Bless me father for I have sinned

...It's been over eight months since my last confession, when I said:

I don't give a ratfucking piss about the Rolling Stones. And I'm going to go that one further: Nobody gives a ratfucking piss about the Rolling Stones. Except boomers desperate to cling to the illusion that the bands they liked when they were in college, and therefore themselves, are still relevant.

That was written when there was this bullshit tempest in a teapot about the "jab" the Stones were taking at the Bush administration on their new album...and the blogs were all atwitter and CNN was all abuzz.

I said:

It's a publicity stunt, you idiots. It's another Rolling Stones album that you won't be able to name one song off of by the time their next album comes out.

Just checking in: I imagine one or two of you may have bought that album. From memory, can you name me one song off it? Ah-hah.

Now we come to Neil Young. Look, I got no quarrel with Neil Young. By and large it's not my type of music-although I have enjoyed some of his songs more when covered by other artists, like Saint Etienne's "Only Love Can Break Your Heart". I like some of the CSNY material, including the underrated "American Dream" single. And I admire the attitude behind Trans (more than I admire the actual music).

So this isn't about him being anything other than a gifted songwriter and for all I know a swell guy. But recent history is repeating. He's got a new album coming out that expresses a bit of picque at Washington, and once again, the world press is beside itself.

They're quite dizzy with anticipation, because they believe Neil Young is The Great Truth-Teller Who Will Set Everything Right With His Urgent, Burning Guitar Lines And Scathing Lyrics.

I believe there will be a burble of interest among people who already believe themselves to be fierce, commited critics of the Bush administration and think the best way to express that is with the drug of their choice and a little rock n' roll.

Real life will resume the next day, and this lyric will still suck. Perhaps you remember a few weeks ago, when I said,

I don't like 98% or so of all political songs, on a purely asthetic basis. For me, they sacrifice emotion for stridency.

in reference to Pink's "Dear Mr. President," which I was citing as an exception that tests the rule. But Young's "Let's Impeach the President" reads like a National Lampoon parody of the kinds of songs I was talking about.

But even if it didn't, to pretend that this is a meaningful event on any sociopolitcal or artistic level is just the wishful thinking of a lot of boomers who had their chance to make the world a better place, and decided to vote for Reagan, and blindly support the "war on terror," instead.

Now, they look back on a time when gosh darn it, they were half a million strong.