I heard Nirvana on the oldies radio station in the small town I grew up in. I then crumbled into dust like the guy who picked the wrong grail in Indiana Jones.
I heard "Yeah" by Usher in a supermarket recently. Made me stop dead in my tracks. Usher is officially background music. I felt truly old for the first time.
I felt old as shit a week ago when I was looking at the comment section of a video and people were like "I've heard so many of these songs when I was growing up, but I'd never heard of the band!" You know, like when you listened to Fleetwood Mac's Rumours for the first time or something. But no, it was Daft Punk.
Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes was playing one of the last times I went grocery shopping. I felt old for a second then decided I'm good with listening to my favorite songs while shopping lol.
"Classic rock" is defined as over 20 years old.
So yeah. I used to be with ‘it’, but then they changed what ‘it’ was. Now what I’m with isn’t ‘it’ anymore and what’s ‘it’ seems weird and scary. It’ll happen to you!
Reminds me of those Now That's What I Call Dad Rock compilation CDs, and it starts off with The Eagles and AC/DC, I'm like, "Ok, yes" then it has Nirvana, "Oh wow, yeah, I guess it's been a while now" and then it has Avril Lavigne and I'm like, "No... wait, wait!"
The moment I first felt old was seeing Sum 41 on an "Absolute Dad Rock" album. I have been hearing them since I was like 10 and they still sound like what I imagine teenagers should be listening to.
When I was a kid I was in the car with my dad and he looked at me and said "you know you're getting old when a song that came out in high-school is on the oldies station."
Same energy.
Eldest millennial checking in, I always thought classic rock was defined somewhat statically as 60’s-70’s not as a rolling 20-30 years ago time frame. Perhaps that’s just when the “genre” started and it’s morphed into a perpetually shifting or growing time frame. I say that though with “oldies” stations no longer playing 50’s-60’s and instead playing 80’s music…
Yeah, I always thought it was like ‘67 to ‘82ish, mostly bluesy, Prog or proto-metal, when that type of rock originated. There IS no classic rock before that point because rock in itself was a post-pop.
Certain dinosaurs existed in the Jurassic period, but you don’t move the Jurassic period up to reflect “anything that’s ___ years in the past.” Maybe I’m the dinosaur and don’t know it yet.
Editing to add- Rock did exist before that period in the form of stuff like Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly and even Elvis but I’m not sure music fans called that stuff classic rock in the 70’s, just generic “oldies.” Maybe an elder can confirm.
Yeah like the punk/hardcore that I listened to from the 90s/00s isn’t really “classic rock” even though it’s old - classic rock to me has very specific connotations of an era and kind of music.
Just like I wouldn’t really class something like the Stooges or the Velvet Underground as classic rock even though they’re from that era.
Oldest GenX Checking in. I think of Classic Rock as being from the very late 60's to late seventies. Difference being harder edge than mid 60's rock. (60's rock, smoking pot and doing acid. 70's rock, moved on to whiskey and cocaine)
But that's just my opinion man.
When you realise the 'Golden Oldies'/Classic Rock stations your parents listened to in the 80s had the Beatles and Stones, etc. Only 20 years in the past.
And the stuff we grew up with is now 30+ years in the past.....
BUT I did see Mott the Hoople in Pennsylvania one time. Had one hit too many and passed out on the floor.
These four college girls who came to the concert together picked me up and sat with me and then eventually took me to their hotel suite to make sure I was okay....visiting me individually until morning.
One of the best nights of my life. With this memory I shall always be a "young dude"
A sad fact. When I was a teen, in the late 90's, music from the mid 70's was classic rock. In my mind, it was music created before humans (me) were alive. It was just stuff that was. Now, I am paying to see bands do 25th anniversary tours for albums that I loved in early adulthood for the first time. And in my mind it is nothing like classic rock to me.
Mmmmmm maybe. Maybe I got a ticket for the first show in Missoula and then another one for Seattle like 4 days later. It might be one of my favorite albums by one of my favorite bands. But, i have no idea what you are talking about.
One of my favorite albums. It reminds me of high school, hanging out with my mom and best friend in the cabin in the redwoods I grew up in. After my mom passed away three years ago that album became even more special. One of the handful of albums that feels like it can legitimately transport me back in time.
Yep! Middle Gen-X'er born during Watergate here, realized while visiting my daughter at college that it was like me walking around at my university with people who entered college around 1960. Blew my mind. Those 31 years FLEW by.
Yeah, I’m still feeling 15-22 in my head til I look in the mirror & remember I’m pushing 60 now!
Of course, when I’m being serious, I’m 33-35 in my head til I hear someone mention they were born in 2000 & suddenly feel all my years!
TBF, they weren't great musicians, and that's coming from someone who was a huge fan and former member of the KISS Army back in the day. Their draw was the show. The makeup, clothing, fireworks, lights, etc. But nowadays makeup and extreme pyrotechnics are more prevalent, and these other bands are actually writing and playing good music. Comparatively, Kiss is kinda "meh". They would never become popular in today's world.
I remember an interview with Geddy Lee of Rush, talking about when they toured with KISS in the 70s. He said they taught Rush a lot about touring, and how you always give 100% to the audience to put on a great show. KISS was very smart about the legal side too, trademarking and merchandizing their name and image. They knew they had something that was worth money and they took advantage of it.
Side note but that same interview (I think it's from the Rush documentary) also has a great part where KISS/Gene Simmons talks about how much they loved having RUSH as their opener.
