Bert's Rants/Rambles
Posted by: Bert
Date: 2015-02-22 17:41:36
I know I'm beating a dead horse, but I've been wanting to make this topic for a while now, so I decided to go with a topic everyone can relate to.
The '90s was responsible for killing off the commercialization of metal music nearly entirely to make way for the less entertaining grunge genre, which college stoners eagerly adopted to sound "deep" and "poetic." Pick a one-word title, give it some abstract lyrics, make it depressing, and enjoy your hit single. Or, if you were Alice in Chains, actually be interesting.
…Or, if you were giftedly talentless, do it horribly, terribly wrong.
Originally called the much more fitting "Village Idiots," Nickelback has become of Canada's most successful rock bands for…some reason. Not even their fans know why. They also scored a record deal with Roadrunner Records, arguably a haven for metal and rock bands. I can just taste the salty tears of other up-and-coming bands who screamed to the Heavens when some dork playing generic post grunge riffs scored the deal of a lifetime. The fact that Americans are familiar with Nickelback's garbage instead of the jaunty, sing-a-longable (totally a word) songs of The Trews prove how shitty people's judgement is.
Here's Nickeback's signature song, "How You Remind Me".
And here's The Trews' signature song, "Not Ready to Go".
Guess which band will be able to retire comfortably in the next ten years?
Hint: It's not the one that actually gives a fuck about making listenable music.
I could forgive Nickelback's complete lack of originality and innovation if it weren't for the fact they take pride in their relentless mediocrity. Hey, Chad, wanna know how you can get people to stop saying "Nickelback sucks?" STOP SUCKING. You might have to dissolve the band to do it, but that's a small price to pay since you're clearly not in it for the music.
Do you know what the worst part is? Critics actually support these uninspired assholes. Not all of them obviously, but the ones who do are an interesting breed. To quote an AllMusic review of their album Silver Side Up:
"what gives the group an upper hand over its peers is intensity and raw passion… Nickelback ups the ante by offering realistic storytelling that listeners can relate to."
Source.
What exactly is "realistic storytelling?" "I made millions ripping off AC/DC, KISS, Scorpions, and every other rock band, but it's OK because I do it in drop-D tuning?" Get bent. There is nothing "real" about Nickelback's music. Everything they've done has been done before. At best, they're unoriginal. At worst, they're a plague upon music.
If you see a Nickelback fan in public, punch them.