Look… I think there’s more than enough ridiculous web drama out there… I think there’s more than enough internet bluster… But this was just plain obnoxious, and demanded a response… It came from MySpace, after the Pomeroy show at Power & Light:
From: mark
To: jason
Date: Jun 24, 2009 11:50 PM
Subject: wake up
Holy Shit man the 90’s rocked ive seen all the bands you have seen plus more(i know ive seen a shit ton). You said if you like early 311 you will like Pomeroy wow dude. You should of said if you like the Mighty Mighty Boss Tones with no brass you will like this. You need to know that hair bands spawned grundge and grundge spawned alternative(thats a loose term between top 40 and real rock these days). The 90s were good but you need to realize that music has evolved its pretty split again from rock to pussy rock again. dang as much as i love the 90’s its done. Sorry you still think that the wussifcation of society has not effected music, but it has.
My response:
“Pussy Rock” ??
Seriously dude… I need you to define that, and I need that definition to be something more than just “so-and-so kicks ass and is all about having a good time, and so-and-so just whines…” I’m gonna need a lot more than that…
Now… You are throwing around HUGE generalizations… Like hair metal spawning grunge, grunge spawning alternative, and alternative being somewhere between top 40 and whatever you think “real” rock is…
…you really don’t know what you are talking about, so allow me…
Grunge was inspired by MANY different things… The ONLY grunge band influenced by hair metal was Alice in Chains, very briefly on their first album… Jerry Cantrell, Chris Cornell, Kurt Cobain, all of them, they DISDAINED hair metal because it wasn’t organic.. It was formulated, calculated, and conformist… It was superficial… And if getting up there singing “GIRLS! GIRLS! GIRLS!” is somehow the antidote to “wussiness”, then be content with your manhood I guess… If that’s real rock then I guess anything that has intelligence is for pussies… PLEASE… The Who for pussies… Rush for pussies… Pink Floyd for pussies… Elvis Costello for pussies… Give me a break…
Let me tell you who influenced grunge bands: Pearl Jam loved Neil Young, The Who, and old punk bands… Nirvana loved The Pixies and obscure 80s underground bands… Soundgarden loved Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, The Ramones, and obscure 80s underground bands… Smashing Pumpkins loved Zeppelin, The Cure, Bauhaus, and My Bloody Valentine… STP loved classic power-pop in addition to hard rock… Hair Metal simply was NOT part of the equation here, Mark… Grunge was a REACTION AGAINST Hair Metal…
As for grunge “spawning alternative”… Wow… You are way way way off… Grunge started breaking through in the very late 80s… Alternative had been around, depending on your definitions, since at LEAST the late 70s… Were the Talking Heads Alternative?? Yes… Clash?? Yes… Joy Division?? Of course… Siouxsie and The Banshees? Yes… REM and U2 and Violent Femmes?? YesYesYes… They ALL predated grunge by many years…
Finally… Music aside… What exactly is the “wussification of society” ??? I won’t put words in your mouth, I’ll let you explain…
*sigh*