(this must be) Pop!

2.20.2004

It's like, Hello Nasty, where you been?

News news news.

The Beastie Boys' Hello Nasty was the first rap cd I ever bought. (No, I am not counting the tape of Young MC (Stone Cold Rhymin') that I bought when I was like, 11. Nor am I counting Milli Vanilli. Shut up; you owned that, too.) Anyway, they're back, and I am extremely pleased.

Most of the time, I am broke, which means when things like the West Wing come out on DVD, I do not buy them. I whine, I plead, I lust after them, but I do not buy them, because then I could not buy groceries for two weeks. Now Weezer is going to put out a damn DVD, so it looks like it's crash diet time. Hurrah!
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 1:58 PM

stripes

2.19.2004

Can you spot the factual problem here?

First seen in Mary's LJ;

By Bill Picture -- Staff Writer
bpicture@examiner.com
Published on Wednesday, February 18, 2004
Lance Bass, the most forgettable (and least cute) member of 'N Sync, says rumors that the boy band foursome is kaput now that Justin Timberlake is a big solo superstar are bogus and claims that he, Justin, JC and Joey are going back into the studio soon to work on a new album. "We're 100 percent going ahead with another 'N Sync project," Bass said.


Ahahahahaha!

Okay, I know a lot of you don't know why that's hilariously ironic. The secret is to realize that Nsync has FIVE members, including a guy named Chris (whose ass Eminem offered to kick in a single once), making it highly unlikely that Lance is actually the most forgettable. The least cute... Well, now that's debatable.

Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 4:19 PM

stripes

2.18.2004

An early clue to the new direction.

Having already complained once about how I can't listen to the radio, I feel it necessary to point out another weird anomaly that's somehow wormed, or is currently worming, its way into pop culture.

Over the summer, a friend I foisted Sloan upon sent me to check out Rooney. Understandably, I guess; they both sound like they grew up on classic rock and wish that's what they were playing, but with a strong pop sensibility (which they'd likely deny having.) The two don't actually sound alike beyond that; but then, I don't think Rooney's settled into a sound yet. Their first album sounds, well, like a first album. Decent music, catchy and easy to sing along with, and not that sophisticated. Really, it's an... okay album. One track I can't stand for sheer pretentiousness (as the lyrics basically boil down to, "We're so much more awesome than N Sync or Britney Spears 'cause we're real music, so there," to which I answer, "if you want to mock pop music, please take out the clap along, "woo woo!" repeats in the chorus of every other song on the album,") several unremarkable songs, a song that instantly got placed in my Super Dance Pop playlist and I love, and a song that references The Never Ending Story. So, overall, not bad.

What's strange is that I actually keep running into Rooney while flipping channels. VH1 uses them as background music in promos and on specials all the time. (To my great chagrin, they usually use that damn Popstars song.) Last month they appeared on the OC, which seems to be 90210 for the next generation, and thus every sixteen year old girl in the country watched. And then this morning, I ran into Rooney on TRL; not on the countdown itself, but as a VJ pick. But there was a time back in the halcyon days of 1999 when that would have guaranteed them a following within a few hours. And while TRL no longer has that kind of pull, the combination of the three has to mean something.

I'm not saying this is anything major. Just that maybe if Rooney and The Darkness combined their evil powers, I'd never have to listen to Puddle of Mudd again. And that's a dream worth dreaming, yo.
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Becky on 6:54 PM

stripes

quoting Jian

Hee!
"...i've scolded myself when i've accidentally worn my pink frilly shirt on the air. i know that was wrong. or when i've giggled my schoolgirl (princess) giggle over JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE on the air. that's wrong too. and who cares if justin is cute?! i don't have to talk about it. i should just keep quiet about how much i like justin, like hot cbc newsman MARK KELLEY would."


Exactly!!
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 1:32 PM

stripes

Justify My Love

The things I do for this blog.

Today, I went and downloaded The Grey Album, which I just heard about this morning. Assuming the rest of you have no idea what I'm talking about, The Grey Album is the brainchild of apparently eccentric DJ Mighty Mouse (no, I swear), who listened to Jay-Z's Black Album and the Beatles' White Album and thought... "Hey! If the Beastie Boys can do it, so can I!"

The Beastie Boys had the good sense not to let Jay-Z rap about fashion ("Change Clothes") over the top of Piggies.

