I have been driving my dad’s car with Sirius Satellite radio. I am fixated on the Hair Nation station since I had a short run with what we now call hair bands. I came in on “hair bands” just as that train was leaving the station and grunge was pulling into the stop, so a lot of the stuff is before my time (plus until then I thought heavy metal people were freaks).
Definition:
Male Freak: a guy with tight rustler jeans, a too small iron maiden shirt, Reebok high-tops (or those tan high-top moccasin looking shoes) and a greasy borderline mullet.
Female freak: girl who wore a leather jacket, leather scrunched up boots…fringe wherever possible, too much eye-liner, super teased hair and giving the appearance of being somewhat slutty. Because of my baby-sitter’s oldest son and his time in junior high I also called these people A-lunchers…but that is obviously a regional thing.
Anyhoo, I went through a two-year phase. My favorite was Skid Row. I also enjoyed the sounds of Motley Crue, Warrant and Poison. I had posters in my room of these fabulous bands which caused my parents’ uber-Southern Baptist friends (and what I consider to be the quintessential holy-roller couple- see blog on holy-roller status) to look at me and my room in total disgust. And also caused Shelly’s mom to ask us why we wanted pictures of naked men on our wall (they weren’t naked….just bare-chested…sometimes).
So to enjoy the sounds of my childhood I turn to Hair Nation. I have to listen to 6-7 songs of “before my time” rock or just crappy obscure stuff until they finally get to something good. On more than one occasion I have been disappointed when they play a familiar and well liked song in the “Live” version. The live version leaves one to wonder A)Were they this bad and, if so, how did they get a record deal or B)was this recorded so much later than their prime that they just cannot hold their breath or a note anymore (or find the note to begin with). I have come to the conclusion that they play them for no other reason than the live versions contain several F-bombs so they think “this is satellite radio…let’s play the one that says f*ck even though it is TERRIBLE just because we can”….sigh!
Side note: the first summer I spent in New York, Sebastian Bach of Skid Row was in Jekyll and Hyde on Broadway. My sister and I went to the show. I have to say I was quite impressed because when he was Jekyll he sang REALLY well and when he was Hyde he used the heavy metal voice. I was impressed because I didn’t know he could sing so technically well to begin with and then was surprised that he had not ruined any voice he had by that time. He was quite pretty (and I say pretty b/c he could so pass for a woman in the face department) when he was younger and while he looks the same…living hard and fast can age you quick. Still, I was giddy and my sister commented on my extreme nerdiness… but were it Bono, Rick Springfield or that Simon Le Bon dude she would have been the same way. Later he went on to star in Rocky Horror Picture Show (typical) which I did not see.
