6/28: Aerosmith Dodge

[Undertoad]

[IMG]pictures/aerosmithdodge.jpg[/IMG]

I don't know what was being announced at this press conference, but I do know that it marks a new low in the concept of "corporate rock". Aerosmith made their name with sexual energy, gratuitous lyrics, and for inventing the idea of having a really ugly lead singer. (That "ugly" concept was later taken up by Rush, discredited in the image-happy 80s, and re-invented in the 90s by Nirvana and Kid Rock.)

However, none of that makes me think "Dodge". While big music events have long been sponsored by Visa and Coors and Michelob and such, for the most part they have stuck to artists with safer images. And nobody had the cojones to actually sit in front of a backdrop linking the band and the brand; it's just too obviously a total sell-out of massive proportions.

Of course, with the aging of the Aerosmith audience, maybe a good number of the listeners are also selling Dodges... from the showroom floor.

[Griff]

Yet another sign that Daimler Chrysler is circling the toilet bowl. Dump yer stock! (Er not since those age denying, grasping boomers still rule the economy... maybe Dodge is gonna add some new options, so calendar challenged boomers like Aerosmith can jack into the drivers seat with hard wired vision and sound, IV drips for meds, monitors for various bodily functions...)

[elSicomoro]

There had been rumors swirling around that the band was off the wagon...of course, this was 3 or 4 years ago.

Aerosmith has been consistently going downhill since "Pump" was released...and that's been 10 years now. The whole "Armageddon" song...N*SYNC...the Indy 500. Maybe Steven Tyler really IS finally over the hill.

The godfathers of raunch rock...now settling into baby boomer boredom. I'm not against an artist or band modifying their image or sound...that's all well and good...unless it just sucks.

[Slight]

I can just see it:

"Hey guys wanna go for a ride in my new car?"

"Sure, what kinda car did you get?"

"It's the new Dodge Aerosmith Special Edition. With its cab forward design and 8 speaker sudio system we can listen to the new N'sink, Tittney Spears, Run DMC and Aerosmith, Pepsi One complilation album."

The new Aerosmith wagon from Dodge
Different.

[Chewbaccus]

Two words: Nest Egg.

Tyler's like Jack Lemmon (R.I.P) in My Fellow Americans, when he played that Republican President. Remember, the one that went all over the country making speeches, becoming the spokesman for that Japanese insurance company, and as James Garner's character put it, "...sucking up every nickel that isn't nailed down."

Poor Jack Lemmon...

~Mike

[rocker]

I think jealousy exists here...the man and his band obviously has withheld quite remarkably through the changing times of rock and roll. Not to mention being inducted in the hall of fame while STILL putting out awesome tunes. So what if he endorses a product, dodge or otherwise...haven't we all seen some of the largest sports players (as an example) endorse a particular product??? Do any of you nay-sayers out there dispute that decision? I just think it's a little of that green thing happening here - because any of us small joe blows can't do something like endorse a big-named product. Oh, and "selling out" - is usually a term when a famous person(s) have to make that extra 'nickel' when they can't make the bucks in their field of choice. Don't think that is the case here...seeing that Aerosmith has sold out in most of the large grandstand arenas around the country. Their latest cd has had 4 releases (regardless if your personal taste likes their newer stuff or not) off it thus far - not too shabby for a 'has-been' band, eh?

[Griff]

(an intentionally provocative disorganized string of thoughts to follow disguised as paragraphs)

Its not jealousy of a particular bands success with me, its my personal vendetta against a generation of blood sucking, reality ducking, country -ucking, responsibility ducking, economy mucking, Social Security sucking, mid-life crisis mucking, Peter Pan... dang little help here... I seem to be outa uckings. (mostly meant in good humor mostly)

The boys from Boston had a nice run but Rock n Roll was never meant to be establishment. It should be vibrant not static, the board needs to be wiped clean. The record companys have managed to choke the vitality out of popular music. I am all for people making a buck. They, however, need to understand that they are the establishment, the man, the authority, the power, in a word O L D.

Maybe theres a new thread in here... Baby Boomers destroyers of a once free society or heirs to a sinking ship?

[elSicomoro]

No jealousy on my end...they're just done. Like the Stones after "Voodoo Lounge." Quit while they're ahead.

And while I RESPECT N*SYNC (but personally can't stand them)...the whole Super Bowl deal was a joke. Not to mention Steve-o's rendition of the national anthem at Indy.

I love Aerosmith to death. "Rocks" and "Toys In the Attic" are classics, not to mention "Permanent Vacation" and "Pump." But every band has its day. I'm generally a pretty open person when it comes to music, but their last 2 albums in particular (since returning to Columbia) have been utterly disappointing.

But as Mike has in his sig: "Like the wise man said: That's just my opinion, I could be wrong."

