A Decade of Degeneration: An AFI Retrospective
The band’s decade-long history is actually closer to sixteen years, but it was with the 1997 release, Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes, and in particular the album’s single “Third Season,” which A Fire Inside’s sound began straying from that of typical punk. It may be suggested that it was with this album that the band began too straying from what many consider historical punk ethos, but as time wore on the band’s sound and message changed further, developing both spirit and theme far from what can be perceived as its original motives. As history has shown, however, the band is far from the first to have changed artistic paths.
Last month alone saw the likes of former pop-ska queen Gwen Stefani fall into some sort of yodel-core pitfall as her turn further towards MTV culture failed to garner any solid attention outside of the fickle TRL crowd. It’s at times like these when age old questions begin coming to mind: does the music suffer because of the musician’s search for popularity and fame, does the music simply cater to the modern attentions of the band, or does the relationship between bad music and success simply have no correlation? Some may believe that AFI have betrayed their fans and more importantly their music with its most recent shift towards a fashionably emo pretense. But instead of making a traditional assertion that the band’s music has come as simply an artistic progression rather than a blatant shift towards a commercial sound I suggest the opposite. With Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes and each subsequent release AFI have alienated a fraction of its fan base in exchange for broader coverage and increased commercial success suggesting that its priorities do not lay with its fans.
Despite moving from Wingnut to Nitro Records with the group’s second official release the band attempted to keep its music exciting and youthful, and despite doing so there were those who called the music was stale and suggested that the band had already sold out. Seemingly unaffected, the group moved on playing its form of punk while addressing its critics as unwavering purists. The band’s form of punk eventually evolved into Shut Your Mouth, AFI’s third official release, and with it both critical acclaim and deflation became enhanced.
Each subsequent album attracted detractors decrying the band for hastily changing its sound and image. Through the three years following Shut Your Mouth AFI released an album and three EPs, all of which, while discouraging to many fans, attracted an increasing following heading into its breakthrough 2000 release, The Art of Drowning.
From a musical standpoint the album was nothing like the band had ever released, and its release was greeted with the band’s greatest commercial success to that point. The album gave the band its highest chart position, 174 on the Billboard 200, as the band’s following also reached an all-time high. Fan sites became flooded with pictures of tattoos, depicting logos, artwork and other pictures all coming as tributes to the now widely popular band. But as the group leaned towards its gothic themes its East Bay hardcore fans completely disowned them and the one-time punk band now faced a crossroads. Its future success would be based on the availability of its label to market and distribute any further albums and after extensive touring the band decided that it would be best suited if the band left Nitro in favor of mainstream label Dreamworks, at the time a subsidiary of Universal.
It was with the band’s 2003 release Sing the Sorrow which mainstream radio and media took notice, but unfortunately this came at the cost of a softened sound. Though a solid album it became apparent that through Sorrow’s promotion that the band was shifting as part of a trend, one which utilized a decreased level of the band’s hardcore roots while taking on a more fashionable, accessible exterior.
With the band’s latest release, Decemberunderground, reaching the peak position on the Billboard 200 it was no surprise that the album received a negative response from many fans. The band’s video for its lead single “Miss Murder” was premiered not simply on MTV, but on its after-school countdown Total Request Live.
Many who had championed the band as one which respected itself with its once-empowering lyrical content now stopped doing so. Those who had submitted their bodies to the toils of body art tributes now found themselves questioning their decisions. Those who had once criticized the band for (lead singer) Davey Havok’s devillock now craved nothing more. And the band who was once one of the greatest underground successes of the new millennium had completed what can only be considered its ultimate goal, indisputable commercial success. It was over.
AFI recently made a few covers available, one through AOL’s Sessions and the other through a performance during MTV’s New Years program. After listening to them it’s fairly safe to say that there is a relationship in this situation between bad music and success. It would seem that the music has suffered due to the musicians’ search for popularity. The music may or may not cater to the current attentions of the band, but it most assuredly caters to the attentions of those with expendable incomes, to those who shop trends, to those who make music expendable. But none of that matters, nor do cliché suggestions implying that the band has sold out. Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes was good music. Black Sails in the Sunset was good music. The Art of Drowning was good music. Even Sing the Sorrow was good music. It comes down to making good music and if you’re doing that then critics be damned. However, AFI is no longer creating good music.
