Sometimes I Miss Cassette Tapes

I live and die by my iPod.

I love the fast clicking of songs. The ease of skipping the tracks I don't like. The ability to add new tunes by the click of a mouse.

Sometimes, though, I miss the old fashioned cassette tape.

First off, cassettes were always cheaper than CDs, so if you were a little short on dough, you had another option if you really needed some new music in a bad way. Second, the format of a cassette meant you either listened to an entire album - or wasted a ton of time searching for your favorite song. It's because of the cassette tape that I know so many B-sides. I was too darn lazy to hunt for songs, so I just popped the tape into the car stereo and let it play.

Remember when cars and boom boxes came out with the functionality to "skip" songs on tapes? Man, that was awesome. Mind you, I never had a car that could do this - but still. I did have a stereo that would let me go back and forth in Hysteria as many times as needed. Great time saver.

Eventually I got a CD player for my car and the cassette player was no more. While flipping CDs was much faster for me, I sometimes found myself missing the cassette tape.

For awhile, labels released singles on CDs but they were usually way too expensive for one song. The cassette single was definitely my friend. I had tons of those. They were usually two bucks or less and - obviously - featured a band's most recent radio hit. To this day I'm still baffled that labels use the term "single" because there really isn't such a distinction anymore. Sure, there are songs released to radio with deliberate planning to sell albums - but it is very rare to walk into a music shop and see a CD single on the shelves. I guess iTunes has replaced this as well.

So, I love my digital music but I also missed the "forced fandom" of some lesser known tracks that cassettes afforded. I remember using my little Walkman on school trips, playing my favorite "mix tape" of the moment while trying my best to block out the noise of the stupid boys inevitably sitting beside me - belching.

Do you ever miss cassettes?

Patch Game

 Do you collect band patches? You know, logos created out of fabric that are either sewed or ironed onto jackets, jeans and skirts.

The jacket you see here is owned by Christian. He personally collected and sewed on each patch, spending hours (and a ton of dough) hunting for his favorite bands and picking just the right placement. Christian took the jacket to Rocklahoma and let me tell you - it's heavy.

Christian's dedication to the patch is a throwback to old fashioned Metal.

Sometimes patches can be a little tongue-in-cheek. I used an iron on skull cupcake for my Rocklahoma hat. I thought it pretty much summed up my personality and everyone seemed to get that it was a rock n' roll cupcake.

I've owned a few patches in my day, but never a giant collection. I've never really had any article of clothing that I thought could "carry" 10 or 12 Metal logos. Certain logos, like Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Saxon are all really large. Much too large, in fact, to fit on a denim mini. Words like Kix, however, fit quite nicely on a back pocket.

Heather bought me a bedazzler for Christmas, just like it was 1987. See, I have big plans on making some custom festival clothes this year. I even plan on festooning a Slipknot shirt with jewels - because I can.

Do you wear, collect or buy rock n' roll patches?

Another Reason to Love Kip Winger

Kip Winger, one of our favorite singers, was just honored by the U.S. military. Here's the official press release announcing the award:

HOLLYWOOD, CA (February 16, 2009) – Multi-platinum recording artist, producer, songwriter Kip Winger was recently presented with an honorary plaque and a historic United States of America flag by The Government of the United States.

In a surprise presentation ceremony during the taping of “Legends & Lyrics” General Harold Cross honored and praised Kip for his work on Winger IV.

The inscription on the plaque reads:

Department of Defense Seal

IN APPRECIATION OF RECORDING ARTIST KIP WINGER AND HIS MUSICAL COMPOSITION
"BLUE SUEDE SHOES" HONORING THE SERVICE AND SACRIFICE OF OUR UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES AND THEIR FAMILIES. OUR SINCERE THANKS, GENERAL HAROLD CROSS

Here's a clip of "Blue Suede Shoes."

There was more to the press release, which I didn't post here. Kip and Reb Beach are working on a new Winger album. I won't lie: I'm very excited and I can't wait. I love Winger and hope that someday soon they get on a killer package tour.

Motley Crue Live Review - SOLA 09 Tour

Motley Crue are currently on a small winter tour, supporting their album Saints of Los Angeles. The Last Vegas, Theory of a Deadman and Hinder are providing support.

Last night, Motley played to a nearly full crowd at the Rockford, Illinois MetroCentre. For me and Heather, the show started like always: a few missteps, a near death experience and a giant line in the cold.

