THE BREAK-UP

Written by Hombre Divertido

If you asked someone to describe a break up, you would probably hear the words awkward and uncomfortable.

If you asked me to describe The Break-Up, the new film directed by Peyton Reed (Bring it on, Down With Love) and starring Jennifer Aniston, and Vince Vaughn who also co-wrote and produced, I would also use the words awkward and uncomfortable. I would use the words contrived and unfunny as well. Not good for a film billed as a romantic comedy. Not much romance in a break-up. Not much comedy in The Break-Up.

People in the midst of a break-up would most likely say that they can’t wait for it to be over. People in the midst of The Break-Up would most likely say the same thing.

This movie is painful to watch.

Jennifer Aniston plays Brooke opposite Vaughn’s Gary. A couple living together, and not getting along. After seeing how they met, and a montage of pictures of them together, we are thrown into an evening in which our couple is preparing for a dinner party. This horribly directed sequence, which includes amateur camera operation during a scene in their kitchen, results in an end of the evening fight, and Brooke announcing that it is over. Oh, if only it had been.

Brooke proceeds to try every method ever learned in junior high school to fix things, while Gary does nothing but go out of his way to irritate Brooke, and the audience.

Hopefully, Aniston and Vaughn have more chemistry in their relationship off-screen than they were able to generate in this disaster.

A huge part of the problem is the script. It paints our two lead characters as totally inept people when it comes to a relationship. No communication, no understanding. These people are never on the same page whether they are in the relationship or out. Possibly believable if they were in high school, but not fathomable here. Based on the lead characters, the direction, and the script, a better title for the film would have been Clueless, but it was already taken.

Now maybe part of the problem is Vince Vaughn. He plays awkward very well, but he seems to play it in everything. Be it Wedding Crashers, Old School, Return to Paradise, etc. He is one-dimensional. Now, sometimes that dimension fits the movie as in the 1998 film A Cool Dry Place, but often he just seems out of place or as if he is phoning it in as in the 2004 film Dodgeball. In this outing, awkward works in certain situations, but Vaughn’s portrayal of Gary appears insensitive and unaware.

Aniston does well with what she has, and I am not referring to her attempts to show cleavage. She displays range here that we have not seen from her. Unfortunately, her character is ridiculous, and that will likely reflect on the performance with a lot of people.

As the co-writer of the story, but not the original script, I imagine Vaughn was going for a "When Harry Met Sally" type of relationship that hits the rocks. Perhaps that is what they were going for, but this film hits the rocks before it got started.

With all that said, the saddest part has yet to be mentioned. This film has an all-star supporting cast that is simply wasted. Never has a who’s who of character actors including Joey Lauren Adams, Cole Hauser, Jon Favreau, Jason Bateman, Judy Davis, Justin Long, Vincent D’Onofrio, and John Michael Higgins, ever been so underutilized. Our brief exposure to these characters is the best part of the film.

Have you ever heard someone say that being in a bad relationship is better than being alone?

Recommendation: Spend time in a bad relationship or alone instead of seeing this film.

Alison Ray: Downside Up

Written by Fumo Verde

Who is Alison Ray? I have been asking myself that same question. She’s a young woman with a pretty face and soothing voice. I think this is her debut CD, but since I couldn't find anything on her, I have to assume so. The music on Downside Up has a rustic, rock ‘n’ roll sound, which Ray's voice matches nicely. She has a mixed sound about her, kind of like a Melissa Etheridge crashes into Britney Spears, singing about heartaches and good times lost.

Eleven tracks make up this disc; some have, or try to have, a hard rock edge. The others have a "feel good pop" sound that you can hear on the mainstream radio station; you know the ones that play more commercials than music.

The first track "Does the DJ Know" sets the tone of the CD. It’s about a DJ who plays a song that gets her excited and makes her want to jump all over the guy. It has simple guitar riffs and easy drum beats. Nothing to complex or anything to make you say wow. The next track is "Wonderful Day", where she wonders if the guy who she wants to jump on wants to jump on her just as much-- and if so, then that will be the “wonderful day".

