Monday, November 08, 2004

After watching DiG! on Sundance Channel this weekend, I'm glad that Brian Jonestown Massacre offers all of its music for free on their website... because even though I like their music, I'll be damned if I ever spend a dollar buying one of their CDs or paying for one of their concert ticket to give money to that arrogant asshole Anton Newcombe. Although I loved the movie, Newcombe's constant whining and immaturity became almost unbearable. I can't recall the last time I've seen so much talent wasted on a musician I hope will never succeed (actually, Joel Gein bothered me much more, but that's tempered by the fact that he doesn't seem to have any talent, unless making stupid faces while shaking a tambourine and making snide comments counts as a talent). Fortunately, I don't have to worry much, since Newcombe continually sabotages himself (and yes, feel free to bring on the argument that he doesn't want success... that bullshit line just doesn't fly, and anyone who says it, including Newcombe, knows deep down that it's bullshit).

2 comments:

Brian said...

Jen, I apologize for spelling Joel's name incorrectly... but that's the only part of the post I retract. There are plenty of great musicians who are also troubled souls (Ray Charles, Kurt Cobain, Syd Barrett, and Brian Wilson immediately come to mind) who nonetheless worked hard and earned the respect of their audiences. I do think that Anton has created some beautiful music. But just because he is troubled doesn't give him free rein to be a jerk.

Brian said...

Believe me, I don't respect cookie-cutter TRL artists (I would hope you know that already)... and if Anton has successfully battled some of his demons, that's great... I hope he eventually exorcises all of them. All I am saying is that I would personally not pay money to support him... his idea that talent allows him to do whatever he wants and act however he wants without alienating his audience is misguided. But that's just my opinion, and should he truly clean up his act, I'd be open to reconsidering my stance. But until then, he'll be an asshole in my book...