You're smoking something, What is it? Options

[Arizona_Skies]

Everclear without Art Alexakis
Pumpkins without Billy Corgan
Bush without Gavin Rossdale
3EB without Stephan Jenkins
Nirvana without Kurt

But, don't worry... LIVE has a new singer.

This is a joke right? Complete with a Karaoke singer, how about that?

Peace

[themaestro]

Everclear without Art Alexakis
Pumpkins without Billy Corgan
Bush without Gavin Rossdale
3EB without Stephan Jenkins
Nirvana without Kurt

But, don't worry... LIVE has a new singer.

This is a joke right? Complete with a Karaoke singer, how about that?

Peace

Obviously you have no idea what it means to be "Straight Outta York". I suggest you go back into Live's history to learn what inspired them, what they stood for, the subject matter they tackled, their idealism. If you're still hung up on who's singing, or what the singer sounds like, then you don't understand what this band was all about before someone took over and changed their direction. To anyone that does understand, they'll give it a chance to see if it captures the essence of what they once were. To you, you can still have 3EB. I think they are still making shitty pop music. Or you just substitute whatever shitty ass flavor of the month rock band you'd like if they aren't. How about that?

Peace.

[FishOutaWater]

I think that once again, we all need to be thinking realistically about the commercial success of new Live. As much as I would like to see live become successful again, I don't believe that Live will become a commercial success again, especially without Ed, who was the bald, eccentric, identifiable spiritual front man of the band. Nobody besides people who belong to the fan club and message board could name the guitarist, bassist or drummer of Live.

On the other hand, I totally get the Straight Outa York thing and the Spirit of Live vibe and I fully support it living on and evolving forward without Ed if he does not want to join the other three members of Live in a mutually agreeable way. More than any other band, I see Live as representing something bigger than the 4 members of the band. That's why most of us are here.

So there are two ways of looking at new Live. And I think that ultimately, new Live will be for the second way of looking at it. It will be for the small group of hard core fans who come to the clubs and buy the records. But I don't think that it will be widely successful in the commercial sense. It is way too hard to make money in the music industry these days unless you are on the Voice or American Idol. And it is even harder for a 90's band to come back from the dead.

And eventually, I fear that it will draw to a close under the weight of its financial infeasibility, just as I suppose the pressure took its toll on TGF. Whenever I saw TGF perform in a small venue with 100 to 200 people in atendance, with a tour bus and Matt Gracey doing sound check and Bill running around doing tour manager stuff, and a crew setting up lights and sound, I thought to myself - these are seasoned professionals and perfectionists that are used to performing a show in a certain way. They aren't going to put on a show with half-assed sound and stage. And it is that level of overhead that they demanded which ultimately was the undoing of the band from a financial perspective. Maybe the same happens with Live. I am guessing it will. But I hope not.

[PillarOfDavidson]

And eventually, I fear that it will draw to a close under the weight of its financial infeasibility, just as I suppose the pressure took its toll on TGF. Whenever I saw TGF perform in a small venue with 100 to 200 people in atendance, with a tour bus and Matt Gracey doing sound check and Bill running around doing tour manager stuff, and a crew setting up lights and sound, I thought to myself - these are seasoned professionals and perfectionists that are used to performing a show in a certain way. They aren't going to put on a show with half-assed sound and stage. And it is that level of overhead that they demanded which ultimately was the undoing of the band from a financial perspective. Maybe the same happens with Live. I am guessing it will. But I hope not.

TGF were an unknown commodity even considering the band member's previous successes. I'm thinking it may have been bit overly ambitious to tour in a bus. I know they're accustomed to that level of comfort, but perhaps they should have considered going at it from a truly garage-band mentality. Toughed it out in a van or something that requires less upkeep than a tour bus. Maybe staying in cheaper hotels/motels would also have helped?

But I think Live will have the advantage of name recognition that TGF didn't have. They may not sell many albums, but I'm sure they'll play to fairly-sized crowds closer to the level of tour bus than tour van.

[Aitkens]

TGF were an unknown commodity even considering the band member's previous successes. I'm thinking it may have been bit overly ambitious to tour in a bus. I know they're accustomed to that level of comfort, but perhaps they should have considered going at it from a truly garage-band mentality. Toughed it out in a van or something that requires less upkeep than a tour bus. Maybe staying in cheaper hotels/motels would also have helped?

But I think Live will have the advantage of name recognition that TGF didn't have. They may not sell many albums, but I'm sure they'll play to fairly-sized crowds closer to the level of tour bus than tour van.

I don't fault them for having the bus. They at least deserved that. However, they weren't staying in expensive hotels at all. They stayed at RV campgrounds, which are very cheap. At the Ephrata show, I spent a good hour talking to their bus driver. He's driven for them since the TC days, and said that under the Ed years towards the end, Ed had his own bus, and would insist that they stayed at expensive hotels, because he just couldn't be caught dead in a cheap place.

[PillarOfDavidson]

I don't fault them for having the bus. They at least deserved that. However, they weren't staying in expensive hotels at all. They stayed at RV campgrounds, which are very cheap. At the Ephrata show, I spent a good hour talking to their bus driver. He's driven for them since the TC days, and said that under the Ed years towards the end, Ed had his own bus, and would insist that they stayed at expensive hotels, because he just couldn't be caught dead in a cheap place.

I wouldn't either. I'd want to travel in a bus too if I could. And staying at RV campgrounds sounds more fun. Plus, there's just something seemingly icky about staying in a Motel 6... like I'm sleeping on other people's sex juices or something.

Ed insisting on staying at expensive hotels just seems par for the course.