Sep
08
2010

Strong Bloody Violence

(Add / View Comments) (0)Wednesday, September 8, 2010 - 09:37:39 PM
(Posted Under: Randomosity)
From the latest commercial for Machetti...

"Contains strong bloody violence".

Surely in America that means the strong violence has lots of blood. But, in Australia it would indicate that the violence was really strong.

And hence, I can't help but laugh at how it sounds every time the commercial comes on! [smile] It almost makes me expect to hear "Contains obscene fucking language".
Sep
08
2010

Someone Get The Gin Blossoms A Gin Blossoms Record

(Add / View Comments) (0)Wednesday, September 8, 2010 - 08:17:21 PM
(Posted Under: Music Music, The No Chocolate Cake File)
I don't know what is more depressing to me. The absolute downfall of what has been my favorite band for the past 17 years, or the band themselves parading around that they actually sound the same as they have for the last 23 years. When they absolutely do not, which is the reason for the tragic downfall.

Straight from a Google Alert to the No Chocolate Cake file....

Music Scene: Gin Blossoms are back.

This isn't a new situation. Multiple members of the band have been saying this since Major Lodge Victory, despite that no-one listening to the album, regardless of whether they liked it or not, couldn't miss nor avoid the fact that it was a huge departure from what has always been the "Gin Blossoms sound".

Jesse Valenzuela, guitarist for the ubiquitous ’90s band The Gin Blossoms, called the group’s new album “traditional Gin Blossoms music.”
Valenzuela doesn’t think the basic Gin Blossoms sound has changed much over the years.
Forgot New Miserable Experience. When was the last time that Jesse (or arguably anyone in the band) has listened to a copy of Congratulations I'm Sorry? Seriously, who is buying this bullshit? No-one thinks this band sounds anything like they used to, whether they like the new material or not.

At what point before Major Lodge Victory did the band ever sound like a Rembrandts clone? Someone please answer me this. The new material and direction sucking is one thing, but is it really too much to expect you to be honest about it? I guess so. Anything to sell a record.

“We’d lose our fan base if we jumped off into free-form jazz. We used to do a bit more country-tinged stuff, but as a band we made a conscious decision to stay more with the rock sound.”
I'm pretty sure you've already lost your fan base. Probably not so much the one that has sprung up in the last 5 years, but the one that existed before that is all but gone from everything I can tell. In a lot of ways I consider myself to be one of the few that held on long after most. But like Hecules, California, it's not long before Blossomsville is going to be population minus 1. Me. (Okay, so really population minus 2, not to ruin the reference. [wink] )

And seriously? Stay with the rock sound? You mean in reference to No Chocolate Cake? Along with a copy of any of their previous records, someone please hand Valenzuela a dictionary opened to the definition of "rock sound". Ta!

“I’d call our music Americana that’s played too fast,” Valenzuela said with a chuckle. “We look at Wilco, one of the premier Americana rock bands, and the biggest difference is they just don’t necessarily chase a tempo like we do. Playing so much in clubs on our way up, we learned that you want to keep the kids dancing. I actually wish we could slow it down once in a while – I’d love to try some acoustic stuff, or things with an accordion. But we’ve been successful doing it this way for 23 years, so I’m a minority of one.”
Valenzuela wishes he could slow it down once in a while? Dude - if you slowed down much of the new record anymore iPod's would actually refuse to play it! It's not 1989. Your latest record isn't Dusted. These new songs couldn't get any slower.

Apologies to my loyal readers expecting me to really dig the boot in. Over the last 48 hours I've been vacillating in and out of the depression stage. I'm not entirely sure I'm doing the The Kübler-Ross grief cycle in order.* But reading this sort of shit ain't helping any, I know that much.

Of the people that seem to have taken quite an issue with my opinion of the new record, and the fact that I'm not going to shy away from expressing it, have accussed me of expecting the band to remain the same, and not allowing them to change their style.

In my experience, when an artist is trying to break the mold, or just simply "trying something new" for an album, it's a conscious decision, and they're sure to talk up the fact. Hardly ever do I not respect that sort of artistic decision, whether or not I like that material that comes from it.

But that's not the case here. By all accounts, this band is just "doing what they've always done", at least in their minds. So I fail to see what the problem is with my opinion that the album is just a very bad disappointing corporate pop record. It's a case of calling it as I see it.

* I'm sure the anger stage will be back in no time. [wink]

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