It's possible I'm too much of a Beatles fan, and not enough of a Jay-Z fan, for this to be a fair critique. I literally grew up listening to the Beatles; one of my earliest memories is memorizing who was whom based on the photo on the Meet the Beatles album. It is a family tradition for us all to spend 2 hours on Sunday mornings listening to Breakfast With The Beatles on WICB, to the point where my sister actually hosted the show for a while. Jay-Z and I, on the other hand, basically have a relationship where I go "Meh. He's no Eminem. And isn't he dating Beyonce? Blehhh." I prefer my rap fast and smart, a la Marshall Mathers, Black Eyed Peas, Missy Elliot and the Beastie Boys.

But I do like experimental stuff; one of my favorite hip hop albums is "So... How's Your Girl?" by Handsome Boy Modelling School, which features samples from Chris Elliot's Dream On, and a couple of cameos by Father Guido Sarducci. You heard me. It's the greatest rap album ever to feature That Guy From Gilda Radner's Comedy Special. I'm also a big fan of Gorillaz, and not just because Damon is hot. I'll be seeing N.E.R.D. in concert next month, and I'm very excited. So why doesn't this combination push my buttons? A bunch of reasons, but basically the first rap album I really listened to was Paul's Boutique; I expect all rap albums to sample liberally from an insane variety of sources and put them together in ways that would bend your brain if you tried to figure them out. This, on the other hand, is simply A + B = AB. He took the Beatles and put Jay-Z over top of them. It's exactly what it sounds like it would be.

In general I'm just not a huge fan of this kind of sampling; Mighty Mouse has basically taken one or two riffs from songs on the White Album (I'm currently suffering through the guitar intro to Rocky Raccoon over and over) and put Jay-Z's album over it, whole sale. The Beatles deserve better than endlessly singing "Can you take me back where I'm going/ brother can you take me back?" underneath Jay-Z giving shout outs to all his homies. It's gross.

I didn't enjoy this when it was Puff Daddy over Led Zeppelin, I'm not a huge fan of "Sing For The Moment," which is Eminem over Aerosmith, and I don't endorse this. Sampling is fine with me, as is outright stealing musical tracks, as long as the end result is interesting and innovative. This is just boring. The curious, however, can download it for themselves here.
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 12:48 PM

stripes

Oh, JC....

So I just accidentally watched JC perform on Leno. And really...

The boy was wearing bright pink, and then declared himself the Pepto Bismol King. And then talked about how disappointing it was to not play at the ProBowl because "he needs to earn a living, too." And then referred to Paris Hilton as "a really sweet girl, no really." And while it did make me laugh, it wasn't laughing in a good way.

Also, JC, you should maybe stop taking wardrobe tips from Carson.
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Becky on 12:46 AM

stripes

2.17.2004

three links

Every time I swear I'm going to stop writing about Justin, he ends up in the stupid headlines. So, Boston Globe, you get a pass on the article you wrote about him today, despite serious factual problems and the apparent fact that whoever wrote it was an idiot. (It seems someone's upset because Justin's not as good as Michael Jackson for the following reason; Justified isn't as good as Michael's Off The Wall album, which had really catchy hits, including 3 Michael co-wrote, while Justin is clearly less talented because he co-wrote all the tracks on his album. She's not arguing about the quality of the songs, though, just the number of them written by the performer, so... What? Stupid Boston Globe. That's not an argument, that's a contradiction. Get your shit together or get a better editor. Good call on the Stevie Wonder comparison, though.)

Aaaaaanyway. Here's a link and really easy punchline. Mere days after signing on for his first starring movie roll, Justin's signed on for his second, and this time, the film is called "Wanna-Be." I'll let you make your own joke in a second. First, you should know it's about
"...a college baseball prodigy who gets injured and returns to his hometown in New York and tries to assimilate into gangster culture despite his high school friends' attempts to keep him on the straight and narrow."

Frankly, that makes the jokes even easier. But it should have been basketball, people. Duh.

Then, some of the most terrifying news I've seen in ages; two horrible blights on the face of pop culture are rumored to be getting closer. I mean, ewwww. There's absolutely nothing to this article; Britney said she has a crush on Ben Affleck, and some anonymous person said they're perfect for each other, and that's it. It's just, they could both use the publicity, and it's not like either of them is adverse to public relationships. I don't like either one of them on their own, and just think of the horrible, mutant, untalented babies they'd have. The horror... The horror.
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 2:09 PM

stripes

2.16.2004

e-mail my heart

Look, Christina, I'm a big fan of songs like "Where is the love?" But there's no call for you to go and write conciliatory letters to Britney Spears. You're better than that, honey. No, I swear.

