2007 is shaping up to be the year of the one-off reunion. The Police. Genesis. Van Halen (for a glorious 18 minutes). Rage Against the Machine. Squeeze. And that?s just off the top of our heads. These once (and still) beloved bands have patched up their differences, dusted off the groupies, and climbed into bed with Ticketmaster. Smart money says they?ll go all the way and actually record some new material. But should they? Can they approach their creative peaks, or should they be content to cash in on nostalgia? Here?s our take on four upcoming reunions.
The Police
PROS: The Grammys showed that these guys aren?t afraid to rip, remix, and rebuild. And besides, after the Lute fiasco, Sting owes us big time.
CONS: They broke up at their peak, and aside from the misguided “Don’t Stand So Close to Me ’86″ (they were actually supposed to record a whole album of remakes, but Stewart choked the hell out of Sting), they haven’t marred their catalogue at all.
WE SAY: No! We love ‘em as they were, not as they are. Though we’d definitely be curious and would probably buy it anyway.
Genesis
PROS: Combine the 1970s, Peter-led Genesis (great), with the 1980s, Phil-led Genesis (ever better — sacrilege to say, but you know how we feel about Phil), and you get a Tarzan-writing, prog-rocking, easy-listening monster.
CONS: In 1997, a “re-formed” Genesis recorded the worst album of the decade with the lead singer from Stiltskin(?!). You can watch the video for “Congo” and see the disappointment in Mike and Tony?s eyes.
WE SAY: Hell yes. Will it be transcendently awful or surprisingly good? Either way, we don’t see much downside here.
Van Halen
PROS: The “new” songs with Diamond Dave on their 1997 Greatest Hits weren’t bad. And, it’s the 23rd anniversary of 1984.
CONS: Van Halen has been unsuccessfully trying to reinvent itself since Sammy Hagar was replaced by a drunken robot, with the low point being that Gary Cherone nonsense a few years back.
WE SAY: Definitely. The world needs more real rock stars, and, for all of his idiocy, David Lee Roth (the “Panama” version, anyway) was one of a kind. Hopefully Eddie gets himself cleaned up in time to make this happen.
Rage Against the Machine
PROS: They haven?t been gone long, so they’re still fresh. Audioslave wasn?t our favorite, but Tom Morello can still bring it.
CONS: Their protest rock only seemed edgy when there was nothing for middle-class white people to be angry about. World?s a different place now, and their anti-capitalist, anti-establishment ranting might come off as reactionary — or worse yet, boring.
WE SAY: No. They need to lay low for a few more years, let this whole “global war on terror” thing blow over. Then they can come back and record an album of pissed-off songs about, say, Medicare reform.
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The Police – Yes
Van Halen – Nooooo! Gah.
RATM – YES! They should protest about Chris Cornell and what a whiny ass he is.
i’m still waiting for a new pixies CD. that’ll be true goodness.
the police – yes, record. how could you not want to hear new recordings with andy on guitar and stewart on drums?
van halen – ehhh. DLR’s voice is shot to hell lately. it might take too much to polish it on a new record. it’s a fine line between GNR’s “appetite” and a motley crue record….i fear which side a new VH record would fall on.
genesis – sure. anything to keep phil collins from releasing more shitty disney ballads. they should make a record of 11 different rip-offs of “land of confusion.”
RATM – they made one good record and a bunch of mediocre ones after that. i don’t think they’ll break the trend.
The Police – Definitely
They can still bring it musically and all have songwriting chops.
Genesis – Yes, if Peter Gabriel is involved
Van Halen – No
They were all about being 20, acting crazy and nailing hot chicks. That doesn’t look so great on 50-year-olds.
RATM – No
Take one heavy Hendrix like groove and mix with one angry political rapper. Repeat as necessary. That was fun for a song or a record, but got old quick.
The Police, back with The Fixx opening for them at Oakland Coliseum. And, over by the consession stand, Thomas Dolby (who is also making a small comeback) could play some electronica classics. The Police would be freaking awesome. Probably wouln’t match expectations, though.
Van Halen … not going to happen. Too wasted.
Genesis … Apocolypse.
What about Queen? Crap, Freddy’s dead. Beatles? Doh! Bob Mar…(*sigh).
Seriously, here are some good ones I would like to see again: Mr. Bungle, Bauhaus (with new material), Orbital, Grandaddy, Simon & Garfunkel, XTC (a full album)
I guess everyone is allowed to get tired.