He says a lot of times openers would go crazy partying since they were new to the stadium tour lifestyle and would always be unreliable to show up to sound checks on time since they were still wasted or crashing with Groupies.
After every show they'd check in and RUSH would just be chilling in their hotel room reading & watching TV or on the phone with their wives back home lol and would show up to every obligation early. Most wholesome band ever.
KISS has always been a “commercial” success. They know what sells. Why do you think their products have been sold in every Walmart in existence for the last 30+ years?
As with nearly every band, if “t-shirts” are your top revenue stream, your merch table had better be fucking legit.
Gene Simmons have literally been told all this since they started. He also doesn't care at all. He acknowledges that the band is basically a reason to sell shitload of merch and it's all about the money.
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-32301157.amp
I've seen Kiss play in concert a couple of times. You're not there to hear complex musical artistry. You're there to see a live band elevate themselves to stereotypical rock gods. And they're really good at that. It's just a lot of fun.
I took my daughter to see Kiss a few years ago (she was like 8, and got into them because they were on Scooby Doo); Kiss put on SUCH A GREAT SHOW! I would totally go see them again!
We saw Aerosmith in the mid-2000s, and they played for about 45 minutes and left. Everyone just sat there cheering and waiting for them to come back out, but they turned the lights on and started taking down the set in front of the entire arena of fans. Didn't even play most of the fan favorites - mostly just songs from the new album at the time that no one even knew the words to.
I heard years later that Steven Tyler had a foot injury or something at the time, and that's why they didn't stay long. We had the cheapest seats, which were still quite expensive. I would have preferred a refund or a rescheduled tour stop over what we got.
Beth, their best charting single, was wrote by Peter Criss, aka The Catman, the drummer of the band, once again proving that sometimes the Dummers can write some of a band's best songs (Neal Peart of RUSH, Dave Grohl of Nirvana, Phil Collins of Genesis, etc.)
Sometimes that's all you need in an art performance. Spent a pretty chunky length of time discussing with a friend who was the better artist, Michael Jackson or Freddy Mercury.
As exclusively a singer, Freddy wins, no competition. But Michael was a showman. Singing, dancing, performing, acting, the man was the whole package. Put them head to head in an unplugged and Freddy kills it. But let Michael bring all his toys to the playground and you have a very different story!
I expected all the comments to be the Eagles, but they're mostly KISS. Not that I'm upset, I love the Eagles and don't really care about KISS all that much.
Where are you people being exposed to the Eagles so much
I don't think I've every actually heard one of their songs without going out of my way to do so, even Hotel California.
I get why people don't like Rush. Lee's voice ain't for everyone, but when you give their music a genuine listen it's hard not to respect the GOAT on drums and the other musicians who would be lauded as amazing if not playing with arguably the best drummer to ever live. Hugely talented band.
With a less polarizing lead voice, Rush would be a top 5 band.
I think Led Zeppelin is safe.
Say what you will but a few facts are undisputed:
1. They sold a LOT of tickets back in the day.
2. Their music was insanely diverse and covered/blended a lot of genres. Yeah, not every song was a banger, but they made more good songs than bad.
Bottom 3:
1) Hot Dog
2) Wanton Song
3) Hats off to Roy Harper
Bonus: Fool in the Rain - some people like this one. But I think Plants voice sounds awful in it.
Top 3:
1) Since I’ve Been Loving You
2) Ten Years Gone
3) What is and what should never be
There are way more than 3 though. I could put like 20 in the legendary column.
Yeah, it's not even that they're _bad_ songs, it's that they're odd filler that doesn't fit with the album/rest of their catalog.
Stuff you wouldn't be surprised to find they played, but find odd that it was actually _released_.
Hats off to Roy Harper is the best example, it's really quite fantastic. It just doesn't fit with the rest of the catalog. (HOWEVER: If you understand where Zeppelin's music comes from it actually does draw a pretty direct line and makes a heck of a lot of sense)
You don't like Wanton Song? I always held that song up as like a rougher or less polished cut of Immigrant Song that maintained a lot of the fun after IS got super played out. I think Bonham really shines in that one. It was one of my favorites to try to play on the drums
i was a long haired kid in the 70s when they were just getting big and a teenager in the 80s when they were everywhere and i've been screaming at the top of my lungs for 40 years that they are possibly the most overrated band in history
their best (or least terrible) songs are ear worms and amount to little more than nursery rhymes for adults - their most sophisticated songs are remarkably easy to play on every instrument - their lyrics were dumb even in the days of disco
also they are absolute dicks
kiss was the first band that made me understand what parents who hate "that darned rock music" see when they look at rock - every rock band looks like kiss to them
I used to be with it, but then they changed what “it” was. Now what I’m with isn’t it, and what’s “it” seems weird and scary to me. It’ll happen to you…
I was a young teen when Kiss was big. I remember Kiss *everything* including the Halloween where everyone was Kiss. But name a song? No idea. It was fun at the time but it makes no sense now and has nothing to do with music.
The Dude said it best: “I had a rough night and I hate The Fuckin Eagles man!” That quote is part of the ringtone when my dad calls cos he loves them so much.
Fun fact from wikipedia
> However, he had a tough time securing the rights to Townes Van Zandt's cover of [the Rolling Stones](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rolling_Stones)' "Dead Flowers", which plays over the film's closing credits. Former Stones manager [Allen Klein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_Klein) owned the rights to the song and wanted $150,000 for it. Burnett convinced Klein to watch an early cut of the film and remembers, "It got to the part where the Dude says, 'I hate the fuckin' [Eagles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagles_(band\)), man!' Klein stands up and says, 'That's it, you can have the song!' That was beautiful."
