Rihanna isn’t ‘authentic’ according to thunderously drab indie band
YOU’VE heard the same arguments against pop music time and time again, never once getting any more original, witty or incisive – ‘pop music isn’t real music’. Usually, these gripes come from crashingly dull indie bands who think they’re part of something more ‘real’ or ‘better’ because they’re stupid enough to believe that picking up a guitar and playing the same 4 chords every other indie band is playing, is somehow more valuable than anything else.
Which brings us to The Vaccines who have, for some inexplicable reason, questioned the authenticity of Rihanna. They don’t like the fact that she’s the front for a team of songwriters and producers.
“Rihanna isn’t an artist – she has 15 writers, 15 songwriters and 15 producers all fighting for space on her albums and she’s the face of it,” guitarist Freddie Cowan claimed. “I don’t want to be associated with it,” he added drearily and obviously forgetting about the raft of brilliant singers over the years who haven’t written or produced their own music.
Examples? How about Elvis and 99% of every brilliant Motown records you’ve heard? And guess what? Aretha Franklin may not have been much of a songwriter, but we’re guessing you’d choose her over the apparently authentic Ed Sheeran who has written every stinking note he dribbles out of that mouth of his.
The Vaccines weren’t finished there. Asked about Rihanna’s collaboration with Coldplay, ‘Princess of China’, Cowan suggested that it lacked “artistic merit” due to Ri’s inclusion.
“I’ve never heard that song, but it’s Coldplay – they’ll do whatever they can to be the biggest band on earth, to be bigger than U2. They do it really well and they’ve never put out a bad album so hats off to them. I have nothing against those collaborations because I don’t feel you can judge people, but I don’t think I’ll ever be involved in something like that.
“It needs artistic merit.”
Note the lack of being a judgemental prick with the thinly veiled jibe of something else lacking in ‘artistic merit’ there. Ironic, given that this comes from the same mouth that said Coldplay have never released a bad album.
It is a good thing that The Vaccines aren’t a regressive, Bloke Rock bunch of squibs churning out the same old turgid Status Quo indie that has been rampant for the past 20 years or so isn’t it?
Posted: 27th, February 2013 | In: Music Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