"Dirty Little Secret" (D.L.S.) is the fourth track, and this one has a little darker tone to it. As you can guess by the title Miss Alison seems to have found out that her love is cheating on her. Once again, the music is straightforward. Nothing stands out. The guitars really don't have any solos and are used strictly to bridge Ray’s singing. On "Love is the Thing" you get the feeling that no matter how much shit Alison has gone through, she still has hope in love. (That’s nice.)

The closing track is "Nothing Short of Beautiful". Ray lets you know that the world around you is beautiful, and no matter what happens, sooner or later things will turn up for you. The music sounds like it wants to blast through but is kept under control, so Alison can perform. For her first CD, Downside Up sounds like any teen pop album that is out there now, being played at junior high dances across the country.

I guess that if you are a young girl, between the ages of 13 and 17 you might want to pick this CD up, but it would behoove you to invest you cash in to something that will stay with you for a long time, such as Aretha Franklin, or Bonnie Raitt, or even Alanis Morrisette (she has toned it down over the years--I liked it when she was pissed off.) Maybe that's what Alison Ray needs to do: get pissed off and then write it out.

By the time I put this CD through the Fumo Listing Test, I had lost interest more times than a tweeker watching c-span. For a debut CD, this one falls short of really sticking around. Let me know if you ever hear of this girl on the radio, I'll make sure to block out that station.

Jas. Mathus & Knockdown South: old scool hot wings

Written by Fantasma el Rey

Creep with me, cats, as we slip back in time, to a day and place where music is simple and heartfelt. When it didn’t matter who was playing the music was what it was labeled. Black, white, country, blues or jug band; it was played on the porch, in the fields or in tumble-down distiller shacks. The words of Dave Alvin, roots-rock hero, come to mind “American Music”, plain and simply put. These are the sounds that would fire up a younger generation and launch a revolution in music, giving rise to the southern rockers of the '60s and '70s.

Jimbo Mathus, who hit commercial success with the band Squirrel Nut Zippers, along with a few friends from the Mississippi area, have perfectly captured the true sound of the early South on this new disc old scool hot wings. They cover a wide range of music that stems from Mississippi and surrounding states that grew from the sometimes hard southern life, while providing a very entertaining history of sorts.

Jimbo’s choice of musicians is excellent; he’s got everything from guitar and banjo pickers to washboard scrubbers and tuba pros. Two of his handpicked musicians, Luther and Cody Dickinson, I’ve had the pleasure to see live with their own band North Mississippi Allstars. These two young gents throw down good blues with the best of them, combining a modern sound with a very traditional one, which works well for them. Here, they are stripped down along with the rest of the musicians and still shine, the mark of a true professional.

Jimbo’s idea here is not far from the vision he shared with his pals in the Zippers, old time music kept alive by people who love to play it, the way it should be played, from the heart. Mathus and band come across as authentic and not like some revivalist or parody act, with silly songs or overproduction.

The songs are mostly traditional, genuine to the South, and sound very much that way. They are pieces of the past that come to life the more you hear them. Songs such as the Civil War classic “Dixie” and “Bullfrog Blues” rank among my all-time personal favorites. The first time I heard “Bullfrog Blues” was on a Canned Heat record and I fell in love with it then. On this recording, Mathus strips it back to its original boogie-blues sound. “Dixie”, for some reason has always haunted this “Redneck/Mexican Boy” and stood out in my mind, the song itself conjures up images of the old South and a way of life that seemed a million miles away from my suburban home. When I finally had a chance to see the South with my own eyes, the song only haunted me more, because of the strange feeling of home and comfort I felt there; it’s hard to explain and this isn’t the place to try to do so.

Having said that, it will come as no surprise that my favorite track on this disc is the Mathus-penned “Bright Sunny South”, where Jimbo’s lyrics and vocals remind me of my all-time favorite guitar slinger and songwriter Mr. Carl Perkins from Tiptonville, Tennessee. Although Perkins is known for his rocker “Blue Suede Shoes”, here I’m speaking of his slower songs of love and home, heartfelt and to the point.