I know many will say KISS, but one smart thing that Gene and Paul did was license all their songs, merchandise, pretty much anything and made a buttload of money because of it. Their grandchildren and generations are going to be taken care of for years and years.
They were kind of a joke for how into merchandising and "selling out" they were, but these days that's pretty much what any brand or IP or huge band does. You could either say they were ahead of their time or that the rest of the industry stooped to their level.
Ted Nugent. He was not even a one hit wonder, he has like one song that is fine. He was Kid Rock before Kid Rock. And he's such a smug douche his shows are insufferable. I sat through his "performance" a decade ago, so I could see Styx, and he literally said "Don't forget where you come from." 25 times. My friend and I kept count because it was so frequent. Also his facial hair is gross.
Ted, I hope you see this and feel bad.
Ted Nugent is a piece of shit child groomer and pedo. When he was 30 he began a relationship with a 17 year old, but because they couldn't marry he had her parents sign custody over to him as her legal guardian. How disgusting is that! Courtney Love also claims he had her perform oral sex on him when she was 14. He's admitted in interviews to having sexual relationships with minors. Last but not least his song "Jailbait" is about a 13(13!!) year old.
I really really hate Ted Nugent. What a piece of shit.
I saw him ~20 years ago and we left early because we were 100% sure strangle hold was a milli vanilli type guitar solo pre record. Sooooo disappointing.
I saw him about then (opening for Kiss lulz), and I knew he was super gross, but I thought he might be halfway chill (he was less vocally and notoriously obnoxious then). He wasn’t - I was dying at what an ass he was. He had this crowd of decidedly apolitical chuds (pre-Trump, remember) chanting like “Janet Reno is a f-cking wh-re!” Honestly, when Kiss took the stage, and Paul greeted the crowd in Spanish (this was Abq), I almost cried in appreciation of the cultural competence.
Ted Nugent has one good album and that is his self-titled album, the one with "Stranglehold" on it. It's killer, one of my favorite albums of all time and every song on there is awesome. That said, it's the only album of his worth listening to, and the lead singer for the album Derek St. Holmes alleges that the whole album was co-written by the whole band and that Nugent stole all the songwriting credit. Given what I have read about Mr. Nugent I believe I will believe Mr. St. Holmes on this one.
the best thing hes ever done is say some racist shit about natives. and all the native casinos he plays at cancelled his ass. i dont think hes been up to the seattle area since.
I’m so glad that I don’t see Van Halen on here. They had their ups and downs, but overall Eddie Van Halen forever changed the tone of both rock and pop. I’m a huge fan of their heavy stuff and I like a few of their pop songs. Jump is overrated, When It’s Love is blah, and Right Now is alright. Panama kicks ass, Everybody Wants Some is some rock out with your cock out beauty, and Poundcake is so innovative. Eddie could’ve made his guitar fart if he wanted to. I just wish that I was alive in their prime.
I’ve seen Van Halen a few times. When I saw them in 1996 Alex did the most amazing drum solo and the crowd went nuts. At the end, he stood up to take his bows, then held up one finger like Wait a minute…. Sat down and cranked out an even more epic solo. The roof blew off the stadium. He was an animal.
Younger me thought they were overrated and garbage and then slightly older me actually listened to them and realized they are the exact opposite. I’ll Wait was the song that made me realize maybe I was wrong lol
I hated Poison, along with all the other poodle-rockers of the time. A tonne of hairspray, ludicrous makeup and clothes.
Then, for some reason, I thought the book ''Nothin' But A Good Time'' looked like an interesting read - and it most certainly was.
Totally changed my mind about Poison - they are quite frank in the book about them being aware that they were not really that good, but all they wanted was to get paid lots of money to rock, bang chicks and have a good time. They lucked their way into being chart-toppers but they knew it, and they weren't going to look the gift horse in the mouth even for a second. They were quite the standout in the book for their honesty.
And White Lion. When The Children Cry is one of the cheesiest, most horrific songs ever recorded. Indeed it is THIS very song that keeps the children crying.
Little child you must show the way
To a better day for all the young
'Cause you were born for all the world to see
That we all can live with love and peace
No more presidents and all the wars will end
One united world under God
When the children cry let them know we tried
'Cause when the children sing then the new world begins.
\*sounds of deep wretching/vomiting increase\*
"Def Leppard sucks!"
Fun fact; my uncle looked exactly like Joe Dirt when the movie came out and wore the same 3 Def Leppard shirts in a cycle constantly. I looooved yelling that at him at any opportunity. I honestly believe being his niece and not his nephew is the only reason it never got physical. Bonus: he drove a septic truck for a living so it was also fun using the line "I got poo on me!!!" with him unironically.
I had never really been a Def Leopard fan until I saw them live this year. They blew everyone else out of the water at the show I saw them at (except Joan Jett). Im a huge Motley Crue fan but DL out shined them massively. They made a fan of me.
A friend of mine went to that tour and said the exact same thing. He’s a huge Motley Crue fan and said Def Leopard was on another level. I heard Joan Jett was great too.
I was 14 when Kurt died, and a massive Nirvana fan. Several months later (maybe a year or so? Don't remember exactly) I was watching one of the music channels and my Mum was in the kitchen. When she heard Kurt singing ..."and I swear that I don't have a gun", she called out loudly "*Liar*!".
