PISSING VINEGAR Vol. 28: Creed Controversy Put To Rest(?)
Written June 11, 2002

Okay, here's the situation...

I have finally struck a chord. After over a year of this website's existence I have, at long last, pissed someone off. Chris, thank you. You have given me the opportunity to share my thoughts as provoked by misunderstanding, and once and for all dispel any misconceptions people may have over where my opinions and beliefs are based. Sit back, kids, I feel some philosophical shit coming on.

Anyway, allow me to set it all up. Today (June 11) I introduced a new section called "A Day In The Life Of...", designed as a means to poke some fun and take some cheap shots at folks I don't particularly like. My first target was Creed vocalist Scott Stapp. We'll get to a lot more on him later. But first, more background as to what brought on this rant. Chris Doyle, a friend and colleague, read the article, and found it rather problematic. Without his permission (though I'm sure he wouldn't refuse if it meant getting some dandy conversation going), I'll present the post from his blog and offer my retorts at intermittent intervals...

Note to Willie: Stick with the PV's my friend, "A Day In The Life Of..." came off as spiteful and not funny at all.

I can concede the fact that you are entitled to your opinion, as everyone is. I most certainly do not agree with your "spiteful" assertion, and I will explain later. Whether or not something is funny is completely up to whoever reads it, and I know some folks may come out of reading the article thinking I'm some kind of homophobic assclown. However, most folks who know me know my opinions on homosexuality, and can figure out that what I'm aiming for with the article is for entertainment purposes only. Now, I wouldn't do this to just anyone. But in my eyes, people like Scott Stapp need to be bitchslapped every once in a while. Again, more on this later...

While I agree that Scott Stapp comes off as a glory hogging jerk (and can they please just do a performance video), Creed is a successful band that sell an amazing amount of CDs and has received mainstream success that most bands would give their left arm for.

No argument there. Creed is, indeed, exteremely successful. I would even go so far as to say they're the most popular rock band in the world today. However, that doesn't justify the behaviour we've seen them exhibit. Plus, I wouldn't think most bands would want the level of success that Creed has. In many cases, when a band reaches a pinnacle of such heights, they are very uncomfortable being there, with the spotlight on them 24/7. Sure, every band dreams of making it, but seldom really want to make it THAT far...

While you may see them as "Pearl Jam Light", I would go on to say that Creed have a larger fan base. That doesn't make them better than Pearl Jam... doesn't make them worse either. And I'm sure there will be a rebuttal, but the fact is Creed is a big name right now.

Here's where I started to get a little pissed. I'm referring to the misconception of spite and bitterness. Yes, I am bitter of Creed's success, and I won't buy their albums anymore to spite them, but Pearl Jam has very little to do with the bottom line. And, while I concede that Creed probably has a larger fan base NOW, how dedicated are they? I mean, there aren't many bands who can keep a strong fan base, especially when a band goes three albums into their career without any sort of significant artistic growth. Creed (and a whole lot of other bands) are like cheeseburgers... if you offer the same burger with the same toppings every day for lunch, eventually folks are going to want to try a different restaurant that offers different toppings. And, if we must drag my boys into it, very well. While Creed has a larger fan base at this moment, what fans Pearl Jam have left are rabidly dedicated. And I'll gladly lay a five on the fact that one decade from now, there will be more Pearl Jam fans than Creed fans. It's one thing to make an album you know fans will enjoy, and it's another completely to offer it up again and again. The only band I can think of that's followed that formula to success over a long period of time is AC/DC. Let's face it, Creed's got a lot of haters now, and the numbers are only growing. But I'm getting away from the points. More from Dok...

Maybe when a new Pearl Jam album comes out, that will change, but with this being a market seemingly driven by radio and (even more so) video play, and Pearl Jam's resistance to doing videos, and my doubts that there will be a major radio hit, I doubt it. Willie, enjoy (Pearl Jam's) music, but don't get bitter that Creed is bigger than they are and were.

