New Radicals: C/D?

Oh do get one sense of humor. At the end of the day, none of this fucking matters. You like what you like, I like what I like. What would be the point of these threads if we were so painfully worried about a lilttle ribbing? This isn't a fucking think tank, for chrissakes.

And Buckethead can still stand to show his face, regardless of what he does publicly. See, there is "courage" and then there is "sense."

That's part of his act. His act isn't my cup of tea, but I think he's a decent musician. Courage doesn't enter into it. And unlike yourself, he hides behind a mask while portraying a character. You're hiding, it appears, because you're afraid of some repercussion. Good lord, man, we're just talking about music.

Alex, would you stand it if people who like, you know, pop, went on your Killing Joke threads and said "Your taste is shit"?.

You obviously haven't spent a lot of time reading any threads devoted to the band in question. It used to happen on a daily basis. Why would I care? I know what I like, and anyone else's opinion about it is nigh on meaningless, though can make for interesting reading.

Alex, Mr. Know-it-all, Buckethead has always worn a mask because he likes the idea of being able to walk down the street. Being anonymous allows him to play up whatever aspect his imagination dreams up, which is precisely what I'm doing. "Appear" is a key word in your sentence, please note. Appearances can be deceiving. For instance, you appear to be a dad who is about 5'9" and not in the most terrifying shape who works at the Voice and has some personality conflicts with his coworkers, is dissatisfied with his pay, etc. Does it appear odd to you now that I would be afraid of any repurcussions from you? BTW, Ion Records, home of Buckethead is right across the street from where you work. The building you took that picture near appears to be the same one they use in Will & Grace. It appears I could stalk the living shit out of you if I wanted!

But, of course I wouldn't because I really don't care. Like Buckethead's psycho act, this is mine.

Anyway, back on topic for the New Radicals, my feeling is that you don't know shit about it, Alex, and honestly couldn't give it a chance if you tried. You're too streamlined in your thinking.

I was given a promo disc by the band's manager something like 4 months before the New Radicals actually came out. He swore they were about to break big. So, I had a good while to enjoy it (not what I expected at first at all) and just as I was thinking that this manager was wrong, that the New Radicals were NOT going to be the "next big thing," all of a sudden a friend of mine told me he saw their video on MTV: "I saw that band you've been talking about; what is it, the New Radicals? I didn't really like it. Too teenybopper."

What? I was bummed. Then I saw the video. If I had seen the video first, perhaps I would've reacted as you did, Alex. We have very similar tastes in music, although I'm a bit more open-minded if I do say so myself. Pats back. However, I only saw the video half a time and I only ever heard "You Only Get What You Give" on the radio, so the rest of the album is purely unmarketed power pop rock for the enjoyment of my ears, along the lines of Beck and Prince. How many times have you heard the album? And do you realize that he decided to kill his contract himself? He was not a "one hit wonder" at all. Now, go back to laughing at my correct characterization
(your audacious presumption) and embarrass yourself some more.

If I knew it all, I wouldn't bother reading ILX. And I've never claimed to know it all.

Your Buckethead analogy gets weaker with each post.

For instance, you appear to be a dad who is about 5'9" and not in the most terrifying shape who works at the Voice and has some personality conflicts with his coworkers, is dissatisfied with his pay, etc.

6'1" and I don't work at the Voice (that's Chuck) I have no problems with my coworkers.

on Records, home of Buckethead is right across the street from where you work

No it isn't, actually.

It appears I could stalk the living shit out of you if I wanted!
But, of course I wouldn't because I really don't care. Like Buckethead's psycho act, this is mine.

Refresh my memory, please. It's me who is being the ass?

Anyway, back on topic for the New Radicals, my feeling is that you don't know shit about it, Alex, and honestly couldn't give it a chance if you tried. You're too streamlined in your thinking.

Clearly you don't know shit either, but I've clearly hit a nerve with you, as you need to make this a personal issue and not simply a debate about music.

