According To Bono, Music Has Gotten Very “Girly”
Bono recently spoke to Rolling Stone about U2’s latest album, Songs of Experience, as well as the end of their recent Joshua Tree tour and his poverty-fighting charity, the ONE Campaign. Bono spoke about the ONE Campaign’s current campaign, called Poverty Is Sexist. Well, poverty isn’t the only thing that’s sexist here.
During the interview, Bono mentions that he discovers new music through his kids, and that his son Elijah believes a “rock & roll revolution” is around the corner. Bono somewhat agrees. Bono feels there isn’t a safe space outside of the hip hop community for younger dudes to rage out in a musical way, because apparently there’s just too many damn lady feelings prissying up the music industry. Won’t somebody please think of the angry white teen boys!
“I think music has gotten very girly. And there are some good things about that, but hip-hop is the only place for young male anger at the moment – and that’s not good. When I was 16, I had a lot of anger in me. You need to find a place for it and for guitars, whether it is with a drum machine – I don’t care.
The moment something becomes preserved, it is fucking over. You might as well put it in formaldehyde. In the end, what is rock & roll? Rage is at the heart of it. Some great rock & roll tends to have that, which is why the Who were such a great band. Or Pearl Jam. Eddie has that rage.”
Bono might be starting to look like someone’s middle-aged aunt that manages a tool rental place, but I don’t think that gives him permission to declare that music is too girly. But he shouldn’t write off “girly” music so quickly. In fact, there are some female artists out there that are bringing the type of rage and anger he so misses. Personally, I’d suggest Bono’s kids download their dad some Taylor Swift. Give Taylor Swift a guitar and an enemy, and you’ve got a teenage-style anger that makes Rage Against the Machine sound like the Osmonds.
Pic: Wenn.com