand. First off, it is condescending. Second, s/he can afford to donate more than that. Third, s/he should not hide behind tax loopholes (or at least donate all the money they saved from them!). Fourth, the only reason “reality” television is prevalent is because networks do not have to pay writers and all the other expenses that come with the creativity from a real staff!
But under it all, there are these post-punks and new wavers who are most definitely reacting the same way that Susan Ballion, Ian Curtis, Peter Murphy, and Robert Smith did decades earlier. Take Editors, admittedly my favorite band of the past few years, the song “The Racing Rats” takes up the mantle of existentialist wonder: “If a plane were to fall from the sky, how big a hole would it make in the surface of the earth…” But there is never any mention of the people on the plane, because life is near irrelevant in a world were “you knew you were lost but carried on away” futilely – harkening back to Robert Smith’s statement: “It doesn’t matter if we all die.” But when Editors questions the very existence of God in “Papillon” (perhaps based on the memoir of the same name by Henri Charrière, a convicted felon), as vocalist Tom Smith subtly slips in, “If there really was a God, he’d have raised a hand by now” into the song, it is a chilling attack on the very foundation of much of Western Thought. Trent Reznor was speaking to “God” in “Terrible Lies,” Editors questions/dismisses his very existence!
(Editors’ “The Racing Rats” from the EditorsVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(Editors’ “Papillon” from the editorsofficial YouTube Channel.)
Even in the post-punk of White Lies, there is a bleak view of relationships and love. Though not conveyed relevantly by the video, Harry McVeigh sings, “I don’t need your tears, I don’t want your love.” And the same feeling of isolation and longing to connect with another that was prevalent in the 1980s post-punk is revisited by Yeah Yeah Yeahs in “Maps.”
(White Lies’ “Bigger Than Us” from the WhiteLiesVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Maps” from the YeahYeahYeahsVEVO YouTube Channel.)
And just as women took the forefront during the 80s, a new generation of women has been on the rise that refuses to conform to the social roles that women are marginalized to. Moreover, as in the 80s, many of these women are making creative waves and are part of the revival movement bringing back new wave and synthpop. These are not the women of 90s pop or contemporary mainstream, humbly asking for their men to come back, heartache, or bubble-gum throwaway music with fairy tale endings. And more importantly, like Annie Lennox, these are not women selling sex to sell an album. These are engaging artists who have proven that music can be fun and contemplative at the same time. For example, Anna Matronic of Scissor Sisters and Eleanor Kate Jackson (an androgynous red head … reminds you of anyone else?) of La Roux are the free agents that are autonomously doing the dumping or refusing to show their vulnerabilities, and not the hapless victims of romance.
(Scissor Sisters’ “Kiss You Off” from the ScissorSistersVEVO YouTube Channel.)
(La Roux’s “Bulletproof” from the LaRouxVEVO YouTube Channel.)
Very similar economic, social, and political conditions between three decades ago and now, and the result most definitely seems to be the production of music that is very similar. And the most telling evidence that this is the case is how the music is being received. It is not just the musicians who are being affected by these conditions, but we, the audience, as well. If this were not the case, we would not accept Editors, La Roux, Muse, Scissor Sisters, White Lies, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and their brethren as urgently relevant. Though I wish I had the time and space to really flush this post out to be more definitive, I think I can say without reservation that what is happening is not really revival. What is happening now is a continuation of what started in late 70s / 80s. Of course we can accuse some entertainers of just jumping the bandwagon (I will always call them out for it!), but for those of us who loved that first wave of post-punk and new wave and all the other genres associated with them (from coldwave to synthpop, goth rock to electronic body music) this moment of time is offering up an entire generation of new artists that are working on and expanding those traditions, and I assure you that tomorrow icons are amongst these very artists. Read more ...
19 February 2011
Madonna vs. Lady Gaga
I know, even my eyes are rolling at the title of the post, but I am continuously asked by some of my friends as to why I have not written about Madonna and why I am not into Lady Gaga – so, being the pragmatist that I am, I decided to do both in one fell swoop. So, as I was folding my laundry, in my boxer briefs, dancing to Microfilm blasting in the background, this post started to formulate in my mind, so I warn everyone it is a bit heady (and long). Though I have sort of addressed the issue before (link), I want to be a bit more (since I have no plan on being completely) definitive. Considering the nature of this blog, I am sure some people may be puzzled as to why I would dedicate time to thinking and writing this post when I have other posts to write and interviews to post (shortly), but I do have a reason. In the back of my head, this is not about “mainstream” musicians, or recent controversies (but they are included), but rather a real look at an ongoing debate within the music industry and some the of issues they spill into. Regardless of what anyone (including myself) thinks about these two, there is no denying that the here-and-now of pop culture bends to them to variant degrees. And I want to say off the top that I think both of them are talented, but for very different reasons. But I think that this debate of “Madonna vs. Lady Gaga” needs to be intellectualized in a way that I don’t feel it has been… so I am going to put my two cents in (and I am sure that some of my very friends who asked me to write about them are not going to be happy!)
Presentation
Image is important in music; considering that The Cure is my favorite band of all time, I have no issue with artists who have an image or gimmick in their appearance. And though the media always references Robert Smith’s constant use of make-up (he sort of looks like an overweight, drunk, gothic version of Bozo the Clown), at the end of it all it is always about the band’s music. This is the model that anyone who wants to sustain a career of music should take note of; people get tired of image and gimmick after a few years, but noteworthy music (and live performance) will give you longevity. This is something that Madonna knows all too well. Of course there have been moments when her music may have been overwhelmed by image (like those cone bras) or by scandal (the now almost trite “Sex” book), at the end of it all, the press has always come back to her music. Her fans even get upset if you mention she is a media mastermind, but I yet to meet a Lady Gaga fan who cannot stop talking about her image and “scandals.” (Really, giving the finger at Citi Field was not a scandal as much as a cry for free promotion; if you want to do something scandalous at a sporting event, you will have to top Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction, which topped Roseanne Barr’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” in 1990.)