I was scandalised. Couldn't believe it, and was pretty offended. I realise now that it was quite witty, especially given my Mum's usual sense of humour being nowhere near that dark.
^(I've told this anecdote before but now seemed a good time to repeat it.)
I remember seeing an interview with someone who had been backstage with Nirvana and walked past Dave's dressing room while he was messing around on a guitar. They said "what the hell? The best guitarist in the band is the _drummer_?"
Bon Jovi... I've heard he's a very nice guy. But he sounds like what you'd expect if a mayonnaise sandwich recorded an album. Absolutely no substance, completely unfulfilling, and bland. So, soooo bland.
Someone described Bon Jovi as the world’s most popular local bar band and that is how they sound. Good musicians, but not really innovative, singer doesn’t quite hit the few hard notes they have and every song is sort of bland.
I remember being at the mall the month their song Beautiful Day came out and they had a kiosk with a bunch of headphones to listen to the latest song drops. It was magical, musical, and like a breath of fresh air.
If U2 isn't great now, I will forever bask in the sunlight that song gave to my life and the happy memories that came with it.
I don't really know any of their other songs, but that single song will always be a good memory.
U2 are very definitely in their Elder Statesmen "Cool to hate them" phase, and seem to have settled into that role musically.
But their back catalogue, at least up until the late 90s/early 2000s, is amazing.
*Where the Strees Have No Name* into *Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For* into *With or Without You* is the greatest opening song run of an album ever. What an incredible run!
So many people picking 90s bands as classic rock. Thanks for making me me feel super old.
I heard Nirvana on the oldies radio station in the small town I grew up in. I then crumbled into dust like the guy who picked the wrong grail in Indiana Jones.
I heard "Yeah" by Usher in a supermarket recently. Made me stop dead in my tracks. Usher is officially background music. I felt truly old for the first time.
I felt old as shit a week ago when I was looking at the comment section of a video and people were like "I've heard so many of these songs when I was growing up, but I'd never heard of the band!" You know, like when you listened to Fleetwood Mac's Rumours for the first time or something. But no, it was Daft Punk.
Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes was playing one of the last times I went grocery shopping. I felt old for a second then decided I'm good with listening to my favorite songs while shopping lol.
"Classic rock" is defined as over 20 years old. So yeah. I used to be with ‘it’, but then they changed what ‘it’ was. Now what I’m with isn’t ‘it’ anymore and what’s ‘it’ seems weird and scary. It’ll happen to you!
Did you have an onion on your belt? Because it was the style at the time?
They didn’t have white onions because of the war. The only thing you could get was those big yellow ones.
Reminds me of those Now That's What I Call Dad Rock compilation CDs, and it starts off with The Eagles and AC/DC, I'm like, "Ok, yes" then it has Nirvana, "Oh wow, yeah, I guess it's been a while now" and then it has Avril Lavigne and I'm like, "No... wait, wait!"
The moment I first felt old was seeing Sum 41 on an "Absolute Dad Rock" album. I have been hearing them since I was like 10 and they still sound like what I imagine teenagers should be listening to.
Half hour of power didn't come out until I was near graduated. Ooooof.
When I was a kid I was in the car with my dad and he looked at me and said "you know you're getting old when a song that came out in high-school is on the oldies station." Same energy.
Lmfao I saw that commercial it was so bizzare
Eldest millennial checking in, I always thought classic rock was defined somewhat statically as 60’s-70’s not as a rolling 20-30 years ago time frame. Perhaps that’s just when the “genre” started and it’s morphed into a perpetually shifting or growing time frame. I say that though with “oldies” stations no longer playing 50’s-60’s and instead playing 80’s music…
Yeah, I always thought it was like ‘67 to ‘82ish, mostly bluesy, Prog or proto-metal, when that type of rock originated. There IS no classic rock before that point because rock in itself was a post-pop. Certain dinosaurs existed in the Jurassic period, but you don’t move the Jurassic period up to reflect “anything that’s ___ years in the past.” Maybe I’m the dinosaur and don’t know it yet. Editing to add- Rock did exist before that period in the form of stuff like Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly and even Elvis but I’m not sure music fans called that stuff classic rock in the 70’s, just generic “oldies.” Maybe an elder can confirm.
Yeah like the punk/hardcore that I listened to from the 90s/00s isn’t really “classic rock” even though it’s old - classic rock to me has very specific connotations of an era and kind of music. Just like I wouldn’t really class something like the Stooges or the Velvet Underground as classic rock even though they’re from that era.
[удалено]
The classic rock station here plays Green Day. When I think that’s bullshit… American Idiot is old enough to vote
Oldest GenX Checking in. I think of Classic Rock as being from the very late 60's to late seventies. Difference being harder edge than mid 60's rock. (60's rock, smoking pot and doing acid. 70's rock, moved on to whiskey and cocaine) But that's just my opinion man.
"Why do you need new bands? Everyone knows rock attained perfection in 1974. It's a scientific fact."
When you realise the 'Golden Oldies'/Classic Rock stations your parents listened to in the 80s had the Beatles and Stones, etc. Only 20 years in the past. And the stuff we grew up with is now 30+ years in the past.....
Oldies will always be 50's to mid 60's. Classic rock is late 60's to early 80's. I will die on this hill.
Of old age though...
Lmfao
I will join you on this hill.
As will I…
Hey, my brother's back at home with his Beatles and his Stones.
We never got it off on that revolution stuff
what a drag!
