BOC: Re: Various thoughts of the day

[John A Swartz]

>the AOL people may be as impatient for new stuff as BOC-Lers are, they at least,
 are
a heck of a lot more positive about the fact that there are a lot of realities i
n the music
business.....


True enough.  But, as I said, we BOC-L folks know it can be done.  The
Brain Surgeons have done it.  Hawkwind has done it.  Black Sabbath has
done it.  Personally, I think that BOC would do better if they could
get some new management - I don't think that'll happen, but I really
don't think that their management has any "vision" for the band.  It
seems that most of what they do is fairly short-sighted.  Then again,
perhaps it is somewhat short-sighted to release the new material on
whatever label (Eric said in the Goldmine article about not wanting
to release their new stuff on "Ding Dong Records"), but at some point
I think they need to look at what it means to the band long-term if the
new stuff doesn't get released.  At some point you gotta fish or cut
bait as the saying goes.  Time is not on BOC's side - maybe 5 or 10
years ago the band could afford to work toward getting the best deal
possible, but I don't think they have that luxury anymore.  But again,
I'm optimistic by what I've seen recently, so I can wait a little longer.

>...such as the fact that right now, possibly the guys do see their mar
ket right
now as a 'nostalgia act' until they get new material out....which would possible
 jeopardize
their ability to make a living if they played too much material that is unrecogn
izable to people
that aren't hardcore followers...


I think that this thinking is dangerous for the band.  First of all, I
think that they need to keep their current fans, and I feel that means
they need to try and cater a bit more to them (if not with new tunes,
than at least with some variety in the setlists -- this band has LOTS
of great tunes in their catalog to choose from).  Second of all, I think
that even the "nostalgia crowd" can appreciate 2, maybe 3 new songs - as
long as those songs are good (which most of us agree that they are).
BOC needs a little self-confidence in the strength of their new material,
and show everyone that they still can produce viable music today.  From
what I've seen of recent shows, as long as they play "the Big Three",
and maybe "Cities on Flame", they could probably play just about anything
else.  I mean, as much as I like songs like "Before the Kiss", "O.D.'d on
Life Itself", and even "Joan Crawford" or "E.T.I.", I can't see too
many of these nostalgia-type fans (that maybe haven't seen BOC in 20 years,
or played a BOC album in 10 or so) being dissappointed that one of
these songs doesn't make the setlist -- conversely, I'd be willing to
bet that alot of them would go, "Hey, those two new tunes, 'Harvest Moon',
and 'See You in Black' - they're really catchy - can't wait to get a
CD with them on it!".  If BOC really believes they have some marketable
tunes (and most of their core fans that have heard them would agree),
then they need to realize that they can still be more than just a
nostalgia act - even if they get people to come to their shows based on
that idea, they can create a stronger impression on those people by
showing that they are still more than that.

John