Not Awesome.
I am not a film critic. That simple fact is one of two reasons I will not be reviewing Anywhere, U.S.A. a movie now out on DVD. (The other reason is that, having viewed this locally-produced film featuring local talent, I can’t come up with a single positive thing to say about it. And I have to live in this town.)
Anyway, I’m not a film critic. But I know enough about how the industry works to understand that when I learn that a new film has not been made available to critics for pre-screening, there’s often a simple reason: it sucks. That’s just how things work.
Now, on a wholly different subject (wink, wink), Green Day has a new album. Brattily titled Awesome as F**k, this live album is to be issued in multiple formats, including vinyl. Cool, right? Yeah, I thought so too. So, when I got a press release trumpeting this upcoming album, I asked to be added to the list for promo copies.
Eventually I heard back that physical copies wouldn’t be available to reviewers. While disappointing, that’s an increasingly-common fact of life in 2011. So, would a download be available to critics? Nope, I was told. Only a stream. So I could log into a private page and listen to the whole album in lo-fi. Right?
Wrong again. In their infinite wisdom, Green Day has deigned to make but five of the album’s seventeen tracks available for review. “But I hope you can still review it,” the publicist told me. (It’s important to point out that said publicist had to work with what he was given; it certainly wasn’t his idea to provide a mere glimpse of this album he’s trying to promote.)
Well, I won’t be reviewing Awesome as F**k here. Expecting a review based on hearing less than one-third of the album is unreasonable. It’s akin to asking an art critic for her thoughts on a painting, but only letting her see the bottom half of the artwork. Or asking a film critic to weigh in on a film’s merits after viewing only the second reel.
When a new film is not made available to critics ahead of its release, quite often it’s because the studio knows it’ll get savaged; they hope that the advertising campaign will get enough asses in seats on opening night to recoup their investment. That way they can cash in before word-of-mouth gets around that, well, this movie ain’t too good. Just sayin’.
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About the Author
Bill Kopp
With a background in marketing and advertising, Bill Kopp got his professional start writing for Trouser Press. After a stint as Editor-in-chief for a national music magazine, Bill launched Musoscribe in 2009, and has published new content every business day since then (and every single day since 2018). The 4500-plus interviews, essays, and reviews on Musoscribe reflect Bill's keen interest in American musical forms, most notably rock, jazz, and soul. His work features a special emphasis on reissues and vinyl. Bill's work also appears in many other outlets both online and in print. He regularly hosts lecture/discussions on artists and albums of historical importance (including monthly events Music to Your Ears and Music Movie Mondays), and is a frequent guest on music-focused radio programs and podcasts. In Spring 2023 he taught a history of Rock 'n' Roll at UNC Asheville's College for Seniors. He also researches and authors liner notes for album reissues -- more than 30 to date -- and co-produced a reissue of jazz legend Julian "Cannonball" Adderley's final album. His first book, Reinventing Pink Floyd: From Syd Barrett to The Dark Side of the Moon was published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2018, and in paperback in 2019. His second book, Disturbing the Peace: 415 Records and the Rise of New Wave, was published in 2021 by HoZac Books. His third book, What's the Big Idea: Great Concept Albums will be published in 2024. Read even more about him here.