Miles has it right when he says HA HA HA HA to this bizarrely horrible band called Blood on the Dance Floor. Their awfulness makes their tour buddies Brokencyde seem like Nick Drake in comparison. If you do not feel old, fifteen seconds of their song "Well Suck Me" (not to be confused with their other dessert-themed jam, "Scream For My Ice Cream") will change that. Like Miles, I'm kind of impressed by the band's ability to piss me off, but it is so depressing to see scene kids — especially girls — lap up this misogynist assault against music.
What's funny is that when I was their age (speaking of old...) a lot of hardcore kids would complain about Atom and his Package. Adam was a bespectacled guy with a sequencer who opened for punk bands, and he was entertainingly nerdy even if he wasn't a musical genius. He sang songs about battling homophobia, racist sports mascots and metric-system holdouts. Some felt he was clownish, but even if the music wasn't traditionally punk, its politics were — and the latter has a larger and longer impact culturally, so the end result is a positive one.
Fast-forward 15 years or so, and I so wish there were a legion of Atoms instead of crap bands like BotDF. This Florida trio has created a horrible genre-fusing mess that is so devoid of merit, so glorifying of all that punk stands against, that I'd like to believe it's a joke. Sadly, no. I'm never sure what to make of mall emo, because I'm not at the right age to understand its popularity; maybe if I were 18, I'd be able to get it. Then again, if I were 18, I would still see this as hate-filled ear abuse.
All music genres change over time, but the mainstreaming of subculture has essentially erased any punk politics — at least as it's consumed by your average scene kid. In a relatively short amount of time, we've gone from Girls Up Front and Men Against Sexism to boys screaming at women and treating us as sex slaves. I keep wondering why bands like Brokencyde and BotDF have legions of adoring girl fans. Why is the self-esteem of some teenage girls so low that they squeal over a pudgy, lady-hating, minivan-driving Floridian tool with Look What The Cat Dragged In—era Poison hair? Why do they want his approval?
Years ago, Jessica labeled emo as "where the girls aren't", and her criticisms were/are valid. While a lot of early-00s emo was indeed sexist, I can't recall ever hearing songs that were so blatantly misogynist. Say what you want about p.c. punk, but if a band simply called a woman a bitch, dozens of zines would be on their ass in an instant. In contrast, bands like BotDF encourage misogyny as entertainment, creating a cycle of woman-hating that I don't see going away. I keep wondering: Where is revolution girl style now?
(bonus: special pro-lady playlist!)
What's funny is that when I was their age (speaking of old...) a lot of hardcore kids would complain about Atom and his Package. Adam was a bespectacled guy with a sequencer who opened for punk bands, and he was entertainingly nerdy even if he wasn't a musical genius. He sang songs about battling homophobia, racist sports mascots and metric-system holdouts. Some felt he was clownish, but even if the music wasn't traditionally punk, its politics were — and the latter has a larger and longer impact culturally, so the end result is a positive one.
Fast-forward 15 years or so, and I so wish there were a legion of Atoms instead of crap bands like BotDF. This Florida trio has created a horrible genre-fusing mess that is so devoid of merit, so glorifying of all that punk stands against, that I'd like to believe it's a joke. Sadly, no. I'm never sure what to make of mall emo, because I'm not at the right age to understand its popularity; maybe if I were 18, I'd be able to get it. Then again, if I were 18, I would still see this as hate-filled ear abuse.
All music genres change over time, but the mainstreaming of subculture has essentially erased any punk politics — at least as it's consumed by your average scene kid. In a relatively short amount of time, we've gone from Girls Up Front and Men Against Sexism to boys screaming at women and treating us as sex slaves. I keep wondering why bands like Brokencyde and BotDF have legions of adoring girl fans. Why is the self-esteem of some teenage girls so low that they squeal over a pudgy, lady-hating, minivan-driving Floridian tool with Look What The Cat Dragged In—era Poison hair? Why do they want his approval?
Years ago, Jessica labeled emo as "where the girls aren't", and her criticisms were/are valid. While a lot of early-00s emo was indeed sexist, I can't recall ever hearing songs that were so blatantly misogynist. Say what you want about p.c. punk, but if a band simply called a woman a bitch, dozens of zines would be on their ass in an instant. In contrast, bands like BotDF encourage misogyny as entertainment, creating a cycle of woman-hating that I don't see going away. I keep wondering: Where is revolution girl style now?
(bonus: special pro-lady playlist!)
Labels: music
This will mark me as falling into the Almost Ancient category, but when I was a youth the two bands to miss who always seemed to be opening for other bands were Precious Wax Drippings and (gasp) Smashing Pumpkins. I have always thought the Pumpkins were godawful.
It is one of the great truisms of life, as well as a good way to sell guitars, that girls generally go for guys on a stage, singing a song. Being "good" helps, but not as much as you would think.
As far as blatant misogynism goes, well, if you think punk has gone down the wrong road, you should probably avoid the current rap genre. It ain't pretty, sistah.
Poppy, that doesn't make you ancient. It makes you about my age. (Or does that mean we're both ancient?) I had to google Precious Wax Drippings, but the name alone suggests that they weren't the best.
Chris: Agreed on the girls-love-guitarists thing. Jessica's new book might help change the dynamic, though. I love the idea of girls seeing themselves not on the arm of the guitarist, but as the guitarist herself. With that said, yeah, being good doesn't matter so much.
A lot of rap is indeed misogynist, and no genre is above criticism for being so. The thing that is notable (to me, anyway) about these lady-hating scene bands is that the intense misogyny is a relatively recent development. This genre of mall screamo is becoming more popular, and I want to know why girls buy into it. Because it goes beyond "boy on stage" here. It's not just about looking at the dude, it's about actively promoting self-hatred among girls and young women. The cheesy shittiness of the band and its message are one thing, but I really want to know why more girls aren't railing against these bands' glorification of misogyny.
Whether it's in rap or mall emo or whatever, why do so many young women not just accept but adulate this treatment? I don't know the answer, but the whole thing makes me want to get our band going so we can do public service announcements... with guitars.
I think what's most shocking is not their infantile attempt at being misogynistically shocking, but rather the fact that that music is really, really fucking awful. People listen to that? Are you kidding me? Punk kids listen to that?? Seriously? I mean, Atom was bad, but fun and good in a goofy way, and he didn't look like a member of a joke band you might see on a bad sketch comedy show. Wow. I would like to see them open for a Good Riddance or Propagandhi show back in the 90s and see if they could make it past the intros on stage. I guess it's a moot point because no self-respecting punk band would allow them to open based on their lyrics, and their sucking.
That, too. They make truly awful music. It's hilariously terrible.