Neil
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Post by Neil on Apr 16, 2017 15:03:57 GMT
I got into Paramore shortly after I joined BA and I hate to say it but they're everything I want from Avril and more. The song quality is more consistent (seriously, all 4 albums are amazing), the lyrics are less simplistic/more relatable and the live performances are more energetic and expressive. Outside of the music itself, they're also a lot better on social media and they're pretty woke which is a big deal to me. I feel comfortable saying this here because I (probably) won't be killed
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
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Post by Neil on Apr 13, 2017 14:55:12 GMT
Look, I ain't gonna mince words. Avril looks like (and pretty much is) a model. You know it. I know it. It's hard to find an unflattering pic of her without really, REALLY going out of your way to do so. We don't listen to an artist's music in a vacuum - lots of factors come into play when appreciating an artist like their name, looks, image, personality, etc. which all come together to help us form opinions about them. IMO, it's only in recent years that an artist (especially female) doesn't have to look like a model to get a big push from the major record companies. So with all that being said, how have Avril's looks factored into your fandom/appreciation of her?I'll be honest, I saw some of her newly released music videos as a 16 year old when TBDT came out and was like "damn, this is the artist that made Complicated?" Obviously her music speaks for itself to a large degree, but I'd be lying if I said her looks didn't draw me in at least a little bit. I can also say that a small but decent chunk of the activity from our BA Discord chat comes from thirst-posting Avril pics *casually looks at sliperslip and T1_Spork* Curious to hear everyone else's thoughts/experiences on this subject. This thread isn't limited to just one gender/sexual orientation's viewpoint by the way so everyone is encouraged to post Ā Edit: Here's one more pic for the road
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
Join Date: Feb 12, 2017 19:22:53 GMT
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Last Online: Apr 9, 2023 13:56:19 GMT
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Post by Neil on Apr 12, 2017 19:16:11 GMT
Cherry MX Keyboard
Avril's laugh or 3 boxes of girl scout cookies?
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Neil
Member
MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
Join Date: Feb 12, 2017 19:22:53 GMT
Posts: 254
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Last Online: Apr 9, 2023 13:56:19 GMT
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Post by Neil on Apr 7, 2017 16:04:39 GMT
rip
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Neil
Member
MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
Join Date: Feb 12, 2017 19:22:53 GMT
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Last Online: Apr 9, 2023 13:56:19 GMT
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Post by Neil on Apr 7, 2017 15:42:57 GMT
Bump up a thread that hasn't been active in 3 months? Sure, why not. + Analytical + I try really hard to not be fake or hypocritical + I do my best to do right by others + Passionate about the things I like (could possibly be seen as a negative ) + I like to learn things about others + Writing skills (sort of) - Cynical/jaded - Unmotivated at times - Alienate myself from others for largely petty reasons - I don't let most people in - Can be an elitist jerk at times - I take hard stances on most social issues which can cause trouble Might add more later. Would like to see some of the newer members do theirs too
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
Join Date: Feb 12, 2017 19:22:53 GMT
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Post by Neil on Apr 7, 2017 8:33:47 GMT
These opinions, though all interesting and insightful, should all be post lined with the fact that they are all alleged and assumption-based. Other than her dismissive initial introduction of WTH, we don't know any of these things for sure! Yep, a lot of this is definitely based on speculation. The basis of my post comes from interviews and stuff I read here
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
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Post by Neil on Apr 7, 2017 4:54:12 GMT
ššš
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Apr 5, 2017 9:11:46 GMT