Madonna’s image is polymorphic; it is in constant change and flux, but each image is consistent with an album or tour. More so than any musician, a simple image will conjure up thoughts of specific albums and tours. It is a visual moniker for what she is selling. And when she simulates masturbation on stage during “Like a Virgin” on the Blond Ambition Tour, it fits the song. Everything is carefully crafted, carefully designed, and carefully controlled. By comparison, one never knows what to expect from Lady Gaga; like Cher (and sometimes Bjork), she makes the grandest of appearances wearing some of the oddest clothing – some of which I have to admit is eye-catching. She has a complete understanding of glam (and even camp), but her visual moniker is not her image, but rather the fact that she is uber-polymorphic – and that is not something that is sellable but is extremely marketable until she and the wardrobe people run out of ideas. When Madonna performs at an award show, we wait anxiously to see how she will interpret her song; if she is going to simulate masturbation or kiss her two female co-singers is just icing on the cake. When Lady Gaga performs at an award show, everyone cannot stop wondering about what she is wearing and why and what antic will come next. At the last Grammy Awards (or the Grannies as I refer to them), she crosses the red carpet in an egg – she ginned it up from before her performance, instead of allowing her performance to stand on its own. Again, more controversy about the egg/incubator thing, as if anyone believes that she was “reborn” when it was so crafted. (At least after Madonna kissed Britney and Christina, I wondered if they all got together with Missy Elliot and did more than simulate masturbation.)
And as for that meat dress Lady Gaga wore, don’t get me started on starving children and the waste of food.
Music Sales
I applauded that Lady Gaga set the record for the fastest selling single in one week on iTunes, over a million in five days. In this broadband revolutionized world, where free music is everywhere, this was an incredible feat. But here are a few things to consider: will the single continue to sell, how did the hard copies sell, and does the fact that unlike the 80s and 90s when artists had a harder time reaching international markets, iTunes now allows for a broader audience (and not the talent of any individual artist or band) also a factor? To any new (under ten years) artist/band out there, I congratulate you if you sell over one million units, now impress me by being around over twenty-years and doing the same. I am not trying to be snarky; the music industry is the world of youngsters and the unknown becoming known; the fact that bands like Depeche Mode and U2 are still able to sustain such mega-careers at the thirty-year mark is more impressive than a debut album going platinum. Furthermore, that a fifty-year old woman shaking her kooshie could reach the fourth most grossing tour of all time as of this date with the Sticky and Sweet Tour is even more impressive. And the fact is that it was the second most grossing when the tour finished. (FYI, the most grossing tour ever was The Rolling Stones’ “A Bigger Bang Tour” in 2005-2007 as of this date.)
Pushing Buttons
Picture this: you are in an airport and someone says the word bomb; the entire place in an uproar, people are searching for one, while the person who said it is in the middle of a controversy. Continue to picture this: once it is determined there is no bomb, and someone says, “Really, bomb,” it may be aggravating, but the threat of the original scare is never matched. Unfortunately, things do become mundane. Madonna was the first to say, “Bomb.” Of course, this is an unfair comparison as Madonna is old enough to be Lady Gaga’s mother, but at the end of it all, she said bomb first. And we can apply this to their career over and over again, but let’s look at the most loyal part of their fan base. So they both may support gay rights, but it was Madonna who really pushed the cause in the 80s when most Americans were not pro-gay. This did not alienate her from radio play or popularity; her taking a stance on a social issue made her more notable, somehow more real. Lady Gaga’s support of the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and gay rights in general is just complicit with what most Americans now believe and really not that risqué. (I am not saying that there isn’t a good ole fight ahead for gay rights, but the reality is that it now has the support of most Americans, just not the old men in the Congress.) Lady Gaga is just capitalizing on a long tradition of gay men being into female divas, but really does nothing for their quality of life or pushes a cause that most Americans do not agree with – like global warming or green energy, but then again, there is really no way to make those issues sexy to an audience.
In Georges-Claude Guilbert’s book “Madonna As a Postmodern Myth” (2002) (link to Amazon USA site for book), Madonna is quoted saying, “I know that I’m not the best singer and I know that I’m not the best dancer. But, I can fucking push people’s buttons and be as provocative as I want.” At once, the typical Madonna dichotomy, that lovely binary opposition, is presented: the humility and the bombastic. And this can best be demonstrated by a video.
Let’s be a bit counter-intuitive, though, and start with the video for “Alejandro.” My first reaction to the song was that it is build on the same platform as “Who’s That Girl?” (The Madonna song, not Eurythmics, to confuse them would be blasphemous!) Now don’t go quoting me as saying that the song is a rip off; by far, it is not, but they share the same approach and “underpinnings.” English sung, with some words in Spanish, with a near Caribbean-Latin beat, but really closer to dance ready radio house music for people who have never listened to deep house and only know two dance moves. As for the lyrics, it is a love song that can’t get its narrative point of view straight: first, “I know we are young and I know you may love me…” Then, “She’s got both hands in her pockets.” At best, I am confused if she purposely switched the pronouns or if this is some love triangle. But it is a love / break-you-heart song, so when we get the video, which is visually brilliant, I am left wondering.
[“Alejandro” from video from LadyGagaVEVO YouTube Channel.]
Okay, I admit, my favorite moments are when Lady Gaga “mounts” the dude in the bed (I love the subversive), but the video is totally disassociated from the lyrics. Now, videos do not have to recapture the narratives of songs, and I am often attracted to videos that are conceptually stunning more than anything else, but why create a totally different narrative? I get the video: she gives into religion/spirituality by the end of the song. Her “eating” the rosary is the acceptance of Christ in her, and, in the words of video director Steven Klein, “Thus at the end of the film, she chooses to be a nun, and the reason her mouth and eyes disappear is because she is withdrawing her senses from the world of evil and going inward towards prayer and contemplation” (link). But where is the evil world alluded to in the scantily-cladded world of choreographed dancing that seems more inviting than threatening? Was it in the dancers’ near-Nazi looking costumes? (A more controversial issue in my book!) If that was so threatening, why was she dancing in unison with them and not running from them? And did the losing of her “senses” have to look like something out of “Ghost Busters”? Don’t get me wrong, the video is visually appealing, but I don’t get the controversy. In the world after church scandals, preachers hooking up with people on escort services, and Nine Inch Nails, isn’t the world over religious shook? This song was good enough to stand on its own, to have a video that matched its infectious beat, but instead in an attempt to gin up some controversy, which really came and went. This was another attempt at promoting a song with something other than actual music or video; it relied more on the audiences’ visceral reactions and sexual images than the actual artistry or music. And I am personally turned off when any artist does that. But the reality is that it is a page out of Madonna’s book; remember the video for “Like a Prayer”?
To quote another Madonna song, “This is not a love song.” Unless you really want to stretch what is textually present in the lyrics, this is a song about faith and epiphany… so what else was the girl to do but produce a video that matches the song. In a world before religious (sexual) controversies and when more people identified themselves as churchgoers, Madonna released “Like a Prayer” to the horror of the Vatican. (I would love to have been a fly on the wall as the Pope watched this one.)
[“Like a Prayer” from Madonna’s MySpace Videos Page.]
