Nickelback.
In the thirty years I've been on this earth, I've never known a more polarizing word, much less name. You either love them or hate them. There never seems to be any middle ground.
Now, I will say that I rather enjoy Nickelback. No, they are not my favorite group. No, they are not the best rock group to ever live. They are neither insightful nor intelligent by any stretch of the imagination, but I never thought that mainstream rock had to be. I am not ashamed to admit I enjoy listening to Nickelback's music -- I own all of their albums, and have enjoyed each of them in one way or another -- and yet, when I tell some people that I listen to them, I am looked upon and treated like I have done something strange and socially unacceptable. I am greeted with various responses, ranging from strained politeness ("Oh...that's...nice...", for example) to aggressive, insulting statements ("Well, you must not know shit about music then!").
Why? Why is this one band the subject of so much angst? Allow me to break down the arguments that I've heard in the past ten-plus years I've been listening to them.
1. "All their songs sound the same!"
This is the most common argument I've heard since their album "Silver Side Up" came out in 2001 (on 9/11, by the way). This is also one of the most ridiculous arguments. Ever.
Take any classic or contemporary rock artist. No matter how many albums you go through, more than likely the one thing linking any two of these bands is that all their songs pretty much sound alike. Don't believe me? Here's an experiment for you then. Remember that little stunt some chatboard junkie pulled where he played Nickelback's songs "How You Remind Me" and "Someday" simultaneously and they (supposedly) sounded like the same song? I dare you to try the same thing with any two AC/DC songs. Or Coldpay songs. Or Muse. Hell, Creedence Clearwater Revival! You're going to get the same result. The songs are going to sound the same.
Here's the thing. When it comes to modern rock music, you're not always going to find bands like Fleetwood Mac or Biffy Clyro who have actual variance in sound on a consistent basis. With the modern rock band, you have two different types of songs -- fast...and ballad. Each band has their own little spin on both of these types, but, essentially, it's the same with any band. The most revered rock band pretty much ever, Metallica, knows this better than anyone. Hell, they made a long-standing career from it. And, let's face it, anyone who tells you there are epic differences between "Nothing Else Matters" and "The Unforgiven" is simply full of shit.
The only difference between Nickelback and every other band right now on the market is that, while it seems to be okay for everyone else to get away with it, Nickelback is chastised and ridiculed for it.
2. "All their songs are lame-ass love songs!" or "All their songs are too filthy!"
Perhaps a bit more valid of an argument than the last, but, alas, an uneducated one nonetheless. Yes, the band garnered the majority of their popularity from the songs they play on the radio...and, admittedly, the majority of the songs they play on the radio are either ballads or, as of late, some of their dirtier songs.
Starting in 2001 with their "Silver Side Up" album, Nickelback broke into mainstream with the ballad "How You Remind Me". It's an excellent song, and pretty much the only one of their slower songs I like. What people fail to take the time to know is that they had not one, but TWO albums come out before this one: "The State" in 2000 (which is when I started listening to them) and "Curb" back in 1996 (which eventually was re-released by Roadrunner Records in 2002).
Unlike the tone of all their other albums, "Curb" is a dark album. And I'm not talking about Metallica's "Black Album" dark. I mean DARK. Take the first song off the album, entitled "Little Friend". The song is sung in the first person in the perspective of a man who kidnaps, and eventually kills, a little girl, and watches as the family frantically looks for their little girl -- from the search party to the eventual turn to mystical advice -- and the smart-ass pleasure he derives from the spectacle. Yeah. Not what I would call radio-friendly by any means.
When Nickelback was signed to Roadrunner Records, they released "The State". Unlike the only U.S. single from the album "Leader of Men" (which, by the way, gets little to no airplay), the rest of the songs from "The State" range from the pulse-pounding anthem ("Breathe") to the sullen, yet fast-paced ("Cowboy Hat", "Old Enough") to the down-right creepy ("Not Leavin' Yet", which starts off with the opening lyrics "Come right next to me Jesus Christ/Holes in hand where a cross used to fit just right"). Quite a bit more polished and friendly than "Curb", but still a ways off from the band we know now.
Modern radio listeners loved Nickelback's ballads, and so they included more and more of them on their albums, like "Photograph" from the album "All The Right Reasons", "Someday" from "The Long Road", and "Gotta Be Someone" from "Dark Horse". The problem is, as soon as Nickelback delivered, the critics turned on them.
