[Ballgame]

Thanks LK!
You know Bob might be able to bring some fresh ideas and push them to be the best they can. Maybe they are complacent because they dont leave their comfort zones. You know what I mean? Maybe they think they are thinking outside the box and really arent. Not to mention Bob is good. So either way its a win/win. But I do know its super hard to book Bob and he is doing another Metallica album this summer.
So we'll see.

[skippy the wonder dog]

Uh, complacency and a lack of new ideas hasn't been a problem for the Hip recently.

If anything, comments like the one that kicked off this thread show that fans want them to stick to the same old same old and to stop taking new directions.

[Lizard King]

Uh, complacency and a lack of new ideas hasn't been a problem for the Hip recently.

If anything, comments like the one that kicked off this thread show that fans want them to stick to the same old same old and to stop taking new directions.

Amen to that! Complacency and lack of ideas is something I dont buy at all, IBE proved that. Every album they've done has been a progression and they seem to be always looking ahead and not trying to re-create past glories or what have you. And I dont think a guy like Gord Downie will ever run out of ideas when it comes to songs, same for the band.

[Ballgame]

Uh, complacency and a lack of new ideas hasn't been a problem for the Hip recently.

If anything, comments like the one that kicked off this thread show that fans want them to stick to the same old same old and to stop taking new directions.

The fact they take chances and every album is difference is the reason they are my fav band. And the fact every show is different.
Im not worried about new ideas, but new blood could be a good thing.

[Sam]

A friend told me that she didn't really like the Hip because all their songs sound the same to her - like Nickleback. I checked 3 times with her to make sure we were talking about The Tragically Hip. With Gord Downie? From Kingston? The lead guitarist looks a little like Jesus with really long hair? The Tragically Hip?

Um... We're listening to different bands, I think.

Except that they all have singing, guitars, bass and drums, I don't hear a lot of similarities. Just the opposite really - every new CD seems to come as a pleasant surprise to me.

I'm indifferent to the Bob Rock announcement. I don't see that it will affect the songwriting too much.

:jump :twisted: - I added these emoticons because my daughter wanted me to. They really have nothing to do with my mood or my post.

[Ballgame]

nah sam i have heard the same things...from my wife
the thing with the hip is you either love them or hate them. some people just dont get it

[Lizard King]

every new CD seems to come as a pleasant surprise to me.

I agree, I never know what to expect when they put out an album, but Im always like you said..pleasantly surprised after I hear it. Just when you think the band couldn't get any better, IBE comes out and its like wow, where did that come from? I cant wait for the next record.

[patiodweller]

Does anyone that's a HIP fan care who produces an album, what the record label is, what studio is used (etc)? It's the HIP!!! When they make an album we eat it up. I understand the original comment about the HIP's older stuff because it had a universal appeal in Canada but the word "poor" is the end all- be all of exaggerations! IBE is a stupendous album, No Threat is a fantastic tune and the new album will get even more buzz and hype than previous albums save maybe DFN when the HIP were clearly in their prime when the hype was so huge I remember some teachers in my high school letting kids listen to the Bear at 10AM on the world premiere of Grace too.... Here's a prediction, the new album will be awesome like all their albums maybe their best one yet and the tunes on it will sound amazing live in concert when they are played at ARA in July. Call me crazy....

[sgryzko]

I was shocked when I saw the numbers of each of their albums. I understand that Up To Here is the most popular, because it also appeals to the casual Hip fan.

This tells me that the numbers do not mean anything. In Violet Light is probably my favorite album, and IBE is excellent as well.

I can't wait for their new album!

