It wasn't always this way. As I've said before, our modern intelligentsia is hollow. They automatically turn away from the old good feelings like joy and love and turn to brutality. This both satisfies their belief that the truth has to be ugly and their need to actually feel something, even if it is violation.
The 70s were a different time. Alienation was just a flavor in the mix--even Lou Reed, writer of the uber-nihilistic "Heroin," had "Perfect Day." Take a listen to Gruppo Sportivo's "Superman:"
Right away you'll notice the Zappa quote. That's another element of the 70s that disappeared. Zappa was a big, but short-lived, influence. He was too musicianly for most punks and new wave (and he wasn't exactly welcoming of the movements). He was too sneering and mocking for the "serious" musicians that came from prog-rock. The leading lights of rock like Lennon and Jagger--well, Zappa's ego was a little to big to spend much time with those guys without argument.
But a few musicians found Zappa an inspiration. Gruppo Sportivo's frontman Hans Vandenburg is clearly a fan of The Mothers' Reuben and the Jets era. And he's also clearly red pill.
"Superman" is about a love triangle between a husband, wife and her lover. She denigrates her husband and has her lover club him over the head. The lover goes to jail, the husband is in the hospital. Now the wife is "suffering from nerves"--"Who's gonna kiss me first?"
"Lasting Forever" is about a beta stalker who crashes his motorcycle for sympathy. "Henri" is about a woman who kills her husbands because "it's your money that I love." We're told that "Girls never know just what they want to be/That's why they start a family."
Not in the same vein but my favorite from the album 10 Mistakes, is "Mission A Paris," a love story about spies:
Left out of reissues is the final song, "Rubber Gun:"
Why? Because it's an insulting picture of the new gay nightclub lifestyle. What? You didn't know that cool people weren't always on board with the new order?
No comments:
Post a Comment