Monday, February 11, 2008

The Grammys: The Pretender(s)

Although I'll admit that I couldn't force myself to watch the entire Grammy presentation last night, I did manage to catch most of the show. I stopped watching when I was forced to see the now annual Beyonce performance, and picked it back up when they started giving out some of the the big awards. Here are some of my afterthoughts:

1) They really need to stop pairing contemporary artists with "legends". Not only has this become absurdly cliched, it has just gotten more and more awkward to watch every year. Sure, I can see how a Beyonce/Tina Turner duet would work. Do I necessarily want to see this? That's a whole different story. The sad part is that this was the one pairing that even remotely worked. Kid Rock with supposed jazz crooner Keely Smith?!?. The poor woman didn't even know where she was, much less understand who that gangly hick fuck she was standing next to was. Next up, John Fogerty with Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis. Although Fogerty isn't exactly a spring chicken, standing to these two dinosaurs made him seem fresher than Will Smith. I literally thought Lewis was going to keel over and die on the stage.

2) Kanye West needs to shut up. We get it, Mr. West you are your biggest fan. Although I couldn't agree more that Graduation was deserving of album of the year, begging for it isn't going to help you win it. When he was accepting his Grammy for Rap Album of the Year, he felt the need to not once, but twice, tell the cue-in music stop as he delivering his sob story. When they were announcing the nominees for the evening's most coveted award, Kanye had his head down with his hands clasped together as he was praying to win. Come on dude, show some class. After seeing him do this, I couldn't have been more happy seeing Herbie Hancock win the big one. For the record, Kanye also looked ridiculous and really needs to lose the ironically cheesy sunglasses that he is so fond of. I can't wait for him to look back years from now and just be flat-out embarrassed.

3) What was that Will.I.Am performance all about? I have honestly seen more talented buskers/homeless men on the subway rap about god knows what. Who is this guy?

4) The Foo Fighters, really...? I couldn't believe that these guys were nominated for ANY awards for their most recent effort, much less a plethora -- including, of all things, album of the year. I mean, the Grammys are a massive joke, but still... And don't get me wrong, I have been the biggest Foo fan since I can remember and have loved most of their work....except Echoes, Patience, Silence, & Grace. I am very happy to see them get some recognition, but for them to be the sole representative in nearly every single rock category really makes me want to slash the collective tires of every single member of the Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. At least their orchestra-infused performance of "The Pretender" was pretty amazing.

5) Amy Winehouse is the real deal. There is no denying that the pressure was on, and she was either going to sink or swim. I gotta say, despite the apparent affects of her substance abuse, she pulled an anti-Britney and nailed her performance. I was legitimately happy to see her nearly sweep the awards, but was still weirded out watching her attempt to form a sentence during her acceptance speeches. Who knows? Maybe this universal recognition will be the inspiration she needs to get herself better.

6) I could have done without the Feist performance. I understand that the darling of Broken Social Scene was shot into the mainstream thanks to her Apple ad. Last night was her chance to show off her talents and prove why she belongs there. I couldn't have been more disappointed. Not only were vocals too rangy and guitar playing too sloppy, her performance looked completely contrived and uninspired.

1 comment:

Matt Basilo said...

You hit the nail on the head when it comes to Kanye West. First he went on and on about how MTV doesn't like black people because HE didn't win any awards, and then at the Grammy's he's saying "really? You're going to play the music on ME?" as if he's above that. As you said, he's his own biggest fan.