DahlE’s Secret Shame
Published: September 23, 2009
You’d think that simply watching Gossip Girl would be guilty pleasure enough, right? Well, you know me--I’m not easily shamed by all the crappy TV-for-teens that I watch, or, sadly, by all the young adult books I read. In fact, the one thing I’ve been sure of since my best friend introduced me to Rage Against the Machine at 12 was that music would be the one area in my life where I wasn’t a perpetual teeny bopper.
And then it happened. No, I don’t mean the guilty pleasure of having some Britney or Black-Eyed Peas on my iPod--after all, it’s for [my biannual trip to] the gym! I mean this:
They’re called The Pretty Reckless. And the lead singer is Taylor Momsen. (Those of you who share my trashy taste in TV might recognize her as the actress who plays GG’s Jenny Humphrey, aka Little J.) And I love them.
It’s pathetic, really. From the hair to the makeup to the kinderwhore wardrobe, the girl wants nothing more than to actually be a teenage Courtney Love, an aspiration which should automatically get someone branded as clinically insane. But here’s the thing--in her heyday, Courtney Love was actually pretty damn enjoyable to listen to. No matter how much I hate her, and no matter how many drunken, illegible tweets the woman creates per hour, she will always have been the woman behind Live Through This, one of my favorite albums of all time. And though Momsen lacks just about every single thing that gave Courtney credibility as an artist, I can’t help but feel like the Pretty Reckless’s playlist (CD is due out sometime this fall on Interscope, supposedly) fills a musical void that’s been leftover since, well, Hole. Momsen may not have grown up with the same pain, but she sure as hell sings like she does, and as much as I try to get into bands where the women have a little more street cred, it seems I’m just not destined to be the president of the Bikini Kill fan club.
The sad truth? This is the first album I’ve anxiously awaited in a while.
Below, links to videos I’ve nipped from YouTube of the bands performances, although I can’t find a decent performance of the song I assume will be their first single, “Blender.”
Enjoy at your own risk.
There can be only one Courtney Love… that said, these snippets seem to indicate that TM and company are actually pretty good. I’d be interested to hear the album.
Did I just say that?
DahlE, I loved Courtney Love in her heyday. No embarrassment!!!
I know–feels weird, right? You can hear a less just-swallowed-a-whole-pack-of-cigarettes version of Zombie as well as another song, I think called “He Loves You,” on http://www.theprettyreckless.com.
@Mama Penguino: My love for Courtney is endless, even if she is a shell of her former glorious self, nowadays.
@Newt: Testify, Newt. I loved her when her face was a little harsh and her body was nice and curvy. When will people learn that it’s their minor defects rather than their perfections that make them attractive?
There were two Hole albums that I liked; one was written by Kurt Cobain and the other by Billy Corgan. I also wore a lot of flannel shirts and ripped jeans in the 90’s – go figure.
Regarding your Gossip Girl fixation, I’m right there with you! I’m a consultant – which means riding in the front of the plane most of the time – and I always get weird looks from fellow traveling businesspersons when everyone else fires up their laptops to start crunching numbers and I order a G&T and watch GG. I can actually see people’s necks craning to watch too; I think they’re secretly jealous that I’m the only one who’s not embarrassed to watch a teen drama in public.
Just wait ’til I get my Ugly Betty DVDs from Amazon!
@Heneage: I just fell a little more in love with you. This is getting dangerous. I shudder to think what will happen when you hopefully cover your Glee party tomorrow…?