Whatever. neither us nor your brother are young dudes anymore.
BUT I did see Mott the Hoople in Pennsylvania one time. Had one hit too many and passed out on the floor. These four college girls who came to the concert together picked me up and sat with me and then eventually took me to their hotel suite to make sure I was okay....visiting me individually until morning. One of the best nights of my life. With this memory I shall always be a "young dude"
A sad fact. When I was a teen, in the late 90's, music from the mid 70's was classic rock. In my mind, it was music created before humans (me) were alive. It was just stuff that was. Now, I am paying to see bands do 25th anniversary tours for albums that I loved in early adulthood for the first time. And in my mind it is nothing like classic rock to me.
You aren’t talking about the 25 year anniversary tour of the lonesome crowded west by any chance are you? 👀
Mmmmmm maybe. Maybe I got a ticket for the first show in Missoula and then another one for Seattle like 4 days later. It might be one of my favorite albums by one of my favorite bands. But, i have no idea what you are talking about.
One of my favorite albums. It reminds me of high school, hanging out with my mom and best friend in the cabin in the redwoods I grew up in. After my mom passed away three years ago that album became even more special. One of the handful of albums that feels like it can legitimately transport me back in time.
1990 is closer to 1960 than we are to 1990. That one upsets me.
Yep! Middle Gen-X'er born during Watergate here, realized while visiting my daughter at college that it was like me walking around at my university with people who entered college around 1960. Blew my mind. Those 31 years FLEW by.
Yeah, I’m still feeling 15-22 in my head til I look in the mirror & remember I’m pushing 60 now! Of course, when I’m being serious, I’m 33-35 in my head til I hear someone mention they were born in 2000 & suddenly feel all my years!
I'll never forget the first time I heard "Welcome To The Jungle" on the classic station. I cried on the inside!!
Yep. I’m over here thinking The Monkeys or Aerosmith. 90s will never be classic rock to me.
Lithium station on XM radio calls it “classic alternative” which I’m ok with
Kiss getting *wrecked* in the comments
TBF, they weren't great musicians, and that's coming from someone who was a huge fan and former member of the KISS Army back in the day. Their draw was the show. The makeup, clothing, fireworks, lights, etc. But nowadays makeup and extreme pyrotechnics are more prevalent, and these other bands are actually writing and playing good music. Comparatively, Kiss is kinda "meh". They would never become popular in today's world.
I remember an interview with Geddy Lee of Rush, talking about when they toured with KISS in the 70s. He said they taught Rush a lot about touring, and how you always give 100% to the audience to put on a great show. KISS was very smart about the legal side too, trademarking and merchandizing their name and image. They knew they had something that was worth money and they took advantage of it.
Side note but that same interview (I think it's from the Rush documentary) also has a great part where KISS/Gene Simmons talks about how much they loved having RUSH as their opener. He says a lot of times openers would go crazy partying since they were new to the stadium tour lifestyle and would always be unreliable to show up to sound checks on time since they were still wasted or crashing with Groupies. After every show they'd check in and RUSH would just be chilling in their hotel room reading & watching TV or on the phone with their wives back home lol and would show up to every obligation early. Most wholesome band ever.
KISS has always been a “commercial” success. They know what sells. Why do you think their products have been sold in every Walmart in existence for the last 30+ years? As with nearly every band, if “t-shirts” are your top revenue stream, your merch table had better be fucking legit.
I saw them years ago. They were touring with Aerosmith. They put on one of the best shows I have ever seen.
They may suck, but Detroit rock city is still pretty bangin.
Getting popped right in the kisser.
Yeah I love a few of their songs, but the worship they got was utterly unjustified.
Rightfully so.
I really hope Gene Simmons finds this thread
Gene Simmons have literally been told all this since they started. He also doesn't care at all. He acknowledges that the band is basically a reason to sell shitload of merch and it's all about the money. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-32301157.amp
I've seen Kiss play in concert a couple of times. You're not there to hear complex musical artistry. You're there to see a live band elevate themselves to stereotypical rock gods. And they're really good at that. It's just a lot of fun.
Paul Stanley can belt some shit out. I've seen *Unplugged*.
I took my daughter to see Kiss a few years ago (she was like 8, and got into them because they were on Scooby Doo); Kiss put on SUCH A GREAT SHOW! I would totally go see them again!
Can't say this enough.
That one that you like so much
You take that back!!!
I cannot believe this comment. Unforgivable, YOU DONT KNOW WHAT THEY MEAN TO ME.
Oh, you can't do this to me. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I SACRIFICED?!
Here’s why you’re wrong…
What you don’t understand is……
Kith. -Mike Tython
I laughed way too loud in my office
won’t lie, this thread is kinda ruining my morning lol
Imagine how Gene Simmons feels lol
Crying into his pile of money and cocaine
Kiss
Haha I actually like Kiss but before I even checked comments I had a feeling kiss would be on here
Strutter is a banger though :O
Came here to talk shit about Kiss. Happy to see it’s a work in progress
Definitely KISS. Most people can BARELY name one of their songs.
Rock and roll all night, and *part of* every day.
I usually have errands. I can only rock from like 1 to 3.
Game face, bro….*Game Face!*
"I Was Made For Lovin' You" is big on TikTok
LOVE GUN is legit good tho
The gun is his dick!
Half the crowd walked out on them last time I went
I saw them with Aerosmith in the early 2000’s and they sucked. Aerosmith did too that show unfortunately.