And that’s what I hear on this disc, songs that bring to mind an image of the past yet of a time and place that still exist with a music that will never die as long as fine musicians such as Jimbo Mathus and the Dickinson brothers are around to play it and spread the word. Good job, gentlemen and the rest of Knockdown South. Through your vision and work it looks like the music of the South will rise again!

THE DA VINCI CODE

Written by Hombre Divertido

I am one of the seventeen people who have not read the book (we have meetings). So other than the conversations and opening weekend sermon at the Church where I am an active member, and knowing that it is one of the most controversial novels of our time, I had little information about the story.

With that said; this is a good film.

Like Michael Jordan in basketball, Tom Hanks continues to take something that a select group of people in the world can do well, and make it look extremely easy. Hanks has the ability to play a character, who is obviously an expert in his field, and is thrown into a situation that puts the character out of his element or over his head, and make the audience feel like he is reacting like the average guy, while consistently reminding us that he is in control. He did this well in Castaway and Apollo 13, but is at his best here. The problem with such a gift is that many people will see this as a bland performance. Subtle is not Bland.

Late one evening, Louvre curator Jacques Sauniere (Jean-Pierre Marielle) is murdered. Before he expires, the curator leaves a number of clues to the big secret. Summoned to the Louvre, Robert Langdon (Hanks) quickly comes under the suspicion of inspector Fache (Jean Reno).

As we watch Hanks’ portrayal of Robert Langdon, a Harvard professor of symbology, weave his way through the maze of clues while being chased by police and others, we see both brilliance and vulnerability intertwined by a master at his craft. We can’t help but enjoy the ride.

Hanks leads a cast quite capable of keeping up with him including the always enjoyable Ian McKellen, Jean Reno, and Alfred Molina. Helping Langdon deal with his pursuers while he solves the puzzles is noted police cryptologist and gamine Sophie Neveu played quite satisfyingly by Audrey Tautou. Doing the lion’s share of the killing in the film is a self-flagellating albino monk played surprisingly effectively by Paul Bettany. Bettany has not made me cringe this much since I sat through Wimbledon.

Ron Howard directs, in what is virtually a no win situation, as trying to bring such popular literature to the screen often leads to unfair comparison. Nonetheless, the film is visually compelling, and aided well by the score of Hans Zimmer which is as subtle and effective as Hanks.

As I noted above, this is a good film. Not great, but good. We are encouraged to find that movie police, regardless of which side of the pond they are on, are inept. The change of pace in the last thirty minutes does seem a bit slow and anti-climatic. Sure, there are flaws, but it’s $9.00 well spent.

Recommendation: Let go of the book, and the fact that this fictional account does attempt to undermine the core values of Christianity, and sit back and enjoy an intense at times puzzle that is fun to solve.

DimeVision Vol. 1: That’s The Fun I Have

Written by Fantasma el Rey

DimeVision; It’s a cool title for this DVD and a good way to remember the legendary heavy metal guitarist, “Dimebag” Darrel Abbot, who was taken from the world by a crazed “fan” in December of 2004, at the age of 38. Abbot started his career with the heavy metal band Pantera and after that band's demise formed Damage Plan along with his brother, drummer, Vinnie Paul. Pantera’s Cowboys From Hell And Vulgar Display Of Power are considered some of heavy metals finest albums; for me it’s definitely Vulgar Display with classics such as “Mouth For War” and “Walk”, which is a true metal anthem for the masses. For those of you who actually follow my mad ramblings, it will come as no surprise, that I was introduced to this band by none other than that pillar of corruption (according to who you ask) my brother in law, Rob; may the metal gods bless him and his children.

DimeVision is a good disk for the casual fan and is a goldmine for those that truly adore the work of Dimebag Darrel. And before I go any further, I have to make this fact very clear; Dimebag is a master at what he does, his shredding on the guitar is seriously from another “dime”-mension. Loud, fast and insane is the best way to describe his guitar playing skills and his antics as this DVD shows.

