Post by The Curmudgeon on Sept 10, 2008 0:41:49 GMT 2
A band to forget.
It's been a while, regular Amazon readers, since my last review of the wretched bilge that passes for entertainment, and so I decided to make a bit of a comeback with something not just bad - but something that truly tipped the scales of atrocity. And we need look no further than the Pandora's Box that is music television to provide it.
You know that feeling when you hear a classic song being covered and ruined by some dead-eyed pop dimwit? And you know they're just covering it to be spoon-fed an easy chart hit, coasting off the back of someone else's work instead of writing some decent songs of their own? You all know this feeling, right?
Well, strap yourself in for a first class trip to Bizarro World, ladies and gentlemen, because THIS time.. it's a ROCK band ruining the song of a POP star. And not just any pop star - an American Idol spawned pop star.
Kelly Clarkston being that pop star, of course. A bit of reality pop royalty, certainly in comparison to the bottom feeding no-hopers the UK equivalents have unleashed onto the world. And credit where its due - Since U Been Gone is a great pop record, and certainly "edgier" than the boring syrupy gloop that usually gets released.
That being said, no rock band with any shred of credibility should be covering it and releasing it as a single, but you get the impression these one-note chancers are already out of ideas. Because the only noticeable difference between this and Clarkston's isn't the music (the guy could be singing over a karaoke track), but the fact that A Day To Remember suddenly, er, remember, that they're supposed to be a "rock" band half way through, and FOR NO REASON the lead singer begins to roar the lyrics like he's suddenly fronting Slipknot. If you haven't heard it, you need to experience it at least once; it is hilariously, magnificently AWFUL.
So, The Mouse That Roared bit aside (Kelly Clarkston looks like she could kick the snot out of the putrid little lead singer, and the rest of the band make Backstreet Boys look like Metallica), the song is almost insulting in its bland, "will this do?" mentality. Take a popular song from a few years ago, change nothing about it except a shoe-horned in screaming session, and then wait for the easily-fooled 12 years olds to suddenly believe you're rock stars. Mark my words, boys - ain't gonna happen.
This, for better or worse, is going to be the only song this band will ever be famous for. A beyond irony-and-back-again God-awful cover version that deserves to have them placed on "worst ever.." lists from now until the end of time.
The album is called "For Those Who Have Heart", when really it should be called "For Those Who Have Heart, Soul, Passion and Talent - 'Cos We're Fresh Out."
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go watch their video and laugh at them again.
