Pissing off Scenesters Since 1995
I Hate New Music: The Classic Rock Manifesto
By Dave Thompson
Backbeat Books
“We need our reprobates, we need our delinquents, we need our antiheroes. Because if we don’t get them, what’s the [Rock and Roll] Hall of Fame going to look like in another 25 years?” – Dave Thompson
How many Limeys do you know that love American classic rock? Me either. Rock critic and author Dave Thompson’s new book is less a manifesto than a collection of diatribes about what he hates about new, and old, music.
Overall, I Hate New Music is a quick, fun read but seems scattered at times. Thompson wants to take on everything – stadium rock, Live Aid, U2, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – but he seems to have trouble containing his rage, making chapter breaks seem like little more than chances for him to catch his breath.
The reader gets the sense that Thompson likes music but has a serious grudge against musicians and the music industry; but can any music fan blame him? Don’t we all alternately loathe and love the image of the bad-ass “rock star?” Haven’t we all paid good money for “best of” compilations and re-releases for, say, one song?
Perhaps the most salient point Thompson makes is that while today it may seem too easy for any hack with recording software to put their shit out (limiting the artistic/creative growth musicians of old went through writing, playing and fine-tuning their songs) and how easy it is for us critics to shit on them for this, there was indeed lots of bullshit to wade through in his beloved classic rock era.
I like the idea of this book and I like Thompson’s fury, but it is meandering at times, ruining the flow for me. Thompson is no doubt funny as hell and perhaps these stories would sound better one-on-one with him over a few too many drinks.