Reunited and it feels so (not) good...

 

Please, no more Nu-metal! | Photo by Holly Karrol Clark

Following the unbelievably awkward announcement at the Grammy's of Blink 182's reunion, another late 90s act has followed suit: none other than nu metal "pioneers" Limp Bizkit.

Interesting here is that both of these acts are pretty  much in the same boat. For these reunions to work, these bands need to bank pretty heavily on two things: late '90s nostalgia and the likelihood that current 12 year old boys are still interested in the same things (this should be the easy one). As often as these two bands butted heads on the now defunct "TRL" it's only fitting that they should make similar announcements within the same week. Well played, Durst. Steal that thunder.

Interesting too, is that both bands broke up for similar reasons. Both bands came apart at the seams due to personal conflicts within the bands, which, if anyone saw Blink at the Grammy's, seem to not quite be done with. Although the Blink 182 statement simply refers to these conflicts as "friendships reformed", Limp Bizkit doesn't quite make amends but commits to live with the issues:

"We decided we were more disgusted and bored with the state of heavy popular music than we were with each other. Regardless of where our separate paths have taken us, we recognize there is a powerful and unique energy with this particular group of people we have not found anywhere else. This is why Limp Bizkit is back."

There's nothing like putting up with people you can't stand--in a creative relationship no less--for the cold hard cash, right guys?

What's my age again? Again?  | Photo courtesy blink182.com

To Blink's credit, I firmly believe that, if this reunion is for real, the trio has a decent shot at a rebound. The trend in mainstream music that they began (and, really, co-opted from Green Day) is still going strong. Fall Out Boy and Paramore are both in Blink's debt and, worrisome though this makes me, many studded belt and Chuck-clad teens view Mark, Tom and Travis as pioneers. Not to mention that the success of Tom DeLonge's Angels and Airwaves should bring along even more fans for the ride. As for Fred Durst, though, when was the last time you heard anybody name drop "nu metal" in a positive light? Probably close to never.

The Limp Bizkit reunion, to me, appears less as the band's response to their own popular music boredom as much as it's clear that Fred Durst & Co. haven't really had, you know, careers since Limp Bizkit went the way of the dodo. And the band's appeal was always far more about the frontman's brash attitude and MTV appearances than it ever was about the music. Really. Though that time, for him, has certainly come and gone. I can't imagine a scenario where it's appropriate to unleash Fred Durst upon the music world once more, but I guess the industry really will try anything these days.

Fan Funded

No band or artist can survive for long making music without fans. It’s kind of a given. However, some bands are finding a new way to incorporate their fans into the recording process. Beyond studio diaries or exclusive studio videos, some independent artists are taking matters into their own hands: asking their fans to help fund their records.

It makes perfect sense. Who wants a band to put out a new album more than the fans? Nobody. Fans can “donate” money in exchange for prizes, which can include anything from a digital or physical copy of the CD, a thank you in the liner notes, or even a chance for the artist to play your living room.

Although joke-metal band Psychostick and pop singer/songwriter Jill Sobule (“Supermodel” from the Clueless soundtrack) raised funds via their own specially set up websites, Bandstocks.com offers artists, such as Patrick Wolf, the chance to, well, basically do the same thing..

The site is set up on a three-tier system. In the first stage fans can vote for bands they would like to have the opportunity to donate money towards. Fans (or “investors”) then donate money to bands or artists, like Wolf, who make it to round two. Then, once the needed amount is raised, albums get put into production and, in addition to getting a copy of the album and other perks, investors can even make a little bit of extra cash if the album does well.

The coolest thing about this new trend is that artists with a loyal fan base don’t have to wait for record labels to take interest anymore. Instead of depending on the labels to put up money for the album upfront, bands and artists can take their needs to the fans. Labels are very quickly becoming a thing of the past, and this is just one more option for struggling musicians to get their music heard.

Cover Man Witmer

I recently had the chance to interview Denison Witmer for a spotlight in the November issue of Athens Blur.  He is one of the most down-to-earth musicians I have ever had the pleasure of speaking with (and I think he may be one of the nicest guys out there, too).

