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I know I'm in the severe minority around here and risk eternal board wrath for saying this but I like it. Granted I'm 52 so my taste in music can be taken with a large grain of salt.
I don't know if I'll still like it next year but right now I like it. When they played it following the ND game it was absolutely electric IMO.
I'm with you actually and I'm 23. I think it gets the players and fans pumped up and that's a good thing. I love the MMB but I don't see why it's so wrong to let this song live for a bit. I don't think anyone expects this song to be a new long-lasting tradition. I say we should let it ride out for a season or two.
I like it...nice pump up song IMO
No kidding.
How about the Stooges "Raw Power" if we need a tunnel pump up song. Perfect analog of what Hoke's talking about. "Raw Power's a-sure to come a running at you." Iggy Pop's a former UM student too.
Maybe no performance with the MMB, though. 65 year old guys should generally keep their shirts on.
Edit: Search and Destroy would also be acceptable.
I can see where you guys are coming from, but any "real band" wont be able to write anything better about the big house. What make it unique is that it is from a Michigan band who are all fans of the school. Unless the "real band" were former students, fans, or had a connection to the team, I think some of the song would be lost. I am not a huge supporter of the song or the band, but it could be worse.
I'm still thinking they are a popular band? The have/still get major air play on Z93 out of Saginaw which covers most of Central/East Michigan.
I mean my parents knew who they were right off the bat when I mentioned they made a hype song for Michigan so thats saying something...
I really can't tell if you're joking. They're a popular band becase they get air time on a Saginaw radio station?
Also, granting for the sake of argument that such a phenomenon affirms their popularity, was said air time prevalent before they made the Big House video?
I can tell you I live in Kingsport, Tn. and "The Monster You Made Me" is in heavy rotation on the Local heavy rock /alternative station. It won the battle of the bands for a few weeks in a row so to say they're not popular is simply not true. They also just opened up for 3 doors down in Knoxville, Tn. a couple of weeks ago. So they are or were out on a National tour with a popular band in their genre. That is how bands become big. I also hope that when they play in Ohio they lead off the show with "In The Big House." That would make all the Ohio fans wet themselves.
Again, you can paint a piece of dogshit with a block M and some slappy will buy it.
Add this quote to the top-100 list! I seriously envision a sweet MGoBlogStore T-shirt that proclaims this exact quote.
On the front of the shirt: "You can paint a piece of dogshit with a block M and some slappy will buy it" Also a picture of a nice steaming pile of dog shit painted maize and blue.
On the upper back of the shirt: "Slappy"
How big of fans are these guys? My wife's college friend use to date one of these guys for a couple of years and says he never watched any football ever and probably doesn't even know basic rules.
Hmmm....adding Iggy and keeping Pop Evil is an option too....
I've been under the impression since they started the piped in music that Iggy Pop would be about the only piped in music I'd actually appreciate.
...and Joe Reynolds. Look them up if you aren't already familiar. They definately have some talent.
I like the song, I liked it before I knew that this song was the song that was being treated is if it was awful around here.
I don't think I agree with a single sentance in your post, and I will gladly take your house in the bet, mine sucks.
The closest I can get to not disagreeing is that I don't know if the band is terible or good, I just like the only song that I heard by them.
I suppose it is just a matter of taste, like a preference in flavor of ice cream
I'm with you bro. I loved it and have no idea why someone would hate it. I don't think anyone would suggest it replace Hail to the Victors. It just seems like great stadium music to get the crowd going.
Difficult to get out of your head. But yeah, that song and "All of the Lights", every time I hear it I think about the ND game. Not a bad associaton.
If the players like it, and they want to hear it, then they ought to play it.
I'm all for staying with the times, but ugh, that song is terrible. I don't even care that it's RAWK music, but it should at least be good RAWK music.
My ears are bleeding in advance of such hypotheical concert. Apologies to the football team but i just can't stand this song, genre, or overuse of eye makeup.