The disk is a collection of footage that captures Dime in his everyday life and misadventures. There are some very good moments of Dime in his prime, scratch that, Dime was still in his prime when he was cut down way too early in his life. Most of the footage is from home videos and is a bit crude, but who the hell cares; it's heavy metal. The scenes are mostly in chronological order, with some rare shots of Dime and Pantera playing in small clubs, early in their career. Even at such a young age Dime was a wizard with his instrument of choice. A crowning moment is a young Pantera doing an excellent cover of Metallica's “Seek And Destroy”.

There are also a few really good photo montages of Dime with friends, family and fans; some of the pictures have him with members of other bands, such as Slayer and Metallica, as well as with younger musicians and contemporaries including Zakk Wylde, who consider him to be a master. Next to the live scenes of Dime jammin’ and shredding on one of his many famous guitars, these photo collages are the most enjoyable to see and they illustrate the effect that he had on the people that he knew.

Some of the stuff on this disk is simply insane. There are some very wacky moments, such as Dime and a pal of his burning the tire off a brand new truck. Keep in mind that most of Dime and friends shenanigans are drunken shenanigans. Throughout the whole thing there are fireworks galore; I do believe that Dime was sponsored by the Black Cat firework company. I mean, this guy uses these damn things constantly to wake people up from their drunken slumbers. He will randomly shoot them off wherever he is and it just doesn’t seem like a party to Dime if small pyrotechnics aren’t involved in some way.

Overall, DimeVision is enjoyable to watch. The only drawback is that at times it seems almost like a drunken, heavy metal version of MTV's Jackass. What makes it better is the fact that you get to see Dimebag and his bandmates do some steady rockin’, which is always a good thing. Dimebag Darrel was a positive force in heavy metal music and certainly one of its fan favorites. This DVD shows him in all his fun loving glory and reinforces the fact that the music world in general lost a great guitarist. This “bud's” for you, Dime!

THE SENTINEL

Written by Hombre Divertido

Is this the Bizarro world where up is down, left is right, and hello is goodbye, or did Hollywood actually make a good suspense/action movie with no sex, foul language, or blood?

Ok, maybe a little blood, and a little intimacy, but by today’s poor standards, quite light.

Yes, there are plot points that are ridiculous (See the relationship that Pete Garrison (Michael Douglas) is involved in). Yes, it was obvious who had “dunnit” as soon as he appeared on camera. Yes, David Breckinridge’s (Keifer Sutherland) inability to capture the suspect when the opportunity presented itself was completely out of character. Yes, the historical conflict between Garrison and Breckinridge conveniently disappears. Yes, normally these types of things are death to a film, but this movie overcomes a few bumps in the road by just being fun.

Based on a novel by Gerald Petievich, with a screenplay by George Nolfi, Director Clark Johnson has created a dangerous world that you can’t help but want to be a part of. Being a secret service agent looks glamorous and exciting as long as you are wearing your bulletproof vest, which in this film, were apparently only handed out to the pivotal characters.

The characterizations are vivid though sometimes inconsistent. The action on the other hand is consistent and not overdone. The pace is perfect, for though you may know where they are going, trying to keep up holds your attention.

Bottom line: Brain candy is good sometimes, and this is a “Leave your brain in the car” movie at it’s best.

Recommendation: If you are going to see MI3, see this instead.

POSEIDON

Written by Hombre Divertido

Unfortunately, the ship stays afloat a lot longer than the film.

When I heard that they were remaking the 1972 film The Poseidon Adventure, and shortening the title to Poseidon, I had no idea they were taking adventure out of the film as well as the title.

Nineteen minutes were also cut from the running time. All 19 and more certainly should have been utilized for character development that might have given us reason to care about the new group of passengers aboard the capsized ocean liner.

