Rock Talk

Uh oh, Jack Black, you just stepped in it. In a new interview with Rolling Stone magazine's Peter Travers, Jack Black (Tenacious D) spouts his belief that Nirvana is truly the last great rock band. He thinks no other band since has had the power and changed music the way the boys from Seattle did. Do you agree?

Personally, I get what Black is saying, but I have to (respectfully) disagree. I could name several bands that emerged after or close to Nivrana's time that have had a huge influence on rock music. I don't know if it's fair to say Nirvana was the be-all, end-all. Unlike many, I have hopes that rock music isn't dying (or already dead).
Anytime someone says that (insert band name here, your choice) was the last great anything, you immediately start a heated debate among music fans. Debate is good. It's healthy. And I really think that Jack Black does have a point when he maintains that Nirvana was ONE of the greatest rock bands ever, certainly of the modern era, but there ARE others. Pearl Jam, anyone? I absolutely believe Pearl Jam has had a huge influence on music. How about Radiohead?

To be fair, Jack Black does note in his Rolling Stone interview that several modern rockers are phenomenal. He names his "arch nemesis" (and my current favorite) the Black Keys. He also mentions the Foo Fighters and of course, Jack White. Excellent choices, one and all.

Yes, times have changed in the rock landscape, but I firmly believe that rock isn't just coming back -- it never left. Sometimes you just have to work a little harder to find it.

Do you agree with Jack Black, that Nirvana was the last great rock and roll band? If not, who would top your list?
 

I've always wanted to go to the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco, and if I ever needed an extra push, I have one now. The 2012 Outside Lands lineup is out, and it's impressive, to say the least. Besides the awesome setting (San Francisco's Golden Gate Park), this year's festival offers a pretty awesome lineup of rock acts!

This year's Outside Lands headline acts include Metallica, Neil Young and Crazy Horse and Stevie Wonder. The additional acts slated to play the three-day festival are also great, but we'll get to that in a minute. First...Metallica?! Yes, please!Outside Lands seems like it would have a really laid-back kind of vibe. In addition to the musical acts, the festival also features a ton of excellent food and, of course, great wines. This is San Francisco, after all. With so many excellent regional wineries located nearby, Outside Lands looks like a gourmet delight. Pair that wine with some tasty rock, and I'm sold.

All the info about the festival, including the lineup, ticket info and more, can be found on the official Outside Lands website. The festival runs from August 10-12, 2012, and it looks like general admission, three-day tickets will cost you $225. That's definitely not cheap, but festivals offer so much in the way of entertainment, to me, they're more of a bargain than seeing just one artist at just one show.

If Metallica isn't enough to make you want to go to this year's Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival, how about some of the other acts who'll take the stage: Foo Fighters, Jack White and Beck! Solid stuff, this lineup. Hopefully some of you will be able to attend the grand festival at Golden Gate Park!

Jim Marshall has died. If you're a rock musician, the chances are very good that you know who Jim Marshall is -- but if not, you need to know. Jim Marshall was a pioneer in the music industry. His creation changed the sound of rock music forever, allowing fans to experience the sound at a volume and quality that they'd never heard before.

Jim Marshall made an indelible mark on the music world when, in the 1960s, he created a cabinet for amplifiers and then, an actual amplifier. While that might sound incredibly simple, back then, it wasn't: The so-called Marshall stack is now seen everywhere, at all rock concerts.The loudspeaker cabinets that Jim Marshall created in London, as a small business owner, took off like wildfire. Everyone from Pete Townsend to Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple) were falling all over themselves over the cabinets and, ultimately, the amplifier that Marshall created. Things took off for Marshall back then -- and, thanks to an amazing product and the early support of some of rock's greatest guitar gods -- the Marshall amplifier became the most popular amp ever.

If you're interested, Jim Marshall's company has posted an amazing tribute to the founder on its official website. I could not agree more than Marshall is "one of the four forefathers" -- the other three being Les Paul, Leo Fender and Seth Lover. This is definitely worth a read.

Sadly, Jim Marshall passed away this week at the age of 88, but his work, his legacy, will never be forgotten. Here's to all musicians proudly turning up their amps to 11 today, to honor Mr. Marshall:

R.I.P. Jim Marshall. Your contribution to rock music is appreciated by everyone: musicians who bring the noise and the fans who love them.

Anyone else following the feud between The Black Keys and Nickelback? Yeah, I wasn't either, until today. Somehow, I missed this story, and it's a gem. Apparently, it all started when Black Keys' drummer Patrick Carney basically went off on Nickelback during a Rolling Stone interview a few months back. Now, he's apologizing...if that's what you want to call it.

I could be completely wrong here, but Carney's so-called apology rings false. And that's okay with me.Let's back up to the beginning, shall we? During a cover story interview with Rolling Stone magazine in January, Patrick Carney of The Black Keys was discussing the state of rock and roll music today. In a nutshell, he didn't sound too optimistic about rock's future -- and he singled out Nickelback as a key example of a band that was killing the genre.

In the interest of full disclosure, I'll admit that I'm not a Nickelback fan, but I have friends who love them. It's just not my thing. If I'm going for newer rock (see: Not Springsteen), I'll usually listen to the Foo Fighters and yes, The Black Keys. Both these bands stand out to me as stellar examples of truly great, modern rock bands. I've seen both live over the past year and I was impressed.

To some degree, I agree with Patrick Carney's original Rolling Stone quote:

Rock & roll is dying because people became OK with Nickelback being the biggest band in the world, so they became OK with the idea that the biggest rock band in the world is always going to be s*** – therefore you should never try to be the biggest rock band in the world.

Ouch, right? Maybe it's a bit much. It's certainly a direct slam -- no getting around that. Well, on Thursday, Patrick Carney offered what some are calling an apology, telling MTV Canada, "I didn't mean to single them out. It just came out… There's much worse bands than Nickelback, maybe."

Carney then paused for a second and added, "That was the worst apology."

Yes, yes it was, but really, did we expect him to start singing the praises of the band he so obviously can't stand? The more I think about it, the more this bugs me. Why SHOULD Carney have to apologize for stating his opinion?

Rock on, Black Keys, rock on.