If the come play in the Big House, will the AD provide knives with which to puncture ear drums? Ear plugs just won't cut it.
P.S. How is this "band" going to be one of the first bands to every play in the Big House? Even Pearl Jam was only allowed to play in Crisler Arena back in my day. (Say what you will about Pearl Jam, but they were a huge draw and probably could have put a bunch of people in the stands at Michigan Stadium back in the early 90s.)
I can't imagine a concert in the Big House would have very good acoustics. But yes, if they take Pop Evil over Pearl Jam, I am switching fanbases.
If you would truly let a band who made a crappy song about the Big House drive you away from the fanbase...well, you might as well just leave now because you aren't completely onboard anyway.
I was actually in the process of adding /s when you replied... sometimes I forget that text is not a good medium for sarcasm. It would also help if there weren't people that would seriously say something like that
Conflict averted
I call bullshit on that one, Lochman
I'm sure there are 2-3% that like it. But that doesn't mean it should be supported by the AD! Get a super-majority (66%) and then talk to me, Mr. Marketing Man.
If the players actually liked it, we'd hear a direct quote from a player, not some second hand statement from a suit
I suspect the question may have been "Do you like the piped in music?"
Better get Section 1 on the case.
including a link to a video of it.
Doesn't he know the band? This is almost like using the example that Dave Brandon liked the legacy jerseys. Not the most objective point of view.
He's never spoken to one of our players in his life.
I simply don't believe our chief marketing officer
Edit: mgoblake says it better
The song wouldn't be so offensive if the band didn't look like they maxed out their gift cards at hot topic.
Maybe someone else should have posted your comment for you... just sayin'
I obviously have no idea whether the players like it or not, nor do I know what each individual student thinks. However, I am a student myself and I know many of my fellow students absolutely dread the song. Not because it is RAWK, but because it is cheesy and has a generic sound.
The best example of many/most students hating this song is at College Gameday. When the Gameday crew asked if they should play "Pop Evil" to boot up the show, most people, if not all, booed this and wanted the Victors much more instead.
Didn't exactly work with the Big Ten, though. They admitted to something like unanimous dislike for our ridiculous division names and logo and pulled a South Park, "whatever, you'll pay to see it. Fuck you."
As someone who has spent a career in marketing, market research, and marketing communications I can officially state: No product/program/promotion/anything would ever see the light of day if you allowed the phrase "some people hate it" to stop you.
So much of it sucks.
That damn song is starting to catch on to me....
When I was driving back to my house from the game against eastern a couple weeks ago, I was flipping through stations and sure enough, 101.1 WRIF (RAWK station) was playing it. I was like...oh no....
Easier to say...harder to prove.
It's easy to say the players like it, in part because a). maybe some of the players do and b). the ones who do not are smart enough or have enough media training to hold their tongues. So sure, say it's "for the players" because it's pretty clear that the fans have not embraced it like they would likely have hoped.
Everything about that article screams making lemonade out of lemons.
The band was so pleased with "In the Big House," they funded the project themselves, and Grammy-nominated producer Johnny K, who produced the band's latest album, gave an assist in its production.
"That's how good we knew the song was," Kakaty said. "We're taking the traditional values of Michigan and not being afraid to have the new, young fans embrace them in a different way.
"Being new and creative is what makes this world great. It's what makes Michigan great."
Hmm, I'm a regional band looking for a way to reach a wider audience. How could I reach a specific audience to start with, knowing I might be able to expand from there. I know, I know, write a song about Michigan football, get ESPN to throw up a link on their "The Life" page, get some synergy going with the athletic department and guess what, tons of people know the name Pop Evil. Like them or not, you know the name, and that was the goal.
Love em or hate em, you have to give the band credit for having a plan and executing it. I shake my head at those who criticize and then suggest someone else solve "their" problem. It is still a free country (barely). If you can come up with something better, have at it.
