Appreciate AC/DC… While you still can

Writer Gretchen Rubin once said, “Being taken for granted is an unpleasant but sincere form of praise. Ironically, the more reliable you are, and the less you complain, the more likely you are to be taken for granted.”

Coincidentally, I used Google to find that quote, something I often take for granted to find information, particularly quotes that make me seem worldly and educated. I looked it up because I wanted to find a quote that perfectly summed up my feelings on AC/DC, because it sure looks like we’re not going to have them for much longer.

The Australian hard rock quintet is set to release their eleventybillionth album, “Rock or Bust,” later this month, to answer the question “what has AC/DC been doing lately to warrant this article?” that none of you are asking. But most of the publicity the band has procured in the past few months has been of the damning variety.

Music festivals and their renaissance in the United States

During the second day of this past June’s Firefly Music Festival in Dover, DE, Dave Grohl took a moment of Foo Fighters’ headlining set to comment on what he perceived to be a spike in the popularity of summer music festivals in the United States, saying he was glad North America was catching up to Europe’s affinity for colossal audio vacations.

This was notable for two reasons. One, it was one of the few things Grohl said during the set that was communicated in the form of “speaking,” as opposed to his usual avenue of interaction, “primal scream.”

The second reason was that Grohl has a valid point. Though some European music festivals, like Spain’s Primavera Sound, are in their relative infancy, most have their roots in the 70s and 80s. The Glastonbury Festival, the cornucopia of European festivals, started in 1970 and has been held nearly every year since 1978. Even Denmark’s Rokslide has been going strong for over 40 years, no doubt buoyed by the popular “Naked Run” held during the Saturday of the festival. (Remember, it’s not public indecency as long as it’s tradition!)

Getting Respect on the Streets: Special Labor Day Edition

In honor of yesterday’s Labor Day holiday, I will pause from wrestling to have a little fun.

Take “Weird Al” even further

“Weird Al” Yankovic has been in the news lately.

His most recent album, “Mandatory Fun,” is his first to go to the top spot of the Billboard 200. My wife has played it several times in the past month.

Even more fun, a petition on change.org is calling for Yankovic to be the halftime act for next year’s Super Bowl.

“Having him headline the Super Bowl XLIX Halftime Show would not only be overly accepted by the millions of views, but it would remain true to the standards and quality of the show business we have come to love and respect out of this prestigious event,” the petition says.

As of Monday morning, the petition had 128,592 supporters.         

Getting Respect on the Streets: Nu Metil 4 Lyfe

More than a decade after it was popular, professional wrestling continues to have a minor obsession with nu metal.

At its height, the genre was popular, but got next to no critical support. However, wrestling companies (particularly WWE) picked up on it and never really let go.

Look at the album cover below.

That is pretty much the classic nu metal imagery (at least for nu metal bands that lack the hip hop element). Tough-ish looking dudes in some sort of industrial/prison setting.

It also has a pro wrestling image. Ever since the dawn of the NWO and (especially) the Attitude Era, pro wrestling companies have loved this type of image. Darker, grittier and tougher. One of the earliest Attitude Era promo videos (the one where the wresters, including true superstar Ahmed Johnson, talk about being real athletes) plays this image to a fault, despite the presence of sunshine.

To this day, both WWE and TNA like to use this kind of imagery (think of all those promo videos that seem to be in dimly lit warehouses or the name “TNAsylum”).

I think there is a logical reason that wrestling still holds affection for this type of music.

The Sunday Drive with a Tomlin masterpiece, a Carrasco slider, and a Manziel tackle?

Welcome to our first edition of “The Sunday Drive.” Every Sunday, our plan is to give you a potpourri of the site writers doing what they do, writing about their takes on whatever topic they want.

I could be Cleveland Sports.

It could be about a movie premier or a T.V. show finale.

It could be about politics, or pro wrestling or a concert that brought the house down.

Here’s my point.

We have a bunch of good writers that really deserve your readership…but don’t trust my word on that, trust theirs.

Here is our first edition, and while everyone wasn’t here today, they will be in the future. Give it a read, and let us know what you think…

Starting next week, you’ll see a real intro by yours truly, and a steady piece called ‘Rearviewmirror,’ to close up shop. Other than that…who knows what you’re going to get…

…but hopefully, it will entertain you a bit.

More than meets the eye with Josh Tomlin— Steve Orbanek