Most of the acts that University Union brings to campus fall into one of two categories: hip-hop or indie rock. I could sit here and bash both genres, but to do so would be meaningless and immature. And based on the campus’ overall music tastes, it would also be wrong.

As a part of a largely marginalized group and as fan of what people usually call ‘heavy music,’ I have to put in a request on behalf of my headbangin’ brethren before I graduate.

University Union: Please bring a rock act to campus soon. And not Nickelback or 3 Doors Down.

I am generally made to feel ashamed for liking the heavier stuff. Make your Slayer and Judas Priest jokes. Say the genre was responsible for the Columbine shootings. Point to people like Bret Michaels and the guy from the new season of ‘Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew’ who said he is in Alice in Chains but really isn’t anymore as reasons why heavy metal is lame, or dangerous, or past its prime, or a combination of the three.

I will concede that the genre has picked up some characteristics along the way that are bringing the music to a place it shouldn’t be – the ironically hip band names, the apparent need for a ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ tattoo, the notion that liking a band that everyone likes is wrong.

I realize that the bands people tag as pentagram-drawing-goat-sacrificing-Satanic-Bible-reading-pseudo-demons are not going to make the cut. There is, however, that one pocket of rock music that everyone seems to like – the type that is sometimes on the radio but does not need it to be successful.

I am talking about bands in the vein of Foo Fighters, Incubus and 311 – what I would like to call the ‘Will Smiths’ of the rock cosmos (I haven’t heard anyone say they don’t like Will Smith). If these acts are too expensive, there are plenty of smaller, more niche artists who will likely draw a sizeable crowd.

But let’s take a look back at the Block Party lineups since I was a freshman in 2007 to see how UU has done. Disclaimer: I have never been to Block Party.

2007: TV on the Radio, Lupe Fiasco, Ciara

2008: Sean Kingston, Fergie

2009: Guster, Ben Folds

TV on the Radio is now one of the most popular alternative acts in the country on the heels of 2006’s ‘Return to Cookie Mountain’ and 2008’s ‘Dear Science.’ Though Lupe Fiasco has been out of the spotlight for some time, 2006’s ‘Food & Liquor’ and 2007’s ‘The Cool’ were two of the most refreshing albums hip-hop has seen in years. Fergie continues to sell big, both on her own and with the Black-Eyed Peas. Guster and Ben Folds (Five) are quintessential ‘college bands.’ In other words, UU hasn’t been doing as poorly as some students say they have.

UU always puts in months of effort that most students on campus will never see. So to blindly bash UU for its choices is wrong; I don’t know what goes into bringing something like Block Party to fruition, and I know UU isn’t looking to put on a bad show.

But we’re at a time when popular bands from the early 1990s are making a comeback.

Rage Against the Machine got back together just in time for 2007’s ‘Rock the Bells’ festival and is rumored to be recording very soon. Stone Temple Pilots re-formed two years ago for a string of tours and is currently in the studio. Chris Cornell is shedding his former dance-rock self to reform Soundgarden – one of the forerunners of the grunge movement along with bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

So as the campus awaits the announcement for Block Party 2010, I again ask UU to consider bringing a more rock-oriented artist in the future.

Bill McMillan is a senior English & textual studies and magazine journalism major. He is stepping in for Flash Steinbeiser, who is currently attempting to catch a Mewtwo without his Game Boy freezing. Bill can be reached at wfmcmill@syr.edu.

Published on February 14, 2010 at 12:00 pm