Devil's advocate: Bringing it back to Goodbye Lullaby, where's the entry point for new fans if WTH/Smile aren't on the radio? I don't think those songs are cheap/meaningless if they help bring in new fans/remind old fans that Avril still exists. Especially if they're like WTH/Smile which are uniquely Avril. HTNGU is a different story because it was the 8 billionth "YOLO/live while we're young" pop song to hit the market that year. Was that issue so important to shoehorn those songs and delay the album almost a year? I'd rather she went with the concept she really wanted and they could've worked from there. The two first singles were the opposite of what the rest of the album was, and that was a stupid thing to do, because when people saw WTH/Smile, they thought it was a "TBDT pt. 2", only watered-down in all aspects; some fans that were on the fence after a disappointing TBDT to them, they didn't even bother to check the rest of album, because WTH was like a final nail in the coffin. I would agree that WTH/Smile were kind of "Avrilish", kind of a continuation from TBDT (MF princess, bratty), but since she was "suggested" to make those songs I don't know if I'd call them "uniquely Avril". I would also agree that HTNGU was generic and unoriginal, but I liked it more than WTH; RnR was also unoriginal and didn't bring anything really new to the table, it looked forced as heck. I don't know about you, but at this point I think Avril and her team should work on doing the things she wants to make musically/artistically, and then plan marketing and promotion strategies around that; doing it the other way around is what happened last two albums/eras and what made them underwhelming to say the least, especially AL that was a mess since the beginning until the end. Hopefully they'll do things better this time around My internet connection is out randomly so I'll try responding to this on my phone and hopefully add more stuff later. I've only become a fan recently so I don't know to what extent the inclusion of the 2 songs delayed GL. To be fair, I don't know what 2 songs would have been put in their place if she never made them but looking at the final track list I don't think the other songs are that radio-friendly or marketable. It kind of sounds cold and corporate of me to say it like that but I think Avril wants her albums to sell well and for her music to be heard by as many people as possible too. Again, I'd need to know more about the production process to know if including them outweighed any potential delays . I say they're uniquely Avril because I can't imagine anyone else singing those songs. Like I said earlier in the thread, I heard those 2 songs for the first time a few months ago and was like "yep, this is Avril all right." I also don't think that those songs being "forced" on her takes away their authenticity as being real Avril songs. She looked at what the label asked for and made her own songs under those specifications. The only way I would have a problem with this is if the whole album was made under this type of restriction but that doesn't seem to be the case. And I agree, RnR is...yeah... Edit: I should also add that I'm mostly talking about/defending Smile. Even though I like the song I don't have a strong opinion on WTH - just lumping it in with Smile because they're both forced songs
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
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Post by Neil on Apr 5, 2017 6:59:51 GMT
Devil's advocate: Bringing it back to Goodbye Lullaby, where's the entry point for new fans if WTH/Smile aren't on the radio? I don't think those songs are cheap/meaningless if they help bring in new fans/remind old fans that Avril still exists. Especially if they're like WTH/Smile which are uniquely Avril. HTNGU is a different story because it was the 8 billionth "YOLO/live while we're young" pop song to hit the market that year. I love HTNGU better than WTH/Smile because it has a kind of acoustic vibe I like and that is what I miss from GL's single sogs Yeah I kinda like the song - was just saying it's not the most original idea
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
Join Date: Feb 12, 2017 19:22:53 GMT
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Post by Neil on Apr 5, 2017 5:55:51 GMT
Started playing this š @blackstarghost
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
Join Date: Feb 12, 2017 19:22:53 GMT
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Post by Neil on Apr 5, 2017 3:04:00 GMT
Devil's advocate: Bringing it back to Goodbye Lullaby, where's the entry point for new fans if WTH/Smile aren't on the radio? I don't think those songs are cheap/meaningless if they help bring in new fans/remind old fans that Avril still exists. Especially if they're like WTH/Smile which are uniquely Avril. HTNGU is a different story because it was the 8 billionth "YOLO/live while we're young" pop song to hit the market that year.