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First of all, I hope you don’t consider yourself an AFI fan, cause what you just wrote is garbage. I am sick and tired of seeing people write these articles over and over and over again about bands changing their styles and becoming “sell outs”. Almost every band that has been around for over 5 years reaches a point where they must adapt to the changing market of the music industry, as you mentioned. Gwen Stefani, Korn, Red Hot Chili Peppers,etc and now AFI. It is an essential part of becoming a successful band that is still remembered 16 years later. Yes, AFI is originally a punk band, but they are also very much so gothic rock influenced by the Cure, The Smiths, Bauhaus, and i am sure you know the rest. If this is the point in their careers that they choose to strongly bring it forward in their music, let it be. It is not about selling out. It is about exploring all areas of music they wish to explore. And if this album makes their sound more pop rock and more user friendly, so be it. People seem to forget that this is their job, and i am sure that you would not be against doing something different that might make you some more money. It doesnt make them any less of a musician. I think it makes them stronger musicians cause they show their ability to explore all different sounds, and not sound like they are spitting out the same album every time. In conclusion, stop hatin’.
hey elena, stfu kthxbye4!
p.s. davey still won’t touch you there no matter how pathetically you defend them online.
I don’t believe that I said they sold out, and if I did I retract that statement because to argue for or against ’selling out’ is a useless argument. What I did say is that the group is not making solid music any more, which coincidentally comes at a time in the band’s history when they are experiencing their highest level of success.
scary pete, wow. am i that transparent? my entire purpose was for him to read this and want to touch me. grow up, loser.
i apologize chris, you did not say they were selling out…but i just dont agree with the solidity of their music. Its not that it isnt as solid, its just different. thats all i meant.
the last album was not so bad. i love it in some way.
but yes, most of people would grace their moment with their previouses album. and doesn;t like it when some young yuppies share their idol at the TRL.,
but i just don;t care, everyband need a living right,.Go AFI.
and thanks for the article. i do dig your writing.
It’s often really interesting how people
immediately dismiss a band once their sound changes or they reach a broader audience. I personally understand that as people grow, they change, and thus, from an artistic standpoint, they want to perform in new ways and meld together their many influences into a creatively unique and different style. I think that AFI’s most recent release is actually their best, particularly with the beautiful sonic layering and stronger emergence of the use of electronic equipment, which has been a trend not only in commericially successful music, but also on the independent scene as well (the emergence of acts such as Hot Chip, Junior Boys, The Knife, etc.) Lyrically, I will agree that AFI may have been at their best prior to this album, but that does make the music they are creating now any worse as the current lyrical choices fit uniquely with the style they have developed.
I think that often, particularly in the punk scene, people want their bands to remain small, their own personal treasure, rather than achieving any commercial success, which brings in “less of a hardcore” audience. This article is an extremely interesting take on not only AFI, but the trends and culture of the punk scene in general.
It is limiting to say that just punk scenesters despise change…I\’m sure AC/DC fans would feel broken if Angus Young stopped playing like Angus Young. I suppose I look at it like this: if you\’ve gone to Starbucks every day for the past decade only to one day discover that Starbucks is packed full of different people who have started to show up because Starbucks now sells cookies and sandwiches and other tasty treats to accompany their free wi-fi you might be turned off of it. And despite your remaining approval for the coffee that you\’re not even sure you really enjoy any more, on the day you make this realization you think back to when it was just a good place to grab coffee and sigh.
I wasn\’t even put off by Decemberunderground to a point of abandonment. I didn\’t get the album and its subsequent approval by mainstream outlets and fans really didn\’t impact my thinking. However, when I heard these recent covers it kind of hit me all at once; this used to just be a really good place to grab coffee.
We’ll it appears that they are there representing the massive youth audience. One thing they do offer unlike a lot of artists is a deep trace of roots for those kids to follow. Through AFI they can find there down through the layers of music. That stuff is not always so obvious to kids. I’m sure AFI has that on their mind. I enjoyed the article. Thanks.
I’m not going to do the typical AFI fan boy thing and bash you for your opinion. This is your blog, and it is your right to opine all you’d like on it.
I beg the question, where do you draw the line between aesthetics and music? I’m not a musician and my personal style changes quite often. so I don’t believe the aesthetics is something you can hold against the band.
Senond. If you read their blogs you can see that the music they have listened to has changed alot over the years. Regardless of what anyone says, what you listen to does affect the music you write. If you take that into consideration the progression of their music seems logical.
By the same token they have garnered a great amount of mainstream attention of late. With performing on MTV religiously and being on a MySpace records release. They have strayed from their ethos quite a bit. I respect that you actually have an arguement (unlike msot people). Although I can’t say I agree with you 100%.
