Jun 28, 2009 09:08
I think we've all got that band in our heads. You know. The one we wish we could see live. I know I do. I wish I could have seen the original Stones lineup. Or the Sonic's Rendezvous Band. Or the Kinks. Fact is, though, as long as members are still alive, there seems to be a chance that they'll get back together, these days.
I think that part of it is the Coachella phenomenon, at least for the more indie rock bands. Not that there haven't been big rock fests since the beginning of rock music, but Coachella and even Lollapalooza in its prime have attracted a more indie sort of act. Coachella attracts bands that have been broken up by paying them a ton of money and getting them onstage. Here are some examples over the years: Jesus and Mary Chain, Throbbing Gristle, Portishead, Rage Against The Machine, Happy Mondays...the list goes on. The general idea is that Coachella seems to get acts that might not reunite otherwise. So, reason one: Fame and Filthy Lucre (thank you mister lydon)
For some, however...I think the driving force is the passing of Joey Ramone. I remember right after Joey passing in 2001 there was speculation that a lot of bands were considering getting back together, and several did. Indeed, the big one for me at the time was Mission of Burma, and I recall Roger Miller relating that Joey passing made them all go "Wait, we were great, no one will remember, and we could die too!". Well, more or less that, anyway. Joey was...not a muse, but certainly an inspiration for a lot of the bands of that time period. Indeed, Clint and Roger bonded over freaky dancing to the Ramones. I could be overstating this, but I think it's a factor.
There is also the gunslinger mentality. You've all seen that old western film, let's say...Unforgiven? Part of the inspiration for getting back on the road is "can I still do it like i used to?" It's a legit question. Especially because some of these bands never really got the exposure that they would not. Can you imagine Mission of Burma or Black Flag or the Minutemen being underground as long as they were now? I can't. It makes for legendary status for bands that never really made it. As an artist, it makes you think. Has to, doesn't it? You wonder if you were as good as these kids with tour support, a record label with real distribution, cds instead of vinyl of uneven quality (there are stories about record labels in Detroit that had tire chunks in the vinyl. eeew), and better publicity. I think the dude to ask would be Mike Watt. I'm curious to see what he thinks!
One of my personal favorites was the Pixies reunion, about five years ago. The music was great...but the documentary was even better. None of them seem really happy to be touring together. They all seem on the verge of saying something to one another...and I'm curious to see what would have happened if there were no cameras. I guess, like any breakup, there's a reason it happened, and a reason you didn't get back together before now. You know?