Guilty Pleasures (probably sucks, but you love it anyway)

alldatndensum wrote:

Mercy Rule
Traxter


Both of these would fit this category.

Yeah, I can see Mercy Rule on there as well as some of the bands that were on some compilations put out back in the day (Paradox, Paragon, Knight Riot, etc.)

Through The Dark Radio wrote:

Yeah, I can see Mercy Rule on there as well as some of the bands that were on some compilations put out back in the day (Paradox, Paragon, Knight Riot, etc.)

If you're referring to Paul Roraback's Paragon, they sounded great live.

I'll always have a soft spot for Torn Flesh.  I kinda enjoy Stryken as well.

As for Apologetix, I give them props for their musicianship and talent.  The whole idea of replacing the lyrics of secular songs with Christian lyrics just bugs me.  It's my problem, not theirs.

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XINR

Ooh, love em. Wouldn't call em a "guilty pleasure that probably sucks" as this thread says... def rough demo recording, but no where near as bad as STRYKER. XINR rocks ! Classic hard rock stuff there

Guilty/Forgiven wrote:

I've found that many I've tried to share their music with, absolutely hate ApologetiX. I don't know why. I know their early stuff was dreadful, but their newer material has talent. But friends and family I've shared them with, dislike them.

I love those guys! Everybody in the band has a lot of talent, J is great at rewriting the lyrics to fit the original very closely while still sending a solid message, and he's pretty good at vocal mimicry too.

I gave my dad their Oldies collection, since he's been in an oldies cover band as long as I can remember. He asked me how ApX was allowed to record new vocals over the original masters, since they sounded so close. Pretty high praise from someone that's spent most of his life listening and re-listening to those songs.

But yes, be careful with anything recorded in the 90s. Some of the really early ones sound as if they're not sure they are really trying to be a close parody or not. Maybe it was still a legal question back in the early 90s, though I'd assumed a decade or more of Weird Al had, by that time, established solid precedent.

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As for Apologetix, I give them props for their musicianship and talent.  The whole idea of replacing the lyrics of secular songs with Christian lyrics just bugs me.  It's my problem, not theirs.

Is it that they do so many of them and don't write any original songs, or does it bother you if ANY band or artists does this?  I've done one this way with "Bound For A Throne" and am doing it again with "Burning Bush".  Both of mine are meant to be partly serious but mostly funny while still getting a Bible story in there.

alldatndensum wrote:

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As for Apologetix, I give them props for their musicianship and talent.  The whole idea of replacing the lyrics of secular songs with Christian lyrics just bugs me.  It's my problem, not theirs.

Is it that they do so many of them and don't write any original songs, or does it bother you if ANY band or artists does this?  I've done one this way with "Bound For A Throne" and am doing it again with "Burning Bush".  Both of mine are meant to be partly serious but mostly funny while still getting a Bible story in there.

I think the biggest difference between Apologetix and your BC&DBB "parody" song(s) is that Apologetix seems to try to stay relatively true to the original musically and only change the lyrics.  You have pretty much reinterpreted "Bad to the Bone" into your style in addition to changing the lyrics.  Also you've never put out a full album of "cover/parody" songs.  It's been my experience that most fans seem to view those as second-rate versions of originals (regardless of the talent of the band/artist doing the parody)....especially if the lyrics have been changed.  I love cover songs, but have to admit that I've never been much into Apologetix (although I have their "Loaded 45's" album and it is quite good).  There is something about hearing music to a familiar song and starting to sing along with it in your head (even subconsciously) only to be hit with completely different lyrics.  It's almost a bit uncomfortable (at least until you get used to it). I think that puts some people off.

alldatndensum wrote:

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As for Apologetix, I give them props for their musicianship and talent.  The whole idea of replacing the lyrics of secular songs with Christian lyrics just bugs me.  It's my problem, not theirs.

Is it that they do so many of them and don't write any original songs, or does it bother you if ANY band or artists does this?  I've done one this way with "Bound For A Throne" and am doing it again with "Burning Bush".  Both of mine are meant to be partly serious but mostly funny while still getting a Bible story in there.

I may have told this story before in an Apologetix-based thread, but here it is again.  When I was in college there was a guy at the church I went to who was always asked to sing specials for Sunday night services.  He always took karaoke tracks of popular songs and rewrote Christian lyrics to them and everyone thought they were just the greatest things, like he was "redeeming" these songs and making them ok to listen to.  I guess that's affected the way I hear most Christian parodies of secular songs.  It also makes me think of the whole "Christian music is derivative and unoriginal" criticism.  It doesn't help that I kept hearing about Apologetix as being the "Christian Weird Al".  As for your "Bound for A Throne," that one doesn't really bother me, maybe because that riff is such a standard blues riff it doesn't feel like a parody, it feels like an original.  Maybe it does have to do with the fact that you do mostly original songs.