Monday, July 20, 2009

The Rock Of Ages


In my quest to see bands that I missed in their heyday 20 years ago, I went to a Def Leppard concert this weekend. Poison, another first, and Cheap Trick, whom I'd seen twice before, opened.

It was nice to see all these bands who have been around 20-30 years out there with their original lineups, still playing together after all these years. (Well, that's not entirely true in the case of Def Leppard, but Steve Clark's death precludes him from touring, so that's all right.) And it's actually a bit of an oddity for them to do so, because there are a lot of big-name bands out there from the '70s and '80s who aren't touring in their original iterations. Journey is without the services of long-time vocalist Steve Perry. Foreigner is basically Mick Jones and a bunch of guys he picked up along the way. Styx makes due by not playing the homo songs that Dennis DeYoung wrote before they kicked him out of the band. Dokken has been a revolving door of guitarists since George Lynch left. Ozzy Osbourne isn't on speaking terms with the original Blizzard of Ozz band. Even Van Halen hasn't toured with its original lineup for 25 years. The fact that Cheap Trick and Poison are still playing with their original lineups says a lot about these bands. And I'm willing to grant an "original lineup" exception to Def Leppard, since "new guy" Viv Campbell has been with the band for 17 years. (Much like how Brian Johnson is the "new guy" in AC/DC, even though he's been with the band for nearly as many years as Bonn Scott lived.)

The funny thing about these bands is that they outlived the thing that destroyed them. When Nevermind came out in '91, the music world changed, and all of the hard rock and glam metal bands that had dominated the previous decade just fell off the planet. Suddenly, alternative rock was the big thing. (I've always been been bothered by the connotation of "alternative" rock, because, when an "alternative" band is more popular than its "mainstream" counterparts, exactly what is it alternative to?) But, 15 years later, of all the big-name bands that dominated the '90s, only two still exist: Pearl Jam and Stone Temple Pilots (who just got back together after a decade-long hiatus). Everyone else faded to black. (I don't include Alice in Chains here, even though they're giving it a try with a new lead singer, as, truth be told, they're a heavy metal band who just happened to have the right sound at the right time and were lucky enough to get lumped in with the rest of the grunge ilk.)

The fact that people actually still go to see Poison and Def Leppard tells me that these bands never ceased being popular; they were merely waiting for the "alternative" thing to die down. As bands that now make most of their money from touring, I'd say they're more popular now than the bands that usurped them in the '90s. I saw Soundgarden, at the height of their popularity, at the same arena back in '94, and there were not as many people at that show as there were at this Def Leppard show. And I'm betting that if Soundgarden DID get back together, they wouldn't pack as many in.

I hate to say it, as much as I hate the '80s, I'm starting to appreciate some of those bands more and more. I know: it's a scary thought, but they're starting to make the bands of the '90s seem like a bad joke.

7 comments:

Jesus Melendez said...

Aaaah, remember when we opted to watch Cheap Trick instead of Ben Folds (at least I think it was Ben Folds)...good times! And then...Metallica!

BOOM!

But seriously, regarding STYX...they DO sing some of Dennis DeYoung's faggier numbers. It's just that Lawrence Gowan is banging away on the keyboard singing "Lady" and not the silver maned DeYoung.

DeYoung, on the other hand, will NOT play non-DeYoung classics when he tours with the "The Music of Styx".

And yes, I've seen both incarnations in recent years.

Speaking of bands touring sans original members and/or frontmen...my emotions ran the gamut tonight when I found out Barenaked Ladies are playing the local On the Waterfront festival here in your old stomping grounds.

First...it was overwhelming joy as me and the family are big BNL fans. Then, sadness. I mean, when the fuck did Stephen Page leave the band?

I'll tell you...February.

So, I'll be there in September, singing along to all the old standards amid Ed Robertson's witty banter and whatever shitty replacement they trot out to sing Page's parts.

Oh well.

At least when my favorite bands (Foo Fighters and Pearl Jam) swap out band members it is a guitar player here and a few drummers there.

What were we talking about?

E said...

Remember the shit band we watched on the side stage instead of Rancid? That was a good tradeoff.

Yet another proof of my point: every band at that Lollapalooza that didn't exist in the '80s doesn't exist now...with the exception of Rancid, whom I just saw two weeks ago, and The Ramones, who pulled a reverse Spinal Tap and everyone but the drummer died.

Barenaked Ladies: That's still a band?

There's ANOTHER '90s band that just went away.

Anonymous said...

Don't confuse longevity w excellence. N

E said...

Tune in for tomorrow's post. You'll be quite disappointed about what I have to say about some "excellent" bands.

Anonymous said...

I'm not speaking about any bands in particular. But making an argument that Poison and Def Leppard are "better" (I assume you mean artistically? See, your whole argument is weak since you don't even define what makes a "better band") simply because they can sell out shows 20 years later.
By that same measurement, Michael Bay is a better director than Martin Scorcese.

Anonymous said...

And by the way, don't forget that the 80's had Husker Du, Replacements, Pixies, Sonic Youth, Jane's Ad, Television, Smiths, Cure, U2, REM, later Police and Clash and a hundred of other alternative bands to Glam Rock.

Anonymous said...

BTW, yes, I used the term "alternative" just to piss you off.