Rammstein: Teutonic Metal Gods Conquer America?

For most non-Teutons the idea of German rock is not very appealing. The fatherland of Bach and Beethoven may well have produced many interesting experimental groups (Kraftwerk,  Einstürzende Neubauten etc) but on a global, top 40 level it’s an entirely different matter. Consider: 

1) The Scorpions- hair metal popular in the 80s, approximately as good as Winger.

2) KMFDM- plodding industrial metal from the late 80s/early90s.

3) That Nena chick of ‘99 luftballons’ fame. 

In short, a roster of acts so unnecessary that we could safely consign them to the same dark abyss as Croatian thrash or Russian hip hop and the human race would be none the poorer for it. And yet fortunately for the glory of popular Deustche musik this is not the end of the story- for in the mid 90s what rough beast slouched towards Germany to be born? Breathing flames and reveling in death and all manner of deviancy, its name was Rammstein. 

Formed in the early 1990s by veterans of several crap East German groups, Rammstein consisted of six men in their 30s who had grown up under communism. They took their name from Ramstein, a US military base where a terrible disaster had occurred during an air show in 1988, adding an extra ‘m’ to dislocate it slightly. With the Berlin Wall fallen, the band was now liberated to steal as many sounds and ideas as they desired. These included elements of classic heavy metal, industrial metal and gothic synth pop such as Depeche Mode; not to mention liberal appropriations from Laibach, a Slovenian group fascinated by the links between mass culture, pop music and totalitarianism. (If you have a few minutes I recommend you watch Laibach’s reinterpretations of Queen’s One Vision and Opus’ Life is Life: the originals will never sound the same again.) (more…)

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Tags: Berlin Wall, germany, Hip-hop, Nena, queen
Posted Nov 7th 2009 at 6:40 am in Featured Story, Music | 25863079 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dkalder/2009/11/07/rammstein-teutonic-metal-gods-conquer-america/Rammstein%3A+Teutonic+Metal+Gods+Conquer+America%3F2009-11-07+14%3A40%3A59Daniel+Kalder

Obviously, Adam Lambert Isn’t Gay Enough

If you haven’t heard of Adam Lambert, you will soon.  He is the flamboyant rocker who recently came in second on “American Idol” in a stunning upset by boy-next-door Kris Allen.  Adam, the judges’ obvious favorite throughout the show, is a 27-year-old actor-singer who was struggling to make it in the music business until “Idol” came along.  A former cast-member of “Wicked,” Adam worked in various Broadway touring groups and avant garde shows in order to pay his rent.  But his real dream was to become a pop-rock star.

Adam has an amazing vocal range and a falsetto so rich in quality that it is imperceptibly different from his chest voice.  His incredible ability to control his vocals enables him to hold his high notes seemingly forever.  His versatility is unmatched in “Idol” history.  With the arguable exception of country music (his rendition of “Ring of Fire” received strong emotional reactions both pro and con, as it was more like Johnny Cash doing Goth music with Middle Eastern undertones), Adam excels in every genre of music.  He sings soulful ballads to pop to heavy metal and glam rock, all with ease, style, and pitch-perfect tone. (more…)

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Tags: "Outrage", Adam Lambert, Burning Man, Christianity, Danny Gokey
Posted Jun 3rd 2009 at 3:01 pm in Entertainment, Featured Story, News, Religion | 1512425 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dweiss/2009/06/03/obviously-adam-lambert-isn%e2%80%99t-gay-enough/Obviously%2C+Adam+Lambert+Isn%E2%80%99t+Gay+Enough++2009-06-03+22%3A01%3A03Deborah+Weiss

The Pop Underground Strikes Back

Few shows illustrate how low the state of popular music has fallen than “American Idol.”  While AI regularly finds singers of talent, the songs they feature are mostly chestnuts.  The show also encourages the type of singing that is more at home on Broadway than in small smoky clubs.  The judges put an inordinate amount of focus on vocal pyrotechnics encouraging contestants to test the outer limits of their ranges.  The most exciting news to come out of the most recent season is the possibility that Adam Lambert might join Queen, replacing the ill-considered Paul Rogers.

I would love to see Adam Lambert join Queen.  I already know all the songs.  And that’s a problem.  Singer/songwriters have been moving off-grid since the nineties.  With the demise of the major music conglomerates, innovative talent understands it’s up to them to record and release their own material.  The internet makes this possible.  No one knows the extent of the effect downloading has had on the music industry, but if we are to judge from the reaction, it has been devastating.  The Recording Institute Association of America has brought suits against parents whose children illegally download songs. (more…)

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Tags: "American People", Adam Lambert, Andy Morten, Bat for Lashes, Big Music
Posted Jun 2nd 2009 at 6:40 am in Music | 1479662 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mbaron/2009/06/02/the-pop-underground-strikes-back/The+Pop+Underground+Strikes+Back2009-06-02+13%3A40%3A04Mike+Baron