Like A Prayer
Madonna | Myspace Video
Now never let it be said that I think this video was an original concept. Let’s not forget all of the sexual imagery found in “The Song of Solomon.” Sexuality and the Bible are not mutually exclusive. Mark Judge in his article, “Lady Gaga Is No Madonna” (link), interprets the video better than I ever could. “Madonna’s video for “Like a Prayer” is an intelligent and even devout meditation on grace, love and conscience.” He quotes Fr. Andrew Greeley, “Only for those who think that sexual passion is an inappropriate metaphor for divine passion…” could this video be controversial. Judge continues about the characters in the video, “They are powered with the power of the Holy Spirit, which gave Madonna grace and courage to fully respond the call from her conscience.” Ultimately, Madonna stands up against the symbolism of the burning crosses (racism), runs to the authorities (responding to her conscience), and helps free a man from wrongful prison, which is implied by his appearance in the curtain call. But it is a “curtain call” – it is understood that this is a video, a performance, and not reality, just symbolic.
Though we can question the level of controversy for each video, only one questioned the norms and beliefs of its time. Only one was produced during an era that intimated that such a production would be an end to a career. Though both of them ginned up controversy, at least one has a tangible moral lesson that anyone could relate to: live your faith and allow it to guide your conscience and conscious actions. The other fails at any intended meaning in its lack of a strong narrative structure and relying more on imagery and choreography.
Homage or Rip Off
There is such a thin line between homage and ripping someone off, and the reality is that you can rip someone off in homage. And a further reality: just how many original people are there? Let’s consider all of this current post-punk and 80s synthpop revival. These bands may not be replicating the songs of Joy Division, The Cure, Depeche Mode, or Erasure, but they sure enough have ripped off their style of music in many ways that beg for direct comparisons. But there is a big difference in imitating the style of someone and replicating a song. Yes, we have reached that now infamous comparison of “Born This Way” with “Express Yourself.”
[Madonna’s “Express Yourself” from her MySpace Video Page.]
Express Yourself
Madonna | Myspace Video
First off, let’s just say that Madonna has usurped the image of many people, from Marilyn Monroe to Marlene Dietrich, (and not just people’s images, but cultural and artistic ones as well, like the film “Metropolis”) but she never claimed originality when doing so. Furthermore, with each usurpation she more than imitated, she made it part of her. We all know that in “Material Girl” she is portraying Marilyn Monroe from “Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend,” but in the imitation/usurpation, she uses the original as a mold and then extends its logical meaning into something new and fresh – or at least fun. Same as when she performed “Like a Virgin” as Marlene Dietrich. In both, she extends the symbolic meaning of the subject of imitation. It is not simple pastiche, but rather creating something new while acknowledging the past. But notice she goes into the no longer relevant past to breathe new life into new imagery. Lady Gaga, however, on this occasion usurps from the canon of a presently relevant artist.
[Lady Gaga’s Grammy Awards performance of “Born This Way” from the LadyGagaVEVO YouTube Channel.]
Now, if I were an aspiring female pop artist, I would pattern myself after Madonna – maybe not her music, but definitely how she has handled her career. Why the hell not? Can you imagine a more relevant female pop artist? So, I do not fault Lady Gaga, who has even referred to herself as the biggest Madonna fan (which properly pissed off a few Chelsea Queens), for paying homage to Madonna; but this bit of homage did go over a thin line into a rip off. Whether it is copyright infringement, I will leave that up to the artists, songwriters, and lawyers to decide, but for even the most loyal Lady Gaga fan not to acknowledge the eerie similarities is flat out denial. (Then again, I dismiss anyone who says The Cure has not written a great song in fifteen years!) Lady Gaga should have said at the Grammy Awards, “This was inspired by Madonna,” and not that odd reference to Whitney Houston, which echoes nowhere in her music and was a transparent attempt to divert attention away from the “Express Yourself” comparisons.
Finally….
I hate musicians who say, “I do this for myself.” No you don’t; if you did, you would not record it, release it, promote it, perform it, and push the product like there was no tomorrow. I think musicians need to be less disingenuous. With that said, both Madonna and Lady Gaga want to have a cultural impact and want to be respected for making that impact. But this is something that only hindsight can see with 20/20 vision. Unfortunately, we cannot judge that for Lady Gaga yet, as she is continuing to unfurl her career – whether she is a fad or a trendsetter only time will tell. Ten years from now we shall see; my prediction, when the glitz and controversy wears away, Lady Gaga is going to start producing the best music and performances of her career. As for Madonna, I cannot say that the best is behind her as she is always full of surprises, but she has definitely earned the respect of the music industry and left a remarkable impact on that industry and culture in general. Unlike the women prior to the 80s in the music industry, men did not exploit her; she exploited herself. She turned the power of female sexuality into her most powerful appeal, at the same time helping to erase taboos, lashing out against racism and homophobia when it was not popular to do so, and continues to fight for causes she believes in (she even sang with Annie Lennox to support SING, to raise funds for and awareness of women and children with HIV.)
In her long career, many have come to think of her and not the Virgin Mother when someone says, “Madonna.” Producers and songwriters come and go, musical fads come and go, but now nearly thirty years into her career, Madonna refuses to go. No one looks back at her career and says she imitated this one or that; no one intimates it was her producers and songwriters that made her. Critics, fans, and causal listeners who are not hung up on her antics look back and say she has had the most remarkable and successful career of any female pop artist. To define her is simply to mention her name, “Madonna,” and this is the most important lesson that Lady Gaga could learn. Do not pattern yourself against one person repeatedly, make a name for yourself on your own terms, and strive to be defined by your own name, “Lady Gaga” and not comparisons to others. That is one of the marks of all great artists: to define them is to defer to their moniker – Abba, David Bowie, The Doors, Michael Jackson, Radiohead, The Rolling Stones, Siouxsie and the Banshees, etc… Furthermore, the true measure of relevance in music is not how your music charts or sells, but the mark you leave behind on the industry, how long your music survives relevancy, and your influence on future artists. Madonna has changed the idea of what women are capable of in music, people are still covering her early music, and almost every wannabe-girlie-diva is rehashing her antics and/or style. In a nutshell, Madonna is Madonna, and Lady Gaga is not. At least at this moment, I think it is easy to see who the winner of this match-up is. Read more ...