I want to see the names of the players that like it, followed by quotes of them saying that they like it, or else I am not going to believe that any of them like it. They're the shining light and hope for our return to greatness. Their soundtrack should be provided by Foghat and Foghat alone. That said, I almost want this horrific Pop Evil + MMB thing to happen. Let Marketing get it out of their system, everybody can see what kind of mistake it is, and then it all fades away into the dustbin of horrendous, horrendous ideas and we return to a soundtrack provided solely by brass, woodwinds, percussion, and the throats of a hundred thousand screaming fans.
That was where I first heard it.
You'd think we could get a good band to do a glory song if we wanted it. RHCP for example loves Michigan. The whole Pop Evil song sounds like a cheap knockoff a Nickelback song, you know:
Power Cord, Power Cord, a few lyrics, Power Cord, Chorus, repeat Chorus and Power Cord for 2 minutes.
I just cringe and think of the Wal-Mart Wolverine slur when I hear it.
Edit: Lochman's email address is listed on the community directory. So I guess that gives us the option to contact him directly.
<power chord>
<power chord>
WOLVERIIIIIIIIIIIIINES!
<power chord>
<ninja turtles theme song lyrics, except using Michigan buzz words>
<power chord>
Umm.. </b>
Apparently power chords are powerful..
The Ninja turtles song was sweet, don't insult it by comparing it to Pop Evil.
The Haterz need to come up with an alternative song. It is always easy to hate on something, but it is hard to find something else. This is kind of a "put up or shut up" thing. You'd think that with all of Brian's contacts he could find someone to right a decent song.
So, I'm 52 years old, and I don't even know what the song sounds like. I've never heard it all the way through. I'm not planning to listen to it. But come on, aren't there any creative music types who can do something? Are there no decent rock bands that have come out of Michigan?
Part of the problem at mgoblog is that Emo is not a genre that lends itself particularly well to pumping you up. Maybe pumping the blood out of your wrists, but that's about it. So melancholy angry depressed sarcastic bitter music genre may describe a lot of the student body, but I don't see it working for a Michigan song.
Maybe this is an unsolvable problem. A happy, upbeat, call to war, fight song might be diametrically opposite to anything that teens and twenty somethings would ever be caught dead listening to.
(Aside: Josh Groban and you lift me up and any smarmy stuff like that is irrelevant to this discussion. so is Sweet Caroline.)
Even Ohio has "the Dead Schembechlers" punk band to do stuff. Like I said, I don't listen to this music myself, but I'm tired of the pussified emo whining about rawk music in Michigan Stadium. If people really can't stand the play lists, get involved and come up with something better.
Perhaps a songwriting contest, somewhat like the Big Ten logo contest? Cash reward from donations to the winner?
Why does there need to be an alternative? Do we have this big gaping need that only a Wolverine themed pop song can fill?
It doesn't... but now it's there and you're going to have a hard time getting rid of it unless it's replaced
Why? We can just keep playing the Victors. We were fine for a century before Pop Evil descended upon the Big House. We'll be ok if we never hear it again. We don't need to replace it with something that is functionally the same
They are trying not to become stale and stuck in the past. I understand what they are trying to do, but that song is not a good one.
If they going to use rock, chose a different song for each game. For example, "Unforgiven" by Metallica for OSU.
You can't go wrong using GnR and Metallica.
The Victors
Ya know what... yeah. Just the Victors.
It sounds like a lead in for WWE Raw. It's painful to hear.
I actually love the song. It is a bit cheesy and Nickebackish, it pumps me up for Michigan. Crank it up on a nice speaker system, it sounds great!
If you look at Mike Martins youtube channel he likes the song a lot or just acts like he does.
I believe there's a hometown connection there
Really? Which players? Does Denard really want to hear it as much as say, Taylor Lewan? I can't imagine there's much real enthusiasm among the black players on the team to hear warmed-over lite metal/hair band crap with juvenile lyrics a not-very-precocious ESPN-watching 12-year-old might have written, but then I'm an old white guy who hates any sort of metal so what do I know. Get off my goddamn lawn.
