Broadway Legend Joined: 7/22/03
So he's the Billy Mays of the Pop Factory?
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/13/06
He should be so lucky. (I mean in the sense of being heralded as a national treasure, not in the sense of...premature death.)
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/3/05
Billy Mays.
National Treasure.
Huh.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/13/06
Hey, I don't know. I'm pretty sure everyone in a reoccurring internet meme is considered a National Treasure. So. Billy Mays, Xzibit, etc.
What if Adam created exactly the kind of album that he wanted to create?
Think what you will of the album, it's the mind reading that is a bit much.
Boyle covering a Madonna song reminds me of that hysterical skit they did as a regular feature with Will Ferrell on the keyboard and Ana Gasteyer singing her operatic rock tunes. I forgot their names on the show. They were so funny, I'd wet my pants laughing.
Jane - Did you ever see the old French and Saunders sketch as the opera divas as back-up singers for Sarah Walker's recording of Kylie Minogue's "I Should Be So Lucky"? One of my all-time favorite comedic sketches.
"...for my throat..."
I Should Be So Lucky
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/16/07
I love that French and Saunders sketch!
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/22/03
If For Your Entertainment is exactly the album Adam wanted to make, rather than the "strike while the iron is warm" rush job it sounds like, then he's even less creative than I thought.
Besides, that would totally mess with the preordained narrative of the second album, Sophomore Slump, being more of the same only more downbeat, and the touted third album, the "comeback" album, The Real Me, the promotion of which will center on Adam assuring us that "this time" he finally made the album he wanted to make. After that comes a rushed Christmas album and he's dropped from his label.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/05
Just my 2 cents about the album:
I personally LOVE it. As jrb said, a lot of it IS pretty ridiculous, but.. that's kind of the point of it :) I think there's something refreshing about the fact that Adam doesn't PRETEND to be super serious in everything he does. And that's not to say there's not some truly beautiful stuff on the album as well (Broken Open is legitimately gorgeous, with stunning lyrics, and A Loaded Smile and Soaked have some definite depth to them also). But a lot of it is just his having fun and playing around, and I think.. a lot of people these days seem to devalue anything where the artist isn't going "I'm a serious singer/songwriter and my music has MEANING". And Adam's whole thing is that.. why does it always have to be so serious?
Yeah, music with meaning is very important, but sometimes you're just in the mood to put something silly on and dance to it, and why should that be any less legitimate a mood? Why can't a song be good AND silly/lighthearted at the same time?
So yeah, if Adam had made this album and then went around pretending like it was "the greatest contribution to music of our time" or something like that, then I might be inclined to be a little turned off. But because he's so refreshingly open about the fact that it IS just meant to be fun and lighthearted, and go into it with that perspective and enjoy it to death! :)
Obviously there's nothing wrong with NOT liking it- it's totally subjective. But I do think it's exactly what he set out to do. From the very beginning, he talked about making a very eclectic album, and taking 70s and 80s glam rock ideas but updating them with modern electronic production. And I think that's really precisely what he achieved. And the album doesn't feel incoherent to me, maybe just because I know enough about him to know that IS him. He likes lots of different styles of music, and likes to change it up. And he's versatile enough to pull it off, so why not?
I listened to about three songs before I got bored and turned on Kelly Clarkson. For some reason, listening to mediocre-sounding post-Idol albums always makes em want to do that. *shrug* I want to like Adam (I think there's SOMETHING there...), so I'm sure one day I'll finish the album, but there's something so bland about those first three songs. (And overproduction certainly doesn't help anyone).
And Namo, I love ya, but I don't think I can ever take your taste on pop music very seriously (if there is such a thing) now that you've admitted to liking that godawful Clay Aiken song. :P
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/05
^hmm.. if you don't even like Music Again then you might really be at an impasse with the album haha. Just because I think that's pretty unanimously one of the strongest songs on it. Cause I would say that if it was just FYE and Whataya Want From Me that you didn't like, you might still try listening to some others! They're definitely some of the more conventional songs. FYE is just like a Britney song (though Adam's voice makes it way better haha), and Whataya Want From Me is very regular pop/rock. There's some more interesting stuff as the album goes on.
If you're interested in a few more: Soaked is really beautiful (very theatrical), If I Had You is kind of silly but addicting, Fever is just plain awesome, A Loaded Smile is gorgeous and has really cool lyrics, and Broken Open is very beautiful and emotional. Very Mad World-esque.
I mean obviously if you don't like it you don't like it and that's totally fine, but I would recommend at least giving it a try beyond the first three songs, because 2 of those first 3 happen to be some of the more conventional songs on the album :)
I really do feel that there's some great quality stuff on there. Some of the lyrics are seriously awesome. Some are silly too- but silly in a way that makes you laugh :P like "I was born with glitter on my face, my baby clothes made of leather and lace" hehe. But others are just really cool.