There’s always a line in the cold.

The near death experience was a ride in a unmarked cab with no meter, so it’s highly possible Heather and I just wandered up to a strange man that needed money. The driver was pretty adamant that we’d called for his services, but with no number on the side of the station wagon...how could we be sure?

Scary cabs be damned, we arrived at the concert venue unharmed, only to find that security hadn’t opened the doors when promised and there were literally thousands of people snaked around the building. Standing outside in 20 degree weather for 45 minutes isn’t the most fun thing to do on a Sunday night, but at least there was free entertainment. Did I mention there were protestors?

Oh yes, the protestors.

I’ve been to a lot of rock shows and never actually encountered a group of people carrying signs, holding Bibles and reading scripture. The signs talked a lot of sins and evil. I guess they heard Motley was in town and might know a few things about both, I’m not sure. At any rate, I fully support a person’s first amendment right to exercise free speech and assembly. Some of the Motley concertgoers were not quite as patriotic as Heather and I. The protestors were heckled a lot and ended up with police protection by way of a cop car. A street separated the concert crowd from the Jesus fans.

Once inside and through the massive security detail, I was not pleased to learn I’d missed The Last Vegas. I was certain the curtain would be held a few minutes since, well, no one was actually inside for the show. I’m sure The Last Vegas played for 500 people, which sucks. The MetroCentre screwed up big time on not opening the doors earlier.

I picked up Theory of a Deadman’s Scars & Souvenirs over the weekend, mainly because the song “Hate My Life” makes me giggle. Sure, Theory of a Deadman sounds a lot like Nickelback (for obvious reasons. If you don’t know why, read the Wiki article), but I still like this band. They were pretty good live – their set was high energy and there wasn’t much stage banter, which basically everyone knows I hate. The best part of the set – aside from “Hate My Life” was, of course, “Bad Girlfriend.” Heather pointed out that every member of Theory of a Deadman must be damaged considering all the “I hate women” songs.

So then it was time for Hinder. Everyone that reads this site with any regularity knows I do not like this band. That doesn’t mean I’m going to suck a lemon and scowl at a rock show. No, I stood the entire time – and I clapped. Even if I don’t like Hinder’s music, I realize I can’t get on stage and perform for thousands, so that deserves some applause. Hinder’s set was not so long, but they did play their most radio friendly songs like “Use Me,” “Lips of an Angel,” “Without You” and “Get Stoned.” Now, I’ll admit: Hinder sounded much better last night versus when I saw them in December in Dayton. In Dayton, Austin Winkler’s voice was literally just shot to hell. He didn’t sound nearly that strained last night, which is a good thing. He also moved around on stage a lot more. Actually, the entire band moved around a lot more and at the end of the song, Austin came into the crowd. Yes, at one point he was singing right to me and Heather. No, I didn’t say anything mean. I just observed.

So now it was time for Motley Crue. Ok, so again everyone knows this wasn’t my first time. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting much. I figured the set would be identical to Crue Fest, and that would be that. I also thought the band would phone it in because, well, they can.

They didn’t.

Motley got off to a really rough start with “Kickstart My Heart.” Vince Neil ran on stage and was immediately skipping words and I sighed. After this rough song, something happened and the band actually started performing as a highly functioning unit. Moreover, the band looked happy to be on stage together.

Here’s the set:

Kickstart My Heart

Wild Side
Shout at the Devil
Saints of Los Angeles

Mick guitar solo

Live Wire

Too Fast For Love

On with the Show
Looks That Kill

Jailhouse Rock with Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick

Mutherfucker of the Year

White Trash Circus

Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)

Same Old Situation

Primal Scream

Band introductions (seriously, they introduced themselves)

Girls, Girls, Girls

Dr. Feelgood

Home Sweet Home

Now maybe you noticed that Motley played “Jailhouse Rock” with Rick Nielsen. Remember, Motley covered this on Girls, Girls, Girls but I’m sure they haven’t played in it a long time. Motley brought Nick on stage to jam with the band – a very cool bonus to the Rockford show. Vince admitted the song may or may not go well. The tune sort of fell apart in the middle and Vince was reading the words for awhile, but that’s o.k. The band was having fun. At the end of the song, there were hugs all around and everyone was all smiles.

