Thursday, August 28, 2008

The Rock stars are all dead!

"You know I'm born to lose, and gambling's for fools,
But that's the way I like it baby,
I don't wanna live for ever,"

That's From "Ace of Spades" by Motorhead. That's what rock songs used to sound like. I have been listening to this song in the car as part of a compilation of old songs I made up. And it has set me to thinking...

Are todays pop/rock stars really fulfilling their obligations?

Now Motorhead were a bit before my time, and I am not a fan of them necessarrily, but Lemmy, the Jack Daniels for breakfast and day-long amphetamine guzzler it seems epitomizes what rock stars used to be, what they used to do For us. They created a vicarious wild-side, for us.

Think The Stones, Iggy Pop, ACDC, (you could probably include the Dubliners here) etc. etc.

Not only did these people produce great songs/music, but they played with energy, intensity and more importantly with Passion. Kurt cobain tried to do this, but he couldnt handle it when he got there. He didnt have star quality, notwithstanding his musical talents.

Am I missing something with today's music? Or, is it just missing me or not relevant to me? who are the great rockstars of the 21st century?

Bono?
Chris Martin?
Tom Yorke?
Michael Stype?

These guys all produce music that I like to listen to now.

But I don't envy them. I dont have a dirty side to me wishing I could be them.

"You know I'm born to lose, and gambling's for fools,
But that's the way I like it baby,
I don't wanna live for ever,"

This is not a sensible way to think.
You should want to:

Work harder, achieve more, marry, have kids, pay the mortgage, play golf, holiday in France, pay your taxes, play by the rules.

The question I'm posing is, what do we want from music today?
If we want nice music for the background while we enjoy dinner parties with vacuous middle class friends, then I suppose coldplay will suffice.
But if we want to assuage our Darker sides, the side that miss-behaves and Lusts and doesnt give a fuck, then we need to crank it to eleven and listen to real music that doesnt want us to buy organic, or save the fucking planet, or give a shit about third world debt. music is our time. Dont invade it, it's the time when we are really alive, at least until we have to collect the kids from creche, or put the bins out or whatever.... Nevermind!


Monday, August 25, 2008

The Third Policeman's Ball

I'm thinking of organizing a ball.
It will be called "The third Policemans' Ball".
Of course there was no first or second event, we shall skip straight to the third..
Now everyone should of course arrive by bicycle,
the ownership of which they may not have,
but one thing should be certain, it should be lamp-less.
Shiny buttons, Red faces, redder moustaches...
On every table a bucket of strawberry jam..
And of course after a long nights drinking and utter absurdity,
you would find yourself not leaving, but arriving again on your illicit cylce,
And again the night would start, but never end...

Thursday, August 7, 2008

blankety blank

I do all my best blogging off line.
Its a shame really cause nobody will ever get to see them.
When I am driving the car, working behind the bar, walking in the park,
sitting on the toilet,

in fact when I am doing anything, bar sitting in front of the PC,

I can come up with great stuff.

But sit me in front of the PC and my mind goes blanker than a politicians at a tribunal.