I love the album, but I would call very few of the lyrics "seriously great." Music Again is really catchy, but it took me a few listens to get into because it's just SO overproduced. I think that's my biggest issue with the album as a whole. Boy's got pipes, but way too often does that take a backseat to all the other stuff going on.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/05
^haha, well I mean they're def not like.. the most brilliant lyrics ever lol. And some of them definitely are plain silly. But others I think are clever! :) A Loaded Smile is really interesting lyrically, Broken Open is really beautiful, and with a lot of the fun ones, you just notice the lyrics a lot. They have a cool ring to them, for me.
I don't sooo much mind the production of the album because I think it gives it a unique sound, but I do know what you mean. Sometimes his vocals do get a little swept up in all the other stuff. It's not SO bad though that I get annoyed with it.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/05
Weeee the first week sales number are in, and Adam is 3rd with 198k!! Not too shabby for a newbie, if I do say so!!! I mean it's a liittle lower than the 225k HDD was originally thinking could happen, but that's to be expected- HDD estimates are usually a little on the high side.
And I mean like.. NO ONE was going to come anywhere near SuBo. I have no idea why on earth she is so freaking popular, but.. the woman's sales are completely INSANE.
But yeah, Adam is now the 2nd highest debuting artist of the year, behind SuBo! :) And 19th highest first week sales of any album released this year, I believe.
Goooo Adam!
He was adorable on Ellen.
It took me forever to figure out who "SuBo" was.
He was awfully adorable on Ellen yesterday.
Thank you for posting that link Mr. Midwest. I missed the show yesterday.
And yeah, he was adorable!
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/05
He WAS adorable <3 And Ellen was so sweet and supportive
Although the only part that makes me a little sad is... I DON'T think he should feel like he disrespected anyone. The performance was a bit of a misstep, yes, so I'm actually glad that he's aware of that and stuff so that he can learn from it next time. But he didn't disrespect anyone! At LEAST not any of the general public- maaybe ABC to an extent for pulling such risque stuff impromptu on them. But in terms of the public, he did nothing wrong. It was just a weak performance, but the basic fact that he dared to GET sexual was actually a really good thing! Nothing in society would ever change if people didn't come along who were bold enough to get us out of our comfort zones.
So yeah, I just don't want him to feel like he has to play it safe "for the sake of not disrespecting anyone". But somehow I think he'll still continue to be his awesome, bold self :)
And yeah, the interview was super cute!
I suppose it's a matter of semantics, but I actually think it was a very... graceful thing to say what he did about the idea of respect: he wasn't saying that he did anything that was intended to disrespect people, but he's taking responsibility for the fact that what he did in good fun did end up making people feel disrespected. People DID feel disrespected by what he did, so why should he not feel as though he caused it? To recognize the correlation between the action and the reaction is not necessarily to cast blame on him or say he did anything wrong. There's obviously a gap between what he intended and how some people reacted, but he's very aware of that, and I think he's doing his best to apologize for how people felt, even (or maybe especially) if he wasn't setting out to make them feel that way.
I think he's going to be a little bit more thoughtful in the future, but doubt that he'll be "playing it safe" by any measure in the future. There's a snippet from an upcoming interview that's going to run on LOGO where he basically says that because he's (a) male and (b) gay, people are more likely to freak out the moment he does anything sexual, but that that's not going to stop him. So, for example, and from what I can see having watched the interviews, it seems like he's beginning to realize that, okay, maybe simulating a blowjob on prime time television was not the best idea regardless of his sexual orientation. (And while I personally am not offended by it, I can see where that might have been going a little bit too far.) But even if he's not going to do something like that again, he can still be bold and daring and push the proverbial envelope. And I think he will.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/4/05
OH. MY GOD.
"Yes, sadly friends, ABC has cancelled my appearances on Kimmel and NYE. don't blame them. It's the FCC heat.
15 minutes ago from Echofon
I AM doing Leno though. And lookin into something for NYE.
15 minutes ago from Echofon
It'll all blow over. Let's focus on being positive! :)
14 minutes ago from Echofon "
I just... I can't even. UGGGGGGGGGG.
No seriously, THIS makes me raving mad. Adam has MORE than owned up to the mistakes he made- which was mostly just doing things without having done them in rehearsal. Stop punishing him for it.
God, what even IS today, prejudice day!?!? First with the NY Senate, now this!?
Ugh. That sucks. I'm sure he'll get something else really great for NYE, but still. And even if it's not ABC making the decisions on their own so much as due to the pressure from the FCC, I still find it really bothersome that they're giving in to that pressure. Of course, we don't know what's going on behind the scenes, but it makes me sad nonetheless.
Bullsh*t. It's not FCC heat. Kimmel is on at 12:30 & Adam won't even be on until 1:30ish. The FCC does not have the same standards for a 12:30 TAPED show...
ABC is just giving him what he wants. The more shows that he's kicked off of because he's "risky" then the more intrigue about him it will produce.
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/16/07
I don't get it. I mean, I do get it, because it's just thinly veiled homophobia, but it really just boggles my mind.
Regardless of whether or not this extends Adam's level of fame or whatever, I can't help but feel very uncomfortable with all this. Can anyone name a comparable situation with any other performer?
Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction?
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