tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4587617789284704306.post2466307044420716607..comments2023-03-24T09:57:32.735-03:00Comments on Blip on the Radar: Rock for RelevanceMark Palermohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09834848355885871487noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4587617789284704306.post-32541954610166327652007-07-20T01:39:00.000-03:002007-07-20T01:39:00.000-03:00There's a bit of a Kiss-without-makeup thing going...There's a bit of a Kiss-without-makeup thing going on with this album for sure. But the theatrical, monstrous aspect of Marilyn Manson was never holding him back. It's part of what made the act so impassioned. Manson needs to be an amplification, not cut down to the size of his listeners.Mark Palermohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09834848355885871487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4587617789284704306.post-78553952572523255622007-07-19T15:40:00.000-03:002007-07-19T15:40:00.000-03:00Manson is really starting to remind me of Madonna,...Manson is really starting to remind me of Madonna, in that they are both malleable pop artists, and both have seemingly become unable to reinvent themselves in a way which captures the public's imagination. This newest incarnation (which to my mind is intended to be a "Man Behind the Curtain" sort of thing) lacks impact specifically because Brian Warner isn't as interesting as Marilyn Manson is. For an artist who hides behind a larger than life image to emerge from behind it, who he really is has to be compelling in some way. As far as I can tell he's just some depressed dude who isn't sure where his life is going. Join the club dude.alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09834212543533775589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4587617789284704306.post-7166177530932502772007-07-19T14:51:00.000-03:002007-07-19T14:51:00.000-03:00The Pumpkins - I definitely agree that the album l...The Pumpkins - I definitely agree that the album lacks an indulgent rock grandeur. I can't really see it being as important to any kid today as the band's really great albums were, or can still be. But you should listen to the expanded version. It really illustrates what this project might have been. I definitely think it's very listenable, in either case.<BR/><BR/>Cornell - He's a great lyricist. The orchestration on "No Such Thing" is overdone, and robs the song of its singer-songwriter value. There's some complex and pure feelings in there that I think get overlooked in the arrangement. The intimacy of tracks like "Disappearing Act" is where I wish more of the album was pitched. <I>Euphoria Morning</I> is the superior record, but this one's better than it at first lets on.<BR/><BR/>Patton - Absolutely. I was listening to "Pink Cigarette" this morning. It had been ages. Holy shit. <BR/><BR/>Manson - I appreciate his willingness to reinvent himself so often. But this time it isn't bold enough. One of the things that makes Manson exciting to me is that he's an over-the-top mainstream teenage property. The vast, culturally satiric, angst-ridden sci fi visions of past albums get compressed into too small a package. I don't think it's more "human" than previous albums, just "human" in a different way. Like <I>Zeitgeist</I>, the sound is lacking in grand gestures. <BR/><BR/>That said, I find it an enjoyable listen.<BR/><BR/>Jesse is right about the hermetic annoyance of the "Heart-Shaped Glasses" video. Musicians should rarely direct their own videos. <BR/><BR/>Bad Brains - It's fine, but compared to past work, it's barely a blip on the radar. The final track "Peace Be Unto Thee" is, however, quite lovely.Mark Palermohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09834848355885871487noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4587617789284704306.post-335117918975575722007-07-19T12:13:00.000-03:002007-07-19T12:13:00.000-03:00I think Manson's new single and video serve as evi...I think Manson's new single and video serve as evidence of how spoiled he's been... he doesn't even have to pretend to be gay anymore, or exploit deformities... he's going for the pedestrian shock of being devoted to a pretty girl that's too wild to live.<BR/><BR/>He can basically fuck off with that. I liked the track fine musically until I saw the video, now I just can't exorcise the imagery, the self-pity or the... I don't know, disappointment. This is not what I hoped for from Brian Warner cleaned up.Jesse Dangerouslyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04206473392786340457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4587617789284704306.post-45280750709977274992007-07-19T04:53:00.000-03:002007-07-19T04:53:00.000-03:00The Pumpkins record would be a lot more listenable...The Pumpkins record would be a lot more listenable if Corgan would have indulged himself more. That's right, more. Dude used to do all kinds of stuff, ballads, electronic pieces etc. This one sounds like he set out to make an album of 'Zero' style songs and thus it has no real ebb or flow. Like you said, a collection of potential singles, album craft is hella weak. <BR/><BR/>I haven't heard Cornell's record, but the single is inexcusably boring. Dude, needs other people to play off of to make anything tolerable, he just isn't that interesting as a solo artist. <BR/><BR/>Once again, haven't heard the Fantomas record, but you're on the money. He's a conceptual artist whose ideas all end up sounding the same somehow. <BR/><BR/>I've mellowed on Manson, in that I can appreciate his pop sensibility, or at least the pop sensibilities of his various collaborators. Turns out he can't do shit when the only dude he has to work with is Tim fucking Skold, who's work isn't even on par with the garbage his former bandmates in KMFDM are churning out at an alarming album a year rate. <BR/><BR/>The White Stripes do the White Stripes better than anything else, so how much you like them depends on how tolerant of their schtick you are. I usually fall in the area where I enjoy their songs when I hear them but can't imagine sitting through one of their albums. <BR/><BR/>Haven't heard the Bad Brains record. I want it to be good though, just because I love the idea of the all black hardcore band with overtly religious lyrics so much. Probably better that I never hear it. <BR/><BR/>God Mark, you make me hate my music writing.alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09834212543533775589noreply@blogger.com