Okay, got enough of my excitement out of my system to post this gem from Queenpedia's Facebook page:
Apparently this is official, even though the site now only pulls up a blank page. Queenonline has said "Lots more to come on this...".
http://www.queenextravaganza.com/
Also from the site earlier today "The highly anticipated Live Final, held in Los Angeles, will be judged by the official Queen Extravaganza panel, fronted by Roger Taylor. The 10 final contestants, and possible 'wild-cards', will perform LIVE as part of the band in front of Roger and the panel"
Hi, this is Allison from Gunpowder Gelatine. I totally get your excitement, Zander, especially since it probably will be a great show. However, I feel like I was just kicked in the gut by one of my musical idols. So, if you don't want your enthusiasm tempered, you probably don't want to read any further.
ReplyDeleteDid you read the Rolling Stone article/interview? Only young, good-looking men need apply (he says "kids" and "people" at first, but then finally says he wants "good-looking guys" in the band)...so if I or any of my bandmates wanted to go for it, we're automatically out of contention, regardless of how well we play.
It seems that famous musicians fall into two camps regarding tribute bands: the ones who are flattered that other people want to play their music and take it to new audiences, and the ones who think that if a tribute band is just ok, then it ruins their legacy. Sadly, RT is apparently in the latter camp.
Most people who form tribute bands do it out of love for the band in question (I certainly did), so from my perspective, this feels like a big F-U from Roger. He's quoted in the Rolling Stone article as saying "If our music is being played live while we’re still alive I’d like it to be done with our stamp of approval" so, what's next? If you're not in the Queen Extravaganza, you'll have to get a special license from Queen Productions Ltd. to play live? Or will all the other tribute bands just suddenly get cease and desist orders in the mail?
I know that Queen have always been control freaks over their image, but this goes a little far. And it's not because I think this band will be competition - obviously, they're going to start out in a much bigger league than we're in, or will ever likely be in - it's really just the message the whole thing sends.
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/exclusive-queen-putting-together-own-tribute-band-for-2012-tour-20110919
Seriously?? That makes me really sad. I mean, Roger's right when he says some tribute bands suck, but that fact isn't exclusive to Queen. A quick search on Youtube shows all sorts of people just covering all sorts of songs, ranging from "Why did you think that was good enough to put on the internet?" to "I NEED TO PUT THIS ON MY IPOD AND LISTEN TO IT ALL THE TIME!"
ReplyDeleteAnd Gunpowder Gelatine is fucking awesome. For reals, if you guys are the closest I'm going to get to see Queen live, I'm more than okay with that! This coming from a guy who goes into Simon Cowell mode when listening to tribute bands (minus Simon's not liking Queen...)!
Even if I don't like a band's cover of a song or a full fledged tribute band, that doesn't mean that they shouldn't do what they're doing. Like you were saying, tribute bands are all about the love. And love is a good thing, even if it's in the form of someone who doesn't even sound good singing in the shower.
I'm hoping the "we're looking for guys" stuff is said in jest and Roger's keen to consider anyone of any gender so long as they have the talent. But yeah, it's quite a kick in the gut for Roger to say that shit (said in the hopes that a poor editing job in the article is to blame). As for the "good-looking" part: 1) That's subjective, and 2) Mick Jagger, Geddy Lee, Gene Simmons and tons of other musicians weren't so fucking pretty even when they were younger, and they still did okay! Hell, Freddie had some pretty fucked up teeth and there are teenage fans who would go apeshit if he were alive today just to glance at them.
Don't worry about lessening my enthusiasm on stuff. I mean, I was excited about this thing, but it's not worth being giddy if there's a shitty message behind it. I'll tune in at least once if I'm able, but as of now I'm very cautiously optimistic.
I wasn't fishing for compliments, but thank you!!!
ReplyDeleteAfter a day or two, I was thinking that maybe some of it was an out of context quote and he was using the "guys" as in "collection of people"...
One of my bandmates in my other band said that there are no KISS tribute bands that exist without some sort of ok from the band, so I hope it won't come to that...but we'll probably do ok if that happens. Then again, they may just think that their band will kick so much butt, there'll be no need for other tributes and we'll all just drift away...
The idea of tribute bands needing to be given the okay is frightening. But I think if it comes to that you'll be fine. Particularly since American Queen tribute bands are few and far between (as far as I can tell). But then... the idea of having a stamp of approval from Brian and Roger would be AMAZING!
ReplyDeleteWow, I had no idea that they were looking for just men. I am a woman, older one and I uploaded an audition to the contest. LOL! Psych on me!!
ReplyDeleteI don't think they're actually exclusively looking for men, especially because that kind of blatant discrimination is a huge no-no in North America. But I do think Roger chose poor words in that interview.
ReplyDeleteRene: I just got around to watching your audition and... I headbanged all the way through it! You did a really excellent job!
ReplyDeleteThank you! : )
ReplyDelete