Presentation
Image is important in music; considering that The Cure is my favorite band of all time, I have no issue with artists who have an image or gimmick in their appearance. And though the media always references Robert Smith’s constant use of make-up (he sort of looks like an overweight, drunk, gothic version of Bozo the Clown), at the end of it all it is always about the band’s music. This is the model that anyone who wants to sustain a career of music should take note of; people get tired of image and gimmick after a few years, but noteworthy music (and live performance) will give you longevity. This is something that Madonna knows all too well. Of course there have been moments when her music may have been overwhelmed by image (like those cone bras) or by scandal (the now almost trite “Sex” book), at the end of it all, the press has always come back to her music. Her fans even get upset if you mention she is a media mastermind, but I yet to meet a Lady Gaga fan who cannot stop talking about her image and “scandals.” (Really, giving the finger at Citi Field was not a scandal as much as a cry for free promotion; if you want to do something scandalous at a sporting event, you will have to top Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction, which topped Roseanne Barr’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” in 1990.)
Madonna’s image is polymorphic; it is in constant change and flux, but each image is consistent with an album or tour. More so than any musician, a simple image will conjure up thoughts of specific albums and tours. It is a visual moniker for what she is selling. And when she simulates masturbation on stage during “Like a Virgin” on the Blond Ambition Tour, it fits the song. Everything is carefully crafted, carefully designed, and carefully controlled. By comparison, one never knows what to expect from Lady Gaga; like Cher (and sometimes Bjork), she makes the grandest of appearances wearing some of the oddest clothing – some of which I have to admit is eye-catching. She has a complete understanding of glam (and even camp), but her visual moniker is not her image, but rather the fact that she is uber-polymorphic – and that is not something that is sellable but is extremely marketable until she and the wardrobe people run out of ideas. When Madonna performs at an award show, we wait anxiously to see how she will interpret her song; if she is going to simulate masturbation or kiss her two female co-singers is just icing on the cake. When Lady Gaga performs at an award show, everyone cannot stop wondering about what she is wearing and why and what antic will come next. At the last Grammy Awards (or the Grannies as I refer to them), she crosses the red carpet in an egg – she ginned it up from before her performance, instead of allowing her performance to stand on its own. Again, more controversy about the egg/incubator thing, as if anyone believes that she was “reborn” when it was so crafted. (At least after Madonna kissed Britney and Christina, I wondered if they all got together with Missy Elliot and did more than simulate masturbation.)
And as for that meat dress Lady Gaga wore, don’t get me started on starving children and the waste of food.
Music Sales
I applauded that Lady Gaga set the record for the fastest selling single in one week on iTunes, over a million in five days. In this broadband revolutionized world, where free music is everywhere, this was an incredible feat. But here are a few things to consider: will the single continue to sell, how did the hard copies sell, and does the fact that unlike the 80s and 90s when artists had a harder time reaching international markets, iTunes now allows for a broader audience (and not the talent of any individual artist or band) also a factor? To any new (under ten years) artist/band out there, I congratulate you if you sell over one million units, now impress me by being around over twenty-years and doing the same. I am not trying to be snarky; the music industry is the world of youngsters and the unknown becoming known; the fact that bands like Depeche Mode and U2 are still able to sustain such mega-careers at the thirty-year mark is more impressive than a debut album going platinum. Furthermore, that a fifty-year old woman shaking her kooshie could reach the fourth most grossing tour of all time as of this date with the Sticky and Sweet Tour is even more impressive. And the fact is that it was the second most grossing when the tour finished. (FYI, the most grossing tour ever was The Rolling Stones’ “A Bigger Bang Tour” in 2005-2007 as of this date.)
Pushing Buttons
Picture this: you are in an airport and someone says the word bomb; the entire place in an uproar, people are searching for one, while the person who said it is in the middle of a controversy. Continue to picture this: once it is determined there is no bomb, and someone says, “Really, bomb,” it may be aggravating, but the threat of the original scare is never matched. Unfortunately, things do become mundane. Madonna was the first to say, “Bomb.” Of course, this is an unfair comparison as Madonna is old enough to be Lady Gaga’s mother, but at the end of it all, she said bomb first. And we can apply this to their career over and over again, but let’s look at the most loyal part of their fan base. So they both may support gay rights, but it was Madonna who really pushed the cause in the 80s when most Americans were not pro-gay. This did not alienate her from radio play or popularity; her taking a stance on a social issue made her more notable, somehow more real. Lady Gaga’s support of the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and gay rights in general is just complicit with what most Americans now believe and really not that risqué. (I am not saying that there isn’t a good ole fight ahead for gay rights, but the reality is that it now has the support of most Americans, just not the old men in the Congress.) Lady Gaga is just capitalizing on a long tradition of gay men being into female divas, but really does nothing for their quality of life or pushes a cause that most Americans do not agree with – like global warming or green energy, but then again, there is really no way to make those issues sexy to an audience.
In Georges-Claude Guilbert’s book “Madonna As a Postmodern Myth” (2002) (link to Amazon USA site for book), Madonna is quoted saying, “I know that I’m not the best singer and I know that I’m not the best dancer. But, I can fucking push people’s buttons and be as provocative as I want.” At once, the typical Madonna dichotomy, that lovely binary opposition, is presented: the humility and the bombastic. And this can best be demonstrated by a video.
Let’s be a bit counter-intuitive, though, and start with the video for “Alejandro.” My first reaction to the song was that it is build on the same platform as “Who’s That Girl?” (The Madonna song, not Eurythmics, to confuse them would be blasphemous!) Now don’t go quoting me as saying that the song is a rip off; by far, it is not, but they share the same approach and “underpinnings.” English sung, with some words in Spanish, with a near Caribbean-Latin beat, but really closer to dance ready radio house music for people who have never listened to deep house and only know two dance moves. As for the lyrics, it is a love song that can’t get its narrative point of view straight: first, “I know we are young and I know you may love me…” Then, “She’s got both hands in her pockets.” At best, I am confused if she purposely switched the pronouns or if this is some love triangle. But it is a love / break-you-heart song, so when we get the video, which is visually brilliant, I am left wondering.
[“Alejandro” from video from LadyGagaVEVO YouTube Channel.]
Okay, I admit, my favorite moments are when Lady Gaga “mounts” the dude in the bed (I love the subversive), but the video is totally disassociated from the lyrics. Now, videos do not have to recapture the narratives of songs, and I am often attracted to videos that are conceptually stunning more than anything else, but why create a totally different narrative? I get the video: she gives into religion/spirituality by the end of the song. Her “eating” the rosary is the acceptance of Christ in her, and, in the words of video director Steven Klein, “Thus at the end of the film, she chooses to be a nun, and the reason her mouth and eyes disappear is because she is withdrawing her senses from the world of evil and going inward towards prayer and contemplation” (link). But where is the evil world alluded to in the scantily-cladded world of choreographed dancing that seems more inviting than threatening? Was it in the dancers’ near-Nazi looking costumes? (A more controversial issue in my book!) If that was so threatening, why was she dancing in unison with them and not running from them? And did the losing of her “senses” have to look like something out of “Ghost Busters”? Don’t get me wrong, the video is visually appealing, but I don’t get the controversy. In the world after church scandals, preachers hooking up with people on escort services, and Nine Inch Nails, isn’t the world over religious shook? This song was good enough to stand on its own, to have a video that matched its infectious beat, but instead in an attempt to gin up some controversy, which really came and went. This was another attempt at promoting a song with something other than actual music or video; it relied more on the audiences’ visceral reactions and sexual images than the actual artistry or music. And I am personally turned off when any artist does that. But the reality is that it is a page out of Madonna’s book; remember the video for “Like a Prayer”?