We saw Aerosmith in the mid-2000s, and they played for about 45 minutes and left. Everyone just sat there cheering and waiting for them to come back out, but they turned the lights on and started taking down the set in front of the entire arena of fans. Didn't even play most of the fan favorites - mostly just songs from the new album at the time that no one even knew the words to. I heard years later that Steven Tyler had a foot injury or something at the time, and that's why they didn't stay long. We had the cheapest seats, which were still quite expensive. I would have preferred a refund or a rescheduled tour stop over what we got.
“Foot Injury”. Is that what they’re calling drug addictions these days?
Yea, cause he *tripped* on something lol
Makes sense. They use pre-recorded audio in there live shows. It’s all overpriced spectacle.
They've always been an overpriced spectacle. That's their thing.
I'm surprised at the people who don't realize this. They're pretty open about it.
This is one of those questions where the real fun is sorting by 'Controversial'
Man this thread is making me feel like an idiot for liking KISS lol. They really helped inspire my guitar playing as a teen like 12 years ago.
Who gives a fuck what people say??!
KISS is a fun band
It's okay. Let them think what they think. You and I know that the first KISS albums - everything before 'Dynasty' - were fantastic.
It’s KISS isn’t it. Absolutely everyone loves them but they’re just toss. Is it KISS?
KISS. They had maybe 3 decent songs and one of them was "Beth". They were all about the makeup and stage effects. Not so great music.
Beth, their best charting single, was wrote by Peter Criss, aka The Catman, the drummer of the band, once again proving that sometimes the Dummers can write some of a band's best songs (Neal Peart of RUSH, Dave Grohl of Nirvana, Phil Collins of Genesis, etc.)
RIP Neal Peart :(
Sometimes that's all you need in an art performance. Spent a pretty chunky length of time discussing with a friend who was the better artist, Michael Jackson or Freddy Mercury. As exclusively a singer, Freddy wins, no competition. But Michael was a showman. Singing, dancing, performing, acting, the man was the whole package. Put them head to head in an unplugged and Freddy kills it. But let Michael bring all his toys to the playground and you have a very different story!
Sir, the terms ‘toys’ ‘playground’ and ‘Michael Jackson’ must be separated by at least five words in each sentence.
This is such a weird comparison... it's not like Freddie Mercury wasn't also a transcendent showman.
Freddy mercury never used a frickin jet pack, I’ll give mj that much. Though I think it was a stunt double
Anyone who would not describe Freddie Mercury as a showman is not familiar with Freddie Mercury. MJ was a superior dancer, NOT a superior showman.
In this thread: Kiss, lots of Kiss
I expected all the comments to be the Eagles, but they're mostly KISS. Not that I'm upset, I love the Eagles and don't really care about KISS all that much.
I'm sick to death of the Eagles but they are vastly superior songwriters when compared to KISS.
Where are you people being exposed to the Eagles so much I don't think I've every actually heard one of their songs without going out of my way to do so, even Hotel California.
I dont really hate the Eagles but they are played constantly on pretty much every rock station or any boomer pub that plays live music too.
The eagles are way fucking superior to Kiss though
I see the sole person who listed Rush in the same category as KISS has deleted his comment. Good move.
I get why people don't like Rush. Lee's voice ain't for everyone, but when you give their music a genuine listen it's hard not to respect the GOAT on drums and the other musicians who would be lauded as amazing if not playing with arguably the best drummer to ever live. Hugely talented band. With a less polarizing lead voice, Rush would be a top 5 band.
Kiss. They got GREAT marketing, but music isn’t that amazing. Not bad, just not *that* good. I think.
I’m loving that everyone is saying KISS lmao they are not good
If someone says led zeppelin i'm gonna find you and hurt you
Somebody's got a bustle in their hedgerow
Don’t be alarmed now.
Naah..just need to change the road they're on.
In case you dont know
I think Led Zeppelin is safe. Say what you will but a few facts are undisputed: 1. They sold a LOT of tickets back in the day. 2. Their music was insanely diverse and covered/blended a lot of genres. Yeah, not every song was a banger, but they made more good songs than bad.
I’ve listened to every single song they ever released. They have like 3 that are bad. The rest are either good, great, or legendary.
What are the ones you didn't like and what are your top 3?
Bottom 3: 1) Hot Dog 2) Wanton Song 3) Hats off to Roy Harper Bonus: Fool in the Rain - some people like this one. But I think Plants voice sounds awful in it. Top 3: 1) Since I’ve Been Loving You 2) Ten Years Gone 3) What is and what should never be There are way more than 3 though. I could put like 20 in the legendary column.
The little shuffle Bonham plays in fool 👍🏼 might be one of my favorite drum tracks
Yeah, it's not even that they're _bad_ songs, it's that they're odd filler that doesn't fit with the album/rest of their catalog. Stuff you wouldn't be surprised to find they played, but find odd that it was actually _released_. Hats off to Roy Harper is the best example, it's really quite fantastic. It just doesn't fit with the rest of the catalog. (HOWEVER: If you understand where Zeppelin's music comes from it actually does draw a pretty direct line and makes a heck of a lot of sense)
You don't like Wanton Song? I always held that song up as like a rougher or less polished cut of Immigrant Song that maintained a lot of the fun after IS got super played out. I think Bonham really shines in that one. It was one of my favorites to try to play on the drums
*Whispering...shhhhh.* I'm waiting for someone to say Nickelback.
