Two Nights In A Row

Sid! Sid, where are you?!
I have to post about stupid bands and/or betches, AGAIN tonight.

Tonight, it's all about that betch Amy Lee.

Look! Another stupid Amy in the music world! And shut up, Mitch Connors, I DO NOT remind you of her. Just like I am in no way, reminiscent of Rosie. Ever. ::mutter mutter:: Stupid Frass ::mutter mutter::

Evanescence cans guitarist, drummer
POSTED: 9:22 a.m. EDT, May 8, 2007

NEW YORK (Billboard) -- The guitarist and drummer with Evanescence have left the top-selling rock act for undisclosed reasons.

Guitarist John LeCompt claimed on his MySpace.com blog that he was fired during a cell phone conversation with singer Amy Lee, while drummer Rocky Gray said he was asked by band management not to discuss the situation.

However, Lee said in a statement that Evanescence remains "alive and well" and will soon return to the road with new musicians.

"John and Rocky were in Evanescence for four years and we shared some great times together playing live, but they were ready to move on and so we have parted ways," she said. "Evanescence is something I have loved and nurtured since I was 14, and I will continue to protect and fight for it as I always have.

LeCompt did not paint the situation so rosily on his blog. "Without any warning or negotiations for my future, I was fired for no good reason," he said. "We have not always seen eye to eye on everything, but who does? Our common goal was always the same. To make Evanescence the best rock band it could ever be. I have always given blood, sweat and tears to make that happen but apparently that is not enough. I have now become just another of the people fallen by the wayside on the revolving door of her life."

LeCompt was referring to the messy 2003 departure of founding guitarist Ben Moody, who was replaced by former Cold principal Terry Balsamo, and the 2006 exit of bassist Will Boyd, who was replaced by former Revolution Smile guitarist Tim McCord.

Lee said no shows would be canceled due to the lineup shift, but the group won't have long to draft replacements for LeCompt and Gray. It is due to return to the stage May 19 at the first Rock on the Range festival in Columbus, Ohio, and has European dates on tap through late June.

Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.

Three things -

1. H1's right to ask, "If you have but one of your original members, are you still the same band?"

2. I did so enjoy reading LeCompt's assessment of the situation and of Amy Lee's character.

3. Amy The Stupid Lee, what the f.? Did you think just because Korn asked you to cover "Freak On a Leash" you're hot shit? I'm sorry to say it to Korn but you guys went downhill ever since Head found Jeebus. And though I may hate David, his ass was smart to leave or go on 'hiatus' as it were. Korn! Your time is done and working with Amy Lee made you lose whatever creds you had left. ALL.

On a side note, I've come to a realization in the past few days.

You know how I always rant that if it's female and sings then chances are TD5 loves it?
I now know that, in addition to this, if it's female and sings then chances are I hate it.

And on another random note, but still music related, did anyone see the video for The Red Hot Chili Peppers' new song? Let us just say...RHCP going street made me incredibly scared yet I couldn't... look... away.

Maybe it was AK's big, gold grill? Or the fact that I never thought I'd hear the words "Hump de Bump" come out of his mouth? Well, one thing's for sure, I knew the day would come that if that ever happened, it'd sound stupid. And sure enough...



- Or 2, weeding out the assholes since 1992.

Currently listening to: "Teddy Picker" by Arctic Monkeys. Now THERE's a band. Yeah. At this time one week from now, I'll be too tired to blog but really wanting to. I love you, Alex! He is a clever little man, isn't he?

I Can't Believe I Need Sid TWO Nights In a Row

I guess I can believe it though because the world abounds in bad music.

Tonight's rant:




I had my reservations about the cover songs but held judgment until I heard them myself.

Well, I just heard snippets and needless to say, my moment of silence is now over.

WDA.

Honestly, WDA & WTF. Remember one blog ago when I was bitchin' that Z100 plays music that's "popular" i.e. for some god awful reason, people out there think emo is worth listening to?

In all fairness, I understand that if a song's catchy, then it's catchy. Sometimes whatever situation you're in whether it be a club or whatever else, there's a type of music that matches that mode and it works for you. Great. Goodness knows I listen to my fair share of crap as well but sometimes it's all about what you attach it to, the memories generated from it or how it affects your mood and vice versa.

Seriously, I know my logic is at a mere B-, but the solution I worked out in this equation seems true to me:

"In" bands + Disney = Shit.

I've always hated associating or acknowledging Disney's involvement with The Nightmare Before Christmas. Disney (which by the way is not the happiest place on earth because eBay is) was just the parent company/money machine that could help fund Touchstone Pictures and Tim Burton's amazing project.

But you know when some of these 'bands' were asked to cover Nightmare tracks, it was done by some asshat of an executive at Disney based on the sole fact that the bands are currently the "edgy" big money makers in music's popular culture. And if that's not the case, then they were asked in the hopes that they would actually pull something good based on their building their careers as 'creepy, dark' artists.

Panic! At the Disco, Fall Out Boy, She Wants Revenge and Fiona Apple have all created soulless versions of some of my favourite songs of all time.

It's a sad day when even Marilyn Manson's cover is pathetic.