I agree 100% with Elena and Eric ( I won’t repeat it b/c they’ve said all i needed to say). C’mon I mean it’s their job after all. And what the hell do people have against bands going “mainstream”? They’re mainstream b/c of a reason: they’re damn good! So people need to (I know millions of people have said this already) STOP HATIN!
The one comment that I agree with wholeheartedly is the very last statement: “A.F.I. is no longer creating good music.” Whether or not it is because they’ve “sold out” or have simply lost the musical edge, their music isn’t NEARLY as good as it used to be. Sing the Sorrow is a great album. Everything before StS is amazing.
In the end, who cares what the reasons are… DecemberUnderground is a bad album, and I regret buying it. End of story.
Hey buddy,
I have to say, please speek for yourself. I know that AFI has many many many loyal fand STILL out there that are gretly inspired by what they do. I am one of them. I love AFI. They still create good music to me and if you think they don’t then please speak for yourself!!! Others still like them escuse me if you don’t!!
sXe
I agree with you completly elena
I can’t stand how people are ALWAYS complaining about how “sold out” AFI is. They are a awesome band and they like changing their music and style every CD to be different. They change their apperance and music and dont care if people dont like them because of that. They still have loyal fans out there, and realise they have some not so “loyal fans”. AFI is NOT emo either. They do not like catorgories, and dont think people should be labled by their apperance, personally, and choice of music. So please dont label them or anybody. AFI has stuck to thier motives and put out some great music like you said. But they are also not the same band they were back in 1991. There better. They have devolped as song writers and musicians. Davey’s lyrics are what he personally thinks,and if people are truly devoted they would appreciate him expressing his feelings. These lyrics and AFI has helped people not commit sucide, and thats a beautiful thing.
I’ve listenend to AFI for forever but never really loved them to the full extent of which I’ve read. But since seeing them in concert in TN, I have found what I can only figure out to be the most amazing band I’ve ever heard in my life. So hearing them being called sellouts is the biggest bs I’ve seen online in awhile…well since hearing Britney Spears was a good singer. Their past and present music plus the fact that they almost always sing in the little venues for their REAL fans drives home the point that they could never, EVER truly be called sellouts and actually be guilty of it.
There is no arguement that AFI have changed, it’s obvious, but DU is still a great album. In my opinion anyone who says it is ‘bad music’ either doesn’t get what they were trying to do or has hearing difficulty.
I hate wasting the 30 seconds it takes to post this.. but I must say, this is all rather amusing.
I thought AFI was one of the best shows that I have seen. Davey Havok has an incredible voice and he actually has an excellent vocabulary. I thought he was the most polite “Rock Star” I have ever seen, he didn’t seem to have to use the f word as every other word in a sentence and actually expressed himself using the English language. I would love to know what in life has made him so dark……..
While i enjoyed reading the article and compleatly respect your opinions…i must say that i don’t agree 100%.
I really got into AFI once i got Sing the Sorrow and Decemberunderground only deeped my love for the band. I think its wonderful that they try to change their sound with every album, I personally get tired of listning to the same thing over and over again. This way i can play any AFI album i want to and hear compleatly different sounds. Wether i want to listen to compleatly hardcore stuff of something softer I can still listen to my favorite band.
Most people who are so negitive about their change in style only feel that way because they don’t like the fact that their small scene band has gotten bigger. I’ll admit, when i see someone wearing an AFI shirt whome i know for a fact only knows the Miss Murder and wouldn’t recogonise Davey from a whole in the wall, i get a tad upset. But if their new music gets them a wider fanbase(of serious fans) then i say more power to them.
I still love AFI and if anyone disagrees with me thats fine, but I’m set in how i feel.
Weak people always feel abanded when there band changes thier sound so they feel like they must protect them selfs from felling this way which leads to Slashing the band in anyways they can…Shows who you are.
AFI is my life and always will be.I wont leave them with one ‘bad’ album which isnt horrible.
What the hell is Karen talking about? She brought up her infatuation with davey when the topic is AFI….wierdo.
Lara has a great point. Mainstream success has widened their fan base for true fans as well as those whose devotion will certainly be fleeting with time. (That’s just the price of fame.) Personally, I am thankful that they put their music out there for more people to access. I had never even heard of AFI until my 12 yr old daughter started listening to Miss Murder. Honestly, I rolled my eyes and almost wrote them off as a boy band at that point, but I like to know what she’s into so I started listening to them, too. Now I have four of their albums (I’ll get the rest eventually, but I do have other things to spend my money on.) and I respect the way their style has changed. While STS is probably my favorite, I enjoy listening to all of them. I love the way Davey cites his influences, some of them are bands I listened to growing up and I think I had actually forgotten that music could be anything besides meaningless crap until I found AFI. Karen’s point is right on target – the first thing that struck me about the band was the lyrical content of their music, not all about sex and drugs. They touch upon the intangible – emotions that everyone has. And publicly, they don’t get out there and flaunt the negative sides of their personal lives to their millions of preteen fans because they understand the responsibilty that goes with being a role model to millions of kids. And don’t bash Karen for having a crush on Davey – playing out an infatuation on a man that can never REALLY hurt you is a normal way of experiencing the power of ‘love’ while protecting yourself from pain. It can be a healthy thing for some people (obviously not all, but that’s off the topic).