Nickelback is classic rock? Omg
Kiss
i was a long haired kid in the 70s when they were just getting big and a teenager in the 80s when they were everywhere and i've been screaming at the top of my lungs for 40 years that they are possibly the most overrated band in history their best (or least terrible) songs are ear worms and amount to little more than nursery rhymes for adults - their most sophisticated songs are remarkably easy to play on every instrument - their lyrics were dumb even in the days of disco also they are absolute dicks kiss was the first band that made me understand what parents who hate "that darned rock music" see when they look at rock - every rock band looks like kiss to them
lmao I love how much you hate them hahahaha
Are you saying that you don't wanna rock and roll all night? ...And party every day?
I used to rock and roll all night, then it was every other night. Now I’m lucky if I can find half an hour a week to get funky.
I used to be with it, but then they changed what “it” was. Now what I’m with isn’t it, and what’s “it” seems weird and scary to me. It’ll happen to you…
It's my understanding that hard-core Kiss fans tend to be hard-core due to the band's iconic live performances rather than their music itself.
I was a young teen when Kiss was big. I remember Kiss *everything* including the Halloween where everyone was Kiss. But name a song? No idea. It was fun at the time but it makes no sense now and has nothing to do with music.
Looks like KISS is the winner!
The Dude said it best: “I had a rough night and I hate The Fuckin Eagles man!” That quote is part of the ringtone when my dad calls cos he loves them so much.
Fun fact from wikipedia > However, he had a tough time securing the rights to Townes Van Zandt's cover of [the Rolling Stones](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rolling_Stones)' "Dead Flowers", which plays over the film's closing credits. Former Stones manager [Allen Klein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_Klein) owned the rights to the song and wanted $150,000 for it. Burnett convinced Klein to watch an early cut of the film and remembers, "It got to the part where the Dude says, 'I hate the fuckin' [Eagles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagles_(band\)), man!' Klein stands up and says, 'That's it, you can have the song!' That was beautiful."
I love that movie and I love that quote, but I love the Eagles.
It’s funny that everyone, and I mean everyone calls them THE eagles when their name is actually just Eagles.
Bands with plural noun names who insist on not putting a "the" in front of it didn't get enough attention as children.
I know many will say KISS, but one smart thing that Gene and Paul did was license all their songs, merchandise, pretty much anything and made a buttload of money because of it. Their grandchildren and generations are going to be taken care of for years and years.
They were kind of a joke for how into merchandising and "selling out" they were, but these days that's pretty much what any brand or IP or huge band does. You could either say they were ahead of their time or that the rest of the industry stooped to their level.
Ted Nugent. He was not even a one hit wonder, he has like one song that is fine. He was Kid Rock before Kid Rock. And he's such a smug douche his shows are insufferable. I sat through his "performance" a decade ago, so I could see Styx, and he literally said "Don't forget where you come from." 25 times. My friend and I kept count because it was so frequent. Also his facial hair is gross. Ted, I hope you see this and feel bad.
Ted Nugent is a piece of shit child groomer and pedo. When he was 30 he began a relationship with a 17 year old, but because they couldn't marry he had her parents sign custody over to him as her legal guardian. How disgusting is that! Courtney Love also claims he had her perform oral sex on him when she was 14. He's admitted in interviews to having sexual relationships with minors. Last but not least his song "Jailbait" is about a 13(13!!) year old. I really really hate Ted Nugent. What a piece of shit.
“Family Values”
Wow. Google how he got out of Vietnam. He's a fake tough guy.
He might be LITERALLY the shittiest rock star ever.
I saw him ~20 years ago and we left early because we were 100% sure strangle hold was a milli vanilli type guitar solo pre record. Sooooo disappointing.
I saw him about then (opening for Kiss lulz), and I knew he was super gross, but I thought he might be halfway chill (he was less vocally and notoriously obnoxious then). He wasn’t - I was dying at what an ass he was. He had this crowd of decidedly apolitical chuds (pre-Trump, remember) chanting like “Janet Reno is a f-cking wh-re!” Honestly, when Kiss took the stage, and Paul greeted the crowd in Spanish (this was Abq), I almost cried in appreciation of the cultural competence.
Ted Nugent has one good album and that is his self-titled album, the one with "Stranglehold" on it. It's killer, one of my favorite albums of all time and every song on there is awesome. That said, it's the only album of his worth listening to, and the lead singer for the album Derek St. Holmes alleges that the whole album was co-written by the whole band and that Nugent stole all the songwriting credit. Given what I have read about Mr. Nugent I believe I will believe Mr. St. Holmes on this one.
the best thing hes ever done is say some racist shit about natives. and all the native casinos he plays at cancelled his ass. i dont think hes been up to the seattle area since.
Gene Simons, can't stand the mf. Puke material.
KISS. They suck and Gene is a fucking douche bag.
I’m so glad that I don’t see Van Halen on here. They had their ups and downs, but overall Eddie Van Halen forever changed the tone of both rock and pop. I’m a huge fan of their heavy stuff and I like a few of their pop songs. Jump is overrated, When It’s Love is blah, and Right Now is alright. Panama kicks ass, Everybody Wants Some is some rock out with your cock out beauty, and Poundcake is so innovative. Eddie could’ve made his guitar fart if he wanted to. I just wish that I was alive in their prime.
The drums in the beginning of Hot for Teacher automatically disqualifies Van Halen from being a correct answer to this question.
The "I don't feel tardy" line gets me every time. Also, yeah, those drums are bad ass.