Once upon a time, in the long-lost days of 1999, there was Britney Spears, and allegedly It Was Good. Much like the Backstreet Boys immediately had shadowy little brother wanna-be's ('N Sync) who eventually outshone them, Britney had a gaggle of blond dopplegangers, including, but not limited to, Christina, Jessica Simpson and Mandy Moore. Backstreet was easier to usurp, however; boyband members are designed to be interchangeable by nature, so it was relatively easy for poppier, sparklier, more talented boys to come along and win hearts. (Boybanders with actual name recognition, like Justin and Nick Carter, are anomalies.) Britney, on the other hand, led off the late-90's pop phenomenon, and in between being every man's wet dream and putting out blockbuster singles, she also created herself as the best selling comodity in the universe, and dated Justin. All those things differentiated her easily from the others.

Mandy eventually found her niche in acting; Jessica went on to be stupid on tv, to great acclaim. Christina became the sluttiest and dirtiest of them all, much to my great amusement. She managed to make it pretty Grrrl Power; somehow wearing chaps and bikini were a feminist statement to her, and I can support that. Sure, her singles don't sell as well as Britney's, but Christina can actually sing, and she has some artistic credibility, and she told the world that Fred Durst sucks in bed, so I'm a fan. No one noticed, but she made out with Madonna, too. And she hosted the European VMAs, and she was kinda kick-ass about it. I'm down with Christina.

Britney, on the other hand, is having a rough year, and it's only February. There was that little marriage thing, and then all the magazine covers that trumpeted "Britney Got Married Because She Misses Justin!" or because she's threatened by Cameron, or whatever. Her new single sounds like ass, and all Britney can do to sell it is literally be naked, and maybe use her genitals to figure out who the secret agents are. She was on Ellen, and Ellen couldn't get a single laugh. Ellen! Who is hilarious! It was so sad!

What I'm saying, Christina, (and this is the danger of taking Pop Culture Seriously; what's a throwaway on Best Week Ever's blog is a freaking essay here) is that there's no need for you to reconcile with Britney. Britney sucks. If you're looking to reach out and touch someone, how about Missy or Pink again? That would be awesome. Just not Fred Durst again, honey, 'cause... Ewwwww.

Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 8:17 PM

stripes

Guest entry.

So we have a new comment system, because apparently, people occasionally have things to say that are longer than 1000 characters. Much to our great shock. So, the new system was recommened by Jeff, so that people can really tell us everything they have to say.

Which translates to, "Because Jeff likes writing essays." So, other than recommending the new comment system, he also sent me a long email to explain the difference between emo and nu-metal, responding to my Top 20 countdown entry. I tried to find a way to summarize his explanation, but it's just easier to post it all.

So, Jeff's manifesto:

---
In fairness to emo, the bands listed in this category almost exclusively fall into the hideous bastard child of music known as nu-metal, that horrible beast that is making pop radio unlistenable, whose adherents would probably beat the hell out of the sensitive, sweater-wearing, Weezer-loving emo kids.

Thematically, there's the same ethos of whiny self-pity, but emo kids mostly sing about problems with girls, whereas nu-metal is about hate, self-hate, self-confidence, suicide, feeling like an angry outcast, etc. The imagery of nu metal is predominantly dirt, darkness, and pain. This explains how I was able to hear an ad on a hard rock station that unironically listed, nonconsecutively, a song called "Mudshovel," a song by Puddle of Mudd, a song by Stereomud, and a song by Mudvayne. These are people who heard Alice in Chains and, without checking to see if they themselves had talent, went out and formed bands.

Emo, on the other hand, likes to think it sprang fully formed from the head of Weezer's "Pinkerton" (some argue it goes back to Husker Du). The theme is mostly what it feels like to be a guy who can't get girls (not many chicks doing the emo thing). Songs about losing girls also work well.

Musically, nu-metal is the terrible offspring of classic metal (see also, bands with 'metal' in their name), Alice In Chains hard-grunge, and rap-rock pioneers, Rage Against the Machine. Korn was one of the earliest in the genre, but now everyone's doing it. Screams are a plus, hard guitars are almost always required (they make exceptions for Staind and the occasional self-pity ballad), and the music should convey menace. This includes Korn, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park (who have a much greater knack for production and hooks than other nu-metal folks, but still have lyrics taken from a 12-year-old boy's poetry journal), Puddle of Mudd, Evanescence, Chevelle, Hoobastank, Three Days Grace, and probably some others that I don't know.*

Emo is the descendent of pop, punk, and folk - they love Weezer, the Get Up Kids, the Promise Ring, and Rainer Maria. Emo shouldn't be abrasive (though scream-o is a whole other category), and it should have a strong pop sensibility. Sometimes it's very punky (Hot Rod Circuit), sometimes more poppy (Jimmy Eat World), and sometimes mostly acoustic.

