Is it because it's late winter and the seasons are changing? Is it the phase of the moon? Or maybe the moon is in the phase of Nirvana... kinda chaotic? I don't know either, but whatever is going down, we seem to have an abundance of opinions, happenings, and emotions.
First off, I finally got around to actually looking at a calendar and seeing what March 2013 is holding in store. I promptly threw that one in the trash because it ain't gonna matter. There's already too much shit in the fan and it seems the speed knob is going from medium to high. Being the music-mind that I am, (note: the official definition of "music-mind" is one where music is constantly playing in your head whether actual tunes are playing or not and remember obscure facts along the way that wouldn't matter to anyone else), I remembered that Nirvana's Nevermind was released 20 years ago. Great - now I really feel old...
Digging deeper, however, there have been rumors circulating for some time about a 20 anniversary reissue of Nevermind. Yes - this reissue is a reality and it will be released shortly. Then bassist Krist Novoselic and drummer Dave Grohl haven't had a lot to say about this project & I don't believe they really will. Butch Vig on the other hand, has offered a great deal of insight of the recording session of the album that changed and became the voice of a generation. Rolling Stone just posted on-line a rather cool article on this aspect - click here to check it out. Moving on to the he-said, they-said department, can anyone make heads or tails out of the latest Stone Temple Pilots / Scott Weiland drama / bullshit thing? The sometimes / former lead man for the Pilots now says the entire fiasco was a publicity stunt to boost ticket sales. Moreover, during a recent interview, Weiland first said that, "... in actuality, things are going great." However, he also mentioned that "... there are some issues that have to be worked out within the band - but they're the same issues as last year." Confused yet? Yeah... whatever. As the old saying goes, "...anyone who isn't confused here doesn't understand what's going on."
They say timing is everything. In the last blog I commented on all the hoopla suddenly surrounding the small, short-lived NYC magazine called Punk. While a "best of..." issue will be coming out, it just seems natural that one of the founding members of Television (and the whole CBGB punk scene) Richard Hell will have his memoir hit the 'net on March 12th, not surprisingly entitled, I Dreamed I Was a Very Clean Tramp. Whether you dig punk from the 70's or not, the book, at minimum, should be an interesting read. I've seen and read interviews involving Hell in the past, and they've always been... how should I put it... colorful. But I expect nothing less from the man. This is the guy who purposely ripped his shirts and then held them together with huge safety pins - and this was back in early 1975 - long before the Sex Pistols made it a staple. In fact, Malcolm McLaren was visiting New York at that time and caught Television playing at CBGB's on a Sunday afternoon. He saw Hell's ripped clothes & brought that look back to England. He then amped it up when he became manager of the Pistols. Of course, that look was adopted by many of the English punk music scene. Whatever attitude you take about Billie Joe Armstrong, I'm glad he's out of rehab (again). Maybe this time, he'll get it. He seems to be on the right track. Rolling Stone will be featuring an interview with him in their next issue. From what I've glimpsed, he'll be basically taking some time off to get his act in gear after their 33 date tour (which starts at the end of this month) is over. He also mentioned that if anyone is anxiously waiting for the next Green Day release - don't hold your breath. It's going to be a while.
Lastly, I'm going to go out on limb here - mainly on myself. I'm going to start a sub-blog to the alternative rock blog. I've got tons of notes from over the past 15 years on the history of alternative music and punk specifically. So, starting this month, as a separate blog entry, I'll be tackling the history of punk in segments. It will not be replacing or in substitution of the regular blog. As I mentioned - it should be quite an undertaking. We'll see how this pans out. We'll leave you this month with a video clip of Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit video. Just click on the title to go to the video. As I watch this, I can't help but thinking about the spoof Weird Al Yankovic did of this song and video. Watch both back to back if you can. You'll laugh at the material and most likely be amazed at how close they are in details.
Until next time, peace out!
- D -
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