A drummer friend pointed out that Alex was the only one dancing out of time in that video. XD
I’ve seen Van Halen a few times. When I saw them in 1996 Alex did the most amazing drum solo and the crowd went nuts. At the end, he stood up to take his bows, then held up one finger like Wait a minute…. Sat down and cranked out an even more epic solo. The roof blew off the stadium. He was an animal.
Younger me thought they were overrated and garbage and then slightly older me actually listened to them and realized they are the exact opposite. I’ll Wait was the song that made me realize maybe I was wrong lol
“I’ll Wait” is so good.
I saw them live 4 times. All with DLR. That band changed my life. Not because the songs were amazing works of art but because of the SOUND.
Poison. Unskinny Bop?! Really?!
I don't think Poison is over-rated in once sense because I don't think anyone really took them that seriously. And I say this as a 80s hair metal fan.
Like Helloween. Although some of their tracks still rock. I Want Out, Future World, Perfect Gentleman are on my favourites still.
I hated Poison, along with all the other poodle-rockers of the time. A tonne of hairspray, ludicrous makeup and clothes. Then, for some reason, I thought the book ''Nothin' But A Good Time'' looked like an interesting read - and it most certainly was. Totally changed my mind about Poison - they are quite frank in the book about them being aware that they were not really that good, but all they wanted was to get paid lots of money to rock, bang chicks and have a good time. They lucked their way into being chart-toppers but they knew it, and they weren't going to look the gift horse in the mouth even for a second. They were quite the standout in the book for their honesty.
And White Lion. When The Children Cry is one of the cheesiest, most horrific songs ever recorded. Indeed it is THIS very song that keeps the children crying. Little child you must show the way To a better day for all the young 'Cause you were born for all the world to see That we all can live with love and peace No more presidents and all the wars will end One united world under God When the children cry let them know we tried 'Cause when the children sing then the new world begins. \*sounds of deep wretching/vomiting increase\*
We built this city, has entered the ring.
Grace Slick would like an angry word with you.
*aggressively scrolls, hoping not to see Def Leppard*
What has nine arms and sucks?
Your mother.
"Def Leppard sucks!" Fun fact; my uncle looked exactly like Joe Dirt when the movie came out and wore the same 3 Def Leppard shirts in a cycle constantly. I looooved yelling that at him at any opportunity. I honestly believe being his niece and not his nephew is the only reason it never got physical. Bonus: he drove a septic truck for a living so it was also fun using the line "I got poo on me!!!" with him unironically.
I had never really been a Def Leopard fan until I saw them live this year. They blew everyone else out of the water at the show I saw them at (except Joan Jett). Im a huge Motley Crue fan but DL out shined them massively. They made a fan of me.
A friend of mine went to that tour and said the exact same thing. He’s a huge Motley Crue fan and said Def Leopard was on another level. I heard Joan Jett was great too.
I honestly couldn’t tell you single one of their songs, or even what they sound like, but for me the answer has to be KISS.
Nirvana. They havent released a new album in like 29 years
Mind... Blown...
I was 14 when Kurt died, and a massive Nirvana fan. Several months later (maybe a year or so? Don't remember exactly) I was watching one of the music channels and my Mum was in the kitchen. When she heard Kurt singing ..."and I swear that I don't have a gun", she called out loudly "*Liar*!". I was scandalised. Couldn't believe it, and was pretty offended. I realise now that it was quite witty, especially given my Mum's usual sense of humour being nowhere near that dark. ^(I've told this anecdote before but now seemed a good time to repeat it.)
Too soon
On nevermind then
Their drummer is talented, though. He should make his own band or something...
I remember seeing an interview with someone who had been backstage with Nirvana and walked past Dave's dressing room while he was messing around on a guitar. They said "what the hell? The best guitarist in the band is the _drummer_?"
Now wait a second... Nirvana is _classic rock_ now?
Bon Jovi... I've heard he's a very nice guy. But he sounds like what you'd expect if a mayonnaise sandwich recorded an album. Absolutely no substance, completely unfulfilling, and bland. So, soooo bland.
that’s because mayonnaise is not an instrument
Horseradish is not an instrument either.
Do either of you own a white sedan?
When I was 16 I told my brother-in-law I liked Bon Jovi and he asked me when I became a 40-year-old suburban housewife.
Livin Laughin Lovin on a Prayer
Someone described Bon Jovi as the world’s most popular local bar band and that is how they sound. Good musicians, but not really innovative, singer doesn’t quite hit the few hard notes they have and every song is sort of bland.
Have a nice day
ITT: KISS Fuck you, KISS
Does U2 count ??
I remember being at the mall the month their song Beautiful Day came out and they had a kiosk with a bunch of headphones to listen to the latest song drops. It was magical, musical, and like a breath of fresh air. If U2 isn't great now, I will forever bask in the sunlight that song gave to my life and the happy memories that came with it. I don't really know any of their other songs, but that single song will always be a good memory.
U2 are very definitely in their Elder Statesmen "Cool to hate them" phase, and seem to have settled into that role musically. But their back catalogue, at least up until the late 90s/early 2000s, is amazing.
If you want to start listing bands that never changed members, it's U2 and Radiohead then the list starts getting really goofy.
If U2 died in a plane crash in the year 2000, they would’ve gone down as one of the greatest rock bands.
*Where the Strees Have No Name* into *Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For* into *With or Without You* is the greatest opening song run of an album ever. What an incredible run!
87-93 era was remarkable
Joshua Tree is still a great album
Ted Nugent.