The past is always close behind, to paraphrase Bob Dylan, and never more so than from this remarkable picture of Debbie Harry and Iggy Pop. No, wait a moment! An incredible simulation off the equal parts dreaded and loathed “CBGB’s: The Movie”.
Is it too early to say I hate CBGB’s The Movie? I think not and indeed I am happy and proud to begin the I hate the damn show movement without prevarication and doubt because. Well, lett’s start at the top here…
Malin Akerman? I LOVED her in “Watchmen”, actually I loved everybody in “Watchmen” . The young Swede is a good actress and attractive enough by normal standards, but by Debbie stardards? I just don’t see it folks, sorry.
As for Taylor Hawkins as Iggy Pop… he has a funky druggy looks down, but Taylor is a Cali boy, he is all laid back dumbness and he looks it. He looks like a sweet simple soul and that’s alright but not for Iggy Pop, the Detroit Wildman of rock who stuck on eyeliner and a codpiece only so he could sing louder.
Of course, the past is also far and close at the same time and the 1970s were ultimately a very cynical age. However CBGB’s play it they are honor bound to suck big time. For one thing, we all have our own memories of those years, and for another it was a difficult era in which to maintain your balance between rampant ego, rampant rampants and hardcore post-rock blathering.
Somebody should do a Lester Bangs movie, it would be a lot more fun than CBGBs. The problem with CBGBs is the huge chasm between what it thinks it was and what it was. It thinks it was a serious artistic assault on rock and roll but if that is true it is true as a musical minimalistic rock and roll adhesive tape, picking up everything but not leaving a trace behind.
So to recap:
1. American punk is to English punk what American football is to chess.
2. CBGB’s is too serious to be funny and vice versa.
3. I’ve met Debbie Harry and you Malin Akerman are no Debbie Harry.