Okay so when it comes to Bullet For My Valentine, highlighting things that annoy me is like fishing. In a barrel. With Dynamite. I mean, they had so much promise and I can accept the argument for why we need bands like Linkin Park and BFMV as not everyone is going to put on a Meshuggah album for the first time and decide that progressive mathcore death metal is the one true form of music - I know I didn't, but what infuriates me is that I saw this interview on Blabbermouth and the whole lack of passion and intelligence in the answer astounded me.
I think what has struck me is the amount of rockstars who are dying recently - Dio, Paul Gray, Jimmy The Rev' Chamberlain and of course last week Mike Starr - and Matt Tuck once again fails to exhibit any passion despite having a seemingly increasing (and bafflingly) successful career.
Anyway without further ado, the article giving me an ulcer this month:
BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE Frontman:
'We're Kind Of An Easy, Accessible-Style Metal Band'
Music-Photocalypse.net recently conducted an interview with vocalist/guitarist Matt Tuck of Welsh metallers Bullet For My Valentine. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Music-Photocalypse.net: I've read an interview where you said that you opened the doors to the metal genre, made it more mainstream, and that there would be a bunch of people who wouldn't care if it wasn't for you. Isn't it the essence of metal to go against the stream?
Matt: I don't know, why would you say that?
Music-Photocalypse.net: Well, being a part of this subculture, people are trying to go against the "establishment."
Matt: What's an establishment? Government or something?
Music-Photocalypse.net: In some cases the government, but mostly something that's considered "normal" to the public, let's just say so. Metalheads have a certain dress code and stand out from the crowd. And you're just trying to bring in everyone, which in a way is a good thing, but you know, it's so hard to share your favourite bands with the rest of the world.
Matt: I don't know, I just see it as the more the merrier, why would we limit ourselves to a certain scene. It just seems kind of silly. As a profession to limit our opportunities, it doesn't make sense to me.
Music-Photocalypse.net: So you think that you can stay true to metal and still make it mainstream without going more pop?
Matt: I think we already have. You disagree? If you do, that's fine.
Music-Photocalypse.net: I don't disagree, I'm asking you.
Matt: Yeah, we're in this to make a career out of what we do, we don't want to limit ourselves and close doors and we don't have to. We can be as heavy as fuck, if we wanna be, you know, but as long as we realize what makes people want to listen to our band and we give them that a little bit on an album, then I think it doesn't matter, it's cool.
Music-Photocalypse.net: And you truly believe that you opened the doors to get more people into metal?
Matt: Yeah, we're kind of an easy, accessible-style metal band for people who aren't interested in the genre of hard rock metal music. That we do it a bit more commercial, so then they will listen to us, they'll read our influences affected by bands like METALLICA, MEGADETH or PANTERA. You have a band like METALLICA and a band like PANTERA — it's not the same fucking genre of music. And if we inspire people to go and buy, I don't know, a fucking KILLSWITCH ENGAGE album, who are kind of a melodic metal band as we are, but maybe a notch up on the heaviness, I think, that's a good comparison. And then you go to bands like BLEEDING THROUGH and just experiment and go heavier, it doesn't mean that you can't like BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, because you like BLEEDING THROUGH, it's just silly in my opinion. That's why we opened the doors to help people get into hard rock and metal music.
Jesus Wept.
'we're in this to make a career out of what we do'?
'we don't want to limit ourselves and close doors and we don't have to'?
' as long as we realize what makes people want to listen to our band and we give them that a little bit on an album'?
Ignore the first couple of dull as ditchwater answers if you like, you know the ones where he is being either massively thick or deliberately obtuse, but the lack of passion in the three lines directly above, yet alone,
'As a profession to limit our opportunities, it doesn't make sense to me.'
smacks of a serious problem to me.
There is a worrying lack of passion in just about everything Tuck has said in his last couple of interviews - from claiming that he wasn't even sure if ever they were metal (covered in last years album reviews) to this cold assessment on being accessible.
I know everyone wants a career like Maiden and Metallica's but according to the press BFMV et al are carrying the torch for the new generation of rock music, in ten years time we are unlikely to have Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Metallica, Motorhead, AC/DC, Testament, any form of Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Def Leppard even - the list goes on... people who have put themselves on the line for the music I love and have stuck by their guns when times have been hard, suffered physically, mentally and often paid for it with their lives and who will carry their legacy with the same passion and conviction?
Make no mistake, I have no problem with BFMV's existence, just as I had no problem with Linkin Park (Until Minutes To Midnight) but you can hardly support them when they show such lack of passion... I read an interview with the dudes from Amon Amarth (pseudo death metal, Viking influenced nonsense) and whilst I do not like what they do particularly, one of the guys talked about not wanting to write commercial songs for the record sales because then it would be a job and would kill the passion of what he does - THAT is what I want to hear someone say in an interview, have some pride, have some passion!
I turn to the prophet Bill Hicks who had this one thing to say on the mediocre and banal.
“Fuck that! I want my rocks stars dead. I want them to fucking play with one hand and put a gun in their other fucking hand and go 'I hope you enjoyed the show'. BANG.”
