2000s BST Rd1: Johnny Cash v The Bravery - Tournaments

cestuneblague

Emo Elder

Location: Straight Outta Ballard

Yeah not a great comparison because Flock of Seagulls scratches a certain (small) itch for me, while The Bravery are a complete vanilla Whoosh-band. This song sounds like nearly anything that was on "rock" radio back in '06-'07 or so, the last years I was actually still listening to the radio I guess. Again the cover of "Hurt" is really good if not even close to the best song he released in the early aughts before his death.

Skinny

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CA Dreamin wrote:

Haha, yeah.

The Bravery are second-rate Killers? That's quite an insult. That first self-titled Bravery album is better than Hot Fuss. The fact that a non-2000s artist, covering a non-2000s song, and not doing a good job at it either, is leading over one the catchiest songs of the decade that exemplifies one the decades musical trends, with an awesome video...just goes to show how stupid this tournament is. I'm not even gonna waste my time voting for my own nominee.

I mean, I just remember them being regarded as a second-rate Killers when they came out. It was basically a case of: if you like The Killers, you'll probably like this new band. They got pretty heavy coverage in the music press over here. I didn't particularly like either band. No need to throw your toys out of the pram, mind. I generally agree with the point that this Johnny Cash song doing well, in a tournament set up to showcase the best of that particular decade, is silly. On the other hand, that Bravery song, whilst catchy, is utterly inconsequential - it sounds like a marketing exec's idea of the sort of thing that could get second- or third-billing on the NME Awards Tour. Glad it means something to somebody, though. Peace.
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meccalecca

Voice of Reason

Gender: Male

Location: The Land of Enchantment

Skinny wrote:

On the other hand, that Bravery song, whilst catchy, is utterly inconsequential - it sounds like a marketing exec's idea of the sort of thing that could get second- or third-billing on the NME Awards Tour.

I honestly forgot that they were a local "New York" band until I saw the "repping New York City." Never felt like it. They seemed like one those bands that never toiled in the scene. They just got signed and bam. Cults were the same way. So it's not inconceivably that they were a marketing exec at Universal's pet project.

On another note, a couple of the Bravery guys were in a ska band called Skabba the Hut, which I'm pretty sure I saw.

Cash's Hurt has more of an emotional impact on me. Vote goes to that.
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Skinny

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meccalecca wrote:

I honestly forgot that they were a local "New York" band until I saw the "repping New York City." Never felt like it. They seemed like one those bands that never toiled in the scene. They just got signed and bam. Cults were the same way. So it's not inconceivably that they were a marketing exec at Universal's pet project.

On another note, a couple of the Bravery guys were in a ska band called Skabba the Hut, which I'm pretty sure I saw.

Cash's Hurt has more of an emotional impact on me. Vote goes to that.

Yeah, something always struck me as slightly off with the amount of hype they got out of nowhere. I think 'An Honest Mistake' was their breakthrough. Dude sounded very much like Brandon Flowers, over production that was equal parts Bloc Party and The Rapture. The point was made earlier that The Bravery represent a decade-defining sound, but they always seemed like a polished amalgam/derivative of that particular strand of jerky indie rock's actual defining artists. They aren't even as memorable as, say, Hot Hot Heat or The Rakes.
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cestuneblague

Emo Elder

Location: Straight Outta Ballard

CA Dreamin wrote:

The Bravery are second-rate Killers? That's quite an insult. That first self-titled Bravery album is better than Hot Fuss. The fact that a non-2000s artist, covering a non-2000s song, and not doing a good job at it either, is leading over one the catchiest songs of the decade that exemplifies one the decades musical trends, with an awesome video...just goes to show how stupid this tournament is. I'm not even gonna waste my time voting for my own nominee.

I think for everybody there's a good number of matchup results that are going to be questionable, but I like that a lot of BEAers with varying tastes participated and I think we got as good a mix of different styles and genres as possible, but you know do what you got to do.

meccalecca

Voice of Reason

Gender: Male

Location: The Land of Enchantment

Skinny wrote:

Yeah, something always struck me as slightly off with the amount of hype they got out of nowhere. I think 'An Honest Mistake' was their breakthrough. Dude sounded very much like Brandon Flowers, over production that was equal parts Bloc Party and The Rapture. The point was made earlier that The Bravery represent a decade-defining sound, but they always seemed like a polished amalgam/derivative of that particular strand of jerky indie rock's actual defining artists. They aren't even as memorable as, say, Hot Hot Heat or The Rakes.

It's common. One band takes off, and then the big labels try to find a load of bands that sound like them that they can shape into what's most marketable. My friend's band was actually one of those bands who got a bit of that treatment. They had stylists dressing them, and were invited to the hippest parties, but were actually dirt poor musicians all living in a shitty Brooklyn apartment, with barely enough money to buy bread.

The Rapture probably shouldn't get lumped into that realm of bands. Their first couple EPs were pretty wild and commercially unfriendly.
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cestuneblague

Emo Elder

Location: Straight Outta Ballard

Damn haven't thought about Ho t Ho t Heat in like 13 years, forgot how big they were for a while in the mid 00s

dihansse

dihansse

Gender: Male

Age: 62

I can get into all of the comments on Hurt but:
I dearly love the Nin version but JC completely deconstructed the song but in a way sounds as bitter and dissonant as the original. And why wouldn’t this be a real song of the naughts?
And on a more personal level: I saw the video earlier than I heard the song (but already knew the Nin original) and I’m not a religious person but I really was struck by it on a spiritual level and it is still one of the only songs I could cry on.
Of course he’s about to break down on this track so I will also admit this isn’t the most intellectually satisfying song ever made but it just hits that button in my soul and shouldn’t music just do that?
On the Nick Cave suggestion: it is really good but it is all doom and gloom while jC offers some kind of redemption.
And to CA Dreamin: you win some and you lose some in this tournament but that doesn’t make this a bad contest. I often think: why don’t other people see things like I see them ander seems that in the end it’s the common denominator which nobody dislikes wins, but that’s not a reason to dismiss all the discussions that surround it.

cestuneblague

Emo Elder

Location: Straight Outta Ballard

What happened to the original post? Unless my mind is deceiving me I did have "Hurt" video under Cash's entry

cestuneblague

Emo Elder

Location: Straight Outta Ballard

Cash 17-4