[Lizard King]

Does anyone that's a HIP fan care who produces an album, what the record label is, what studio is used (etc)? It's the HIP!!! When they make an album we eat it up. I understand the original comment about the HIP's older stuff because it had a universal appeal in Canada but the word "poor" is the end all- be all of exaggerations! IBE is a stupendous album, No Threat is a fantastic tune and the new album will get even more buzz and hype than previous albums save maybe DFN when the HIP were clearly in their prime when the hype was so huge I remember some teachers in my high school letting kids listen to the Bear at 10AM on the world premiere of Grace too.... Here's a prediction, the new album will be awesome like all their albums maybe their best one yet and the tunes on it will sound amazing live in concert when they are played at ARA in July. Call me crazy....

You're killing me..Im sitting here with a cold, its Jan. its cold outside and snow covered, and you have to mention ARA in July...its all I can think about now! :lol: Oh but wouldn't that be sweet, a hot summer day, cold beer and rock and roll, aah bliss. Back to earlier point, I dont overly concern myself with who the producer is and where its recorded, those are just details..Im only interested in the final product, and they've never let me down...I dont think they ever will.

[Ballgame]

Does anyone that's a HIP fan care who produces an album, what the record label is, what studio is used (etc)?

Actually Im very interested in who produces it. Im in the middle of writting and record my album so Im into this stuff and different people do different things. You'd be surprised how little control the bands have when it comes to mixing and mastering. The tracking of the tunes is the easy part. But mixing and mastering are really really hard things to do. And at the end of the day the band has to approve whats done but they have to pick from what the others (producers, mixer, and masterers) have done. So a Bob Rock album will probably sound a lot different than the others, and that in itself is probably what the band is looking for...something different

[HipFan1]

[quote="Sam"]The lead guitarist looks a little like Jesus with really long hair? The Tragically Hip?
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: My little brother has said that too. I was showing him my pictures with Bobby(that I have gotten autographed again because of the Stripper's Union), and he blurts out..."Dude that guy looks like Jesus!"

quote]

[skippy the wonder dog]

A friend told me that she didn't really like the Hip because all their songs sound the same to her - like Nickleback.

This accusation is normally made by people whose knowledge of the music is limited to a few well-known singles off their first three albums.

To all this chatter about Bob Rock saving the day, being fresh blood and all ... does anyone actually think the Hip are stuck in a rut? M@W is not IVL, IVL is not IBE ... not by a long shot.

Maybe Bob Rock will produce a great album for them and they'll see fantastic sales, but the reason their sales have flagged is not that they're stuck in anything resembling a rut. Not even a shallow groove ... could anyone here chart the creative course that led from Tiger the Lion through Stay to Summer's Killing Us?

I can see three big reasons their sales have flagged. First, that many people know them from the aforementioned few big singles from their early albums, and write them off as yesterday's sound; second, that they are an established band rather than the new, hip thing; third, that they have refused to keep cranking a formula (despite strange reviews saying they do, based on the fact they still "sing about hockey").

Of those things, only the third has anything to do with the music itself. And the refusal to crank a formula is a good thing.

[sean.bonner]

Lets face it, overall popularity of bands (sales wise) almost always eventually declines. Is Pearl Jam still selling as many records as they did back in the early nineties? This isn't even a current trend... "In Through The Out Door" and "Coda" definetly didn't have as many sales as "II" or "IV".
Fans of the Hip here on Hipbase are not just normal Hip fans. We recognize the awesomeness of songs like 'Toronto #4' and 'One Night In Copenhagen', whereas "normal" fans wouldn't exactly see them as we see them. Do the Hip still kickass? Hells yes. But I just don't believe casual fans would see it that way.

[Ballgame]

Lets face it, overall popularity of bands (sales wise) almost always eventually declines. Is Pearl Jam still selling as many records as they did back in the early nineties? This isn't even a current trend... "In Through The Out Door" and "Coda" definetly didn't have as many sales as "II" or "IV".
Fans of the Hip here on Hipbase are not just normal Hip fans. We recognize the awesomeness of songs like 'Toronto #4' and 'One Night In Copenhagen', whereas "normal" fans wouldn't exactly see them as we see them. Do the Hip still kickass? Hells yes. But I just don't believe casual fans would see it that way.

good post! :thumb: