Post-Imperial Review

Over the course of modern music history, artists and bands with any sort of longevity will inevitably have a popularity peak. Sometimes that spans a single album, sometimes a few albums, sometimes a specific decade of output (see also "Forgotten Legacies"). These imperial periods are great - there are hit songs, amazing albums, mind-blowing concerts. Perhaps during those periods of time, those of us who had been with a band from the beginning, or before they made it big, it can be a sense of validation ("See? Told you they were great!") and it can give us a sense of pride that we were in on something before it went mainstream.

But then the imperial period is over. The band puts out a new single and tons of those people who hopped on during the imperial period decide the new single is "bad." "Oh, this doesn't sound anything like that song that was so popular on the radio so I don't like it." "Oh, the influencers didn't talk about this so it must not be worth my time." Whatever the reason, who are often left after the post-imperial period? Those diehards who were there all along. Sadly, sometimes even some of those diehards will write off entire sections of a band's catalog.

Of course you're aware. I see all kinds of things volleyed about in regards to post-imperial output. "It's bad." "It doesn't sound anything like (imperial era record of listener's choice) so I didn't listen to it." "It doesn't have any hooks" (are you a fish? I'm not...).

One of my favorites is "Yes, (band) put out (record) but (record) sounds nothing like (band), so I don't even consider it as part of their repertoire." It's as though a band, once they put out a popular record, is never allowed to grow, never allowed to experiment, never allowed to have any sort of future self-reflection or self-expression. (Band) must capture that Imperial Era sound repeatedly and it must not change, lest we fetch our pitchforks and torches and riot!

Look, I'm not suggesting that post-imperial output is on the same level as imperial level output. It can be more or less or equally enjoyable given a fair chance, but having it dismissed right off the bat is akin to saying "I've had pizza before and I liked it a lot but there's no point having any more pizza." We still have to eat, and you might as well try that new pizza from that pizza restaurant you really liked!

I'm not even suggesting that you are REQUIRED WITH NO EXCEPTIONS to like every song a band puts out. My love of Depeche Mode and The Cure are well known (if it wasn't known to you yet, I love Depeche Mode and I love The Cure) and yet, there are plenty of songs from both that I just do not like (spoiler alert, many of the songs I do not like from each are *gasp* IN THEIR IMPERIAL PERIODS! Disintegration and Violator are NOT infallible!).

So maybe don't just immediately write off something just because it's not a carbon copy of a prior output. Humans grow, change, learn, experience, win, lose, and shift. Mindsets are not static. Tastes are not static. Influences are not static.

In Post-Imperial Review, we're going to do some deep dives into post-imperial songs from bands who had some kind of an imperial period. We'll break these down into four categories - and note, some bands can be in more than one category.

These bands never stopped what they were doing. Often, the imperial period of Continuation bands starts with their first album, maybe carries through the second or third record, but gradually dropping off over time. The band's sound doesn't necessarily change drastically, but for whatever reason, critical acclaim slows down and the public view turns elsewhere. Examples include Interpol, Pearl Jam, The Church, and Motörhead.

Many bands lose fans from reinvention. They put out an album that garners massive attention, then experiment on the follow up, losing out on all that built up goodwill. The foundation of the band is still there, but something causes people to jump off the bandwagon at some point in time. Examples include David Bowie and Radiohead.

Look, world we live in is far from perfect. People who work well together sometimes grow to hate one another. Trials and tragedies can spring upon us at any given moment. Coupled with the fact that some musicians engage in behaviors that invite these breakups and trials and tragedies over for dinner, it is no wonder that some big time bands have suffered through events that completely kill off a creative entity. But sometimes, those bands power through the struggle and come out of the other side as something new. Examples include Depeche Mode and R.E.M.

While humans have not learned how to reverse a biological death (nor will they), the same cannot be said for bands and musicians. Similar to the Survival category, there are often tragic events that cause these acts to go dormant. Sometimes it’s simply a lack of output, or legal issues caused by record label lawyers who apparently hate music. But unlike survivors who kept pushing through, these acts stopped their output for a period of time before returning years or even decades later with new material. Examples include Tears for Fears, New Order, The Cure, Alice In Chains.

Periodically, ideally a couple of times per month (but no promises), there will be a new "episode" of Post-Imperial Review. In each episode, we will look at a band and dive into one of their Imperial Period tracks, then we'll do the same with a post-imperial song. The goal is to show that there's still plenty of quality left in post-imperial output.

Why do I feel so strongly about this? As I have mentioned before, I like to make music for the castoffs, people who get squeezed out and voices that go unheard because of the louder voices that fill up most of the space. Often times those people - me included - prefer post-imperial output to the imperial era songs for the masses. My goal is not to make you like the post-imperial tracks more than the tracks you love, it's just to give the lesser known songs their due.

And yes, I promise you'll get to read about Depeche Mode and The Cure in Post-Imperial Review.

Stay tuned for Episode 1 coming soon.