Plus, I now have something to talk about with my daughter whose other interests are an enigma to me. Now she’s learning to play guitar instead of of sitting in her room sulking about how “life sucks”. We’re talking about a kid whose teacher refers to her as “the most oppositional student he’s had in thirty years”. I’m sure mine is not the only life that AFI has impacted in a positive way – probably even YOURS since you care enough to write this. And after all, they are human beings. Not everything they touch is going to turn to gold; so give them a break even if you don’t like what they are currently doing. Something they did made a difference in your life, so cherish that and stop hating them for pursuing an artistic avenue that doesn’t match your own.
bad music and success my ass. afi hasn’t fell into the hole of recreating an album over and over, which gets tedious. they’re being true to themsevles and creating music in which they have inspiration for, even they have said it themselves- they don’t listen to the same thing as much as they used to. when that happens, naturally there will be a change. it sounds to me like you’re a just a narrow minded music fan, who can’t appreciate anything but one genre.
In response to everyone who says that AFI is ‘just exploring new sounds’ and ‘not just putting out the same album’ I can agree that that’s exactly what they’re doing. Theres no other way to look at it, they’ve changed their sound and that’s that. However, that’s not to say they still make good music, because the aren’t. There are planty of bands out there who have pulled off new sounds without sacrificing their quality, including Bad Religion, NOFX, Against Me!, Anti-Flag, and Saves The Day. All of these bands have produced consistantly good albums over the same span of time as AFI if not longer. quite possibly the most impressive example though is New Order, who had released eight albums with an ever evolving sound and still managed to produce music with a level of quality that not only drew in new fans but allowed them to keep people listening ever since their first commercial hit. People in their 30’s and 40’s were joined by teenagers in dissapointment of their recent retirment. All of the aforementioned bands have reached a level of success and respect that AFI will never see, they traded it in for a minute in the spotlight soon to be forgotten by fairweather fans as just another fad.
Look People don’t freak out. The only reason that their music had changed is because they change, they mature. They can’t always write about cereal. Also when major things happen in your life you tent to write about them. All AFI did was grow up.
I think change is good, or else you’d just get bored, and besides they’re still pretty effing good
I love AFI. They are my favorite band. They always will be. I don’t care for DU, but I wouldn’t call it bad. It’s just not their best effort. I also think that they grew up. They have matured as people, as well as as artists. To say that they are “sell-outs” is stupid. Just beacuse a band becomes successful, does not mean that they have sold out.
Ok,here’s my thing….AFI have sold out, there new music is not progressive from there old music it has regressed and been shaped to make money…think about it it makes sence, and really I cant blame them. I mean there not getting any younger there isn’t exactly a company pension for rock stars and lets face it…you’ll starve in the indy seen sooner or later! So fuck it, they did there thing, rocked the hell out of the punk seen, made amazing albums and then decided to make some money…what the fuck is wrong with that? That’s not really selling out its smart! Answer me this people if there music is “maturing” then why does there audience keep getting younger? Please I can’t be the only one to notice this!
They were great in there time, now there a gimmic and a name. But a gimmic and name with groundbreaking albums under there belt and props to that! Not to mention loaded and set for life!
More then I can say! hahaha
So….maybe they did sell out. Who gives a fuck. They deserve some money don’t think? Do you think they want to be making horror punk when they are 60? Come the fuck on. Let them move on and enjoy the godliness that is old AFI.
true,very true.let them enjoy the glory.theyre still there after all these years,they have evolved.its more than u can say about other bands.theyve given every person,every fan something to love.i loved sing the sorrow,but i loved DU as well.its different,i know,but they were able to do it all.give them some credit,it shows how diverse they are,and how talented.feelings change in time,emotions too.music is affected,its normal!if u dont like it,dont listen to it!remember what u like about the band and their music,and shut up.theyre as human as we are,they deserve the right to make wtf they want!
Popsmear, I’m gonna hope that one wasn’t for me….cause if it is I think you should read what I said a little more carefully!