bands that did vs. bands that should've

[the living dead!]

i've been listening to black sheep boy by okkervil river a LOT lately, and i've noticed some parallels between it and funeral by the arcade fire. it seems to me that both have the aesthetic, the intensity, and the exceptional songwriting to get indie-big, but only one (you know which) really did. i'm inclined to say that BSB is in fact the stronger album, all told. the albums' song sequences also parallel in a lot of ways, and they're both loose concept albums that don't skimp on the instrumental flourishes.

basically what i'm saying is, it's all about hype! okkervil missed the right-place/right-time boat by a few months, and ended up pretty much high and dry, while arcade fire's praises are being sung across the land. injustice!

now, there's other examples of this for sure. spill it.

[G.C.R]

Walter salas humara, the vulgar boatmen et al as opposed to lets say, son volt?
Don't get me wrong, I love Son Volt, but out of all so called alt-country bands, I think its so sad that the Vulgar Boatmen never got bigger.

And in New zealand, bands like the Dead C and The Puddle shoulda been huge if there is any justice in this world. But I guess there isn't.

[stephanie]

Aw, dude, I think Okkervil are doing pretty well for themselves right now.  They could never be as big as Arcade Fire because they're not as sleek as Arcade Fire (who I think are boring as sin, whereas OR are one of the most consistently challenging and compelling bands in modern indie rock history), and I remain convinced that any band who's as rip-your-heart-out emotional as OR will never make it totally huge.  Which is unfortunate, because those boys deserve it like few others I can think of.  Although I don't know how I would feel if my beloved Messers. Sheff & co. suddenly started showing up at clubs in a friggin' tour bus.

Nobody liked Lifter Puller until they broke up, so they kind of.. missed their own boat, I guess, though THS are kinda making up for it and lots of people are getting into LFTR PLLR posthumously.  Pop Will Eat Itself broke up right before their token sound (circa 1996) blew up on the alt-rock charts, and it was an injustice that all these bands who ripped their shit off hardcore made it big while they went back to their day jobs and stuff.

I don't know of anyone who deserves to be at least moderately famous more than The Oranges Band, but I don't know what they (or I, or anybody) can do to change that.  It's not like their record sounds uncannily like anyone's who is super-huge right now.  I just really want them to start rolling in cash, and personally feel that the fact they are not is an affront to society.

I took some sleeping pills two and a half fucking hours ago and they still haven't kicked in.  It's sort of making me want to die.

[Ah_Pook]

no one ever gives bolt thrower their due, as opposed to the bands they were peers with (carcass, napalm death, morbid angel, etc)

[andmoreagain]

I always thought that the Geraldine Fibbers/Carla Bozulich never got their due.  Maybe they came a few years too early on the scene before punk-influenced roots bands began to get more press.  A shame.  Seriously, though, check out "Butch" and "Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and my Home".  Two of the best CDs I own.  But I did get to see Carla Bozulich open for Wilco a year or two ago and she was amazing.

[Wally]

I'm still waiting patiently for the Willard Grant conspiracy to have their praises sang from the roof top. Of all the gothic country that's being thrown about you'd think we could find room, for the best "just back from a twelve hour shift in a factory and I'm soaking me feet in the river and drinking cheap ass whiskey as me friends talk sports" kinda music.
I somehow doubt that day will ever come, Robert Fisher just ain't as pretty as Conor.

[davy]

poor forgotten helium.

poor never-made-it go-betweens.

poor name-was-too-long new radiant storm king.

poor not-enough-albums silver scooter.

poor no-scene-for-support butterflies.

poor 4-minutes-of-fame-on-the-crow-soundtrack machines of loving grace.

poor power-pop-isn't-cool-anymore nerf herder.

poor pre-dated-elephant-6 chocolate usa.

[jebreject]

i always thought nerf herder were, well, pretty awful.

[Maaik]

Two bands whose spark of brilliance lasted all of an album before devolving into awfulness: Our Lady Peace (Clumsy was a good album, forgiving it's radio-sheen production) and Sponge (Wax Ecstatic.  Who'da thunk it?)

