Anybody who knows me knows that I am a big Greenday fan. You can knock them if you want, but they delivered something that although not entirely original or unique, is honest, raw and fun. In my opinion, no band since has been able to beat them at their own game.
Lead singer and guitarist (and primary song-writer) Billie Joe Armstong was recently interviewed in Rolling Stone. I like this guy - he doesn’t pretend to be anything other then himself, and seems to place a premium on thinking for himself. I found one of his statements in particular particularly resonant:
…there is so much information out there with no power to it.
He was talking about how people have a hard time discerning between useful information and useless information, particularly in this modern and connected world. I reckon he is spot on.
Another thing he mentioned also struck a chord with me. The interviewer was seeking to find out what changed as he was getting older, and he responded with this:
Before Dookie, I wasn’t married and I didn’t have kids. I had a guitar, a bag of clothes and a four-track recorder. There are ways you don’t want to change. You don’t want to lose your spark. But I need silence more than I did before. I need to get away from the static and noise, whereas before, I thrived on it.
Amen.
And finally, one more thing I can relate to, and that I think is important to recognise with anything that some people can get truly passionate about:
We need music, and we need it good. I took it very seriously. There’s a side of me where music will always send chills up my spine, make me cry, make me want to get up and do Pete Townshend windmills. In a lot of ways, I was in a minority when I was young. There are people who go, “Oh, that’s a snappy tune.” I listen to it and go, “That’s the greatest f***ing song ever. That is the song I want played at my funeral.”
Some people would find that last statement morbid, but I totally know what he means - some music speaks a deeper truth, and it is sad when most people don’t recognise a masterpiece when they hear one. Alternatively, it is also a shame most people don’t recognise utter crap when they hear it either.
—————-
Now playing: Sarah Blasko - {Explain}
via FoxyTunes
Tuesday, January 8th, 2008