toomanyhatz wrote:I get the 'grotesquely' part, but where's the appeal? There's a long line of that kind of provocateur. Jim Morrison was reviled for showing his dick when he probably didn't, this guy's celebrated for it when he made sure everyone knew he did. So does he have a "Blue Sunday" in his repertoire?
Any appeal or lack of it can be found only in our subjective reactions. But I can tell you why I find it interesting. First, he's really sharp about pulling together musical and cultural cliches. So we have here sort of a Brokeback Mountain sensitive cowboy backdrop in power ballad style, against a throbbing EDM beat, punctuated by A screaming cowboy in the sky (Jimmy Barnes of Cold Chisel) and tired American symbols like the crosses and white churches. Little sonic touches like the cheap echo on "big enough" climaxing in the meaningful moment of silence, then off to a rousing close by namechecking every friggin country on earth in a "We Are The World" global anthem. It's like an alien trying to make a video that's a sure-fire hit based on market research, and getting it horribly wrong.
He's an attention whore, no doubt about it, but he's working at a pretty high level of awareness, IMO. I would never compare him to Jim Morrison, but the thing is, I can't think of anyone doing what he's doing. Anybody that can shake things up and roll it out so cannily gets my attention.
Then again, it may be worthless, tasteless kitsch! I don't find it boring, and maybe that's enough for me.