The Irritating Lack of Opinion that comes with a B+

Rolling Stone magazine, regarded as the pop culture benchmark for the music industry this side of the Atlantic features album reviews of freshly released music every two weeks in their magazines' issues. Most people will probably only recognize half of the artists that the Rolling Stone covers because, to their credit, they do expose a lot of unknown acts to the spotlight by reviewing their work. A favorable review will do wonders for a band that had previously only seen their exposure go up via their myspace page.

However, in the last month, three albums have been released that I have been waiting for with varying degrees of anticipation. The Black Keys' Attack & Release, Gnarls Barkley's The Odd Couple and The Raconteurs' Counsolers of the Lonely.
Each of these albums received a 3 1/2 star rating from Rolling Stone. Generally speaking, a 3 1/2 star rating is considered 'good' out of the possible 5 stars that there are to earn. However, each of these albums represents a progression in each bands' musical evolution, and I fear that Rolling Stone is incapable of offering a true perspective on these albums' worth when comparing next to the latest remix album from Taylor Hicks.
So, rather than alienate their indie/alternative/underground audience (such as it is) by either lambasting or lauding the albums, they assign an inoffensive rating, certain to disappoint as many as it impresses. In an election year, it seems a great example of political expediency.
I try not give too much credit to Rolling Stone, for as much as it claims to ascribe to its origins during the rebellious age of hippy-dom, the fact of the matter is that it has become such a big and influential part American culture that true artists and musicians would be wise to shun its influence and refuse any allegiance. A crucial part of the rock 'n roll recipe has always been the destruction of the empire that preceded it.

T.