Another E6 Shoulda-been: Joe Christmas

"The Debut Kicked Some Jazzy Ass!  Why'd You Break Up?!": the Up On In

Local Scene That Died Before Its Time: ATL Instrumental--Ocelot, Hell Mach 4, Moreland Audio, the Purkinje Shift et al. (Based around Samizdat and Moodswing Records).  With any luck, Blame Game will blow up in their stead.

[jebreject]

I saw Sponge live in like '94 or '95, I think.  They put on a good show.

[Black Amnesia of Heaven]

Two bands whose spark of brilliance lasted all of an album before devolving into awfulness: Our Lady Peace (Clumsy was a good album, forgiving it's radio-sheen production)

Bah, I say.  Happiness is Not a Fish That You Can Catch and Spiritual Machines, by my vote, are a thousand times better than Clumsy.

[summersteps]

poor forgotten helium.

poor never-made-it go-betweens.

poor name-was-too-long new radiant storm king.

poor not-enough-albums silver scooter.

poor no-scene-for-support butterflies.

poor 4-minutes-of-fame-on-the-crow-soundtrack machines of loving grace.

poor power-pop-isn't-cool-anymore nerf herder.

poor pre-dated-elephant-6 chocolate usa.

Props to new radiant storm king!  I loved that  song "phone call".  It was one of those perfect songs to get you through high school!

[Andrew_TSKS]

With any luck, Blame Game will blow up in their stead.

they've really worked for it: they played in atlanta with tsks on our first tour, in 2000. they opened, and the show was at their house. it blows my mind to see that they're still out there going for it.

[reebty]

Not that Augie March is doing badly in the US right now, but Architecture in Helsinki is currently getting all the Pitchfork knob-slobbing that should be Augie's. If Pitchfork still had a mailbag, I'd have no choice but to write a strongly worded letter.

[DCDave]

i always thought nerf herder were, well, pretty awful.

Making out in the middle of the pit/How come slayer didn't sing about this [sic]

C'mon.

[davy]

i always thought nerf herder were, well, pretty awful.

you're entitled to that, well, opinion.

also, re: our lady peace's clumsy: SECONDED!

that's maybe the only 99x favorite still in my collection. the drumming on that disc is PHENOMENAL!

[nonotyet]

This depends on your definition of "made it" and I know this has been discussed elsewhere, but goddamn, Troubled Hubble should have been youge. Also I don't have a counterpoint band to them, but I do know that they got incessantly compared to the same three bands overandoverandoveragain, so.
Devin Davis. Why does the entire world not love Devin Davis?
Okay, that's all I got.

[Andrew_TSKS]

i love devin davis. and actually, he does get some hype in recent months. though not nearly enough.

[Don Gately's Bangs]

I'd like to nominate Tim Hardin, although he could've made it if he'd stopped the horrendous drug habit.

Also, The Band of Holy Joy , The Leaving Trains, Loudon Wainwright III, Flipper.

Our Lady Peace, thirded.

I always felt strongly about John Denver getting some crit props woulda been nice, yeah he sold a few million and that should've made up for it but the guy was hurtin'.

At a time when irony and insincerity are so prevalent, it's nice to be reminded of the Denver.

[elpollodiablo]

Shit, [I cried harder than when my mother died when] Lifter Puller [...] broke up.

[db]

Shit, the only thing I like about Lifter Puller is that they broke up.

Dude, you better be out of the country by the time Stephanie sees this.

[elpollodiablo]

I dunno what you're talking about.

[db]

Ohhhh... if only it changed the quote I included.

So.

Close.

[ex-lion tamer]

I always thought that the Geraldine Fibbers/Carla Bozulich never got their due.  Maybe they came a few years too early on the scene before punk-influenced roots bands began to get more press.  A shame.  Seriously, though, check out "Butch" and "Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and my Home".  Two of the best CDs I own.  But I did get to see Carla Bozulich open for Wilco a year or two ago and she was amazing.

Carla Bozulich is incredibly awesome!! I still love both of those Fibbers albums, and am anxious to hear Carla's new band the Night Porter in action.

[stephanie]

TIME TO DIE, MILES


TIME TO DIEEEEEEEEEE



ETA:  I am LOLing so hard right now.  Dudes.