Well now you're being stereotypical, Don. Denard loves hair metal and polka and Lewan can't get enough of Indian folk music.
I'm willing to put dollars on Molk hating this song
Molk hates everything.
Except Life cereal.
While Pop Evil may not be your cup of tea, it is ridiculous to imply that somebody couldn't possibly like a band because they are white or black or whatever. Would it be more acceptable if the song was by Sevendust or Living Colour, since they are metal bands fronted by (Sevendust) and composed of (Living Colour) black musicians? As this thread shows, people can vary widely on their musical tastes, and sometimes people are surprised to find that some songs or bands really strike a chord with them (no pun intended). Whether or not certain players only like the song because it is about Michigan, some probably do like it. We can argue about whether or not we like it, but it is not our place to engage in racially-based speculation about the players' preferences.
As for me, if I was looking for someone to create a Michigan metal song I would probably prefer to have someone like Five Finger Death Punch come up with something. I find them to be great pump-up music for playing hockey.
My little sister loves Pop Evil. That told me I didn't want to listen to them.
I sit in Section 6, I have down in front-ers around me, and one of them remarked "Oh no, not this again" when Pop Evil started playing before the team took the field.
I already hear enough complaining in that section about standing, please for the love of God DB, put an end to the Pop Evil experiment PLEASE.
This thread proves, once again, that the only reason panties exist is for people to look for reasons to get them in a bunch.
The team is about to (hopefully) go 5-0 and we are still beating this dead horse.
I'm pretty sure we'll never get Radiohead or Wilco to pen a version of Victors or some other Michigan-centric tune. We need to chill. Different strokes, etc.
the song is cheesy at best and sucks at worst. the fight song...however...is the best ever and should be played at every opportunity...esp when the team takes the field
I really can't imagine the players liking the song for anything more than the fact it is referencing the team, the school, etc. However, I have wondered about what the players want to hear, and if it ever gets annoying to hear certain songs before a play starts, etc. They probably just block it out, but who knows.
So, why is half of this thread in bold?
Anybody else have a problem with the statement "our core customers- the players"? I guess I always thought the fans were the core customers. Obviously the players are fans too, but they are part of what is being marketed, not part of what the marketing is directed at.
I have a hard time believing that the players even know what music is playing 1/2 the time during a game. If they're not on the field, they're huddling with their position coaches, or on the phone with upstairs. Stadium "ambiance" is all about the fans and that's who should be kept in mind when decisions are being made. Otherwise, let the players choose the music directly.
For me, football and RAWK go hand in hand. It doesn't work with hip-hop, indie or country.*(some work but not as well as Rrock) I grew up in the mid 90's with AC/DC playing in our lockerroom along with a good dose of GnR mixed with some Scorpions. I would much rather hear a newer version of some rock that is taylored to our Wolverines versus TNT...oy..oy..oy.
The song is not that bad. For how that band looks, it could be a lot worse.
*Funny enough 09 and 10's hype videos were Indie and Hip-Hop. Hip-hop is probably my favorite genra and the Hype Video for 2010 is by FAR my favorite. However, during a game for adernaline reasons, I think rock works the best....seems to bring out the mean. Hip-Hop brings out the swaggar.
Just cause I like it and I am too lazy to imbed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CG5XGeB-84
GOSH DANG, I really want this team to win a championship! What is not to love about them!? Sorry, got a little emotional there.
What player is that the 1:30 mark?
But yeah, that would never go over on game day in the Stadium. Whoever played that would have played the last song they'd ever be allowed to play . . . their head would roll. Whether you like rawk & heavy metal, a pump up stadium song has to be something without clearly offensive lyrics (No "N" words, "F***" this, "mf" that, GD this, "B" that, etc., etc.) and a steady 4/4 driving rock beat.
