A couple of decades into a career, performer types can start to get a little relaxed with regards the laurels. What made those early records great, they ponder? It must've been the way this particular instrument came in at that particular time right there. Let's do that a few times. And what about that swirling, bleak, gothic monstrosity we flung onto side two of such and such an album from 14 years ago? Let's do that. Let's do that again and again like some kind of depraved tellytubbies, the same old shtick over and over and no one will notice and then we'll all die in a plane crash and the Greatest Hits will sell like a motherfucker.
This happens all the time, man. What usually occurs, though, is that the fanbase gets fed the fuck up with the lack of progression, the lack of interesting curve-balls on evidence, and decides, y'know what, maybe I'll wait and see. I'll get it on Kazaa and see if I like it first. I'll wait for the singles.
Those records still sit in those stores, man. Except now they got a little sticker on them about how it's half price, cut-price, 60% cheaper, buy this fucker please, God almighty, it's been here since Clinton was president.
So what do you do? If you're so out of touch with not only your own muse, but also the tastes of every other motherfucker on the planet, what the hell do you do?
If you're Johnny Cash, you accept the advances of Rick Rubin to strip away the fat and bring that old-testament rumble to the fore once more. If you're Loretta Lynn, you maybe get the fella from, I dunno, The Von Bondies or whoever to craft an ethereal soundscape around your compositions. And if you're The Cure, well, you say about how you've produced all your own records, but recently, something's been amiss.
It's time to bring in the producer of that Nu-Metal record that Vanilla Ice made, is what.
But to be fair to Ross Robinson, he also made some pretty influential and even great records in his time. Slipknot's first record, KoRn's first couple, ie, the one's what were worth listening to, Sepultura's Roots, he's got quite a CV built up, is what. He's pretty much to blame for Nu-Metal, but hell, man, even Kurt Cobain has to rest in piece with the knowledge that he's pretty much responsible for Nickleback.
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