cannabisnews.com: Rock's New Censors





Rock's New Censors
Posted by FoM on August 25, 1999 at 20:31:51 PT
Jim Walsh, Pop Music Critic
Source: Pioneer Planet
A strange new censorship -- applied to only a few musicians -- is taking the soul out of rock 'n' roll.
Riddle of the day, part one:Q: What does the group Buckcherry have in common with George W. Bush?A: Neither one can say the word ``cocaine'' on TV.When the Hollywood-based band performs in Europe and North America over the next few weeks, hundreds of thousands of hard-rock fans will hear Buckcherry lead singer Josh Todd sing the chorus of their hit, ``Lit Up,'' which crackles on a strutting guitar riff that positively shreds the speakers as he howls, ``I love the cocaine, I love the cocaine.''But if the only places they've heard ``Lit Up'' is on MTV or VH1, or any number of rock radio stations around the country, what they've heard is, ``I love the (pause), I love the (pause).''Censorship? Controversy? Hardly, since at this point, nothing has been stirred up. There are no retailers threatening boycotts, no DARE spokespeople damning the band or record label, and no free-speech advocates rushing to Buckcherry's defense.Why? Because the music-industry rules have been so well-established that, nowadays, everyone plays by the rules or they don't play at all.Nope, this is simply one of those little stories that provides a glimpse of just how mealy-mouthed the music industry has become. It's a case study in music-business politics, and in how conservative forces have had a chilling effect on content.According to MTV, VH1 and Buckcherry's label, DreamWorks Records, here's what happened: When Buckcherry's album came out earlier this year, several stations, including 93X (KXXR-FM 93.7) in the Twin Cities, started playing ``Lit Up.'' Most stations, including 93X, edited out the word ``f---ing,'' which appears during the song's break, but left the ``cocaine'' chorus as is.As the song's popularity grew, a video was made. At the same time, a minor outcry was building from the usual suspects, who were concerned that the song endorses cocaine use. If you believe DreamWorks, the label submitted the video to MTV (and VH1), who suggested the ``cocaine'' edit. If you believe MTV, the label provided the station with the ``cocaine''-free video from the start.Whatever. The odd thing is that the edit seems to have been done not in reaction to a substantial amount of pressure, but in anticipation of it.``Unfortunately, in 1999, I don't think it has to be a reactive process on a song-by-song basis,'' said DreamWorks publicist Dennis Dennehy.``It's gotten to the point where it's kind of like a movie rating system: You know what's gonna get you in trouble, or what you're going to have to take out, so you might as well eliminate the hassle of doing it later on.''Since then, Buckcherry has become a staple of MTV, and VH1, where the hacked-up ``Lit Up'' can be seen most every night on its nightly ``Rock Show,'' where Buckcherry is promoted as one of VH1's ``Inside Track'' artists.But the question remains: When did ``cocaine'' become an obscenity, an expletive to be deleted? Trying to get an answer from MTV's standards-and-practices division is like trying to get an answer from Bush about his partying past.But, presumably, MTV is not the Republican Party. Furthermore, Buckcherry is not Bob Dylan singing ``Everybody must get stoned.'' Or Eric Clapton singing ``Cocaine.'' Or the Rolling Stones singing ``Sister Morphine.'' Or Neil Young singing ``And I felt like getting high.''``God forbid that the Velvet Underground were around now, and they made a video for `Heroin,' '' Dennehy said. ``Who didn't make songs about drugs in the '70s? Even Rush made a song about smoking weed. And on every classic-rock station in America, you can hear Roger Daltrey sing, `Who the f--- are you?' on `Who Are You?,' and it's not bleeped out.''But Buckcherry is not The Who or Rush or the Velvet Underground. They are a new band, with so much to gain, and -- in these post-Columbine days, when new bands need to be more timid -- so much to lose. Just ask Marilyn Manson. New bands must play it safe, as must the media outlets which play them.``We have an anti-drug policy here, but at the same time, if you listen to the song, it's about the perils of drug abuse,'' said Wade Linder, program director at 93X in Minneapolis.That much is up for debate, and interpretation, as is all art. And so what if ``Lit Up'' does come from the perspective of a guy who likes to snort coke? The hypocrisy of the edits is that MTV has become, as Ann Powers of the New York Times recently, and rightfully, described it, ``nothing but a jiggle station.''Bikini beach parties play side-by-side with shoot-'em-up hip-hop fantasies and pop videos whose money shots are spliced-in violence from mainstream movies.Plus, every other song on the radio alludes to getting high -- spiritually, chemically or romantically. But make an overt reference to a drug other than beer, coffee or pot? Advertisers, all too willing to partake in violence and the objectification of women, will pull their dollars, and lawsuits both real and imagined will pour in.The above-the-fold banner headline on the front page of the Aug. 19 edition of USA Today enthused, ``Teen drug use declining.'' It made everyone who saw it feel good about themselves and their U.S.A., because by now, we're all in agreement: People who take drugs are bad, people who sing about taking drugs are worse, and teens who just say no are the future of this country.But music has always been a safe place to express the things that don't translate easily into black and white, the things that don't make it into family newspapers, the things we can't say out loud: our darkest desires, our most animalistic lustings, our hunger to alter our minds and get outside ourselves.Riddle of the day, part two: A. If a rock 'n' roll band, and the media outlets that bring it to us, can't express such things, then who? B. If a rock 'n' roll band isn't allowed to do what rock 'n' roll bands have been doing for years, is it still rock 'n' roll?Pop music critic Jim Walsh can be reached at jwalsh pioneerpress.com or (651) 228-5553.Pubdate: August 25, 1999©1999 PioneerPlanet 
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