I Know

Not sure if this is applicable to my overseas friends, but the marketing machine has just started over here for a something in particular. Posters are now up all over town asking "Who is Ben's Brother?"

This reminds me of when Franz Ferdinand were releasing their first album, and there were posters everywhere that simply said "Franz Ferdinand" and nothing else. It was a huge marketing plan that got people talking and created a fairly large buzz. And then, when they released their first single, it all came together perfectly; all the interest already created combined with the greatness of the song Take Me Out, plus the look and style of the band themselves, made us all sit back and say "Darn, that Franz Ferdinand are pretty good."

Of course, their 2nd album bombed big time. But then so did Alanis Morissette's and I still love her dearly.*

Which brings me to Ben's Brother. In case you aren't aware or haven't figured it out yet, Ben's Brother are a band and they have just released their first single.

It is pants.

Actually, it is less than pants. It's like underpants, but not half as funny sounding. Believe me, there is nothing funny about their first single. If you haven't heard it, take the song "How to Save a Life", pull out any passion or feeling from the song, add some teen-angst lyrics for good measure, and then replace the vocals with a guy who sounds like Marge Simpson. A whiny Marge Simpson.

The song (which I can not remember the title of - shows how darn impressive the song is) is nothing more than a boring by-the-numbers ballad that seriously goes nowhere. It's the sort of thing that a High School band would write if they were trying to be like Coldplay or Keane - and failing miserably. They even have some lame ass gimmick for how they got their name; apparently the singer has lived in the shadow of his brother Ben all his life, and was always know as Ben's Brother.

So if it is such a pain for you, why the smack would you name your band in a way that brings more glory to your superior brother Ben, thus making his name even more loved? If it were me, I would have named the band Logan is Better Than You - that would teach them!

Stupid emo kids.

So now you know who Ben's Brother is. I wish I didn't.
I just feel sorry for Ben.



*For the record, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie is probably my favourite Alanis Morissette album. I realise 99% of the world disagree and consider it to be downright awful, but what do they know?