His latest collection of well-penned, 70s-inspired folk tunes, entitled Carry the Weight (via The Militia Group), hits stores on November 11th. Being a total cover-song geek (and a big Witmer fan), I was ecstatic to find that Witmer had launched into a covers project with the aim of recording and releasing one cover song each week leading up to the new album's release. Cool, no? Songs can be downloaded on a per-week basis--for FREE--via Witmer's MySpace and for any weeks you may have missed (or if your computer hates the new MySpace music player like many others do), the entire project can be found at the Cover Lay Down blog on an ongoing basis. So far he's covered songs by Bonnie Raitt ("I Can't Make You Love Me"), Oasis ("Champagne Supernova"), Red House Painters ("Have You Forgotten"- which is one of my all-time favorite songs), Van Morrison ("Comfort You") and Band of Horses ("Is There a Ghost").

The neatest thing about Witmer's current covers project is that they aren't overdone. Recorded live in different rooms of his house featuring just vocals and guitar, the tracks have an incredible sense of intimacy and spontenaiety, working songs like "Champagne Supernova" and "Is There a Ghost" into entirely new forms. If they don't sound overly complicated, it's because they're not. Witmer explains: 

 "I just go from my record collection and whatever strikes me. If I find myself walking around the house humming something, I’ll go, “Oh, well I’ll see if I can figure that out.” That’s what I’ve been doing and it seems to be working."

Unlike Recovered, Witmer's  2003 influence-heavy covers album, the tunesmith says he chooses these songs just for fun, regardless of how well they turn out, more as an exercise to get him out of his own recording ruts and issues with semi-perfectionism.

 "I’m just trying to pick really random songs that I like and play them and see if they actually work. And I don’t really know if they do. I’m just putting them out there and if people like them, great. It’s just as well if they don’t. I don’t really mind, but it’s really fun for me to play other people’s melodies and think about why people make those different choices."

So, check out the covers and pick up Carry the Weight when it hits stores in November. For anyone out there unfamiliar with Witmer's previous work, get your paws on a copy of 2002's Philadelphia Songs as well. Not only was it the subject of the first CD review I ever had published, it's also an incredibly beautiful and heartfelt collection of songs. Get on it!

Digging through the backlogs...

[Originally posted July 19, 2008]

The first interview I ever did was with the Dandy Warhols back in 2003. It was just after the release of Welcome to the Monkey House and their solo tour stopped in Atlanta (at the now defunct Cotton Club) where they put on an awesome three-hour show.

Looking back, I was still pretty naïve about some things (I was a very young 20 years old), but incredibly intuitive about others. I asked great, well-researched questions and everything went really well, much to my surprise. It is still the only tour bus I’ve ever been on.

I also got stopped at the door, and their manager had never heard of me. Somehow, after several desperate phone calls and pleas to the powers that be, I made it work. I got the interview and was able to bring my sister and good friend Phil into the show with me. It wouldn’t be the first time, though, that there would be problems, but that was just another reason why it was a great learning (and life) experience. Especially since I was so determined. I almost think I had more balls back then than I do now, which is shocking to think back on.

Most of all, I was honest. I walked in, nervous as hell, and just admitted it was the first interview I’d ever done. And I’m glad I did it. It was an important lesson: always be honest and be yourself. Chances are, they will be too.

Now, the article I wrote certainly has its flaws—cheese, grammar mistakes—but the prose is better than some of the printed articles that followed it. Reading it again so many years later, it still captures so much of that night so that I can again picture it clearly in my head. I have been more displeased with articles I’ve written in the past 12 months than I am of that article. Well, almost.

The poster from that show still hangs on the wall in my living room and I still keep tabs on the buttons they gave me—one of every kind they had to go on the super-emo purse I carried at the time. They’re good reminders of where I started, and where I still want to go.

Read the article here.

Music for Money

[Originally posted July 14, 2008]

Ever wanted to hear your name on record? In a comedic/metal track no less? Well, now is your chance.

Now, I don’t know who the band Psychostick is (apparently they do a song about beer?), but they raise an interesting issue. According to a press release, the band plans to help fund their recording time by soliciting donations from fans in the amount of $50 and, in return, will mention the fans by name in a song, working titled “400 Thank Yous,” to appear on said album.