To quote another Madonna song, “This is not a love song.” Unless you really want to stretch what is textually present in the lyrics, this is a song about faith and epiphany… so what else was the girl to do but produce a video that matches the song. In a world before religious (sexual) controversies and when more people identified themselves as churchgoers, Madonna released “Like a Prayer” to the horror of the Vatican. (I would love to have been a fly on the wall as the Pope watched this one.)
[“Like a Prayer” from Madonna’s MySpace Videos Page.]
Like A Prayer
Madonna | Myspace Video
Now never let it be said that I think this video was an original concept. Let’s not forget all of the sexual imagery found in “The Song of Solomon.” Sexuality and the Bible are not mutually exclusive. Mark Judge in his article, “Lady Gaga Is No Madonna” (link), interprets the video better than I ever could. “Madonna’s video for “Like a Prayer” is an intelligent and even devout meditation on grace, love and conscience.” He quotes Fr. Andrew Greeley, “Only for those who think that sexual passion is an inappropriate metaphor for divine passion…” could this video be controversial. Judge continues about the characters in the video, “They are powered with the power of the Holy Spirit, which gave Madonna grace and courage to fully respond the call from her conscience.” Ultimately, Madonna stands up against the symbolism of the burning crosses (racism), runs to the authorities (responding to her conscience), and helps free a man from wrongful prison, which is implied by his appearance in the curtain call. But it is a “curtain call” – it is understood that this is a video, a performance, and not reality, just symbolic.
Though we can question the level of controversy for each video, only one questioned the norms and beliefs of its time. Only one was produced during an era that intimated that such a production would be an end to a career. Though both of them ginned up controversy, at least one has a tangible moral lesson that anyone could relate to: live your faith and allow it to guide your conscience and conscious actions. The other fails at any intended meaning in its lack of a strong narrative structure and relying more on imagery and choreography.
Homage or Rip Off
There is such a thin line between homage and ripping someone off, and the reality is that you can rip someone off in homage. And a further reality: just how many original people are there? Let’s consider all of this current post-punk and 80s synthpop revival. These bands may not be replicating the songs of Joy Division, The Cure, Depeche Mode, or Erasure, but they sure enough have ripped off their style of music in many ways that beg for direct comparisons. But there is a big difference in imitating the style of someone and replicating a song. Yes, we have reached that now infamous comparison of “Born This Way” with “Express Yourself.”
[Madonna’s “Express Yourself” from her MySpace Video Page.]
Express Yourself
Madonna | Myspace Video
First off, let’s just say that Madonna has usurped the image of many people, from Marilyn Monroe to Marlene Dietrich, (and not just people’s images, but cultural and artistic ones as well, like the film “Metropolis”) but she never claimed originality when doing so. Furthermore, with each usurpation she more than imitated, she made it part of her. We all know that in “Material Girl” she is portraying Marilyn Monroe from “Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend,” but in the imitation/usurpation, she uses the original as a mold and then extends its logical meaning into something new and fresh – or at least fun. Same as when she performed “Like a Virgin” as Marlene Dietrich. In both, she extends the symbolic meaning of the subject of imitation. It is not simple pastiche, but rather creating something new while acknowledging the past. But notice she goes into the no longer relevant past to breathe new life into new imagery. Lady Gaga, however, on this occasion usurps from the canon of a presently relevant artist.
[Lady Gaga’s Grammy Awards performance of “Born This Way” from the LadyGagaVEVO YouTube Channel.]
Now, if I were an aspiring female pop artist, I would pattern myself after Madonna – maybe not her music, but definitely how she has handled her career. Why the hell not? Can you imagine a more relevant female pop artist? So, I do not fault Lady Gaga, who has even referred to herself as the biggest Madonna fan (which properly pissed off a few Chelsea Queens), for paying homage to Madonna; but this bit of homage did go over a thin line into a rip off. Whether it is copyright infringement, I will leave that up to the artists, songwriters, and lawyers to decide, but for even the most loyal Lady Gaga fan not to acknowledge the eerie similarities is flat out denial. (Then again, I dismiss anyone who says The Cure has not written a great song in fifteen years!) Lady Gaga should have said at the Grammy Awards, “This was inspired by Madonna,” and not that odd reference to Whitney Houston, which echoes nowhere in her music and was a transparent attempt to divert attention away from the “Express Yourself” comparisons.
Finally….
I hate musicians who say, “I do this for myself.” No you don’t; if you did, you would not record it, release it, promote it, perform it, and push the product like there was no tomorrow. I think musicians need to be less disingenuous. With that said, both Madonna and Lady Gaga want to have a cultural impact and want to be respected for making that impact. But this is something that only hindsight can see with 20/20 vision. Unfortunately, we cannot judge that for Lady Gaga yet, as she is continuing to unfurl her career – whether she is a fad or a trendsetter only time will tell. Ten years from now we shall see; my prediction, when the glitz and controversy wears away, Lady Gaga is going to start producing the best music and performances of her career. As for Madonna, I cannot say that the best is behind her as she is always full of surprises, but she has definitely earned the respect of the music industry and left a remarkable impact on that industry and culture in general. Unlike the women prior to the 80s in the music industry, men did not exploit her; she exploited herself. She turned the power of female sexuality into her most powerful appeal, at the same time helping to erase taboos, lashing out against racism and homophobia when it was not popular to do so, and continues to fight for causes she believes in (she even sang with Annie Lennox to support SING, to raise funds for and awareness of women and children with HIV.)
