[mplpost] Reviews blues

[Richard Flohil]

Whoops! I'm gettin' in on this one a tad late.

I always say, rather glibly, that there's no such thing as bad 
publicity, with the possible exception of child molestation charges. 
(There was once a much-loved performer who had totally false charges 
laid against him in this area, and it came close to killing his 
career, killing his spirit, and it probably still affects his daily 
life).  Now poor Brian Gladstone is outed in Germany as a drug 
addict, and I don't think that is gonna help find him a promoter in 
Europe clamouring to bring him over for a tour!
	Bad publicity DOES hurt, and can hurt badly.
	But, to be honest, you can avoid some of it at least by being 
careful who you pitch a story to, or send a review record to.  Tim 
Perlich on NOW Magazine, for example can be particularly vicious, and 
if you think he's gonna hate what you do, make sure at least that YOU 
don't send him a copy of your record as ammunition.  And, fact is, 
lots of us LIKE to read vicious shit, as long as it's not about us! 
(And we all loved to see the biter bit when Tim got publicly 
humiliated in that ad - and you shoulda heard what Steve Earle had to 
say about him when he opened a recent show in Toronto!  Turned the 
air blue it did!)
	As a publicist, I was relieved when I recently pitched Tim a 
story on The Sidemen and he gave it to another writer (who did a very 
sympathetic job).  And there is, of course, a difference between the 
writer doing a piece, and a writer being a reviewer, tho' they're 
often the same person.
	Fact is, when you get someone saying nice stuff, feel good, 
reprint it in your press kit, and move on.  And when they pee on your 
parade, remind yourself that today's paper is tomorrow's fish and 
chip wra, and move on.  And when someone says anything personally 
damaging and inaccurate, sue the f-----s ass!
	When I've been in the critic's role at various times (and 
it's a role we can all adopt these days, briefly, in this 
particularly unregulated medium) I'm always willing to give more than 
a few bonus points for *intention*.  I may comment about the music, I 
may try to be constructive (like most critics, I can't sing, I can't 
play an instrument, and I can't write a song!  Hey, that' s why we 
pick on people who can <g>).
	What I have put the boot in hard for, however, is (a) 
stupidity (did you really think you could get away with spending a 
buck fifty on the cover with that photo taken by your brother in 
law?) and - more importantly (b) (c) and (d), cynical opportunism, 
audience manipulation, and mercenary calculation.
	If those are showing, you deserve whatcha get, and it'll be unpleasant.

Ten cents' worth, folks!

Richard
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