BY MIKEY MIGO
The music world right now has tons of events and insanity going on. A lot of it is just mindless entertainment to feed our feeble minds, yet some is sorta relevant and intriguing. None the less, we all keep up on it and talk about these things with friends and in forums (like 411's great forum).
But there is that line between real news and celebrity brouhaha. So I'm going to break it down with some seasonal wit.
Let's see if these news items (all of which can be found on 411mania) are tricks or treats…
Kanye West's "Thank You and You're Welcome"(That's a book, people!)
Chicago's pride and joy is releasing a book soon. It's going to be full of his normal witty and controversial "Kanye-isms". It will cover his rise to fame and most likely a lot of controversial rants. Presales will begin soon and will only be $10.
Trick or Treat? TREAT. Kanye is a very outspoken person and unless you're completely ignorant you'd know that most of what his says should be taken tongue-in-cheek. Ten bucks? As long as it's not like $10 for ten pages and a drawing from 3rd grade then I'm cool with it. He doesn't let anything stop him from speaking his mind or expressing himself, which makes me feel that this book will be very interesting and probably the first of many from the multi-talented guru.
Sex Pistols Reunite
Johnny Rotten and company are reuniting for a small tour in Brittan next month. After years of people asking for it, they finally got it. They held their first show reunited this past week in LA. They played pretty much their entire catalogue, forgot words, had sound problems, and from what I hear it was hot as hell in the venue.
Trick or Treat? TRICK. I love Johnny Rotten as a character and persona. He's the dickhead bad guy that you're enthralled by. The problem is that The Sex Pistols were never really that good and are on a pedestal as "punk gods". A tour can do more harm to their legacy and a small reunion tour isn't worth the risk. I know the whole spiel about how "they're punk! They don't give a bloody hell what anyone thinks!" But C'mon…
U2 in 3D
Shot at seven different shows on the Vertigo Tour in 2006, U2 embarked on a very ambitious and creative idea. They would present the footage in one film to be shown in theatres like many other artists have done in the past. The thing that separates this project and others is the fact that they're releasing it in 3D. Originally set for the fall of 07, it was pushed back to early 08 and has been once again been getting attention.
Trick or Treat? TREAT. Say what you want about Bono, but he's one hell of front man. That and lets not forget that The Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen Jr. are three of the best at what they do and can steal a show on any given night. The world knows U2 and their impactful music, innovations, and genuine love for their fans. While this idea would have been great with any artist, it being U2 only makes it that much better.
Diddy Vodka
Diddy is now 50/50 owner of the Ciroc brand of vodka. It's not an endorsement deal, sponsorship, or anything like that. He's seriously involved with the business and plans to help market and brand the high end beverage.
Trick or Treat? TRICK. I appreciate the fact that the Didster is a great business man and is expanding his empire, but c'mon. The man should put some more focus into a new album. I'm not one of those Diddy haters like a lot of people and have enjoyed the majority of his work for what it was.
Kid Rock: Back in the Spotlight
With the release of "Rock and Roll Jesus", Kid Rock pretty much came out of nowhere and reclaimed his spotlight. His album hit the number one spot on the billboard charts, he made Tommy Lee his bitch, and he even got in a parking lot brawl with a rowdy customer.
Trick or Treat? TREAT. Yeah, I know "He sucks! His songs suck! Blah Blah Blah". I completely disagree with that music snob bullshit. Kid Rock is a very talented man that has kept true to himself the entire run of his career. He's not trying to revolutionize music or get political like many others. He goes out there and puts out quality music that you can crank up on your car radio as you accelerate your speed. I'd take his ROCK MUSIC over any of the current pop-rock/emo/whiney indie rock any day of the week. Apparently I'm not alone because he did make it to number one on the charts and is back in full force. It's not that "everyone just has bad taste", it's just that everyone is tired of pretentious phonies who are only talented because pitchfork says so. Crack open a beer and enjoy. He's the real deal.
K-Fed vs. Britney: Custody Battle
K-Fed and Britney had two kids and got divorced. Then drama ensued. Blah Blah Blah…
Trick or Treat? TRICK. This is not relevant news to the music world. It's 100% pure tabloid reporting. The custody over their two children should be private. This isn't like paparazzi snapping shots of them outside of a McDonalds, its family business. We're all celebrity whores and despite being overly critical of their every move, we read these news items and watch E! to keep up with this. It's water cooler talk just to be water cooler talk. Britt doing her normal career destroying stuff is one thing, but this crosses a line.
New Metallica Album
The illegal downloader's best friend, Lars Ulrich has recently gone on record to say that the new Metallica album is going to be released in February. The songs are to be more epic and produced by Rick Rubin rather than their normal Bob Rock productions.
Trick or Treat? TREAT. It's gotten to be redundant when talking to someone about Metallica that they'll say "I love Metallica's old stuff". Is it really fair to compare some of the greatest metal albums of all time to really ANYTHING? I don't think so. As people they can annoy you all you want, but saying their newer music isn't any good is pretty lame. I think it's only fair that their fans give them a chance come February. With Rick Rubin on board, there's a good chance on things being mixed up. That can only be a good thing.
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