In her long career, many have come to think of her and not the Virgin Mother when someone says, “Madonna.” Producers and songwriters come and go, musical fads come and go, but now nearly thirty years into her career, Madonna refuses to go. No one looks back at her career and says she imitated this one or that; no one intimates it was her producers and songwriters that made her. Critics, fans, and causal listeners who are not hung up on her antics look back and say she has had the most remarkable and successful career of any female pop artist. To define her is simply to mention her name, “Madonna,” and this is the most important lesson that Lady Gaga could learn. Do not pattern yourself against one person repeatedly, make a name for yourself on your own terms, and strive to be defined by your own name, “Lady Gaga” and not comparisons to others. That is one of the marks of all great artists: to define them is to defer to their moniker – Abba, David Bowie, The Doors, Michael Jackson, Radiohead, The Rolling Stones, Siouxsie and the Banshees, etc… Furthermore, the true measure of relevance in music is not how your music charts or sells, but the mark you leave behind on the industry, how long your music survives relevancy, and your influence on future artists. Madonna has changed the idea of what women are capable of in music, people are still covering her early music, and almost every wannabe-girlie-diva is rehashing her antics and/or style. In a nutshell, Madonna is Madonna, and Lady Gaga is not. At least at this moment, I think it is easy to see who the winner of this match-up is. Read more ...
22 January 2011
Happy Second Birthday
Have two years past since the birth of SlowdiveMusic Blog? This year posed its own problems and growing pains; from sadly parting with collaborators to personal obstacles making it impossible to be consistent for two months, I have truly learned how difficult running a blog can be. But it at this point that I need to pause and thank everyone who has and continues to read these pages and has supported SlowdiveMusic Blog.
There are many things I enjoy about running this blog, but I have to admit that reaching out to bands for interviews is one of my favorites. It is never a random process, they are always artists that intrigued me, made me scratch my head, and/or whose music / craft I admire. Of course not everyone accepts the request for an interview, but those that do really make my day! So I need to take a moment to personally thank the artists who took the time to Answer 5: Baddies, Fossil Collective, JB, Microfilm, My Luminaries, New Concept, Northern Portrait, Orphan Boy, The Silent League, Sudden Death Over Time, Via Audio, Viking Dress, VV Brown, Windy City Gentleman, and Young Michelin.
Massive thanks to The Android Angel for being the first to sit down with “Mirage” and film an interview (any other takers?).
And of course to Steve Moore and his band The Unravelling. Though indie proliferates through these pages (I can only image what Moore thinks about some of these bands!), The Unravelling, an amazing progressive metal band, not only agreed to interviews, but also has supported the blog. My thanks to them over the past two years is immense, and I would like to give them a small warning: when our paths cross, I do plan to put you in front of a camera and film an interview!
And before I carry on, there are four others I need to thank. First, DJ Chauncey D – you keep me on my toes about music! Second, Charlie Vazquez – your consistency and passion inspire me. Third, The Candyman – thanks for making me remember tons of great music I had not thought about in years. And of course, Mirage – thanks for sticking around and investing your free time on the blog.
Last year at this time, there was one video I really wanted to share with everyone, but it was no longer available. As I have stated before, when I decided to start my own blog, I wanted the name of the blog to represent musical history; I wanted the name of the blog to reflect my own discovery of music. I think that many people expected me to name the blog somehow after The Cure, which continues to be my favorite band of all time. But, oh how wrong they were!
[Siouxsie and the Banshee’s “Slowdive” from their YouTube Channel: bansheesofficial.]
Inspired by the above song, Siouxsie and the Banshees were one of those bands that really helped define a generation of musicians and my own musical tastes; from punk to post-punk, from helping to lay down what would be goth rock and “alternative,” if ever a band existed that deserved much more credit than it got, it was Siouxsie and the Banshees. And their music continues to speak to a new generation, but that is thing about all great music: it is timeless.
[The Cure’s “Primary” from TheCureVEVO Channel.]
So as a new year starts to unfurl, I am thinking of how the blog is going to grow; I am not going to make predictions, though I am more than considering a few things. One thing for sure is that I don’t want to plan it to death; I think that things work out best when things are allowed to happen naturally and on their own. But some things will never change: Tuesday reviews of new music (as long as there is a release we can’t resist), videos twice a month, a strong quality of writing, official links and embeds, and no unauthorized downloads. I continue to want to be a legitimate site, with credibility that will allow artists to be comfortable to want to accept an interview and share their own music when they like, which a few have in the past. I guess I continue to use the word “journalism” in what I do, and for that reason I am really considering for the first time writing a few pieces on a few things I really do not like, for the sake of balance. (It is only a consideration at this point, and one that is more likely to follow the format of an editorial than a review.)
[Erasure’s “Ship of Fools” from the MuteChannel YouTube Channel.]
Here are two conventions that we use at the blog quite often. As of 9 October 2009, when there is blue colored text before the post, it is simply a bit of editorializing or a personal message to someone out there. When there is red text before the post, usually thanking an artist for keeping us in the loop, it means that something (usually music) has crossed from one hand to another. It is all in line with legal disclosure laws; any reader has the right to know when this or any blog (or any media outlet of any sort) has directly received anything for review. I want to state that we have chosen not to review items that we received, as neither a collaborator nor I could stand by the product. So if we reviewed it, we liked it … period.
Parklife
Blur | Myspace Music Videos
[Blur’s “Parklife” from their MySpace Videos Page.]
Two of the things I really want to devote more time to this year are a few more retrospective and genre posts. Retrospective are single album reviews of important albums in a band’s discography that is at least ten years old (hint, a specific sophomore album hits the ten year mark on 17 July 2011). Genre posts surround one genre of music and five albums, and I have been working on a darkwave (which includes my favorite Dutch band of all time) that I have not yet finished but will find the time. But there are tons of genres out there that never get covered properly, such as Electroclash, Electronic Body Music, Glam Punk, Intelligent Dance Music, and Synthrock.
Everything Counts
Depeche Mode | Myspace Video
[Depeche Mode’s “Everything Counts” from their MySpace Video Page.]
Suggestions are always welcomed. If you have an idea, a band, a suggestion, or a topic you would like us to cover, leave a comment here or any of our sites (MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube). We will definitely consider, as we have in the past, any suggestions. Recently, I got a good suggestion from a reader who said that we should include iTunes links, especially when there are no videos to share. Not that we favor iTunes over another vendor, but their platform allows you to preview the songs; it was a brilliant suggestion that we have started to incorporate.
Hysteria
MUSE | Myspace Video
[Muse’s “Hysteria” from their MySpace Videos Page.]
In case you are wondering why these videos, as there is always reason behind my madness, it is quite simple. Other than the first one, which I could not post last year, these are singles from band’s third albums. Somewhere inside my crazy mind I thought “third year of the blog” worked nicely with “third albums of bands.”
[Eurythmics’ “Here Comes The Rain Again” from the EurythmicsVEVO YouTube Channel.]
On that note, I would like to say once again thank you for the support! Read more ...
