After much consideration, I've decided that I don't like Black
Rebel Motorcycle Club. That's not to say they're not a good
band, just that I don't like them. They remind me of Oasis.
I don't like Oasis either. They remind me of Blur. I'm not a
terribly large fan of Blur. They remind me of The Tender Idols.
I don't like The Tender Idols.
So, I don't like BRMC. Their music is that bland sort of overproduced,
studio pop that British bands churned out in the middle part
of the 90s.
Now, there are a lot of people out there who will love
this band. There are, after all, hundreds of thousands of Blur
and/or Oasis fans populating the planet. There are seemingly
endless hoards of people who find this sort of thing unparalleled
entertainment. And hey, more power to them. They should all
go out and buy themselves into Black Rebel Motorcycle Club,
ASAP. They can wear their mod haircuts, and their frilly-sleeved
shirts, and their leather pants. They can dance the night away,
if they so desire. BRMC are just the sort of band to provide
them with the soundtrack.
But I don't like them. I don't wear leather pants, and I don't
wear frilly-sleeved shirts, and I don't have a mod haircut.
And I don't dance.
I like my rock-n-roll raw and furious, angry and loud, and
not just a little bit obnoxious. I don't mind too terribly much
if it substitutes stupidity for pomposity. BRMC tend to play
that kind of guitar rock that enjoys pomp and pretense above
all.
Now, I'm going to give BRMC four sponges, because I know full
well that there are a lot of people out there that are going
to dig the sound. I don't. (Have I mentioned that yet?) But
a lot of people will. And as far as the Blur/Oasis sound goes,
BRMC do a fine job with it. A couple of songs even border on
"top of the genre" status. Whatever Happened to My Rock-n-Roll
is pretty nifty in that regard. It's not Song 2 catchy,
but it does a fine job of moving the asses of those who would
dance. But that's the height of the album's run-time, and the
rest of it just sort of exists in the background of the listener's
brain (unless said listener is wearing leather pants.)
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