Did I mention Motley were honestly having fun? I mean, they really acted like they wanted to be on stage with each other. Fist bumps, hugs, mic sharing – the whole bit. And it wasn’t contrived, either. You can tell when a band is forcing affection. This was actually real. I was impressed. The show was so much better for the congenial atmosphere.

Nikki addressed the crowd before “Primal Scream” and admitted to Rick Neilsen – and everyone in the audience – that Motley stole “Too Fast for Love” from Cheap Trick, saying “...it’s too late now and you can’t sue us!” Something tells me Cheap Trick knew this a long time ago.

So, midway through the show, Vince is actually singing the words. I mean, there are a few times when he lets the crowd carry him...or he just forgets, but overall, he did a really good job. Mick’s solo was longer than usual, too. Best part of all? No titty cam. That’s right, Tommy kept his childish camera to himself, allowing the band to play more tunes. In fact, Tommy only really came out to the crowd once during the show to hand his Jager bottle to the pit. He said Motley were thankful for their “fans, friends, family...and a new president.” Much applause. After all, I was in Illinois.

During “Shout at the Devil,” Motley inserted photos of George Bush, who “seemed” to be flipping off the camera. Seemed appropriate to me.

The band introductions were odd, if not loveable. Tommy flew off the stage and onto a barrier railing when it was time for his name. Again, seemed appropriate to me.

Overall, I’ve got to say it was a great show. Motley were better last night than they were at Crue Fest, at that’s saying something because I liked the Cincinnati stop of tour quite a lot. Great show, worth the money. Still mad I missed The Last Vegas.

Chad Cherry of The Last Vegas - The Bring Back Glam! Interview

The Last Vegas are touring the U.S. right now with Motley Crue. Prepare to be familar with The Last Vegas. The band just won the massive Guitar Center/Motley Crue/Gibson contest "Make Rock History," beating about 8,000 other bands for the chance to open for Motley Crue and win a recording contract. Bring Back Glam! recently spoke to singer Chad Cherry and asked him about winning "Make Rock History," working with outside writers and the possibility of The Last Vegas playing Crue Fest II. Transcription follows.

Bring Back Glam!: The Last Vegas has been around awhile, but people unfairly categorize you as a new band because you won the “Make Rock History” contest.

Chad Cherry: The Last Vegas is an extremely brutal appreciation for everything that is good in rock n’ roll music. Such as the hard rock, the Glam rock, anything from Motley Crue to Guns n’ Roses, to Aerosmith to the blues and Muddy Waters. Anything that is against authority and all for the power of hot licks and hot chicks. Actually, even hotter chicks.

BBG!: We might as well talk about “Make Rock History.” Did you think you’d actually win that contest?

CC: You know, we’re all pretty boastful gents. We’re cocky but we did know we’d give the other guys a run for their money. I don’t know if we actually thought we’d win – but we knew we’d kick some serious ass no matter what.

BBG! Something like 7,000 bands entered.

CC: I guess it was more like 8,000 bands. Those bands were whittled down to 30 and then they were cut down to six...and out of 8,000 we came up on top.

BBG!: When it was down to six – that’s when you did your showcase for Motley?

CC: Yeah, that was at the Whisky a Go-Go. It was a great time. You’re playing the Whisky in front of everybody who’s anybody in the music industry in L.A. There was an amazing, built in crowd ready to rock out. All the bands we with were really cool. It’s [the Whisky] just like a historical place. The Doors, Motley Crue, Guns n’ Roses...everything that was cool about California back in the 60s through the 80s. It’s cool to be apart of that for the newer generation.

BBG!: You’re a Chicago band. Did you relocate to L.A.?

CC: We’re all still in Chicago. We’re in L.A. to make the new record and we’re going out on the Crue tour, but we’re all still Chicago residents. Some of us are from Michigan and the other guys are from Chicago. We know about how cold it is in the Midwest. It’s warm a couple weeks out of the year it seems like – and the rest is cold and snowy!

BBG! When you won “Make Rock History,” you had to haul ass and record a new single. You recorded “I’m Bad” in a weekend.

CC: We did that in two days, pretty much. We’re pretty good when it comes to studio stuff. When we’re not touring/playing live shows, we’re recording. We work nonstop – creating rock tunes. Even the studio is second nature to us. It’s a no-brainer for us. When we get in there, we know exactly what we want to do...and we hammer it out. We pretty much do the best we can. We don’t settle for shit! You know what? It was hardly work at all. We know what we wanted to do – and it was a blast.