Apparently a need for an antagonist other than the constantly rising water was not considered necessary, as the usually enjoyable-to-watch Kevin Dillon was killed off just as he was reaching his obnoxious worst. Dillon, giving a performance worthy of Richard Chamberlain in The Towering Inferno, begins a somewhat disjointed tirade, prompted by nothing, prior to being killed off by falling debris in a moment that anyone could see coming as easily as the wave.

The relationship between Gene Hackman and Ernest Borgnine, so enjoyable to watch and crucial to the success of the original, was non-existent between Josh Lucas and Kurt Russell, both of whom are wasted in this film. Though not as wasted as Richard Dreyfuss who plays a gay character that does nothing more than stand around and flail his arms. Dreyfuss wins the “What the Heck Did You Make This Movie For” award narrowly beating out the highly deserving Robin “I needed to make a mortgage payment” Williams in RV.

Credit must be given to the writer Mark Protosevich for at least keeping the giant wave rather than going with the terrorist explosions used in the much worse television telling of this waterlogged tale.

Though they did keep the wave, the technological advances over the 34 years between films should have resulted in far superior effects. Instead, we were subjected to computer-generated crud that must have made Irwin Allen smile gleefully.

This film is a snooze fest from start to finish that generates little excitement or interest.

Recommendation: Wait for it to come out on DVD, and then rent the original.

Marky Ramone: Start of the Century

Written by Fantasma el Rey

Marky Ramone is a definite punk rock legend, so of course I jumped at the chance to review this two-disk set. Disk one is a best of Marky and his band the Intruders, while disk two is a tribute to the band that he is best known to have played with, obviously The Ramones. Yet before he became a Ramone, Marc Bell spent some time with bands such as Wayne County and Richard Hell and The Voidoids.

Hell, a punk legend himself, in one story says that Marky finally left the band because he grew tired of “eating dog food”. Hell (who is know for being a bit difficult, no… eccentric that’s a better word, has more of a ring to it, eccentric; see what I mean.) at this time would only do gigs sporadically, or as lore would have it, when the rent was due. Another account of Marky’s departure is the simple fact that The Ramones drummer, Tommy was leaving the band, so bassist Dee Dee Ramone asked Marky to take his place. However you look at it, considering the punk rock scene, it was more than likely a result of both. So, join The Ramones he did and the rest is rock ‘n’ roll history.

Marky’s wide range of influences made him a perfect fit for The Ramones; along with the others, he dug everything from 1950s rock ‘n’ roll to the girl groups of the early sixties. With The Ramones, as well as with The Intruders you can hear these influences come through in the music that both bands play. Although, that seems to be the case with any band that Marky plays with or has a hand in shaping the sound of.

On disk one of Start Of The Century, both versions of The Intruders (there are two different line-ups) have a traditional punk sound. Gritty, tense vocals weaved together with solid bass runs and loud, simple guitar riffs, while being held together by the superb drumming skills of Marky. Some of the standout tracks for me include a punked-up version of the Beatles' “Nowhere Man” and the piano-led, late ‘50s-styled rocker “Don’t Blame Me”, which has a great sax solo and guest vocals by Joan Jett. “Road Rage” is a fun number with a quirky sound that resembles “The Monster Mash.” Which reminds me that Marky did play on a version of said song for The Misfits' Jerry Only’s little record entitled Misfits: Project 1950. In fact, Marky played drums on that entire album and also played piano, which leads me to believe he may have played them on “Don’t Blame Me” as well. On “Man Of God” we even get to hear Marky do the lead vocals, which are all right, but his drumming is where it’s at.

Disk two is Marky’s tribute to the band from which he takes his name, The Ramones. The disk has that fake recorded live sound, where you get Marky doing intros to songs and the crowd can be heard whistling and cheering, yet it just sounds too fake to be real. When he mentions some songs, the crowd’s response doesn’t change like it would at a true live performance. The band sounds great and does a good job of the task at hand. This line-up is again completely different from the previous two on disk one. They play some “tuff” versions of Ramones’ classics such as my favorite “53^rd & 3^rd,” “Havana Affair,” “Blitzkrieg Bop” as well as “Chinese Rocks” co-written by the aforementioned Richard Hell. Disk two is a solid collection of Ramones' tunes propelled by Marky’s drumming. And as a special treat they play “Happy Birthday”.

