A Final Rant about the 2021 Grammy Awards

 

A week out from the most recent forgettable TV spectacle known as the 2021 Grammy Awards, the supposed controversies have already fizzled away, and even those who watched would be challenged to remember perhaps more than one award winner. Moving beyond the larger discussion of whether such an annual awards event is relevant or even necessary at this stage, it’s truly clear that some sort of cultural torch has been passed and that if a viewer is on one side of that line vs. the other, they may find they are not only bored by the modern Grammys but that they may have never even heard of any of the nominees or performers. Like, at all. 

The show itself was nothing like traditional Grammy Awards of years past. In the span of just one year, seemingly, the show has suddenly morphed into what is now essentially a next-gen version of the MTV Video Music Awards (and I’m not talking about the better ones from the ‘90s, when the Grammys themselves were a downright stuffy affair by comparison). For those who didn’t see the Grammy broadcast last Sunday, it would be like turning on The Academy Awards and finding they’ve decided to make the show look and feel more like The Kids’ Choice Awards on Nickelodeon or something. Nothing about the 2021 Grammys spoke to the average viewer over the age of 30 (if even that old). The few awards that were presented were an afterthought and nearly every on-air award winner accepted awkwardly and was both difficult and uninteresting to watch in most cases.

Also like the VMAs, while many categories still exist, fewer and fewer awards are given out on air, to the point where this year’s TV show may have featured only 9 or 10, in total. Aside from H.E.R.’s Song of the Year win for the anthemic, “I Can’t Breathe,” most of the televised awards went to pop and pop-leaning artists in the R&B, hip hop, and country realms. Not only were no rock categories mentioned on TV, it was notable there were also no rock artists included in the running for the Best New Artist award either. Within the rock-based categories, and many others, it felt like the Academy attempted to over-correct for lack of diversity in recent years by seemingly recognizing women and people of color to such a degree it almost comes across as patronizing more than honest (much like the revised Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list from last year). For the handful of rock fans, or even just music listeners who take the experience somewhat seriously, here is a quick run-down of the more significant award winners from this year (not that they were mentioned on TV):

Traditional pop vocal album-James Taylor American Standard

Rock performance-Fiona Apple-“Shameika”

*(all nominees were women or women-fronted)

Metal performance-Body Count-“Bum-Rush”

(Body Count put out a record last year??)

Rock song-Brittany Howard “Stay High”

(all nominees but Tame Impala were women)

Rock album-The Strokes-The New Abnormal

(Strugil Simpson was also nominated, but he’s a country artist)

Alternative album-Fiona Apple-Fetch the Bolt Cutters

(Beck and Tame Impala also nominated)

Progressive R&B album-Thundercat-It Is What It Is

R&B album-John Legend-Bigger Love

Rap album-Nas-King’s Disease

(Detroit’s own Royce da 5’9’’ was also nominated)

New age album-Jim “Kimo” West-More Guitar Stories

(Weird Al Yankovic’s long time guitarist is finally recognized for his instrumental solo work!)

*The late Chick Corea won Best improvised Jazz Solo and Best Jazz Instrumental Album

Contemporary Christian Music Album-Kanye West-Jesus Is King

(If ever the winner of a specific award was ever more surprising…)

American Roots performance AND American roots song-John Prine-I Remember Everything

Reggae album-Toots & The Maytals-Got to Be Tough

Musical Theater Album-Jagged Little Pill (original Broadway cast)

Best song written for visual media-Billie Eilish-“No Time to Die”

(the movie this is from is still not out yet…)

Best recording package-Desert Sessions vol. 11 & 12

Best boxed or special limited-edition package-Wilco-Ode to Joy

Best Album notes-The Replacements-Dead Man’s Pop

Best Engineered album. Non-classical-Beck-Hyperspace

Best music film-Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice

As has been the case for many years now, the performances get all the attention, and since the awards hardly seem to matter anyway, perhaps the Academy should just post a list of the awards online (like they already do the day after the broadcast) and have a show of only live performances. Maybe the list can be posted a day or a week before the show so the acts who are performing can be introduced with info about what they won? Another idea could be to have two separate shows, one on Saturday of awards and one on Sunday of performances which could divide the audience in some cases but might also lead to an overall increase in viewership between the two programs.

To be fair, this year’s broadcast did feature a respectful and well-toned In Memoriam segment with tributes from Brittany Howard, Brandi Carlile, Lionel Richie, and Bruno Mars, among others. That portion, however, was the only thing that felt even half-classy about the show. For all the fuss that was made about a few particularly over-the-top performances, most notably from Megan Thee Stallion & Cardi B., the show itself, as a whole, was simply more boring and forgettable than it was provocative or significant in any way.

Foo Fighters-Medicine at Midnight Album Review

The Foo Fighters' 10^th LP, Medicine at Midnight, has been out for about a month now, and dedicated and casual fans alike have had time to take in both the creative, experimental tracks as well as the traditional songs alike and have generally agreed it’s a solid record. Though I don’t always get to write about them as quickly as I’d like, as a big fan of the band for their entire 26-year existence, I really wanted to take a few minutes to write a bit about each song. However, since these articles often begin with grander ideas that end up taking me far longer than planned to execute, I am experimenting a bit myself in this review. Aside from this paragraph and the last, I will limit myself to only the length of each song to write a bit about it. If this method goes well, I may try it again, and if not, oh well. 😊

“Making a Fire”