There are many things I enjoy about running this blog, but I have to admit that reaching out to bands for interviews is one of my favorites. It is never a random process, they are always artists that intrigued me, made me scratch my head, and/or whose music / craft I admire. Of course not everyone accepts the request for an interview, but those that do really make my day! So I need to take a moment to personally thank the artists who took the time to Answer 5: Baddies, Fossil Collective, JB, Microfilm, My Luminaries, New Concept, Northern Portrait, Orphan Boy, The Silent League, Sudden Death Over Time, Via Audio, Viking Dress, VV Brown, Windy City Gentleman, and Young Michelin.
Massive thanks to The Android Angel for being the first to sit down with “Mirage” and film an interview (any other takers?).
And of course to Steve Moore and his band The Unravelling. Though indie proliferates through these pages (I can only image what Moore thinks about some of these bands!), The Unravelling, an amazing progressive metal band, not only agreed to interviews, but also has supported the blog. My thanks to them over the past two years is immense, and I would like to give them a small warning: when our paths cross, I do plan to put you in front of a camera and film an interview!
And before I carry on, there are four others I need to thank. First, DJ Chauncey D – you keep me on my toes about music! Second, Charlie Vazquez – your consistency and passion inspire me. Third, The Candyman – thanks for making me remember tons of great music I had not thought about in years. And of course, Mirage – thanks for sticking around and investing your free time on the blog.
Last year at this time, there was one video I really wanted to share with everyone, but it was no longer available. As I have stated before, when I decided to start my own blog, I wanted the name of the blog to represent musical history; I wanted the name of the blog to reflect my own discovery of music. I think that many people expected me to name the blog somehow after The Cure, which continues to be my favorite band of all time. But, oh how wrong they were!
[Siouxsie and the Banshee’s “Slowdive” from their YouTube Channel: bansheesofficial.]
Inspired by the above song, Siouxsie and the Banshees were one of those bands that really helped define a generation of musicians and my own musical tastes; from punk to post-punk, from helping to lay down what would be goth rock and “alternative,” if ever a band existed that deserved much more credit than it got, it was Siouxsie and the Banshees. And their music continues to speak to a new generation, but that is thing about all great music: it is timeless.
[The Cure’s “Primary” from TheCureVEVO Channel.]
So as a new year starts to unfurl, I am thinking of how the blog is going to grow; I am not going to make predictions, though I am more than considering a few things. One thing for sure is that I don’t want to plan it to death; I think that things work out best when things are allowed to happen naturally and on their own. But some things will never change: Tuesday reviews of new music (as long as there is a release we can’t resist), videos twice a month, a strong quality of writing, official links and embeds, and no unauthorized downloads. I continue to want to be a legitimate site, with credibility that will allow artists to be comfortable to want to accept an interview and share their own music when they like, which a few have in the past. I guess I continue to use the word “journalism” in what I do, and for that reason I am really considering for the first time writing a few pieces on a few things I really do not like, for the sake of balance. (It is only a consideration at this point, and one that is more likely to follow the format of an editorial than a review.)
[Erasure’s “Ship of Fools” from the MuteChannel YouTube Channel.]
Here are two conventions that we use at the blog quite often. As of 9 October 2009, when there is blue colored text before the post, it is simply a bit of editorializing or a personal message to someone out there. When there is red text before the post, usually thanking an artist for keeping us in the loop, it means that something (usually music) has crossed from one hand to another. It is all in line with legal disclosure laws; any reader has the right to know when this or any blog (or any media outlet of any sort) has directly received anything for review. I want to state that we have chosen not to review items that we received, as neither a collaborator nor I could stand by the product. So if we reviewed it, we liked it … period.
Parklife
Blur | Myspace Music Videos
[Blur’s “Parklife” from their MySpace Videos Page.]
Two of the things I really want to devote more time to this year are a few more retrospective and genre posts. Retrospective are single album reviews of important albums in a band’s discography that is at least ten years old (hint, a specific sophomore album hits the ten year mark on 17 July 2011). Genre posts surround one genre of music and five albums, and I have been working on a darkwave (which includes my favorite Dutch band of all time) that I have not yet finished but will find the time. But there are tons of genres out there that never get covered properly, such as Electroclash, Electronic Body Music, Glam Punk, Intelligent Dance Music, and Synthrock.
Everything Counts
Depeche Mode | Myspace Video
[Depeche Mode’s “Everything Counts” from their MySpace Video Page.]
Suggestions are always welcomed. If you have an idea, a band, a suggestion, or a topic you would like us to cover, leave a comment here or any of our sites (MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube). We will definitely consider, as we have in the past, any suggestions. Recently, I got a good suggestion from a reader who said that we should include iTunes links, especially when there are no videos to share. Not that we favor iTunes over another vendor, but their platform allows you to preview the songs; it was a brilliant suggestion that we have started to incorporate.
Hysteria
MUSE | Myspace Video
[Muse’s “Hysteria” from their MySpace Videos Page.]
In case you are wondering why these videos, as there is always reason behind my madness, it is quite simple. Other than the first one, which I could not post last year, these are singles from band’s third albums. Somewhere inside my crazy mind I thought “third year of the blog” worked nicely with “third albums of bands.”
[Eurythmics’ “Here Comes The Rain Again” from the EurythmicsVEVO YouTube Channel.]
On that note, I would like to say once again thank you for the support! Read more ...
31 December 2010
The Best of 2010
What can I say about music and 2010? It was simply incredible. Below (not ranked) are SlowdiveMusic Blog’s top ten picks for videos, tracks, and albums, and we all here love just how eclectic this mix is. So, on that note, we would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. Enjoy!
[Note: tracks or albums listed in alphabetical order.]
Two Door Cinema Club’s “Come Back Home” (video from twodoorcinemaclub).
Editors’ “Eat Raw Meat = Blood Drool” (video from editorsofficial).
Shakespears Sister’s “It’s A Trip” (video from ShakespearsSisterTV).
Skunk Anansie’s “My Ugly Boy” (video from SkunkAnansieOfficial).
Destronics’ “The Night a Solider” (video from imetrages).
Melissa Auf der Maur’s “Out of Our Minds” (video from MadMChannel).
The Joy Formidable’s “Popinjay” (video from TheJoyFormidable).
One Night Only’s “Say You Don’t Want It” (video from OneNightOnlyVEVO).
The Pinker Tones’ “Tokyo” (video from thepinkertones).
Post Death Soundtrack’s “Ultraviolence” (video from postdeathsoundtrack).
Sudden Death Over Time’s “Blue Sky Night” (track from SuddenDeathOverTime1).
O.Children’s “Heel” – check out the preview on iTunes.
Katie Melua’s “I’d Love to Kill You” – check out the preview on iTunes.
Kyte’s “Ihnfsa” (video from kytetheband).
