You won't include bands like Audioslave, Foo Fighters because of band members previous work, but you included the Mars Volta? How quickly people forget the greatness that was At the Drive-In.
System of a down if im not mistaken is NOT AN AMERICAN BAND. there needs to be an option for BLINK 183 Great(which is a big word) American R n' R bands are a very very rare and dying breed... too bad the replacements broke up and the exploding hearts died. hmm.. the urgencies from our very own TEXAS http://www.theurgencies.com or the yo-yo's
serj is from beruit, daron is from cali, sahvo is armenian, and john was born in lebanon... i think i would count this as an american band since they formed in socal rather than canada or europe somewhere.
Los flippin' Lobos. Kind of depressing this thread made it this far without a mention. The Allmans were brilliant, when they were the "Allmans." As much as I admire Duane and Haynes, Dickey Betts was my favorite guitarist. Knocking him out for that Lindsey Buckingham-soundalike ruined them for me. I'm a Crowes fan, I'll put their first two albums up against anything from the last 30 years, but when they lost that Faces-swagger and started in with the hippie crap they lost me.
Jesus I dont understand the love for Greenday. I mean it took them 15yrs to put out a decent album. Has everyone forgotten that up untill American Idiot the only alubum worth listening to was Dookie. And that album came at the height of the great rock wave of the the 90's. I mean look at what albums were released in 94' Nine Inch Nails - 'The Downward Spiral' Soundgarden - 'Superunknown' Nirvana - 'MTV Unplugged In New York' Stone Temple Pilots - 'Purple' Alice In Chains - 'Jar Of Flies' Pearl Jam - 'Vitalogy' Weezer - 'Weezer' Helmet - 'Betty' Hole - Live Through This The Black Crowes - Amorica Sonic Youth - Experimental Jet Set, Trash & No Star The Offspring - Smash Pavement - Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain not to mention Beastie Boys - Ill Communication, Massive Attack - Protection, Beck - Mellow Gold, Portishead - 'Dummy' , and Oasis - 'Definitely Maybe'. I doudt Dookie even makes the top ten for that year. Thus my point that it took Greenday 15years to make a good album. I also ask is Greenday the best punk band of its generation? As for the Foo Fighter, without the national recognition of David Grohl i doubt they wouldve gotten as popular. So lets be honest and admit that the Foo Fighter piggybacked Nirvana into popularity. Hell I even picked up their first album coz I missed Nirvana. If it wasnt for Grohl they would have faded out ala Bush or The Stone Roses. But juding them objectively, they dont come close to having the artistic genius of a QOTSA, The Stokes, White Stripes. And beside Grohls a better drummer than a front man. This actually leads me into my next point. I chatted with my friends that our rock standards have dropped condsiderably since the 90's on account of all the crappy bubblegum pop and rap that has inundated the airwaves. In mean just by looking at that list from 94 you could expect 1 or 2 real good albums every month were as know were lucky if we get a decent rock album every 3 months. How many of the new acts from today could have held thier own if they came out during that period. How many would you have mentioned in the same breath of a Soundgarden or Alice in Chains. That list shirinks fast 2 the White Stripes And QOTSA. Maybe The Stokes. And in Defense of 3814's comments on the White Stripes not even being a top 20 band in the USA i present 2 you the following evedence. That album sold 1.5 million records which in an age of downloading and rap dominance is very impressive. Not Enough? Ok how about critical sucess. Elephant is one of the best reviewed albums of the decade. Nominated for Record of the Year in 2003 I think. Still not enought? You dont care what some critics think you say, fine. Name me one memorable unanimously recognizable guitar riff like the one for Seven Nation Army? I was living in Argentina when it came out and I went 2 a Deep Dish rave one night and they started slamming that song in its original version. Same thing when I moved back 2 the states. They were playing it at dance clubs which is rare for rock songs. Hows that for crossover apeal. Still not enough? Go 2 iTunes and buy Black Jack Davey. Burn it and play it real loud on your Stereo Sysytem. When your done ask yourself if any band today, if your precious Incubus or Foo Fighters could have done the same thing with that song considering it was written in the 18th century. Their is nothing that the Foo Fighters or Incubus have released in thier catalog that can hold Elephants' jock strap. Absolutely Nothing.
None of that changes the fact that musical taste is purely subjective. I could write a three page essay as to why I feel that DMB is the best American rock band today, but none of that will change the mind of someone who simply doesn't like the music. I personally think Morning View beats anything The White Stripes have done. Same with The Colour and the Shape. Does that make me right and you wrong? No. It just means that we have different tastes.
Restricted to the list, I picked Interpol. Otherwise I would go with The Flaming Lips with Built to Spill a close second. Both of which meet the criteria - best I can tell.
Here's a bit of trivia, though it's a little unofficial: what's the longest-tenured American band out there, with the original members?
Hey, Weez.. When will the new LP be available on line? That's really cool your playing a gig with the Vibrators.
ZZTop's first album came out in 1970. Aerosmith's first album came out in 1973. Besides that, Joe Perry quit Aerosmith for a while, didn't he?
Ok, I have no idea what this means. Greenday is on your list, but NIN isn't. NIN is my favorite band of all time so they would be my pick if they were on the list. Radiohead is a close 2nd though, so I at least think you have good taste there.