The groovy intro leads into a surprising round of female backing vocals which is already completely new and different for the Foos (though they have collaborated here and there with plenty of other singers in the past). Producer, Greg Kurstin, who also produced the band’s previous LP, continues to add modern pop production techniques and gloss, not always to full tracks, but often to bits and pieces of songs, certain vocal or guitar parts, and other accents that repeat only periodically, leaving them less front-and-center and more a supporting addition to the traditional rock structures and changes in the verses and choruses. The bridge breaks down to a stomp and clap that feels almost like a brief gospel interlude before quickly returning to the safety of the chorus and the intro vocals one last time on the way out. Solid tune.   (Check out a cool live performance of it here)

“Shame Shame”

The album’s first single premiered on SNL in November and was the introduction to this new album era (after the band’s scrapped 25^th anniversary celebration in 2020 re-focused them on moving forward with new material rather than sitting on it until whenever the hell the pandemic may end). This one is a bold choice for a lead single because it is non-traditional compared to most Foo albums with choppy dynamics and heavy, moody tones and changes throughout the song, highlighted by cello overdubs during the pre-choruses. More guest backing vocals here, but they blend better with Dave Grohl’s lead vocals compared to the first track. Within the context of the album, this song is good enough to keep things moving and offer both a break between two upper-tempo numbers and serves well as a lead-in to the rest of the record, not because the other songs sound the same but because it doesn’t hide the fact that the band are trying some different things this time around.  (watch a recent TV performance of the song here)

“Cloudspotter”

Another groovy mid-tempo song that picks up in the pre-chorus and finally all the way up to “full rock level” in the chorus. Great guitar work from Grohl, Chris Shiflett, and Pat Smear on this track, also aided by the solid mix, especially in the verses. As on “Making a Fire,” the band wisely balances out the less-traditional verses with a relatively familiar chorus and a heavy bridge/outro riff, dancing near the edge of metal as the band has done on occasion since it began. It might not quite work as a single, but this one is the most interesting song of the first three.  (watch a recent live performance here)

“Waiting on a War”

Immediately, this song stands out as the safest and all-around most traditional and predictable track on the album. That’s not to say it’s a bad song, and in fact the strings and production here are beautiful, and the sentiment of the song seems to be clear and accessible, but it feels too much like the obligatory ballad for radio to really fit in with the rest of the songs by comparison. We’ve heard a track like this from the Foos more than once in the past (songs like “Best of You,” “Times Like These,” and even their timeless-classic, “Everlong”), and if each of their albums needs one of those songs, I guess this one serves that purpose, but in spite of it being the second single, it isn’t all that representative of the album and it’s probably the least-memorable and least-interesting track on it. Having said that, the much heavier coda at the end of the track is both unexpected and very welcome.  (watch a recent TV performance here)

“Medicine at Midnight”

Yet another groovy intro and verse, this time with a bit of funk and some slinky, dark production on the guitar and keyboard flourishes. By time even the first chorus kicks in, the song feels only a step or two away from something more in the style of Leonard Cohen than most things Foo Fighters have recorded over the years, especially with the addition of the backing vocals. The vibe on this song carries a sorrowful reflection that evokes isolation or rumination on regret, adding weight and emotional depth to the album as it continues.

“No Son of Mine”

Probably the album’s most predictable and straight forward hard rock song (and arguably its best track), this one rocks right from the top and is full of a variety of plodding beats from drummer Taylor Hawkins and a bit of vocal distortion for Grohl recalling the bands harder-rocking tracks from the ‘90s. The guitars are layered deep and are often all playing the same riff, but that just adds to its power! It’s great to hear new songs that rock this hard when so little of this kind of rock seems to be part of the modern radio/cultural landscape.  (watch the official live music video here)

“Holding Poison”

Following the album’s hardest rocking moment, the band doesn’t let up too much here, but a fantastic harmony vocal on the chorus and in the second verse along with a spotlight on Shifflett and a new wave  keyboard turbo boost from Rami Jaffi, the newest full-time member of the band, bring elements of The Cars and maybe even a sprinkle of Weezer into this track, at least on the chorus. The bridge becomes a haunting choir moment with a rocking guitar solo over top, but the tempo remains consistent throughout the song, which itself also connects to the subjects in the lyrics. Excellent track!!

“Chasing Birds”

Recalling “Dirty Water” from Concrete and Gold, this much softer track is a far more enjoyable and creative quasi-ballad than “Waiting on a War” with a very dry drum production and a vocal and guitar mix that sounds like ‘70s AM gold a lot more than anything from the grunge or post-grunge eras. This very mellow and easy track may get a bit repetitious after several listens but does a good job of transitioning out of the two heaviest songs on the album and into the record’s conclusion.

“Love Dies Young”

The last track on the record blends traditional album-closers in theme and tone, somewhat recalling “Long Way Home” and “Walk,” with a disco-punk beat that might almost be more at home on a late ‘90s nu-metal song. Changes throughout the track keep it balanced and mixed with guitars that blend bits of The Cure and New Order one moment and U2 at others amid its punk overtones. This is another of the more experimental of the album’s songs, making them stand out a bit more as both an opener and a closer (while many in between are generally more traditional), which also leaves the listener with an impression that the record was maybe a bit varied than it actually is compared to the rest of the band’s catalog.

***********************

Overall, it’s more than fair to say Medicine at Midnight is a very solid rock album that will probably stand out even more in 2021 since there is so little new rock of this kind being released on such a high level. This record is not the band’s best by any means, buy it may be their most interesting new music in about a decade, and it is a nice blend of both new and old sounds that offers enough variety to keep it engaging through its 9 songs in 36 minutes. These tracks should all fit in nicely along side the Foo Fighters’ greatest hits whenever they can be performed on stage again.

*Don't forget to like and follow our music video and live performance page for great music from all of rock history in your timeline everyday!!*  https://www.facebook.com/rocknrollhst/