We have very similar tastes in music, although I'm a bit more open-minded if I do say so myself. Pats back.

While I consider it more of burden than a blessing, I own over two-thousand compact discs, only about twenty-something of which are by Killing Joke. Again, you're the one jumping to conclusions.

How many times have you heard the album?

More time than I'd prefer. My wife owns it.

He was not a "one hit wonder" at all.

Oh really? Cite some of hits by the New Radicals.

You're right, I am being an ass. But, that's usually why I come here! Thus, the fake email address.

I thought my Buckethead analogy was pretty strong from the start. It's been the same concept all along; not getting any trickier.

Not at The Voice, huh? My bad.

Was it chuck that said, "Oh please don't lecture me" to his coworker and then posted asking for advice?

I believe there were 2 other New Radicals songs that got airplay, but the only one I heard REPEATEDLY on the radio was the one we've been talking about.

The term "one hit wonder" implies that "it's a wonder they had one hit in them" which just isn't the case with a guy who kills his contract by his own volition and then goes on to write successful songs for other artists.

I know a woman who got a record contract TWICE and fucked them both up intentionally. Her last band was "Sugarglider" and cost several thousands of dollars of the co's money to record the album, then she promptly freaked out and moved to Florida with her boyfriend to be a salmon farmer. I would not call her a "failed musician" any more than I would call the New Radicals a "one hit wonder" for the same reasons.

I think the music is great, though I never liked the hat or the imagery or the video and I completely understood when Jimmy Fallon mocked them on SNL.

Still, I think you've totally misunderstood where Gregg Alexander was coming from and completely misread the album. What makes it so much worse than the sorts of power pop that self-respecting rock fans align themselves with everyday? I'd say you've summed it up perfectly in what I believe to be a complete misunderstanding: "it's so painfully earnest and self-important" ... It's not at all. It's a feel good jokey album about not taking yourself too seriously and having fun. The guy wrote a song for his sister as an inside wink about them having been raised Jehovah's Witnesses to cheer her up for fuck's sake.

http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/TechnicolorLover/personal.html

No, that was me, but if you read the rest of that thread, you'll see we've since mended fences. People have disagreements from time to time, but that doesn't mean bad blood always ensues.

I believe there were 2 other New Radicals songs that got airplay, but the only one I heard REPEATEDLY on the radio was the one we've been talking about.

To be fair, I do seem to remember another video of theirs (them playing in a room), but couldn't remember the title. Not sure how it charted of anything like that, so am unaware of its arguable status as a "hit".

The term "one hit wonder" implies that "it's a wonder they had one hit in them" which just isn't the case with a guy who kills his contract by his own volition and then goes on to write successful songs for other artists.

Fair enough, but I usually take it to mean a band that was fortunate enough to catch the moment with one hit. Hell, some people consider Devo a one hit wonder ("Whip It"), when of course they had a pile of albums. I do know that Gregg has gone on to be a sizably successful songwriter for other artists. By the same token, I don't think "One Hit Wonder" has to necessarily be the worst fate in the world.

I think the music is great, though I never liked the hat or the imagery or the video and I completely understood when Jimmy Fallon mocked them on SNL.

I don't think Jimmy Fallon's really in a position to be mocking anyone these days,

In all seriousness, I'm going to dig out the Mrs.'s copy of this album (which I believe I've been threatening to use as a coaster for some time) and give it another spin.

No hard feelings, I hope. Despite the impression I may sometimes give, my word is not law.

.....yet.

Anyway, I'm not saying the album is great or anything. I haven't listened to it in ages! But, it's pretty good. I kind of wish he'd do something else, but I doubt he will.

All completely cool (well, `cept for maybe Mantas). All had facial hair.

No worries. I am often -- if not usually -- guilty of same.

"Eh? Not cool? ME?"

Damn this thing.

Hey guys! Can I play, too?