The Police, back with The Fixx opening for them at Oakland Coliseum. And, over by the consession stand, Thomas Dolby (who is also making a small comeback) could play some electronica classics. The Police would be freaking awesome. Probably wouln’t match expectations, though.
Van Halen … not going to happen. Too wasted.
Genesis … Apocolypse.
What about Queen? Crap, Freddy’s dead. Beatles? Doh! Bob Mar…(*sigh).
Seriously, here are some good ones I would like to see again: Mr. Bungle, Bauhaus (with new material), Orbital, Grandaddy, Simon & Garfunkel, XTC (a full album)
I guess everyone is allowed to get tired.
I agree with holmes, I want a new Pixies album over any of these guys, but I think Genesis could be cool if they get Peter Gabriel involved.
How about that Sebadoh reunion?
Ooooh, agreed Eric. Need more Mr. Bungle!
WANT NEW JESUS AND MARY CHAIN ALBUM!!
more than enough.
The Police = NO. It’ll be another Sting solo album, sans lute. Andy will complain about being offered only one song on the album (the worst one, guaranteed). Sting will bring in jazz session players and piss off Stewart. Advertising deals and soundtrack placement will result in many “Santori Times” in Tokyo.
Genesis = YES. Anything from “Invisible Touch” could come out today and still be a hit on FM radio. That’s how little their pop-prog music has aged or how little rock radio has progressed since then.
Van Halen = NO. Even if they did record new stuff, it wouldn’t be believable. They’re old, not young. They hate each other. Each faction should continue with their own splinter group, much like the way the Beach Boys have been milking it over the past 25 years.
RATM = Who Cares? Their last album was a bunch of covers. What’s their new album going to be about? Hating Bush and the war? By the time it gets recorded and distributed, the US will have a new president. It’ll look dated and stupid.
Yeah, I’d love to hear a new Pixies album. That might kick ass.
You know who I’d love to see pair up? The Beatles and The Who. Roger singing, Pete on guitar, Paul on bass, and Ringo on drums. They could call themselves the Whotles.
Lute Fiasco is related to Lupe?
Police: Absolutely. They had so much more in them.
Van Halen: Yes, with Sammy only. DLR is a mess.
Genesis: Keep Phil behind the drums, then yes
Rage: The most telented heavy hitting music in years– more!
What about Dispatch??
Not mentioned – CROWDED HOUSE! Neil Finn’s a far better songwriter than anybody mentioned on this thread so far! And there’s new CD ‘Time On Earth’….
Dude!!! What about the Spice Girls reunion? Yes/No? Any takers? I say NOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Stereogum, is there any rhyme or reason to your picks?? Rage is the only band that might produce something worthwile, and I’m not even a big fan.
No mention of the Pumpkins?
I’m still slightly upset that you ignored my email about The Jam re-uniting but without Paul Weller.
pavement
The Police – yeah i think so. i can’t really see their music being any better or worse than it was before.
Genesis – what? are you retarded? No. Just….jesus christ, no.
Van Halen – No. well, ditch the kid. Then maybe we’ll talk.
RATM – You actually made a very valid point, stereogum. Though i feel they’re the only band that actually does give a fuck and isn’t just in the politics realm to sell records, if they were to reunite right now they’d be lost amidst the Green Days, Bonos, and SoaDs of the world. Still though, i’d love to hear some new stuff of theirs.
Smashing Pumpkins already recorded a new album. 7/7/07! But i guess you can wonder if its a good idea. I hope it isnt anything like Machina II stuff.
The Police – hell yeah, they should record something for creepy Sting to enjoy some more “tantric” sex with Summers wife.
Genesis – why not maybe this will lead to something new with Peter.
RATM – Fuck no…..this was and will also be a shiity garage band that got lucky.
Van Halen – whats a few fist fights, Coors lite and some hairplugs between friends.
Should they ….who cares.
Ok, you wuss people out there that cant handle a band tbat has a meaning in its lyrics and music just turn your radio back on and listen to your cookie cutter b/s they play on a 4 hour loop. Yes, RATM should get back together and make a new album. We need someone with balls to maybe motivate our youth to stand up and speak what they believe. I dont believe the way RATM believe but stand behind them for having the courage to speak thier minds and try to make a difference.