BBG!: Do you typically use outside writers and producers? I know DJ Ashba helped you with “I’m Bad.”

CC: Yeah, we’ve worked with a handful of people before. We worked with a great musician/producer from Los Angeles named Roy Z. He’s worked with Dio and Sebastian Bach and others. DJ is good. Nikki (Sixx) is good. Marti Frederiksen is good. When we get a chance, we’re all usually on the same page. These guys are all musicians themselves, so it’s a really good time.

BBG!: What year did The Last Vegas start as a band?

CC: I think around 2005. We were all on the same page. We were doing stuff in Chicago that no one else was doing at the time, that’s for sure. We went to the studio, put down a record and pretty much have been touring and recording up until right now.

BBG!: It’s very impressive that you’ve been together just a handful of years and you’ve released so many albums independently.

CC: We do a lot of traveling. We put it out there. We figure there’s only one way to experience life, and that’s by getting out there and doing it – and pushing the limits. We want to test ourselves and we’re up for a good challenge in the name of rock.

BBG!: Tell me about your new album.

CC: I think it drops around...middle of April.

BBG!: Do you have a title?

CC: No. [Laughter].

BBG!: Do you have a number of tracks?

CC: We’re shooting for 11 songs.

BBG!: Have you been playing some of the new stuff live?

CC: We have such a catalog of songs, we try to keep it fresh every night. We have a bucket full of tunes that we can pull out whenever we feel the need. We like to feel out the crowd. We want to get a hold on what they want and what we think is necessary at the time. We’ve been playing a lot of songs that will be on this new record. We keep it fresh.

BBG!: How much time do you get for your set?

CC: Twenty or 25 minutes.

BBG!: That’s not a lot, but that’s good exposure, which leads to this: will The Last Vegas be on Crue Fest II this summer?

CC: You know, there are talks of it but I can’t say just yet. Let’s just say there might be a possibility.

Read more about The Last Vegas by clicking here.

Happy Valentine's Day Mix CD

It's Valentine's Day. The perfect, most over-the-top day of the year for power ballads. To celebrate the day of cards, chocolates, roses and more - I thought I'd list some power ballads that I think would make one kick-ass Valentine mix-CD. (Note: If this wasn't a Valentine list, I'd definitely add Guns n' Roses "Estranged" but since that song is about a big old break-up...I guess we'll skip it for now).

Fly to the Angels - Slaughter
Fall to Pieces - Velvet Revolver
Sorry - Buckcherry
Is This Love? - Whitesnake
I Remember You - Skid Row
Don't Walk Away - Danger Danger

Since Valentine's Day 2009 is a Saturday - I suspect a lot of people will be getting married today. That likely means a whole lot of Glam power ballads as "first dance" songs.

People always say the 80s were the best time for power ballads. Lately, modern bands, like Bullet For My Valentine are getting in on the act with the slower side of Metal. Sometimes, these slower songs, like Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" can even help shape a new sound. At any rate, I can't think of a better Valentine's gift than a mix CD made specifically for the recipient - designed for their tastes and favorite bands in mind.

Enjoy your Valentine's Day - and don't eat too many chocolates.

Here's the Rock on the Range Lineup

MÖTLEY CRÜE
SLIPKNOT
ALICE IN CHAINS
AVENGED SEVENFOLD
KORN
BUCKCHERRY
SHINEDOWN
CHEVELLE
FLYLEAF
SALIVA
SAVING ABEL
BLUE OCTOBER
HOOBASTANK
ATREYU
BLACK STONE CHERRY
TRAPT
STATIC-X
SICK PUPPIES
THE USED
BILLY TALENT
ALL THAT REMAINS
CROOKED X
POP EVIL
STATE OF SHOCK
CAVO
FRAMING HANLEY
ADELITA'S WAY
BURN HALO
THE LEO PROJECT
HALESTORM
X FACTOR 1
CHARM CITY DEVILS
DRIVE A
EARLY PEARL

...and many more.

Click here to see all the bands. The Rock in Columbus, Ohio (which is the official radio sponsor) made the announcement before the promoters could even update the official website.

Honestly, I think this is one hell of a festival lineup. Quite frankly, it's a force to be reckoned with - just a lot of really great bands. This one will sell out, people. And fast.

Tickets go on sale Saturday, February 21st. Yes, I'll be buying a few and meeting some friends. This will be a great weekend.