Re: the Victor's and the MMB, I love them. They should always get lots of time. They should always predominate. But there is other stuff out there. Just 'cause I like steak doesn't mean I eat it breakfast, lunch, and dinner, seven days a week. Variety is the spice of life. Saying, "We should always have 12noon games because that's what Bo did" is crazy. Some traditions do change, and that's ok.
After the ND game, it's grown on me. Every time I hear it, I associate it with that game.
I'm ok with the song as long as these two things stop happening and/or never happen:
1) We stop playing it so that it's conveniently overlapping when the players are running onto the field i.e. drowning out the victors
2) I never want to see Pop Evil in the big house playing the song and/or straightening their hair and/or putting on eye-liner. If they want to come in maize that's ok
If you in any way like "In the Big House" by Pop Evil (other than on some ironic, perverse, or maybe even a sadomasochistic level), then you are a "Walmart Wolverine." So let it be written.
If you really believe that, you are what's wrong with Michigan and its fanbase. Not the non-graduates who like to cheer for the team.
We're "core customers" now?
The brand, the brand, the brand...
If you read the quote carefully, he says the players are the "core customers." Apparently we, the people who buy tickets and merchandise, are simply ignored.That comment (from the M marketing guy) really irks me.
I can't argue with that. If the players are more fired up because of songs like this, they'll play better - and recruits will see that and be more likely to come here. The better the players play, the more satisfied the fans will be. It's a player-driven product.
I am 47 and like In the Big House because it is unique to Michigan (and because I otherwise like it). Although I like the song Seven Nation Army and the chant that goes with that, are we not just copying of what Penn State has been doing for some time. Maybe we should copy Wisconsin and do the jump around between the 3rd and fourth quarters?
I am glad to see a band of some renown writing such a song and certainly don't think we should go out of our way to express hatred for it. I think this should be encouraged.
We have a very intelligent fan base and should have a unique game day experience and should not go about copying what other fans do.
One thing we do that is unique in a bad way, however, is chant "you suck" after every failed third down attempt by the opposing team even when we are losing (which hopefully is not often at home). Don't people understand what that says about our team by yelling that an opponent sucks that is beating us? Does that mean we suck more? I guess I just find that to be something that is not very classy ... something that you would find at Ohio or MSU.
I agree that the Seven Nation Army song seems a bit stolen, but it is exponentially better than a sh-tty specific tune like the one we are discussing. I would rather copy a school that uses good music than use sh-tty music just because it was specially-made for Michigan.
Also, the "you such" cheer is fun. True, its kind of silly when Michigan is sucking (for lack of a better word) and I don't do it during that time, but its extremely fun when its properly employed. Cut out all these "not very classy" thing and what do you have? A wine-and-cheese gathering for a polo match. No thanks.
I disagree on the Seven Nation Army point. I always made fun of Ohio State fans for taking a band from Detroit's song and making it one of their most popular cheers. That's a hell of a long way from Woody driving buses back to Toledo during The Game so that they didn't have to spend any money in Michigan.
This whole "the players like it" thing is getting old and silly. What do you expect them to say? Of course they won't publicly say that Pop Evil sucks, RAWK doesn't belong in Michigan Stadium, or the throwback uniforms were stupid and disappointing.
These kinds of claims mean nothing.
I'm 32, male, raised on Varsity / Temptation / Hawaiian War Chant, and I like it. But, as I've gotten older, I've become equally as likely to listen to Lady Gaga / Katy Perry as I am to try to find new indie / alt rock. If you're listening to music and worrying about how it will make you look or what other people think about your tastes, you're doing it wrong. Listen for something that you enjoy and makes your day better. There's no need to make it so complicated and important.
I'm fascinated by this. So you used to listen to indie/alt rock, and now you like Katy Perry? It's hard for me to dismiss this as merely trying to hold onto your youth, since you could always just con tinue to find new bands in other genres to accomplish that, I'd think.