Orphan Boy’s “Pop Song” (video from orphanboyuk).
Holy Fuck’s “Red Lights” (video from youngturksrecords).
The Pipettes’ “Stop the Music” (video from thepipettesofficial).
Hope Slide’s “Topple the Sky” – check out the preview on iTunes.
Hurts’ “Wonderful Life” (video from MySpace Video Page).
HURTS - Wonderful Life (Official Video)
HURTS | Myspace Video
The Courteeners’ “You Overdid It Doll” (video from TheCourteenersVEVO).
Delphic: “Acolyte”
Here are the videos for “Doubt” and “Halcyon” (videos from delphicmusic).
Villagers: “Becoming a Jackal”
Here are the videos for “Becoming a Jackal” and “That Day” (videos from DominoRecords).
Vampire Weekend: “Contra”
Here are the videos for “Cousins” and “Holiday” (videos from XLRecordings).
Northern Portrait: “Criminal Art Lovers”
Here is the video for “Crazy” (video from NorthernPortrait).
Kent: “En plats i solen” [“A Place in the Sun”]
Here are the tracks “Gamla Ullevi” [Od Ullevi”] and “Skisser för sommaren” [Sketches for the Summer”] (tracks from kentchannel).
Marina and the Diamonds: “The Family Jewels”
Here are the videos for “I Am Not a Robot,” “Oh No!,” and “Shampain” (videos from Marianaandthediamonds).
Murder By Death: “Good Morning, Magpie”
Here are the videos for “As Long As There Is Whiskey in the World” and “White Noise” (videos from vagrantrecords).
Corinne Bailey Rae: “The Sea”
Here are the videos for “I’d Do It All Again” and “Closer” (videos from CorinneBaileyRae).
The Unravelling: “13 Arcane Hymns”
Here is the video for “Where Will It End?” (video from theunravellingmusic).
Skunk Anansie: “Wonderlustre”
Here is the video for “Over The Love” (video from SkunkAnansieOfficial).
Melissa Auf der Maur: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Corinne Bailey Rae: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Courtneers: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Delphic: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Destronics: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter.
Editors: homepage, MySpace.
Holy Fuck: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Hope Slide: MySpace.
Hurts: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Joy Formidable: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Kent: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Kyte: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Marina and the Diamonds: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Katie Melua: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Murder by Death: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Northern Portrait: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
O.Children: MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
One Night Only: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Orphan Boy: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Pinker Tones: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Pipettes: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Post Death Soundtrack: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Shakespears Sister: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Skunk Anansie: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Sudden Death Over Time: MySpace, Facebook.
Two Door Cinema Club: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Vampire Weekend: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Villagers: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Unravelling: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter. Read more ...
[Note: tracks or albums listed in alphabetical order.]
Best Videos
Two Door Cinema Club’s “Come Back Home” (video from twodoorcinemaclub).
Editors’ “Eat Raw Meat = Blood Drool” (video from editorsofficial).
Shakespears Sister’s “It’s A Trip” (video from ShakespearsSisterTV).
Skunk Anansie’s “My Ugly Boy” (video from SkunkAnansieOfficial).
Destronics’ “The Night a Solider” (video from imetrages).
Melissa Auf der Maur’s “Out of Our Minds” (video from MadMChannel).
The Joy Formidable’s “Popinjay” (video from TheJoyFormidable).
One Night Only’s “Say You Don’t Want It” (video from OneNightOnlyVEVO).
The Pinker Tones’ “Tokyo” (video from thepinkertones).
Post Death Soundtrack’s “Ultraviolence” (video from postdeathsoundtrack).
Best Tracks
Sudden Death Over Time’s “Blue Sky Night” (track from SuddenDeathOverTime1).
O.Children’s “Heel” – check out the preview on iTunes.
Katie Melua’s “I’d Love to Kill You” – check out the preview on iTunes.
Kyte’s “Ihnfsa” (video from kytetheband).
Orphan Boy’s “Pop Song” (video from orphanboyuk).
Holy Fuck’s “Red Lights” (video from youngturksrecords).
The Pipettes’ “Stop the Music” (video from thepipettesofficial).
Hope Slide’s “Topple the Sky” – check out the preview on iTunes.
Hurts’ “Wonderful Life” (video from MySpace Video Page).
HURTS - Wonderful Life (Official Video)
HURTS | Myspace Video
The Courteeners’ “You Overdid It Doll” (video from TheCourteenersVEVO).
Best Albums
Delphic: “Acolyte”
Here are the videos for “Doubt” and “Halcyon” (videos from delphicmusic).
Villagers: “Becoming a Jackal”
Here are the videos for “Becoming a Jackal” and “That Day” (videos from DominoRecords).
Vampire Weekend: “Contra”
Here are the videos for “Cousins” and “Holiday” (videos from XLRecordings).
Northern Portrait: “Criminal Art Lovers”
Here is the video for “Crazy” (video from NorthernPortrait).
Kent: “En plats i solen” [“A Place in the Sun”]
Here are the tracks “Gamla Ullevi” [Od Ullevi”] and “Skisser för sommaren” [Sketches for the Summer”] (tracks from kentchannel).
Marina and the Diamonds: “The Family Jewels”
Here are the videos for “I Am Not a Robot,” “Oh No!,” and “Shampain” (videos from Marianaandthediamonds).
Murder By Death: “Good Morning, Magpie”
Here are the videos for “As Long As There Is Whiskey in the World” and “White Noise” (videos from vagrantrecords).
Corinne Bailey Rae: “The Sea”
Here are the videos for “I’d Do It All Again” and “Closer” (videos from CorinneBaileyRae).
The Unravelling: “13 Arcane Hymns”
Here is the video for “Where Will It End?” (video from theunravellingmusic).
Skunk Anansie: “Wonderlustre”
Here is the video for “Over The Love” (video from SkunkAnansieOfficial).
Keep up with artists / bands at the following sites:
Melissa Auf der Maur: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Corinne Bailey Rae: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Courtneers: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Delphic: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Destronics: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter.
Editors: homepage, MySpace.
Holy Fuck: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Hope Slide: MySpace.
Hurts: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Joy Formidable: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Kent: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Kyte: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Marina and the Diamonds: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Katie Melua: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Murder by Death: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Northern Portrait: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
O.Children: MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
One Night Only: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Orphan Boy: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Pinker Tones: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Pipettes: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Post Death Soundtrack: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Shakespears Sister: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Skunk Anansie: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
Sudden Death Over Time: MySpace, Facebook.
Two Door Cinema Club: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Vampire Weekend: homepage, MySpace, Facebook.
Villagers: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter.
The Unravelling: homepage, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter. Read more ...
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