While nu-metal has been all the rage for going on four years, emo has only flirted briefly with the charts from groups like Dashboard Confessional and Jimmy Eat World. It was quickly jettisoned in favor of pop-punk, which you also see on those charts in the form of A.F.I. and, sadly, Good Charlotte.

So, while emo and nu metal are both incredibly whiny, I'd really hate to see a genre which, despite its irritating fans, has produced some great stuff lumped in with the genre that has given us Fred Durst.

I promise if the chart were made up of whiny emo bands, you'd find it less repugnant, if still a little self-absorbed.

*Odd sub-phenomenon is Christian nu-metal, which includes Evanescence and Chevelle. Look closely and you'll spot some gospel. Amusing, no?
---

Thank you, Jeff. You can now comment at will.
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Becky on 8:05 PM

stripes

e-mail my heart

Look, Christina, I'm a big fan of songs like "Where is the love?" But there's no call for you to go and write conciliatory letters to Britney Spears. You're better than that, honey. No, I swear.

Once upon a time, in the long-lost days of 1999, there was Britney Spears, and allegedly It Was Good. Much like the Backstreet Boys immediately had shadowy little brother wanna-be's ('N Sync) who eventually outshone them, Britney had a gaggle of blond dopplegangers, including, but not limited to, Christina, Jessica Simpson and Mandy Moore. Backstreet was easier to usurp, however; boyband members are created to designed to be interchangeable by nature, so it was relatively easy for poppier, sparklier, more talented boys to come along and win hearts. (Boybanders with actual name recognition, like Justin and Nick Carter, are anomalies.) Britney, on the other hand, led off the late-90's pop phenomenon, and in between being every man's wet dream and putting out blockbuster singles, she also created herself as the best selling comodity in the universe, and dated Justin. All those things differentiated her easily from the others.

Mandy eventually found her niche in acting; Jessica went on to be stupid on tv, to great acclaim. Christina became the sluttiest and dirtiest of them all, much to my great amusement. She managed to make it pretty Grrrl Power; somehow wearing chaps and bikini were a feminist statement to her, and I can support that. Sure, her singles don't sell as well as Britney's, but Christina can actually sing, and she has some artistic credibility, and she told the world that Fred Durst sucks in bed, so I'm a fan. No one noticed, but she made out with Madonna, too. And she hosted the European VMAs, and she was kinda kick-ass about it. I'm down with Christina.

Britney, on the other hand, is having a rough year, and it's only February. There was that little marriage thing, and then all the magazine covers that trumpeted "Britney Got Married Because She Misses Justin!" or because she's threatened by Cameron, or whatever. Her new single sounds like ass, and all Britney can do to sell it is literally be naked, and maybe use her genitals to figure out who the secret agents are. She was on Ellen, and Ellen couldn't get a single laugh. Ellen! Who is hilarious! It was so sad!

What I'm saying, Christina, (and this is the danger of taking Pop Culture Seriously; what's a throwaway on Best Week Ever's blog is a freaking essay here) is that there's no need for you to reconcile with Britney. Britney sucks. If you're looking to reach out and touch someone, how about Missy or Pink again? That would be awesome. Just not Fred Durst again, honey, 'cause... Ewwwww.
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 7:36 PM

stripes

2.15.2004

God damn, that DJ made my day

I already live in a town where, after winning the Super Bowl, idiots flooded Kenmore Square and chanted "Yankees suck!" while tipping over cars and setting fires.

Might as well make them hate us more.

A-Rod! A-Rod! A-Rod!
Comments-[ comments.]
# Posted by Rachel on 3:21 PM

stripes

Pop culture, taken seriously.

stars
VH1
E!
MTV
Nysncline.com
Sloan
Pop Culture Junk Mail
Yankees.com
Wil Wheaton dot net
X-Entertainment
This Lousy T-Shirt
Tiny Portraits
Adventures in Lame
Blogger
Comment This!

A Latenight Caffiene Production.

stars
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