Monday, February 13, 2006
Day Late, Dollar Short
I have a frequent problem when it comes to music. I find out about a band. I think they're just absolutely awesome. I buy a few albums. I start checking out websites. I look into seeing them in concert. Then I find out that they just broke up. Or, even worse, they've been broken up for years. Or, still worse yet, they're all dead. (Honestly, why didn't anybody tell me about this Elvis Presley guy? He's awesome. If you haven't heard any of his music, you might want to check him out.)
Today, I turned on At The Drive-In's Relationship of Command. It's an awesome punk/rock/metal album. I don't even know how to describe it. Good thing I don't write record reviews for a living. It's just an extremely fast-paced album of head-bopping, fist-pumping music. Beavis and Butthead would have loved it. The singer's got a bit of a weird voice, but I really dig that for some reason. Perhaps it's because I can't sing for shit. (As witnessed by my renditions of Johnny Cash's "Folsum Prison Blues" and Steve Miller's "Space Cowboy" this Saturday on karaoke at Gatsby's. In the distance, I could hear dogs howling.)
I started listening to ATDI a few years ago. I really dug them and started getting into their earlier stuff. I decided to go see them in concert. My luck! They were coming to the Metro. I was trying to find people to see them with me, but nobody was biting. Perhaps if I didn't describe them like I did above, somebody might have gone. I should have said they do Pearl Jam covers all night or something. Anyway, as I was about to buy tickets, I read something on Pitchfork saying that they broke up! Just my luck! (They've since split into The Mars Volta (sucky) and Sparta (pretty solid), by the way.)
A very similar thing happened with Face to Face. Solid punk rock band that broke up right after I got into them. Of course, they got together for a "final" tour, but they pissed me off too much for me to attend. It might have something to do with the baby I had at home too, but that's besides the point.
Then there's bands that I came upon way too late, like Rocket From The Crypt. Their album Scream, Dracula, Scream! is one of the best albums I've heard since Pearl Jam's Ten. Just a rock solid arena-punk album. Think Green Day with talent AND good songs. And I like Green Day. Anyway, RFTC just follows bands like Husker Du (top 5 favorite band of all time) and the Pixies (also, top 5) who I discovered after they broke up. Fortunately, the Pixies reunited last year. It was absolutely the best concert I've ever been to. I can't explain how much I loved that band. Every time I listened to their albums, I lamented how I'd never be able to see them in concert. I just about peed my pants when I found out they were touring again. And at the concert? Well, let's just say that I was wearing Depends.
Other bands that I got into after they broke up? Archers of Loaf (again, top 5), Police, Johnny Cash (RIP), Rage Against the Machine (well, I think I barely beat the break-up), the Rolling Stones (they're all dead, right? They can't still be performing), and the Beatles.
I guess the good news is that there are still a lot of cool bands out there nowadays that I could conceivably see live, if I can find the time, the money, and the energy. Sleater-Kinney (also, top 5) is still rocking hard. (You know, I've named 4 of my top 5. Who's the last one? Dropkick Murphy's? Foo Fighters? Nirvana? Rage? The Stones? I guess it depends on my mood.)
But now that I've put together my 90's playlist, I realize that I'm getting old. I just way too defined by the music of the 80's and 90's. And it's inevitable that those bands that I love will break up and stop putting out albums and touring. If it can happen to the Rolling Stones, it can happen to any band.
Today, I turned on At The Drive-In's Relationship of Command. It's an awesome punk/rock/metal album. I don't even know how to describe it. Good thing I don't write record reviews for a living. It's just an extremely fast-paced album of head-bopping, fist-pumping music. Beavis and Butthead would have loved it. The singer's got a bit of a weird voice, but I really dig that for some reason. Perhaps it's because I can't sing for shit. (As witnessed by my renditions of Johnny Cash's "Folsum Prison Blues" and Steve Miller's "Space Cowboy" this Saturday on karaoke at Gatsby's. In the distance, I could hear dogs howling.)
I started listening to ATDI a few years ago. I really dug them and started getting into their earlier stuff. I decided to go see them in concert. My luck! They were coming to the Metro. I was trying to find people to see them with me, but nobody was biting. Perhaps if I didn't describe them like I did above, somebody might have gone. I should have said they do Pearl Jam covers all night or something. Anyway, as I was about to buy tickets, I read something on Pitchfork saying that they broke up! Just my luck! (They've since split into The Mars Volta (sucky) and Sparta (pretty solid), by the way.)
A very similar thing happened with Face to Face. Solid punk rock band that broke up right after I got into them. Of course, they got together for a "final" tour, but they pissed me off too much for me to attend. It might have something to do with the baby I had at home too, but that's besides the point.
Then there's bands that I came upon way too late, like Rocket From The Crypt. Their album Scream, Dracula, Scream! is one of the best albums I've heard since Pearl Jam's Ten. Just a rock solid arena-punk album. Think Green Day with talent AND good songs. And I like Green Day. Anyway, RFTC just follows bands like Husker Du (top 5 favorite band of all time) and the Pixies (also, top 5) who I discovered after they broke up. Fortunately, the Pixies reunited last year. It was absolutely the best concert I've ever been to. I can't explain how much I loved that band. Every time I listened to their albums, I lamented how I'd never be able to see them in concert. I just about peed my pants when I found out they were touring again. And at the concert? Well, let's just say that I was wearing Depends.
Other bands that I got into after they broke up? Archers of Loaf (again, top 5), Police, Johnny Cash (RIP), Rage Against the Machine (well, I think I barely beat the break-up), the Rolling Stones (they're all dead, right? They can't still be performing), and the Beatles.
I guess the good news is that there are still a lot of cool bands out there nowadays that I could conceivably see live, if I can find the time, the money, and the energy. Sleater-Kinney (also, top 5) is still rocking hard. (You know, I've named 4 of my top 5. Who's the last one? Dropkick Murphy's? Foo Fighters? Nirvana? Rage? The Stones? I guess it depends on my mood.)
But now that I've put together my 90's playlist, I realize that I'm getting old. I just way too defined by the music of the 80's and 90's. And it's inevitable that those bands that I love will break up and stop putting out albums and touring. If it can happen to the Rolling Stones, it can happen to any band.