Actually, I can sort of deal with Lady Gaga - in a vaccuum, if I never heard people shriek about how creative and talented she is, her music would be perfectly inoffensive pop. (She's like the Tebow of music - she's maybe a little bit annoying on her own merits, but I can't fucking stand her because people won't - or wouldn't, for a while - shut their bleeding yaps about her. I digress.)
But Katy Perry, really? What, would you say, do you like about her music?
For me there are really only two things that stand out about Katy Perry.
/RCMB'd
I realize this is days old, but not to ignore a direct question...
I don't really know what I like about her music. I don't think I'm likely to go to a concert or pay for any of it, but if I'm scanning through Sirius and end up with that Extra Terrestrial song or I Kissed a Girl (I am still disappointed that wasn't a Jill Sobule cover), I'll probably leave it on and enjoy it. It's easy, catchy, gets stuck in your head...
0:46-0:51 speaks for itself.
What with Maryland's uniforms (and new FUKKIN WARRIORZ uniforms all over the country really), Pop Evil and other rawk music, and whatever else is going into college football these days, I think we've basically established that all you have to do is throw a bunch of flashy shit into the eyes of 17-year-olds, whether or not it's classy or tacky as fuck, and 4 out of 5 will like it as long as it's different than the flashy shit that was thrown into their eyes last week.
This has always struck me as an issue about which people will differ and it's not really worth getting het up over. Sure, I'll chuckle over a few funny comments about how dreadful some of us find it, but it's not the kind of thing I'd draw a line in the sand over. Or dedicate a lot of main page entries to, either.
Start a petition about having crushed ice rather than cubes in the stadium drinks, I'll quit my job and start a foundation over THAT issue! But a song? No.
Nothing better than the tiny little ice "pellets" Taco Bell used to have.
Is the truth
I like the song - hate the band and all that and would rather of not known who produced it. I'm in section 16 and haven't heard a negative comment about it.
I do not like when they play it just before the team comes out of the tunnel and then quickly get to The Victors. That sucks..
Whether you like it or don't bears no relevance on whether it should or should not ever be played in the Big House.
Boo-effin'-Yah.
If a football player needs to hear Pop Evil in order to get excited to play in the Big House, then they suck as a football player.
There is a difference between "when i take the field, that song really pumps me up" vs. "without this song, I am meh about playing my best for this team."
...which I just don't happen to like. But that's taste, and it doesn't matter.
It's just that canned music in Michigan stadium irks me. I mean, if the band wants to play it, that would be pretty funny, and I'd be all for that.
Honestly, I don't want anyone's musical tastes, whether they're for or against it, having anything to do with what happens inside Michigan stadium on a football Saturday.
We already have a beautiful song written by Louis Elbel. Blare that if things are needin' to be blared.
Our band, if asked, would probably be willing to play other things too!
I rarely post and haven't in a while but this issue really annoys me.
I actually enjoy some moderate piped in music (especially pumping up fans while we're on D), but this song is an absolute abomination and needs to be killed immediately. Are we going to start playing songs from any band that plays out of their mom's garage just because it talks about Michigan?
I think this is one issue that can unify the fanbase. Everyone I talk to HATES this song. Players can't get everything they want. If they love it so much, they can put it on their iPod or watch the video on YouTube. Just don't force me and 110,000 others to listen to this garbage.
Let me further clarify that this is not a "kids these days" rant. This song is simply that bad and is an embarrassment on the level of "We are ND" or, say, having "The Situation" on our sideline. In my opinion, it just seems way too busch league for the winningest program in college football.
Suppose you were a player who didn't like the song. Suppose you were even in the majority. Would you want to be "that guy" who directly contradicted the official statement of the athletic department to the media?
Didn't think so...
Obviously we just need to use The Get Up Kids as pump up music. Last winter Anne Arbour was all I had.