::sigh::

Currently listening to: "All Alone" by Gorillaz.

Another Rant From a "Music Elitist" & A Message To Sid The Voodoo Doll

When I first heard Hinder's song "Lips of an Angel" or whatever the fudge it's called, I thought to myself, 'oh wonderful, another song that Nickelback has put out that sounds exactly like all their other songs.' I found out soon after that it was indeed a 'different' band.

That was complaint number 1 and strike 1 against Hinder.

Then I saw their video on VH1. "Oh, it's those people who sound like Nickelback and oh my word, what is that...flail of the hand the lead singer is doing? Listen dude, there's only one person who can pull that move and it's Mick Jagger. Mick Jagger you are not. Put that hand down!" Here's an example of the hand (it's the ass in front but really, you people don't need me to point him out):



That was complaint number 2 and strike 2 against Hinder.

Complaint Number 3 went something like this: "Ugh, what's this shit? Hinder on Z100? Oh god, it's all over." Let me explain something about Z100, but first, let me say in my defense that my ears only happened upon Z100 because I was in the car with Papa HOchie who does not have Sirius and listens to the Morning Zoo on his commute.
Anyway, my point about Z100 is that once a 'rock band' has made it to Z100's daily regular rotation of music, I no longer consider the band 'rock' or a 'band' for that matter. As far as I'm concerned, once a song hits Z100, it becomes pop even if the band didn't intend it to be that way. While it may be economically sound for a band to reach that status (because it's the equivalent to being 'big' since teenie boppers and the like will probably go out and spend money on whatever album the track originated), credibility as 'rock' music becomes an issue. Z100 caters to an audience that is generally not rock based. And while it's rare that the occasional U2 is tossed on there, the disclaimer for them is that as the biggest rock band in the world, they're on all stations, even dance onces that mask their songs in a club remix.

Yes yes, today, again I was designated a "music elitist" by my friends. The amount of time I spent writing this makes me so, and an annoying one at that but anyway, Hinder got Strike 3.

From a Rolling Stone magazine interview with the band Hinder:

You seem to really have your biggest following in the middle of the country. Is that something you'd agree with?
Austin Winkler: I would definitely agree as far as NY and LA with some of that artsy bullshit like OK GO, bands like that. I think they're a bunch of fairies. I mean, they got on MTV , the VMA awards and they got on there and danced like a broadway show. That's not fucking rock 'n roll, that's not rock 'n roll at all.

We get what you mean about OK Go and some of the bands that really are popular on the coasts, but what do you think it is about you guys that appeals to people?
AW: We have good songs, I would say. Their songs suck, I mean what the fuck? They sold 4,000 albums a week and then that treadmill fairy shit comes on the fucking TV and they only sold 4,000 more records a week because the song sucks.

Do you guys know them? You seem to have a real specific fixation with them, have you met them or anything?
Cody Hanson: No, it's just seeing their fucking stupid-ass faces on the T.V. all the time, it pisses me the fuck off.

But I paid no mind until I discovered the above article and the fact that this crap 'band' had beef with OK Go.

Let's talk about OK Go:



Many will say that their video for "Here It Goes Again" makes them a novelty act and a gimmick. Well, I'll be damned but their gimmick worked because after their MTV Video Music Awards performance this year, I actually went out and did a little research on them. I listened to enough tracks to decide "hell, I'm going to take a chance on these guys and buy their album." I did, and much to my pleasure, I really loved it. They're fun and their music is representative of that as well. The VMA performance...I believe that's called "marketing".

The way I see it, the video is just that. A video. They've been accused of having a dance video. And yes, I saw that too. "A Million Ways" is a dance video and hilarious at that but that's what they do. They make hilarious videos. A video can make or break you in my eyes. They're creative in their own right.
How different are they from say, Tool, who uses animation (and brilliant animation at that) in their videos? That's what Tool does but no one questions their credibility as a rock band and no one goes to their concerts expecting an entire sequence made out of claymation.
And Radiohead's got some of the most bizarre videos out there but they're known for that and their stellar performances in concert that don't involve anything more than a great band performing music (not that I would know because frickin' Radiohead sells out in seconds before I ever get a chance to buy tickets but mark my words, the HOchies WILL be at one of their concerts in the future).

Record sales not that great? Hey, sometimes internet success doesn't cross over well. It happens. And maybe millions think the song sucks but whatever, my entire point is actually to say, any band that sounds so much like another (and not one that's truly great in my opinion) really isn't justified to talk shit about anyone else.

(A side note on Hinder - I checked out their website and they keep a blog. It's the most incoherent garbage I've read in a while, other than my last 3 paragraphs, but all it involved was how many shots some guy did. THAT is rock n' roll. Yep. Drugs and alcohol. But for crap sake, if you're going to do drugs and heavy drinking, do it right! At least make good music. Yeesh.)

I could be wrong though...I mean, thousands of people made Paris Hilton's album debut at number 2 or was it 1? I don't recall but I mean, it must make Paris Hilton a really talented musician. Millions of people can't be wrong, right?

But then again, millions thought the earth was flat too.

Please Sid, continue doing your job...:



Currently listening to: "Oh Lately It's So Quiet" by OK Go.