Play from the heart man, play from the heart... or at least as Eminem says 'Fake like you know it' for the sake of your plastic audience...
honey, the thing he was getting at is that every band/artist wants to be successful, he's just not afraid to say it. He doesn't want people to be excluded, the band's trying to get their music to bring people together, not leave people out, yeah, i'm a metal head/ rocker, people stare when i walk down a street, but the thing is, he's saying that it doesn't matter what you look like/wear/listen to, he wants to get people involved in metal. Correct me if i'm wrong, but it seems to me that you would like metal music to be exclusive to people that listen to bands like the ones you have mentioned.
ReplyDeleteThat's the beauty of the printed word - it's open to interpretation and debate.
DeleteThis blog is written in a polemic, provocative style deliberately to get a rise out of people and so to answer your comments:
"honey,"
Sweetpea,
"the thing he was getting at is that every band/artist wants to be successful, he's just not afraid to say it."
And at no point do I cane him for that.
In fact I said, 'I know everyone wants to have a career like Maiden and Metallica'....
A genre of music survives on it's innovative leading lights, everything then filters down towards 'mainstream'. What I am asking for is some passion, not some glib, Ipod generation, download-the-single promotional crap.
If he stood there ripped his shirt off and screamed 'We want to be the biggest band in the world' I'd say good luck whether I liked it or not.
I don't like Slipknot (who are destined to be the next true festival headliner) but I can't fault their conviction and say they have earned their success.
I saw Bullet before they released their first EP (which I have) and they were great, they were hungry. The banal, anaemic, wishy washy, media friendly version is just flat out annoying.
"He doesn't want people to be excluded, the band's trying to get their music to bring people together, not leave people out,"
Because it widens their commercial market?
It's no secret you don't make much money from selling albums these days.
Was this the case when he was running around Brigend in a Metallica shirt welding poppy choruses to left over Machine Head riffs?
No he was proud of who he was.
I'm not asking him to leave anyone out, I am asking for him to show some passion and conviction in himself, in his band again.
Uniting the disenfranchised is always going to exclude someone whether you like it or not and going from Four Words (To Choke On) to love songs with appalling rhyming couplets leaves them stranded in a middle ground where older fans no longer identify and newer fans are transient and non career sustaining.
Spread yourself thin enough and you are transparent.
Continued...
Delete"yeah, i'm a metal head/ rocker, people stare when i walk down a street, but the thing is, he's saying that it doesn't matter what you look like/wear/listen to, he wants to get people involved in metal."
Good for you. I doubt anyone looks twice in my direction to be honest.
Different culture, or maybe I don't dress like a statement.
Is he?
Apart from not wanting his band to be limited to a 'certain scene' I missed the 'uniting the tribes' speech. Not to mention that in the press build up for their last album (Fever) he was mumbling that he wasn't even sure they were ever metal (despite plenty of evidence to the contrary) and saying they were playing for themselves. I don't believe he, yet alone you, knows what he is saying to be honest.
Scooby Do is less confused.
Correct me if i'm wrong, but it seems to me that you would like metal music to be exclusive to people that listen to bands like the ones you have mentioned.
Really? The bands that I have mentioned?
Including Amon Amarth who I say I respect but don't like?
BFMV or Linkin Park who I say I have no problem with their existence?
The other names mentioned by me are a fairly broad overview of the bands that are currently considered 'Greats', headline acts - I don't like a few of them mentioned, but I respect them - which make my point that at some point they are not going to be here forever and it is down to the next generation of band to carry the torch.
In fact a few years ago there was a Metal Hammer cover where Matt Tuck claimed he was carrying it.
Now he's a band for people who aren't interested in metal?
And as long as they realise what makes people want to listen to them?
What about the courage of the conviction to write a great song, to be proud of what you do - Grow some balls.
Metallica have spent fifteen odd years being an utter embarrassing shambles because they can't agree what they want to be anymore and this was a band who proudly stood there and said 'Metal Up Your Ass!' and I cane them for that every single time.
As for me wanting Metal being 'exclusive' then yes, you are wrong.
I listen to rap, country and dance as well as rock/metal music and am fortunate to have a friend circle who have a broad range of influences as right now I think the problem with Metal is that it is listened to by metalheads who are becoming an increasing insular and sub genre obsessed group with less and less decent ideas populating the gene pool.
Would I prefer it if a kid was running around listening to Tinnie Tempah instead of BFMV or Linkin Park? No.
But what I would like is a band representing the genre to believe in itself, to stand up for itself and set themselves apart from the vacuous tripe of mainstream pop - write good songs, exhibit some passion, make people want to like you, want to pay good money to come to your shows, pay £12 for an album, £15 for a T-Shirt.
Not become the kind of garbage that ends up on the soundtrack to a console game. I could give a shit who listens to Metal.
Let me flip it.
If I want metal to be an exclusive club, a subculture, do you want metal to so universal and watered down to the point it is indistinguishable from pop music that you no longer proudly wear your allegiances like a badge?
I think (deep down) the answer lies somewhere in the middle.