Summer vs. Winter

Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start to summer. I always think there are "summer" bands and "winter" bands. This might be ridiculous since most acts tour in the summer, but it's more a vibe I get from music rather than a live show.

I've always considered Cinderella a "winter" band. Maybe it's because of Long Cold Winter - or maybe it's because the band's videos always seemed to have somewhat dark imagery.

On the other hand, I've always felt Poison a true summer band. Many people - including myself - equate parties with summer. Poison is the ultimate party band. If you need a good time, just dial up Bret, Rikki, Bobby and C.C.

Another band I've always considered a "winter" act is White Lion. Again, maybe it's the black and white imagery often used in White Lion videos, but it seems to me Mane Attraction sounds better when I'm locked up inside during a snow storm.

Like Poison, I consider Def Leppard a summer band. While bands like Cinderella and White Lion used black and white film and severe images for videos, Def Leppard pretty much always kept their themes light - or at least in full color. Even the video for "Love Bites" alternated between black background and full color. Plus, the Leps always have a big laser show and that to me is the epitome of summer.

Here's Cinderella "Heartbreak Station"

Rikki is Innocent!

From Blabbermouth, via Myspace:

Poison drummer Rikki Rockett was exonerated of a felony rape charge filed in Mississippi stemming from a September 23, 2007 incident in which a Neshoba County, Mississippi woman claimed that Rockett had forcibly raped her. Rockett was not in Mississippi during September 2007. The Neshoba County District Attorney refused to prosecute the case after determining that Rockett was not the person who committed the alleged rape. The charges carry a potential life sentence. Rockett said, "I want to sincerely thank my lawyers Barry Tarlow and Mi Kim for their commitment to my case and their terrific legal work that exonerated me of any wrongdoing.

Hooray! There is justice in this world after all. No matter what your opinion of Poison or Glam, no one should endure what happened to Rikki. Of course this case brings up the old argument of the haves and have nots: those with money can get out of prison, but the poor rot to death in jail cells. Surely, Rikki's lawyers are better than most - it seems the Poison drummer is using the experience for good and helping innocent people jailed for crimes they did not commit. Says Rikki "I also look forward to helping other people who have been falsely accused of committing heinous crimes. My lawyers, Barry Tarlow and Mi Kim, are helping me seek out organizations like Centurion Ministries to help if I can. This wonderful organization works to free innocent people in prison who have done serious time for crimes they did not commit." Good for him I say!

This calls for "Unskinny Bop!"

National Geographic Goes to 11...

You might remember Christopher Guest from Spinal Tap. Now, the National Geographic Channel has an all new documentary on the history of Stonehenge. Nigel Tufnel...er, Christopher Guest as Nigel hosts the promos for the documentary. The documentary is called Stonehenge Decoded and is based on the history of the giant monument. The entire piece airs June 1.

For a faux band, I always thought Spinal Tap were pretty good. Of course their songs are funny, but some of them are no more ridiculous than tunes that were "serious" hits.

I won't lie: I'd love if Spinal Tap played Rocklahoma. Here's the band performing "Stonehenge." One of my favorite parts from This Is Spinal Tap.

Here's the promo for the documentary I mentioned above.

I am so watching this in June. Me, some popcorn and a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream. Thank goodness for simple pleasures.

Alice Cooper and Keri Kelli Videos

I've been playing phone tag with guitarist Keri Kelli for literally the past 24 hours. We've talked back and fourth and started an interview, stopped an interview, got interrupted...alas. At some point, we'll get it together!

As you probably know, Keri plays guitar for Alice Cooper. He's also played with Slash's Snakepit, Big Bang Babies, Saints of the Underground...and many more.

While we (all!) wait for the interview, let's watch Alice Cooper and Keri Kelli videos! Woo hoo!

Here's Alice Cooper: "Love's A Loaded Gun"

Here's Alice Cooper: "Bed of Nails"

Here's Keri Kelli, Slash and Alice Cooper at Musicares. This is a partial clip.

I've never seen Alice live, but I think that would be great fun. Do you have any good Alice Cooper concert stories?

Do a Friend a Favor

Please take a few moments of your day and vote for some of my friends. The band James Brown Car Alarm is in a contest to play a stage at Lollapalooza 2008. The contest is called "Last Band Standing." You can vote here.

