Bono and U2

A lot of people seem to hate Bono. I don't really get it. Yeah, he talks about Africa an awful lot but everyone has their hobby-horse. Some people think he's arrogant; I don't get that impression. He has charisma - that's not arrogance. I've always thought he seems genuinely down to earth when he's interviewed. I guess he has an inflated ego but most rock stars do.

Here are some reasons why I think people don't like Bono:

- People don't like preachers. Paying $200 for a U2 ticket to listen to Bono rant about third world debt isn't something the average consumer wants to deal with.

- He makes people feel guilty. They feel uncomfortable being asked to give money to charities. Instead, they would rather say things like "if Bono gave half his money to Africa then there wouldn't be a problem". He might live an indulgent lifestyle, but he gives a heap of money to charity and spends a lot of his time being an advocate and instigator - more than most celebrities do. Even if he could feed the entire planet for decades with his loose change, why should it be up to one man to do so?

- They think he is fake. People can't comprehend that someone might want to care for human rights in other countries without having some sort of ulterior motive. They just don't believe he could be genuine.

- He has opinions. Strong opinions. Sometimes controversial opinions. Opinions on God, on politics, on humanity. People don't like that.

- His sunglasses. Some people don't like those.

Anyway, I like Bono. I think he's a good bloke. I reckon this Bono-bashing has led to people discrediting his music. It's certainly not very 'cool' to like U2 these days; they're often dismissed as a massively commercial talentless stadium-pop band. They're not an unpopular band, obviously. Millions of people like them, but the average music snob probably doesn't rate them very highly. U2 aren't my favourite band but there's no escaping the fact that Achtung Baby was a great, original and groundbreaking album, or that The Joshua Tree was one of the best albums of the last 30 years. The U2 of the 80s and early 90s were a very daring, exciting and talented band. People tend to overlook this now because they don't like Bono.

I'd be curious to hear other people's thoughts on Bono. Do you like him? Or is he annoying?

New Blog

In case anyone's interested, I've started another blog. It's about movies and can be found here. I still plan to update this one from time to time, so stick around.

Barney covers Tupac

This is hilarious. There's a bit of swearing in it, by the way.

Music Confessional

I know this blog is meant to be about music but I've come to realise something: I only like certain aspects of that very thing.

When some people say that they like music, they mean they're interested in band members, back catalogues and rock'n'roll history. I don't find that stuff very interesting. What I like about it is how it sounds; how it can accompany you in your day, how it's available at the flick of a switch, and I love the vibe that a certain song can resonate, in contrast to another. It doesn't matter to me who wrote a song or why they wrote it. Not that I don't take any notice of that stuff; if you're going to find new music (new as in "I've never heard this before", not necessarily the latest release.), then it's very helpful to know what you like and who makes what you like. I find this a much more liberating approach because I don't have any 'allegiance' to an artist or band. I don't have to care whether Enya's latest album is good or if it's rubbish, and I'm not obliged to own all of Bob Dylan's albums; some of them are crap!

I acknowledge, this is a very consumerist approach to music listening but I don't see a problem with that.

Something else I don't like as much: live music. I don't dislike it; I've been to concerts and thoroughly enjoyed them, and there are some groups I think it would be AWESOME to see live. But I don't usually get that excited when I consider the prospect of going to a concert. Some would say that music is at its best when it's performed on stage, to an audience; that it's meant to be heard live. I don't agree. I'm more than happy to listen to music on a CD and I love the thought that someone can record something in 1967, I can listen to it in 2008 and enjoy it just as much as anyone. I've heard people lament the fact that they were born too late to be around in the 60s, so that they could experience the Beatles live, or so that they could hear the Rolling Stones when they were fresh, because, apparently it's just not the same as listening to it now. I'm sure it isn't but I'm quite content to listen to it on CD.

Dishwashing Favourites

At our house, we have a selection of CDs that we like to put on to accompany us in the task of doing the washing up. It makes the process much more enjoyable than it should be.
Here is the collection:

Michael Jackson
Marvin Gaye
Scissor Sisters
The Four Tops (anything motown is good)
Madonna
Queen

Cooking music is great too. It can be more ambient than that of dishwashing. And harder to categorise, probably because there is more variety involved in the cooking process.

The Power Ballad

Phil suggested I do a post on power ballads. I had no hesitation. Actually, it turns out I did hesitate. That sentence was written about a week ago, whereas the sentence you're currently reading was written (hopefully) in the "present day". Who would've thought it possible to procrastinate in order to avoid doing a blog post! Anyway...

Picture, if you will, the lights gleaming on the beads of sweat, dripping from a generous amount of long blond curls. Chest hair and facial hair, entwined. The man (there's no doubting that's what he is), walks effortlessly and purposefully to the wooden bench, sits down and closes his eyes... That was the last time I used a public sauna. So, onto power ballads.

There is nothing quite like the sight of a grown, permed man wearing a skimpy lycra outfit, pouring his heart out to a mass of mullets in a stadium. The power ballad is usually packaged as a reflective interlude to the testosterone-charged, riff-laden ROCK that fills up the set list at the average stadium-rock concert. In the eighties. It's very easy to predict the structure of the song. It will begin with the soft, hopeful plucking of an acoustic guitar. If not, then probably the graceful, ambient chords of a synthesiser. If not, then certainly the restrained, minor-key melody of the piano. Probably a grand piano that looks hopelessly out of place, yet oddly suitable in the seedy surroundings of the film clip. The instrumental intro will lead into the opening verse up until the chorus, where the "power" part of the ballad rocks up. The guitars will become distorted, the vocals more aggressive, and the band members' hair will be tossed back to emphasise the poignancy of the moment. After this, expect a heartfelt guitar solo, climaxing in an even more high-pitched version of the chorus, presumably the pants are suddenly, somehow tightened at the crotch, at this point.

Europe's Carrie is a great example for the standard power ballad. Have a listen (and a look, if you have a strong stomach). If you listen carefully, it sounds like the singer is saying "Gary", instead of "Carrie". Or perhaps that happens if you listen carelessly. I'm not sure. Or it could just be me.

The most important aspect of the power ballad, is the outfit. Can you imagine how fun it must have been to be an eighties rockstar? "So should I wear the sleeveless denim jacket with the purple leather pants, or the velvet-lycra combo?"
"Why don't you wear the gold hotpants? You haven't pulled on those babies since the Eastern Europe tour in '84."
"Hey good call man, but what are you gonna wear?"
"Two words: Spandex. Jumpsuit."



What would you wear if you could be king or queen of the power ballad?

Never Mind the Buzzcocks

If you're not familiar with it, Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a British music-quiz show. It's similar to Spicks and Specks but 150, 000 times better (actually, NMTB was the inspiration behind S&S). There's much less focus on points and more on comedy. And the comedy is brilliant! How could it not be? Bill Bailey is one of the team captains. Much better than that New Zealander with the double chin. The host, Simon Amstell (and his predecessor) is funnier than Adam Hills as well.

Anyway, there are quite a few full episodes on YouTube. You have to watch them in 3 parts though. Here are the links to one of the funniest episodes episodes, I've seen:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3