This video can explain it a little better than I can:



So for anyone hankerin’ to get their name on disc, Psychostick are accepting donations through September 30. Businesses can also get in on the action for $250, and their website is keeping track of all the action.

While name dropping everything from Courvoisier to cars in popular tunes is anything but new, Psychostick is the first underground act that I’ve heard of to do so. Granted the money will be used simply for recording expenses (which, I doubt was Kanye West’s motivation), it follows this unsettling industry trend.

Music is commerce, sure, but it’s also an art form. Although I can completely understand why Psychostick has made this decision—despite popular opinion, most of the bands I’ve spoken with <i>are<i> incredibly poor—I can’t say I’m always in favor of it. Psychostick at least scores some points for being upfront about their dealings, and asking for their fans to take part. Artists namedrop for a reason, and it’s a big fat dollar-sign. Anyone who thinks otherwise is simply naive.

Not so festive

[Originally posted July 10, 2008]

I hate festivals. There is nothing less awesome about a live show than thousands of people hanging around catching sets for bands they don’t really even care for.

For example, exhibit A:
It’s Bonnaroo 2006. Radiohead is playing their headlining show. I am totally stoked and super-excited until the entire group of about 15 people beside my friend and I begin to discuss how much Radiohead sucks and that nobody is there to see them. Instead of leaving, they proceed to yak about it for the entire rest of their set. So cool of them.
[As a side note, Radiohead is one of the biggest, best and most influential bands on the planet, so I think there were a little off on that one.]

ANYWAY, Yesterday I hit up the Warped Tour. I had specific work-related reasons for going (and those worked out) but overall I was somewhat unimpressed. With a few exceptions, I hardly saw anybody actually seem excited about being there. It made me profoundly sad.

So in addition to unenthused audiences, add in crappy sound and the fact that most of the time you can hardly even see the band. Woo hoo! Rock and ROLLLLLLLLLL!!! Yeah.

Warped 2008 did have its highlights. We got to catch an acoustic set by Cobra Starship in the press area. Though I am pretty unfamiliar with the band, it was a pretty entertaining thing to catch, and a lot more whimsical than the acoustic press-only set by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah braintrust Alec Ounsworth than I caught during Bonnaroo ’06. It was nice break from the lengthy distance that plagued the rest of the day.

Now, I’m not elitist enough to say that I won’t attend shows larger than the smallest of venues (I like it when bands I enjoy finally get their due), however I prefer concerts where you get a chance to connect somewhat with the band. If I want to hang out with my friends and goof off, I pick up a bottle of something and invite everybody over and consult my iTunes. Not go to shows and disrespect the band and others in the audience.

Or maybe I’m just getting too old for this shit? Nah…

My Aim is True

[Originally posted July 1, 2008]

"Writing about music is like dancing about architecture. It's really a stupid thing to want to do." -Elvis Costello

It may seem strange that this is one of my favorite quotes. I am a music journalist, after all, but I have to say that decision has served me well so far. I love this quote, though, because it reminds me what I love about this job.

To me, music journalism is about more than "writing about music." It’s about the people behind it and the people it touches. It’s about the stories behind the songs, and the stories that happen because of them. It’s about how it changes the artist and the listener. It’s about picking the brains of some of the most talented and interesting people in the public eye.

It’s also fucking awesome.

However, even the best critics would be remiss to say that they write exclusively about music (and the best critics probably never would). In my mind, it is impossible to be a rock scribe and discuss only the sounds. Reviews that only comment on instrumentation and lyrics, without discussing the greater implications for the band, album or listener, would be bland, dull, boring. As Radiohead claims, anyone can play guitar. What’s important is why, how, and what makes any band or album great. It doesn’t always come down to technical skill (in fact, in my experience this is rarely the case).

You don’t have to be the best player or singer to change the entire face of music. Just ask John Lydon,

So I disagree with Elvis Costello in saying. Writing about music is undoubtedly a challenge—how do you translate sound and feeling into words?—but at its best it says something about people: who the artists are who create it and who we are for loving it. And that is a pursuit well worth the effort.

So welcome to dancing about architecture. Get ready for music, culture and random thoughts.