Both CDs are good examples of punk rock the way it should be played, at times loud, fast and hard, while on some tunes you can hear rocking sounds of the past; The twenty-eight tracks on disk one move very quickly, as do the eighteen on disk two. Marky shows that no matter what band he leads he holds them together very well; for a man who has been around the block quite a few times, his drumming still thunders loud and punk proud.

A special thank you is in order here, for a very good buddy of mine, who even in his youthfulness is a wealth of punk information. Through him, I have learned a lot more about this thing called "Punk" than I ever would have simply on my own; his CD collection as well as his books and magazines are a seemingly endless source of knowledge. The compilation disks he has put together for me are excellent examples of punk history and should be sold for twenty bucks a pop; seriously this cat makes a mean sample of punk. Thanks, Eric, never stop rockin’, brother!

Barry Manilow: Barry Manilow II & Even Now

Written by Fumo Verde

Hey, Fumo here with some newly remastered CDs from the man who writes "the songs that make the whle world sing". For those of you who may be smirking right now, you can cut it out. Barry Manilow is one of the world’s premier entertainers, and is an inductee of the "Songwriters Hall of Fame" and Rolling Stone has called him "The Showman of our Generation". Two of his most popular albums have been remastered digitally, Barry Manilow II and Even Now, and although I am not such a fan, my mom is. So this week the review will be a Q&A from Momma Verde.

FV: How long have you been listening to Barry?

MV: The first I had ever heard of Barry Manilow was with the TV commercials, you know Dr. Pepper, Band-Aid brand Band-Aids, the Oscar Meyer jingles, but it was your father who introduced me to the music of Manilow. Your father loved to dance, that's how he put himself through college. How come you never finished college, Fumo?

FV: Not now, Ma. Which of Barry's albums is your favorite?

MV: Even Now has to be one of my all time favorites. It has "Can't Smile Without You", "Where Do I Go From Here", and of course "Copacabana". These CDs definitely have a better sound than the 8-tracks we used to listen to, and the new CD of Even Now has a previously unreleased track called "I'm Comin' Home Again", which still shows that Barry-- even after all these years, can still write great songs. Not only does he write his own music but he produces and arranges it himself too.

FV: What about Barry Manilow II?

MV: That's another special one. It has "The Two of Us", which was the song your father and I loved to dance to. "My Baby Loves Me" and "It’s a Miracle" are also full-bodied songs. There is also a new unreleased track on this one too, "Good News" which I never heard before.

FV: I wonder why.... Full-bodied song?

MV: A song that makes your whole body feel good. "Mandy" is also on this CD. That was one of Barry's top songs. After your father died, it seemed as if that's all they played on the radio for a while. Not that that song had anything do you with your father, just hearing Barry's voice reminded me of your father.

FV: Have you ever seen Barry perform live?

MV: I'll be honest here, I never cared for the man's looks, but his voice was so incredible and his music so good, I loved to listen to him. Now, his act is polished and he seems to have gotten better with age. I hear he has a deal like Celine Dion, where he plays five nights a week in Vegas. I never wanted to see him before, but now, I really want to. You know my birthday is coming up.

FV: I know, Ma. I already got you a present.

MV: Tickets?

FV: No Ma, something else.

In conclusion, Barry Manilow is one of the world’s greatest performers and a songwriter who is a living legend. Behind his smile and under that one-of-a-kind voice, Manilow has the mind of a musical genius and his talent will out last most of the people who really love his work. "I Write the Songs" explains it well; here is a man who started out writing commercial jingles and has made his way up the ranks, from Broadway through the hellish business and bullshit know as the recording industry, all the while writing that "songs that make the whole world sing." Even now, teenage kids-- not all but some, have heard of Barry Manilow, if not his most famous song "Copacabana" starring Lola, she was a dancer.

