Words by Matthew Mundy

In honor of Blender’s ‘Look at me!’ skewering of pop culture on their – list name verbosity alert! – ’33 Most Overrated People, Places, Trends and Other Junk in Rock’ list, TSS thought we would take a look at their list and pick out a few that seem spot on, a little off or – ahem – bullshit*. Also, I’m unemployed, so it’s either this or drinking, and I’m out of fermented orange rinds.

32. Kiss

Verdict – Spot on.

Because, my friends, Kiss sucks. Also – meteorological accuracy be damned — Gene Simmons is a tornado of human filth swirling through a tsunami of mediocrity rolling its way across an earthquake of dubious talent. If Gene Simmons were a politician, he would be a poor man’s Mitt Romney, if Mitt Romney had a mop of pubic hair on his head.

ReBlendered – Do people still like Kiss enough to make them overrated?

29. Getting Rick Rubin to Produce Your Record

Verdict – A little off.

Have they not heard “99 Problems”? Sure, his recent production credits include Linkin Park and Neil Diamond. But still, “99 Problems” > Every other rap rock song ever, basically.

ReBlendered – Maybe it is overrated. Rubin did produce Linkin Park. And Neil Diamond. And Slipknot. “Egchk!” © Pusha T.

26. Timbaland

Verdict – Spot on.

Sure, Timbo used to be a beast – his work with Jay-Z alone will give him a top-ten producer spot. But his recent work with other artists – aside from Justin Timberlake – has been spotty to say the least. And it’s not getting better. If Timbo gets back to Hip-Hop – and just Hip-Hop – I’ll take this back. And so should Blender.

ReBlendered – Anybody who produces “Snoopy Track” and “Big Pimpin’’ and isn’t canonized on the spot is forever underrated. Even if they do briefly hitch their success wagon to a guy named Magoo.

23. The Music You Loved as a Teenager Read the rest of this entry »