No, James Brown Car Alarm are NOT Glam - but they are good kids, and we should help them achieve their dream. Round one voting ends June 22.

Heavy to Light

Why do bands seem to start heavy and get lighter as their careers go on? Think about it: Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Metallica and now bands like Avenged Sevenfold and Bullet for My Valentine all started heavy and progressed to more melodic music.

What gives?

High n' Dry and Shout at the Devil are decidedly Metal, while Songs from the Sparkle Lounge and Theatre of Pain are certainly not.    

Of course, the easy answer is that the bands wanted to, you know, sell albums. I mean, how dare they?!

While popularity and the desire to eat and have a home are one thing, many bands have stayed tried and true to Metal, especially Motorhead and Iron Maiden. Now, it's none of my business to talk about a person's financial status, but since members of both Motorhead and Iron Maiden are celebrities, they are exempt. I am going to go out on a limb and say both bands are doing pretty well for themselves.

Metallica are working on their new album right now. Drummer Lars Ulrich keeps saying it's "classic Metallica." Does that mean we're about to have another Kill 'Em All on our hands? Somehow, I'm having trouble buying what Lars is selling.  

Let's face it: Metallica made the so-called Black album and it's been downhill ever since Metal-wise. Sales wise, the band has pretty much been on fire. Well, except for the pesky Load releases...

Were bands like Metallica, Motley Crue and Def Leppard mere products at the mercy of a new 80s medium known as MTV? I know Motorhead and Iron Maiden made videos too, but nowhere near as many as the Glam bands I talk about on here daily. MTV was (is) a genre for the beautiful. Let's face it: Nikki Sixx is considered more than attractive by quite a lot of women. I'm sure his looks and attitude didn't hurt Motley's sales any. It's no different than Beyonce or other pop stars because sex sells. Often when you throw sex into the picture, the product - in this case Metal - becomes somewhat diluted.

So, did bands like Metallica, Motley Crue, Def Leppard and all the rest evolve to become more commercially popular or was it just a sign of the times? Remember, the same is exactly true for modern Metal acts like Avenged Sevenfold and Bullet for My Valentine. With each album, both bands get a little more melodic. That's no issue for me - I seriously love every album by both bands, but I realize I'm in the majority when it comes to screamo Metal. Yes, the Glam mistress does enjoy the heavy stuff from time to time.

Just for fun, let's compare:

Here's Avenged Sevenfold's "Darkness Surrounding" from Sounding the Seventh Trumpet

Now, "Gunslinger" from the recent self-titled release.

Do you hear the differences? Spill it, my music maniacs.

True Fan?

Are you not a true fan if you like to hear your favorite band play their hits during a live show? Last night during Eddie Trunk Live, Eddie was chatting with Cinderella frontman Tom Keifer. Tom was talking about liking to play more obscure tunes once in awhile. Eddie then said… “I’m a true fan. I don’t like when bands play the hits.”

I about puked.

Seriously? Just because I like to hear the hits during a concert doesn’t make me any less of a fan. I’ll tell you one thing: I'd love for Motley Crue to play “Danger” but I know it won’t happen. By common economic principles, they need to play songs that charted, and that’s o.k. I’d be pissed if Motley decided to skip “Dr. Feelgood” or “Girls, Girls, Girls.” There’s a reason why those type of songs typically became hits in the first place: it’s because they’re damn good.

That said, I do love it when bands play an obscure track or two during live sets. It’s fun to see “die hard” fans go crazy, but I’ll admit these lesser known songs typically take a toll on crowd energy. Van Halen is a good example of this. Everyone and her sister knows “Runnin’ With the Devil” and a Van Halen concert wouldn’t be the same without the track. I can’t say the same for “Atomic Punk.” Yes, both tracks are on the same 1978 debut release, but one is played constantly on classic rock radio and the other…not so much. I saw Van Halen twice on their 2007/2008 reunion tour and both times, the fans went bonkers during the famous bass beginning of “Runnin.’” Not exactly the same scenario for “Atomic Punk.”

Does this mean those fans who were a little less interested in “Atomic Punk” were not true blue to Van Halen? Absolutely not. The next time you go to a show, look around. There will inevitably be someone who can sing every lyric of every song regardless of popularity. All the same, there will be someone who doesn’t know many songs at all. Each person still paid price of admission.

What do you think? Are you not a "true fan" if you like to hear the hits live?