Linkin Park/REM/Radiohead Smackdown!

[RokrantheGreat]

Okay, let's get a few things straight:

1. Strange does not equate bad, therefore there's nothing illogical about hailing a strange band as one of the greatest of all times. And, if you look at Radiohead in terms of originality, artfullness, musicianship, and the other criteria that we like to use around here, they really ARE one of the greatest groups of all time.

2. Thom Yorke does not pick out a bunch of random words and throw them together and call it a song. His lyrics MAKE SENSE if you're willing to work at them a bit. On one level, they are mad, yes, but there's a method to the madness, and few lyricists have more to reveal about our world.

As I've said earlier, I just like teasing the phanboys. I know that strange doesn't = bad. I'm just a born teaser, and I like stirring this forum up. Which sometimes means I just get many people giving me essays on why such and such a band is great and how I'm wrong and that my favorite band stinks. (hey, sounds like my posts, actually). I know that I have not listened to enough Radiohead to just throw them out as a good band.

[Josh]

Okay. Gotcha. We're cool then.  =)

And that wasn't directed totally at you, Rokran, but to anyone here who might share such views.  

[Harenil]

[Skrappybiskit]

Linkin Park is great, but Creed is where its at! =D

And here I was, hoping to take you seriously

Skraps

[RokrantheGreat]

And that wasn't directed totally at you, Rokran, but to anyone here who might share such views.

Sure, like anyone else "shares my views."    

[bloop]

Radiohead is good, U2 is great, REM is OK, Linkin Park is great, but Creed is where its at! =D

great, great, great, middling, and middling, in that order, judged strictly by originality and artistry anyway.

I have heard Pull/Pulk on nice speakers, and loud, and it is catchy.  I like the "trap doors" part...best 3 seconds of the song.

[DvChWi]

I can remember back when Dv was telling me about this strange CD that he had gotten from the library. How it was extremely strange and that they sang about "unborn chicken voices." Now, he tells me that this strange band is one of the greatest ever... Mind control, it has to be.

Its true, when I first got OKC at the library, I thought it was the strangest thing I'd ever heard.  I e-mailed Rokran the lyrics to Paranoid Android.  Thats why hes stuck on the chicken voices thing.  After listening to the album a few more times, I completely fell in love with it.  I probably listened to it everyday.  Its weird how things can change.  For my next funny but true story, I will tell how I helped introduce Rokran to Linkin Park.  

[Skrappybiskit]

My, bloop, are you having a be generous to Creed evening?

Skraps

[bloop]

My, bloop, are you having a be generous to Creed evening?

Skraps

Yes, I'm feeling nice this evening.

To elaborate, I think REM, U2, and Radiohead are all great in different ways.  There is some crossover here, but in general

REM - specializes in subtlety in the way they experiment, so not everyone really catches it.  It's hard to describe, but the music kind of bubbles really...very textured band I guess.

Radiohead - more forward in their experimentation, not as subtle as REM.  Tends toward radical change from record to record (although HTTT shows this is not always the case)

U2 - anthemic, a bit more populist than both of the prior two bands.  They play with their sound, incorporating different styles in particular, but never at the expense of being essentially a rock band.

[oneafroboy]

Yeah, U2 has always striven to be a rock band.  

[murlough23]

Sure, like anyone else "shares my views."  

I'm a fellow Linkin Park fan. I'm sure we can start a 12-step program or something.

NP: "No Kinder Savior", Smalltown Poets

[RokrantheGreat]

Its true, when I first got OKC at the library, I thought it was the strangest thing I'd ever heard.  I e-mailed Rokran the lyrics to Paranoid Android.  Thats why hes stuck on the chicken voices thing.  After listening to the album a few more times, I completely fell in love with it.  I probably listened to it everyday.  Its weird how things can change.  For my next funny but true story, I will tell how I helped introduce Rokran to Linkin Park.

Hee hee. Yes, its true. I hated LP the first time I tried them! Except "In the End," that being the only song I had heard more than once. I actually said that it was just mindless screaming! What an idiot I was!

[bloop]

[Josh]

I actually sat down and listened to Linkin Park's first album today, and I can safely say that there's nothing about the band that is artful or interesting to me. Having said that, I can see how they can be kind of fun.

[RokrantheGreat]

I actually sat down and listened to Linkin Park's first album today, and I can safely say that there's nothing about the band that is artful or interesting to me. Having said that, I can see how they can be kind of fun.

Well, thanks for that little addition there, Josh. =)  

[Josh]

Well, thanks for that little addition there, Josh. =)

Eh, I don't mean to be ganging up on you or anything. I just wanted to let everyone know that I HAVE actually heard their album (many of the songs more than once), so I'm not just bashing them because all other critics do. I have a genuine dislike for them; isn't that good news?

[RokrantheGreat]

I have a genuine dislike for them; isn't that good news?

Great news... [_[  

[DvChWi]

An informed opinion is always a good thing.

[bloop]

Which is better, Rokran, "Hybrid Theory" or "Meteora" in your opinion.  I think "Hybrid Theory" by a small margin.

[DvChWi]

Which is better, Rokran, "Hybrid Theory" or "Meteora" in your opinion.  I think "Hybrid Theory" by a small margin.