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
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Post by Neil on Apr 4, 2017 16:36:42 GMT
You should have made this thread instead of me slip
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
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Post by Neil on Apr 4, 2017 13:28:22 GMT
Neil found it! Thank you to that someone out there who saved this in a web archive, because Avril's peps did not From Avril Hey Everyone! Howās it going?? Soā¦ I just wanted to fill you guys inā¦Iām done with my 4th record!!! Well, actually I have been done for a yearā¦ and now my record company have finally decided to release it. OMG..How nice! Thanks guys. I have been dying to get back out on the road and do what I love the mostā¦ PLAY MUSIC. I know you guys have been waiting for a long timeā¦..and so have I, but not by choice. I have been sitting with this record for a year now. Itās really special to me. I have produced a couple tracks alone for the first time, written solo, with friends, I have pushed myself and I feel proud. In saying all that, this has been a really difficult record for me to create and to release. Not only is this the most meaningful and special record I have written, it is sincere, honest and close to my heart. But for the first time I experienced a bunch of bureaucratic BS. People do their best work when they are doing what they want, love and is natural for them, not when you are forcing them to be something that they are not. From the beginning of my career my message has always been to be yourself and stand up for what you believe in. Follow your heart. My first single off this record is called: āWhat The Hellā. This song is the least personal song to me off this album. Itās a fun and funny anthem. It has a broad message about personal freedom. It is the most pop track on the record. I am shooting the video in 2 weeks and it will be out in January. I have been extremely busy designing Abbey Dawn and taking the line internationally for the first time, establishing āThe Avril Lavigne Foundationā and focusing on my personal happiness and health. Balance! Love you guys! xo Avril This made me laugh. "Here's my first single. It's not that personal to me but whatevs."
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Neil
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MOTM April '17
If I survive I'll dive back in
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Post by Neil on Apr 4, 2017 12:30:04 GMT
Interesting comments so far. It really shows how much of a casual music fan I am compared to you guys lol. I'm the annoying guy who listens to songs individually rather than weighing the album composition. Maybe that'll change with AL6 since it'll be the first new Avril album I go into as a fan . I already heard WTH and Smile before listening to the rest of GL and by then I already really liked them so that might factor in to my willingness to overlook the tonal shift those two songs bring to the album. Who knows though - it could just be me being a filthy casual
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Neil
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Post by Neil on Apr 4, 2017 3:05:08 GMT
This topic has been on my mind recently. With all the talk of AL6 and Avril's new record label, I've heard a lot of people say that they hope Avril won't receive interference from her label this time. I've admitted in other threads that I'm not the most knowledgeable Avril fan out there, so I was hoping we could all dig deeper into this subject to give me a better idea of what this means. My favorite Avril album is Goodbye Lullaby, but I often hear criticism that it had too much label interference, resulting in "pop" songs like What The Hell and Smile. This confuses me for a few reasons. First of all, I consider Avril to primarily be a pop artist with a dash of rock flavor mixed in in general, so the inclusion of those kinds of pop songs isn't weird to me. Before I became a real Avril fan a few months ago, Smile was one of the first post-TBDT Avril songs I heard and my immediate thought was that it's the most Avril song ever. Second of all, I think WTH and Smile are really good, so I don't see the problem. I'm not the kind of person who listens to albums from start to finish in one session though, so maybe that's another reason why I don't mind their inclusion. I also get the sense that Avril really likes those songs too based on interviews and her live performances of them. My last few points have more to do with the label interference topic though. I guess I'm wondering why songs like WTH and Smile are singled out when, in my limited knowledge of Avril's music production process, it seems like most or all of her most popular songs received some level of interference. Some cynics that I've seen online go as far as to claim that Let Go was partially manufactured by the record company to be an "anti-Britney Spears" album. Here are the top 5 most popular Avril songs on Spotify: I think it's fair to say that all of these are the result of outside interference (not completely sure about Girlfriend), which leads me to ask this question: if the songs are good, does interference matter?Ā My last two points are linked together. When I became an Avril fan, I obsessively watched all of her interviews on YouTube, and noticed that she said that her self-titled album had less interference than before, and consequently has fewer radio hits. To be fair, I don't think AL is as bad as some people say, but I think it's fair to say that the album disappointed most people. I also get the sense that Hello Kitty was her pet project, and as much as I defend the song (and I will make sure it beats every other AL song in the Song Survivor event ) it has a lot of issues. This leads to my final point: many creative types thrive on limitations imposed by higher-ups, especially in collaborative media like movies and music. Is it possible that Avril needs general direction/guidance to channel her talent properly? Don't get me wrong, Sony screwed her pretty hard in other areas (like promotion, music distribution and corny forced product placement in her music videos) but how much of the blame do they deserve for AL's questionable quality? Ā This thread is all over the place and I'll hopefully edit it later to make it all flow better when I'm feeling better, but... TLDR: How much does label interference matter regarding Avril's music? Do you care if a song is forced if it still sounds good? Does Avril possibly benefit from interference?
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