[rocker]

Old they may be, but still rock...and yes, these are all just opinions - which in this free land we all have the right to voice!
And in my opinion is that there are not many bands have stayed this long in existance, still rockin and thriving on the charts. And perhaps ending while they're ahead might be a good suggestion...I just don't feel that they're milking out their career yet - the newest cd is quite solid and rocks. My opinion of course.

[ndetroit]

Well... I suppose that it depends on your perspective if you were to say that Aerosmith were a bunch of 'sell-outs'. I would still have to call them 'artists'.

The large majority of what we consider to be 'great art' in the world is as a result of either a.) an artist doing the art for his/her religion or b.) an artist doing the art for some rich individual or corporation.

Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo (no, not the ninja turtles) were all at various times in their life in the employ of the Medici's, a family so wealthy and powerful that they can certainly be compared to some of the mega-corporations of today.

Whether they could afford to make a living 'selling their paintings' or not was irrevelant. The thing that artists did (and continued to do, from Rembrandt to Jan Van Eyck to Andy Warhol) was work for rich patrons who often commishioned them to paint or sculpt portraits, statues, or landscapes.

When Michelangelo won the commission to paint the sistine chapel, no one wandered around saying "Man, I can't believe that Michelangelo is such a sellout. That guy is so corporate now. I liked his earlier stuff *way* better..." etc, etc...

Granted, comparing Aerosmith to Michelangelo is a bit of a stretch, but the concept remains the same: They are no different when it comes down to financial motivation.
Yes, they love their art, and do it for the sake of art, but that is why they are artists, and not making their millions as CEOs or truck drivers, or whatever the hell it is that Steven Tyler would do if he didn't like singing....

[jaguar]

You have apoint, it is a matter of shades of grey though, while all artist have to eat, and therefore sell their art, and somtimes are comissioned to do work (particualry archietects and scupltists) i doubt if asked leaonardo would have signed a large number of cars to increase thier value, you are ocrrect, its a matter of degrees, and there is a big difference

[elSicomoro]

Originally posted by ndetroit
Well... I suppose that it depends on your perspective if you were to say that Aerosmith were a bunch of 'sell-outs'. I would still have to call them 'artists'.

There is no real such thing as a sell-out. I've seen too many artists flogged unfairly for selling out (The Cure, R.E.M.).

As far as what they did with Dodge, I have no real problem with that. The pic just gave me a good reason to rag on the band. If Aerosmith want to attach their name to Dodge/Daimler-Benz, cool. (NOTE: Adidas and Guinness can attach my name to their products after a bit of negotiation. ) After all, I dig the hell out of Moby's "Play" CD, and all 17 songs on the album have been licensed for use in commercials, film, etc. (Nordstrom, Dateline NBC, to name a few)

[ndetroit]

I had heard some of the songs in TV commercials but I was not aware that *all 17 songs* had been licensed out. Wow. It would be cool to see a breakdown of exactly what song went where, for what ad, etc, etc...

The "play" album, fatboy slim's "you've come a long way, baby", the crystal method's "vegas", and the propellerhead's "decks drums and rock+roll" are all albums that have been pretty heavily utilized in TV and film...

They're all electronica, too.... Hmmm... I wonder what that says about the tastes of the average car-buying american... Or rather, what the marketing firms think that electronica does for them....

[elSicomoro]

Yep, all 17 songs. I'm not sure who has what though..."Porcelain" was used by Nordstrom. I can't remember where I've heard the other ones thus far. Dateline NBC has been using a few songs from his "Animal Rights" album as well.

I think it's wonderful for Moby. He left Elektra/Time Warner because he felt that all they wanted were singles. Then Moby goes to Richard Branson's newer label and makes a record that has had 7 singles since the first one was released almost 2 years ago. Nice one.

All the albums are good (and in fact, the only one I don't own is Propellerheads). The electronica genre is a nice little niche--it went through it's commercialization 4 summers ago, but the good ones are still around. Each of them has their own little specialty as well...except for Moby, who goes all over the place.

IMO, electronica is the happy medium right now. You have teen-pop on one end (which is still doing well), and the return of the rock (which is also doing well). The focus of commercials has moved towards a younger crowd (not much older than me really) and so a "younger" sound is needed.

[dynamo]

As I understand it, Moby really got his stuff heard through commercials in the first place. Rather than making a hit and selling it to a commercial, he sold a song for a commercial, and it eventually gained mainstream support.

I too have all those albums and primarily listen to techno. It's surprising how many songs you recognize while watching car commercials If any of you have the Matrix soundtrack, that's another one that's all over the boob tube.

Originally posted by sycamore
IMO, electronica is the happy medium right now. You have teen-pop on one end (which is still doing well), and the return of the rock (which is also doing well). The focus of commercials has moved towards a younger crowd (not much older than me really) and so a "younger" sound is needed.

I have discussions about that fairly regularly with my friends so I'm interested in your opinion on who's involved in the new rock movement...