In tribute of... (Tribute Bands in general)

Member Name: strange_child

Product:	Tribute Bands in general
Date:	24/04/02 (87 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: fun night out, cheap, good if you can't get to see the original

Disadvantages: uncreative, can be very bad

I go to a local rock club every week, and I have seen about three different tribute bands of some of my favourite bands ever. I have seen Teen Spirit, the Nirvana tribute band probably more than five times, they are amazingly popular especially with those of us who weren’t into Nirvana when they were still going. I have also seen Sad But True, the tribute to Metallica twice, and Gunz N Rozes as well, most of these nights have been enjoyable and unserious fun!

A lot of people seem to be against tribute bands, saying that they rip off the original artists, and should but their skills to a more creative use. Granted, some tribute bands are appalling (memories of school band blitzes and bad Rage Against the Machine covers!). However, if you take tribute bands seriously and attempt to really recreate the original band, then you are likely to be disappointed. If on the other hand, you view it as 400 fans messing around to renditions of a really popular band who they all share in common, and just a cheap night out then it is fun!

A major advantage in my eyes is that dead bands are brought to life, and people who missed them can have just a <slight> fraction of the feeling as though they were really seeing a band such as Nirvana. Teen Spirit do sound very convincing, right down to the Kurt look-alike in his red and black striped jumper and American drawl (they are Australian). If you squint then you can almost have a feeling as though you were there in that club when they played ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ for the very first time. Of course, Teen Spirit represent the very top end of the tribute band quality, I haven’t seen any that are truly that bad (although Sad But True aren’t amazing) but they must be 2 a penny!

Even with bands that haven’t split up, you get a chance to ‘see’ a band that you may be too young to see (parents can be very restricting you know!) or just won’t tour England or w
herever you live. I would recommend Tribute bands to younger fans, as older people are much more cynical – they are absolutely perfect for 13 year olds whose parents have banned them from seeing Metallica for at least another 5 years! To be honest the point of tribute bands are not quality, but to have a laugh.

You could say that it’s a waste of someone’s talent to be in a tribute band, and they would be better off focussing it somewhere else. But just as some people waste their talent by having no imagination, there are people who are great players but cannot think of something original or that they actually like – instead they spend their free time playing well-known songs, so why put all that practise to waste? Surely it’s better for someone to recreate another artist’s work and sound good than to release something totally unoriginal because you have a lack of imagination. Besides, with a lot of practise, anyone can play an instrument well, but not everyone has the same musical imagination (like my drumming then!).

Then there is also the argument that they are ripping off the original band. I don’t know the rules about copyrighting, but I can imagine that they would have to gain permission to be a professional tribute musician and get paid for it. It’s true that they are ripping off the artist in affect (can’t imagine Metallica are too happy!), but then the original bands who stage huge events rip off the fans and the CDs are too expensive too, but that’s another issue!

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