"Know who said that? someone on telextext that's who said that. "
That would have been John Peel, on Top Of The Pops.

well maybe but I read it on teletext, perhaps Peel did too.

http://www.billmon.org/archives/strangelove.jpg

General Jack D. Ripper: Mandrake, do you recall what Gregg Alexander once said about war?
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: No, I don't think I do, sir, no.
General Jack D. Ripper: He said music was too important to be left to fahion shows with Beck and Hanson. When he said that, 50 years ago, he might have been right. But today, music is too important to be left to Courtney Love and Marilyn Manson. They have neither the time, the training, nor the inclination for strategic thought. I can no longer sit back and allow New Radical infiltration, New Radical indoctrination, New Radical subversion and the international New Radicalconspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.

I don't think Jimmy Fallon's really in a position to be mocking anyone these days,

-- Alex in NYC (vassife...), September 10th, 2005.

To be fair I don't think he was mocking NR, just doing his goofy lyrics to popular songs thing--something about showing up drunk at his ex-girlfriend's house "3am, I drank a fifth of Jim Beam."

"And when the night is cloudy,
You cannot find the light (light)
You feel your tree is breakin'[...]
Come around, we'll kick your ass in"

I've been obsessing over this for almost a week now, having dug it out. Aside from the title track, which is like some weird Mick Jagger slur impression gone horribly wrong, almost every track on this cuts through. "I Hope I Didn't Just Give Away The Ending" has a great conceit, hilarious lyrics and a brilliant melody. "I Don't Wanna Die Anymore" with its climactic coda sounds like one of the better cuts Gregg Alexander produced for Danielle Brisbois. And "Mother We Just Can't Get Enough" manages the awesome feet of fusing the Stones and Depeche Mode.

And, of course, "You Get What You Give" is clearly now among the great masterpieces of the late-90's.

not to mention "Technicolor Lover", which recalls "Sign O' The Times"-era Prince...

o, wherefore art though, Gregg Alexander?

This is my 567th favorite miffed-Alex-in-NYC thread.
I read that as "This is my 567th favorite miffed-Alex-in-NYC band"

Awesome "feat," that is, tho I may have been thinking of this:
http://cache.umusic.com/images/local/500/20626372B0F6447AB84FBCEA964196BE.jpg

not to mention "Technicolor Lover", which recalls "Sign O' The Times"-era Prince...

Indeed -- for space purposes, I omitted it, but that's definitely one of the highlights as well.

too bad my awkward drunken 'draw a line in the sand' new radicals thread from early in my ilx posting career wasn't revived instead of this

xpost: Someone needs to adopt "awesome feet" as their screen name.

Hall and Oates covered "Someday We'll Know"!

It's funny: as soon as I learned H&O covered a song of theirs, I knew it was "Someday We'll Know." Somehow, Daryl probably wasn't going to be singing about being in porn and how got "big in Japan."

are there really H&O overtones in their (er, his) music? I keep reading this. If so, I'm gonna fork the $2 for the album.

Alfred, you should fork over the $2 even if there weren't any.

you get what you give is awesome song! Q

More Rundgren, Alfred...

I occasionally make up new lyrics to "You Get What You Give" (because really, who couldn't improve on them).

But you're like Exhibit A of someone with the dreamer's disease.

in many circles you get laughed at for liking this album, but....

....I played the hell out of it after I bought it! I still really like it...

especially "I Don't Wanna Die Anymore", Mama We Just Can't Get Enough, and that gave away the ending song....

I love it when this thread gets revived because, c'mon, this album is way classic.

i had no idea anybody else liked it....I got it real cheap on cassette when I was po'

Haha at strangelove gag.

you get what you give is awesome song! Q

And a lost influence on Flight Of The Conchords!

I'll bet this dude and Greg Dulli hate each other.

Don't understand why everyone reps for You Get What You Give - I find it boring as shit.

Boring people find things boring. ;)