Hey at least this band named themselves accurately.
Here's the problem with that song - it would've been maybe a little too corny, but ultimately well-suited to its purpose ... in 1995. It sounds immensely dated. It sounds like a middle-aged, white, marketing executive's vision of what is cool and young and fresh (yes, these are the terms such a person would use.)
Now, there's some RAWK from the 90s that would be perfectly hype-inducing. There's RAWK from many eras that have transcended their particular era to be adrenaline-encouraging songs for decades. But when you take something that sounds like a C-grade temporary hit even before the utterly inane, middle-school level lyrics, it fucking sucks. That's all.
This is getting to be pretty funny. Mgoblog is great for sports info, but maybe not so much for pop culture. DB gave us Hoke, who is working out well. He gave us the night game, which was a pleasant evening affair. He gave us the "throwback uniforms" that were mercilessly critiqued on here until y'all realized the players and recruits loved them. Now we are hearing the players and students like this song (which I personally don't mind). When can we give DB a little credit for knowing what he is doing? Based on the previous examples pop evils record will go platinum (maybe a little /s on that last bit).
I find it very hard to believe that Dave Brandon has anything to do with deciding what RAWK music will be played at the stadium. If he does, he doesn't have enough work to do.
I have a degree in old-school pop culture from U of M.
Personally, I'm not in love with the song, but I don't know why people hate it more than the other piped-in songs, like "Welcome to the Jungle." It's at least Michigan-specific.
4 skinned ferrets
Flour
Salt
Pepper
Butter
1 cup Sherry
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 jar sliced mushrooms
Cover whole ferrets with flour, salt and pepper. Brown in melted butter in heavy skillet over medium-high heat until nicely browned on all sides. Remove pieces from skillet and arrange in oven casserole with cover. When ferrets are browned, add 1 cup white wine or sherry to skillet. Then mix in 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 1 can cream of celery soup, and 1 jar sliced mushrooms. Mix well and bring to boil, then pour over ferrets. Cover and bake in 325-degree oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until done and tender. Remove ferrets to serving platter and pour some of the sauce over, and serve the rest alongside. Serves 4.
Does ferret, prepared in this manner, taste good? Like chicken?
I would guess it probably does, if not better
the Notre Dame game, everyone around me seemed to enjoy the song. That honestly was the first time I have ever heard it, but It seemed to have a pump up feel to it. If the players want to hear it and it pumps them up, then blast it for them.
They could have played Celine Dion (sp?) at that game and people would have been pumped up. The occasion was electric - the PA and music "director" could do no wrong that night.
Are people unable to separate things they like from those that belong in the stadium?
I happen to hate the song but that is irrelevant. My favorite genre is punk rock but I sure as hell don't want punk rock playing at the Big House. As much as I love Phish concerts I wouldn't want a Phish show at halftime.
Similar thing with jerseys. Go ahead and get on the Maryland and Oregon bandwagons (I happen to hate those as well). You are free to like those styles and not want to see our players sporting crazy uniforms. It doesn't make you a hypocrite or anything.
Dave Brandon et al continue to run our "brand" into the ground. I hate that brand management and money seem to be the only motivating factors for the guy. He is one loathsome dude.
Given your choice of username, I'm going to guess that your beef with Brandon is rooted in something a little different than the music selection at the games. Are you really this worked up over the song, or is this a bit of displaced frustration over your favorite coach being let go?
That's completely ridiculous and unfair. So if someone liked Rich Rodriguez, the only reason they might ever have to criticize Dave Brandon is because Rodriguez was fired, and not on the merits of the criticism itself? How very quasi-Freudian.
I hate the song. I HATE the song. But the players like it. The students like it. Whether some market-savvy dog groomers hatched a plot in conjunction with the Market Buzzology Department or not is debateable, but the swell itself is rising from within the student body.
As did the Marching Band, originally.
As did The Victors, originally.
As did Football, originally.