Fellow Canadian rockers Theory of a Deadman (which Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger discovered), though also popular for their ballads ("Santa Monica", "Hurricane") are more notoriously known for their misogynistic anthems like "Bad Girlfriend" and "The Bitch Came Back". And so, naturally, Nickelback decided to join the band wagon and started releasing similar songs of their own on the radio, like "Animals" and "Something In Your Mouth". Why? Because the demand was there, and, once again, Nickelback delivered. And, once again, they were criticized heavily for it.
As much as we love to idealize the world, the music business...is a business like any other. If something works, do it. If something works consistently, do it more. And if your record label (mainstream or independent) wants you to pump out one type of song to increase airplay, you're going to do it. Sure, you can call it selling out. But that's the way of the world. You put out one song you may not like so you make 11 other songs that you do and get paid for it? Why the hell not?
3. "They embody all that's wrong with the music industry!"
This one is my favorite. Why? Because, when I ask "How?", no one has any proof other than the previous two arguments.
And this statement is completely off basis as well. Before you think that Nickelback is only out to make a buck, think about this: in 2006, after Katrina and other natural disasters were hitting parts of the world, Nickelback donated 100% of the proceeds from the digital downloads of their single "If Everyone Cared" to Amnesty International and the International Children's Awareness Canada program. That's right. All the money earned from the sales.
Another thing to keep in mind is what Chad Kroeger has done for other developing artists. Not only did he lend a hand and get Theory of a Deadman noticed, but he also produced Default's debut album "The Fallout" in 2001, which featured radio favorite "Wasting My Time", as well as the new up-and-coming band My Darkest Days, who became an instant YouTube sensation with their over-the-top video for the song "Porn Star Dancing". Kroeger also started 604 Records, which helps many up-and-coming bands get a start on their dreams.
If that's what's wrong with the music industry, I'd love to see what's right with it.
After all of this, do you know what I think it all REALLY boils down to?
4. Nickelback...is popular
It's that simple, really.
Look, this is not the first time this kind of nonsense has occurred. Once a band becomes popular, and after the newness of the band dies down a little, it soon becomes instantly cool...to hate them.
Don't believe me? One word...Creed.
Creed blew up on the charts in 1997, and instantly became the cool band to listen to, all starting with song "My Own Prison". And then, in 1999, they became larger than life when "Higher" took to the radio waves. Once their third album "Weathered" came out in 2001, though, things were not so cool. Creed soon became a joke. Are they a Christian band? Why does the lead singer sound like Eddie Vedder? All their songs sound the same!
Wait. What was that last one?
That's right! Creed was put on the same hooks Nickelback is being placed on now!
Need more proof? Exhibit B...Limp Bizkit.
In 1998, Limp Bizkit, with the help of Jonathon Davis from Korn, became the next big thing when they reached #1 with their metal tongue-in-cheek cover of George Michael's "Faith". In 1999, Limp Bizkit made the smash hit album "Significant Other", which spawned the hit singles "Nookie", "Disconnected" and "All 2gether Now". Life couldn't have been better for the band. They became so big, Fred Durst was hired as Vice President of A&R for Interscope Records, where he signed bands Puddle of Mudd and Staind, and helped them start to achieve stardom before they, too, blew up on the charts themselves.
But then they, too, got too popular as it would seem.
By the release of 2000's "Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog Flavored Water", Limp Bizkit was considered a joke. Specifically Fred Durst, whose antics and trash-talking became the punchline to many a critic's anecdote. By the time "Results May Vary" was released in 2003 and the little known EP "The Unquestionable Truth Volume 1" came out in 2005, Limp Bizkit was nothing more than a stain on the music industry's sheets that needed to be treated immediately, being cited as what is truly wrong with the music industry (sound familiar?).
How did Creed and Limp Bizkit handle the criticism? They broke up.
First Creed in 2002, followed by Limp Bizkit in 2005, these bands, amidst the struggles of people simply hating their music, both had inner-turmoil in the groups until they couldn't go any further and disbanded. (Ironically, both Creed and Limp Bizkit are back together recording since Nickelback is the new popular scapegoat).
Now, the music critics and fanboys have their hateful sights on Nickelback, who arguably are one of the biggest contemporary groups on the scene. The problem? Nickelback, for the most part, is handling the criticism well. They still play big venues, sell tons of albums, and are gaining more fans by the day.
Whether you like them or hate them, I don't really care. But don't hate other people for liking them just because you don't. It just makes you look stupid.
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