Anyway if you’re a Manilow fan like my mom, then you will enjoy the newly remastered CDs that Barry Manilow and Arista Records have released. They bring a "fullness" to Barry's voice and let you hear how he would sound if you were at one of his shows. So Ma, take a hit, turn up the volume, and I'll spill a gin and tonic on you so you too can imagine that your right there front row with Barry Manilow.

This is Fumo Verde saying, "Goodnight, babies." Say "goodbye," Ma.

MV: Goodbye.

Best Of Poison: 20 Years of Rock

Written by Tío Esqueleto

L.A. based rockers, Poison, first burst onto the scene back in 1986. The four man, “Glam rock", outfit featuring Brett Michaels on Vocals, Bobby Dall on Bass, Ricky Rockett on Drums, and C.C. DeVille on Lead Guitar, cut their teeth playing in the now notorious rock clubs of the Sunset Strip. 1986 saw the release of their debut album, Look What The Cat Dragged In, and the rest, as they say, is history…

It is now, 20 years later, and Poison has just released the culmination of their lives work, The Best Of Poison: 20 Years of Rock. It follows the band from its beginnings as a Glam Rock phenomena out of Los Angeles with hits like "Talk Dirty To Me" and "I Want Action," to the band’s prime, selling out arenas, as an MTV staple during the hair-band era of the late 1980s, with singles like "Don’t Need Nothin’ But A Good Time," and the #1 ballad "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," and even goes on to highlight hits from their lesser-known albums of the 1990s, which saw the band forced out of the limelight, as the music world made way for a new kind of rock music. Seattle-based “Grunge” rock seemed to come out of nowhere with the emergence of Nirvana, singlehandedly and unexpectedly ending the careers of countless, successful, bands of the time. Poison included….Well, kind of.

Call it what you want, '80s Metal, Hair Rock, Butt Metal, Glam Rock, Cheese Rock, or just Crap, but the pop metal stylings of the late 1980s, as with any good guilty pleasure, are beginning to see a comeback, with Poison at the forefront.

Comparable to disco before it, or even the various boy band crazes of the 1980s, Hair Metal, in hindsight, was a fad. As with most fads that have worn out their welcome, add a little time to heal, a dash of irony, and you have a bonafied comeback, and for some, a rediscovered and, now, guilty pleasure. Now, that’s not to say that all Disco or Pop Metal or Boy Bands originated as mindless, for profit, crap. Not true. In fact, most of these genres are born out of legitimacy. K.C. & the Sunshine Band, Motley Crue, New Edition, these are all credible examples of legitimate, top shelf, artists within the aforementioned sub genres of the pop machine. It is the mass marketing and eventual over saturation of copycat acts that leads to illegitimacy and, ultimately, failure for all.

Poison has managed to find a home at the very top of this second tier, the BEST of the BAD. Their infectious songs (I’ve woken up with "I Want Action" stuck in my head for six long days, now), and undeniable stage presence has secured them a spot right at the top, and it’s albums like this that keeps them there. Not new material for the lingering super-fan, but a Greatest Hits (their third in 10 years) for the legions of nostalgic sing-along fans. The album entered the Billboard charts at #17, a feat not many of their colleagues can boast, in recent years. I highly doubt a similar offering from, say, Warrant, or Cinderella, would chart nearly as high.

On June 13^th, Poison will kick off a summer long Tour of North America in support of the new album, starting in Mankatu MN, and wrapping up in Atlanta GA on August 25^th. The tour, sponsored by VH-1 Classic and Live Nation, will make 53 stops all together, with fellow '80s Glam rockers, Cinderella, as the show opener. A “Special Tour Edition” of The Best Of Poison: 20 Years of Rock will be released on May 23^rd to comemerate this special event. This expanded CD will include a bonus, DVD, disc featuring various Poison videos, and a buy one get one free voucher for the summer tour.

So, buy the CD/DVD. Buy a ticket. Take a friend. (You’re going to need somebody to sing along with, buy you drinks, drive you home, and, possibly, blackmail sometime down the road…)