I think the best thing the U could do, instead of uttering occaisional official inanities on the subject, pretending to be leading the Parade, or sprinkling imprimateurs, would be to hand it to the MMB and see what the MMB's always-brilliant arrangers could do.
When I was that age I remember the Marching Band on the field with a rock combo at halftime with at least one amplifier set up on the 50 (and a band guy rotating it around and around like a Leslie speaker or the Perdue drum). I remember them doing some work with Frank Zappa.
And most importantly, I remember how ultimately cool I felt being with the old stogie-chomping fogies in the good seats with my Dad while they sat scowling and I stood, singing, while the MMB tore up EARTH WIND AND FIRE. This is, and always will be Funky Michigan, Fer Godsakes. If you don't feel it, it's time to pass the torch.
Does anyone else remember circa 1998 or 9, there was an attempt to market a Big House rock song? They sold CD's of the damn thing at the MDen and such, the whole works. And it was massively shot down because it was just as bad as this thing is...
Look. It's a bad song.
It is neither the first nor last time a stadium will play a shitty song.
This shitty song will not un-do anything that Michigan represents. It is a shitty song perfect for blending seamlessly into the crap ESPN plays going into and out of commercial breaks. No more.
It's a sign of the apocalypse. MSU fans should similarly accept that the Jersey shore clown showing up at thier stadium is also a sign of impending doom.
Night game jerseys = pop evil
Supposedly the players liked the night game jerseys, too. I don't believe that they liked the jerseys or the song. No one could.
Settle down it's not that bad..I'm not saying I'd bump it in my car,but before the game hell yeah...
Mike Martin posted it to his You Tube channel so I think its safe to say he endorses it.
http://www.youtube.com/my_subscriptions?feature=mhee&s=yhqEqbgnh69Ldb3t9...
I'm 39 and like the song, purely from a michigan pump up theory. I have to think if Mike likes it then there are plenty of other players that do as well.
I LOVE this song, you can't help but get pumped everytime you listen to it. It is now my ringtone.
I'm out of the closet. I love this song. I do.
Maybe more importantly, my 10 year old loves this song and video (yeah, which says something about the song probably). We live in Korea and don't get much UM - so when I see him on YouTube playing the video, I'm 100% down with this song.
I was at the SDSU game last Saturday and last year, I attended the Bowling Green game. A couple of observations:
1. The volume and sound quality of the new speakers in the videoboards compared to last year is night and day. Not only was it louder, it was also much clearer to my 50-year old ears.
2. In terms of building up noise during the game, I actually thought the MMB percussion section was more effective than the rawk music. If you were on the opposing team, that drumming has to be way more annoying than Seven Nation Army.
3. I was seated in the section next to the students and was very impressed with their responses to the rawk music, including "In the Big House". Now I'm not normally someone who likes this stuff, but it was obvious to me that they were really feeding off of this.
4. This isn't high art we're talking about here--it's music that's used to pump up a stadium crowd. If you're expecting a rock opera or the equivalent of the Beatles white album in terms of originality, then you're likely to be disappointed.
5. For the venue that it's designed for, "In the Big House" does exactly what it's designed to do--no more and no less. The MMB certainly contributed its fair share to the overall entertainment in the stadium, and as I mentioned in (2) above, that incessant drumming was noisier than hell. Based on what I observed last Saturday, I think they have roughly the right balance between the band and the rawk music.
6. The tune and the video is growing on me--I have to admit it. Goodness knows it's way, way better than that "We are Notre Dame" song/video.
7. All the marketing things (video introductions, etc.) that go into the game day experience are fine, but in the end, what gets the crowd really fired up is what happens on the field. There was a great buzz in the stands thru much of the first half, but it got sucked right out of the crowd with the poor play in the third quarter and kind of picked up again in the fourth. You can bring in all the rawk music and parachutists and fireworks you want, but it all falls short if the team doesn't win or isn't playing well.