This hurt me. Not because my boys were getting dissed, but because it was done with misinformation. ONE: Never doubt a radio hit for Pearl Jam. They turned a cover song that was originally supposed to be released only to their fan club members into their biggest radio hit ever. That song was "Last Kiss", and it didn't get on the radio because they sent it to radio. Programmers actually added the song in their own volition, actually seeking it out on the internet or dubbing their own copy (which wasn't easy to do, seeing as how when it broke on radio, it was available only as a vinyl 45, and as I mentioned, only to members of their fan club). Only after this happened was the single properly serviced to radio. Pearl Jam didn't ponder for a moment whether that was going to be a hit, but it was, and a big one, EVEN without a video. Which brings an interesting point: how many bands do you know of that can consistently sell a million copies of each record, even after not appearing in a video since 1992? TWO: The market may be driven by video play, but (and I'm saddened you didn't know this, considering your profession) 95% of hit songs are broken into the mainstream by radio stations. Think about it: every time a hot new artist comes along, they trace the roots back to some radio station in St. Louis, or Tampa, or wherever, that "broke the single". Besides, if the market were really so driven by video play, do you really think 'Weathered' would have sold so well in light of how incredibly shitty their videos have gotten lately? And THREE: I reiterate that the muse of the article was not bitterness or spite, I just feel that Scott Stapp is the kind of asshole deserving of getting the old thousand lashes Willie-style. The fact that Creed is selling better than Pearl Jam now holds no bearing on my dislike for Creed. I do, however, want to draw your attention to some math: Creed's first two albums have sold a combined 12 million copies in the U.S. (commonly referred to as the centre of popularity gauging when it comes to record sales). Pearl Jam's first two albums have sold a combined 18 million copies. I'll give you the fact that Creed is bigger than Pearl Jam ARE, but they most certainly aren'y bigger than Pearl Jam WERE. And, as I mentioned, Creed's popularity will wane when the next big rock band comes along. And I have a distinct feeling that Creed's fan base will be considerably more barren than Pearl Jam's. Of course, Creed can prove me wrong. All they have to do is make an original album. However, considering the limited creativity and artistic originality heard on their albums thus far, I doubt they can make that happen. And if you want to see the effects of this, here's a fun game you can play. Once a month, go to your nearest pawn shop. Count the number of Pearl Jam albums in stock. Then count the number of Creed albums. With each passing month, I guarantee you're going to see the number of Creed albums rise.

I came an awfully long way to make such a small point, but here are the be-all and end-all reasons why I hate Creed and, specifically, Scott Stapp.

I can understand some folks' view on music. A lot of people (Mr. Doyle included) require nothing more than entertainment from their music, whether it be in the form of a snappy beat, a great hook, or some nice vocals. And that's fine, I'm not looking to convert anyone here. But my tastes have grown over the years of being an avid music lover, and I need more. And not just on the CD, but from the people who made it. When it comes to the music itself, a snappy beat or great hook or nice vocals is okay, but if there's nothing supporting that beat or hook or vocal, the amount of enjoyment I get from it is limited. What I look for in a band is something to set them apart from everything else I hear. Let me use specifics here. I'm a pretty big Alice In Chains fan. They were fresh and original for their time. Their dark, moody melodies and Layne Staley's droning voice combined to form one of the most powerful musical epiphanies of the 90s. And they were popular, but with every popular band comes an army of clones. Now, I dig on Godsmack and everything, but my enjoyment of their music can never equal the enjoyment I got from AIC, quite simply because there isn't a lot of difference. Christ, when Godsmack released their first single, I actually thought it was Layne Staley's new band. Again, I like a lot of their stuff, but it's just too similar to make me love it. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but before long the line between imitation and plagurism gets blurred. It's the same situation with Creed. I'll be honest with you; there was a time when I enjoyed Creed. But after two albums of songs that all sound like outtakes from 'Ten', it got a little grating and, to be frank as a Pearl Jam fan, a bit insulting. And where Pearl Jam have spent the last ten plus years constantly reinventing themselves by introducing different elements to their music, Creed have been stuck in a rut of unoriginal (and ofttimes uninspired) songwriting.

Even more important to me, however, is how an artist conducts him/herself in the public eye. A prime example is Oasis. They may put out the album of the year, but I'll never buy it, nor do I ever want to hear it, because I hate the Gallagher brothers as people. In every interview I've read or heard, they've gone off on nearly every good band out there, passing them off as rubbish or horseshit, or whatever descriptive noun Liam found in the thesaurus this week. Not to mention the fact that they've always seemed like uneducated, pretentious, drugged-out assholes, no matter what the subject. Their reputation precedes them in my book, and I simply don't want to support anyone so undeserving of anything good. The same goes for Scott Stapp. I like an artist who stays down to earth after fame. An artist who will shake a fan's hand after a show instead of setting themself up on a pedestal and looking down on the masses, arms crossed, with a chin to the sky. If Scott Stapp had a different public persona, I wouldn't have a problem with the fucking guy. But when you get to a point where you find it more important to look good than to deliver the goods on stage, then you've lost my respect. Maybe I'm a purist at heart, but what the fuck happened to the days when music was what mattered, not image? Sure, everyone needs an image, but why groom it to the point you're perceived as perfect, and let it go so far that you believe it yourself? The smartest thing Scott Stapp could do rihgt now is stop walking around in videos trying to look cool and fighting off a legion of evil monsters with a sword while sporting angel wings. Be a fucking human being! Show me you've got a soul, for Christ's sake! Look me in the eye and tell me you're even a little like me, or any of the other millions of people who once bought your records. Even if you're lying, it wouldn't hurt to pretend you give a shit about what the average Joe and Jane is going through. Stop this holier-than-thou bullshit. Or, at the very least, if you're going to act like you're better than everyone else, let the music prove it for once. I don't give two shits what the sales figures say, and I want a reason to believe that the fact you're selling so many albums has less to do with how much you spent on marketing and more to do with the music that's on it. Show me less self-glorification and a little more artistic integrity. Prove me wrong. You can't, Scott. You know you can't.

Here endeth the ePISSle.