Planting employees in the audience?

Oh, to be clear, I'm not accusing the band of anything. I don't know who's idea it was nor do I care. The part where she waited for applause was just so cheesy and so funny and wrong.

Well I've never seen this but form your descriptions, no matter who's idea it was, I agree, it is cheesy. Bands need promotion but why does a band of BJ's caliber need it such a seemingly fake way?

LOL this was a funny answer ....
I think this show was very much prepared and they put the questions they wanted IN .... the fact it was asked by their publicist is not a big deal though a lot of ppl work for them ...they might have choose someone less exposed more anonimous ....
I'd rather have the record sale question asked better than the brief , boxer or commanda once again ..

anyway at that type of show all the questions are prepared - and plenty are boring for fans ...

I have worked for the french TV for a lil while 20 years ago even a very spontaneus interview in the street is prepared and the replies are selected even redone .. and when it doesn't fit the style of the show it's just WIPED

Because lately the music isn't good enough to ensure big sales, so they need agressive, and sometimes misguiding, marketing about how big they are.
It didn't work with Bounce, but with HAND, slowly but surely they've managed to put into people's minds (the general public) that they're good because they've been there for 20 years and sold 100 millions+.

And the music? Who cares... the sales are up and the tour close to sold out.


Ponrauil

I like what you say even if it's a little bit bitter .... it remains kinda true too ....

I am back from The CAA and your review from the Montreal show was vivid in my mind .... I am not giving up on the guys but I understand your vision ....I enjoyed the 3 shows a lot .. but something is missing I couldn't say what ...

Then again, the average fan wouldn't notice such a thing. You'd have to watch one of the BJTV's to notice it. Even then, it was a european broadcast of the show.

Not really. Its not a new practice, I'd be willing to bet my house that they've being doing this their entire careers and other bands have being doing likewise. They know how the media works, how people respond to it and exploit it. Its called playing the game and virtually every artist does it, always has done it and always will. Otherwise they wouldnt have a record deal.

You seriously trying to tell me that SWW and NJ weren't very aggressively marketed? Even KTF and TD were. Dont be fooled into thinking that they are now using dirty media tricks to replace quality music.............

This is very similar to U2 if you ask me. Sure, they still play good live shows, but I believe Bon Jovi do too. U2's music, of late, has been very much below par. But why do people buy it? Because it's U2.

I think Bon Jovi, like U2, have relied on this sort of "look, we made good music in the 80s and still managed to rock the 90s - so buy our new CD" for sales in everything post- 2000.

They weren't using their status more than their musical talent in the 80's and 90's, because in the 80's only the music could make them break through, and in the 90's they had to prove musically that they were still relevant. Nothing but the music could have made them survive these years.

They were heavily marketed yes, but take a look at the interviews back then, it was all about the songs and their inspirations and meanings, the tour, the fun and the people.

Now it's all about what they have achieved in the past to sell the present, the musical part is commented briefly in two lines and then it's this many albums, that many countries, that many people etc...


It's not dirty, it's lazy. I don't know if it's Jon's choice or the label's, I don't care really, but it's far more commercial than it used to be (which was already too much for my taste).


I wouldn't agree with U2's last couple of albums, but the two before that yes.
I think with the last two they found themselves back (The Joshua, Rattle&Hum and Achtung Baby) in a way I would never have hoped for, so this comment :

I would agree with for Zooropa and Pop. Compared to Bon Jovi they are the equivalent (imo) to Bounce and Hand (transitional albums), though U2 experimented a little further out than BJ did. Now if BJ could just follow the same sort of path back to their own self I'd be the first one to cheer.


Ponrauil