I know you aren't asking me, but I say Hybrid Theory too, just because it came along first, and has my two favorite songs by them.  Meteora loses out for me because it doesn't go anywhere that Hybrid Theory didn't, though it has the song "Breaking The Habit" which I really like, despite its being the poppiest song on the album by far.   Ironic, no?  

[murlough23]

Would people throw things at me if I said that I enjoyed Reanimation a hair more than both of the band's actual albums?

NP: "Open Skies", David Crowder Band

[DvChWi]

Would people throw things at me if I said that I enjoyed Reanimation a hair more than both of the band's actual albums?

NP: "Open Skies", David Crowder Band

No!  I like Reanimation because it was the first album that introduced me to the remix concept.  I think its more original than their albums, myself, but that could be because I'm not familiar with remix work.  Of course, I like "In the End" and I think the Reanimation version is pretty weak.  I do like what they did with "Pushing Me Away." quite a bit.

[Skrappybiskit]

Would people throw things at me if I said that I enjoyed Reanimation a hair more than both of the band's actual albums?

Yes. I will throw, for instance, large rabid animals at you.

Aside from that, I think Hybrid Theory is a much stronger effort that Meteora. From my standpoint HT sticks together better, has more meaningful lyrics--such as they are--and the rapping is more interesting. On the other hand, Meteora has Faint, which is almost a really good song, if taken out of context.

Skraps

[RokrantheGreat]

Which is better, Rokran, "Hybrid Theory" or "Meteora" in your opinion.  I think "Hybrid Theory" by a small margin.

Its a toss-up. Probably Hybrid Theory, though. Not Reanimation. I don't even own Reanimation. I may buy it, though. My first response to it was "why pay for a whole CD when all I'm getting are the same songs with some new stuff added on?"  

[Harenil]

Reanimation is great, but I think i like hybrid theory better... I dunno, meteora is good too. really a toss up among all of them.

[RokrantheGreat]

Reanimation is great, but I think i like hybrid theory better... I dunno, meteora is good too. really a toos up among all of them.

A "toos up"? Slow down, Harey. You don't have to get 100 posts today, you know.

[Harenil]

Just a very common typo after writing a 53000 word book  

[murlough23]

Its a toss-up. Probably Hybrid Theory, though. Not Reanimation. I don't even own Reanimation. I may buy it, though. My first response to it was "why pay for a whole CD when all I'm getting are the same songs with some new stuff added on?"

I thought that myself, but then I heard "PTS.OF.ATHRTY" and really enjoyed it, and I figured, "What the heck, it oughta be an interesting listen." I knew it'd be a pain to download, what with the high likelihood of people misnaming tracks and all, so I just went out and snagged it the week it released, and I ended up really enjoying most of the remixes, because unlike a lot of other remix albums, they didn't draw every single song out into an 8-minute club mix, and there was some forethought to how the songs flowed together. Some of the guest raps even gave more meaning to the songs.

Anyway, I'm not gonna win an argument over LP's artistic credibility... basically, Reanimation is just good ear candy. I like how all of the elements are mixed in there. And this is coming from someone who hates most remixes, even of his favorite bands.

[Harenil]

Certain more 'artistic' songs like Crawling remix (can't think of the name off the top of my head) are very nice sounding on Reanimation. I really like those ones that have alternate lyrics and tunes, they make it seem more like a re-do album than a r3m!x @lbum.

[murlough23]

Certain more 'artistic' songs like Crawling remix (can't think of the name off the top of my head) are very nice sounding on Reanimation. I really like those ones that have alternate lyrics and tunes, they make it seem more like a re-do album than a r3m!x @lbum.

Agreed. Some of the alternate verses/choruses were off-putting to me at first, but now it's actually hard for me to listen to the originals of "One Step Closer", "With You", and especially "Forgotten". I think the remixes all improved upon the originals, and that's rare. (Here comes a comment from bloop about how it can't be difficult to improve on total crap or something like that. I guess us LP fans deserve it for co-opting a thread about REM and Radiohead.)

The critics would probably hang 'em out to dry for it, but I wouldn't mind at all if the tracks from their new album showed up in remixed form some time next year. It seems like a few of 'em cut off too quickly, so a few remixes might give the songs a little breathing room.

[RokrantheGreat]

The critics would probably hang 'em out to dry for it, but I wouldn't mind at all if the tracks from their new album showed up in remixed form some time next year. It seems like a few of 'em cut off too quickly, so a few remixes might give the songs a little breathing room.

I wouldn't mind, as long as they come out with some new songs, too. Maybe release remixes online? For free, even? Show a little acceptance of file-sharing.

[bloop]

(Here comes a comment from bloop about how it can't be difficult to improve on total crap or something like that. I guess us LP fans deserve it for co-opting a thread about REM and Radiohead.)

You kind of did it for me.  Thanks.

[DvChWi]

I have been wanting to find some sort of quote tieing Radio, R.E.M, and U2 together.  At last, I have found one:

At Radiohead's show in New York's Irving Plaza, Madonna had reserved the best table in the house, and Ed's mom's table was all the way in the back. Ed said, "I'm not having this," so he went and swapped the signs on the tables. Thus, Madonna was in the back, and Ed's mom was seated between U2 and REM. "And that's exactly how it should be," he said.

Yes, that is how it should be. =D  

[murlough23]

Now tie them all together with Linkin Park and you'll have a heck of a quote on your hands.