LIVE! Contrarians Chat: They Never Looked Worse!

The Contrarians is a show where one of us jumps in the hot seat picks a dark horse album from a band as that band's best album. The guest host will argue against them with facts, stats and all around truth, subjective and objective!
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Comment below and join the debate!
#martinpopoff #thecontrarians #albumreview

[@jcollins1305]

Between SOT and the Contrarians, Love Beach has attained mythic proportions! And I’ve never even heard the album! 😂

[@dlwseattle]

Too bad - you are missing a real gem!

[@briansf7012]

I never even seen the album till SOT. Now it's burned in my memory. 😂

[@sabbracadabra7503]

It's not great but not as bad as rumor has it.

[@Skycladatdusk78]

Metallica's promo shots for Load in the spring of 96 that ran in magazines, it was those shots of them in white wife beater shirts, black dress pants and sunglasses.

[@MetalPersonJ]

I was just about to type this.

[@Skycladatdusk78]

​@@MetalPersonJIt was truly an awful look and it's forever burned in my mind. Up to that point Metallica was always one of the cooler looking metal bands and when I saw those ads it was a big WTF moment.

[@MetalPersonJ]

@@Skycladatdusk78 I honestly wonder what the reaction would have been if they went black metal and bald. Even as a piss take. That would have been real lulz and confusion.

[@ryanjacobson2508]

​@@Skycladatdusk78They just looked like regular guys wearing every day clothes before AJFA.... That's when they started consciously going for more of an "image". Interesting that a lot of the thrash bands basically had a proto grunge vibe to their image, at least at certain phases of their career.

[@gamleskalle1]

Hated cover, logo and short hair. Worst was eyeliner, cigar and pimp clothes. Music was ok.

[@donhadfield2835]

Whenever this topic comes up, I immediately think of Rick Derringers second solo album Spring Fever where he is trying to do his best Leif Garrett or David Cassidy imitation.

[@ffsf739]

"They look like they've all got COVID or something" 😂😂😂😂😂 Martin's awesome!

[@briansf7012]

😂 Motley Crue Theater Of Pain. They went from Road Warrior in 83 to Circus clown's in 85.

[@michaelbaucom4019]

The standard ELP Love Beach citation at about 7:36

[@davidpousho4828]

Comparing Prince to the Scorps album made me laugh out loud. You guys are hilarious!

[@drewrose374]

I will talk The Godz!!! Love them!

[@Urlocallordandsavior]

8:57 Reminds me of a Pink Floyd album cover.

[@guillermomaldonado6277]

Grant's volume was way low today, otherwise another great, hilarious show guys! Thanks 🍺🤘

[@ericdinse5047]

Someday, the "Love Beach" album will turn out to be cool 🤣🤣🤣....JUST KIDDING 🤣

[@DarkSideOfTheMoule]

The Kevin Rowland My Beauty album cover is quite hard to look at (it's the one where he's wearing women's lingerie) but it was brave of him to do (and to perform at Reading Festival like that). He's never been afraid to be provocative. I'm not a fan of Elvis Costello's music but I actually thought his King of America cover looked quite good - I'm guessing the title is ironic and poking fun at rock star posturing (in the same way that Morrissey's 'Last of the international playboys' isn't trying to say he is a playboy).

[@PhilipBrinksma]

Not the best picture on that Alice album but its definitely one of his best albums from that period IMO.

[@LarryFleetwood8675]

Underrated period, I really like those so-called 'blackout' years musically so much more daring and interesting than the mundane metal stuff that came later.

[@SuperStrik9]

Ah crackhead Alice or I should I say freebase. Interesting period. Glad he survived it.

[@shyshift]

Utopia-Oops! Wrong Planet. Just noticed Roger Powell looks eerily like Roger Waters at the same time.

[@Intermentor]

I posted Virgin killer artwork when the topic in a group was "bad album covers" and now my personal page is in danger haha..ridicious

[@kkchome]

I would love to see a Godz ranking the albums show. I really love their first record, a stone cold classic from my mispent youth after first coming across it in 1982 or 1983.

[@RickNBacker]

Ian Anderson on the cover of Tull's "The Zealot Gene" - oof!!

[@zerodok]

The cover of Spring Fever by Rick Derringer looks like it could be a makeup or hair product advertisement in a women’s magazine.

[@DarkSideOfTheMoule]

Re: the Chicago Hot Streets album cover - I always wondered what the heck Peter Cetera and Daniel Seraphine were getting up to in the background. Peter Cetera seems to be lifting him off the ground but you can't be sure because James Pankow is in the way. Also, I dig Lee Lougnane's patchwork shirt - so 70s! I notice they all seem to be running in different directions like the Kinks on their State of Confusion album cover. Perhaps album covers featuring people running could be a future show.

[@inmyhouse11]

The Pack Is Back- Raven Zipper Catches Skin- Alice Cooper Only The Strong- Thor To Hell With the Devil- Stryper Silk and Steel- Giuffria Tropico- Pat Benatar Survival- Grand Funk Railroad Under Lock and Key-Dokken New York Dolls- S/T Rocka Rolla- Judas Priest Up the Dose- The Mentors

[@drummer78]

Regarding the mullet, some context is needed. While we identify it today as cheesy and ridiculous (think Billy Ray Cyrus), there was a moment from say 1983 to 1985 when it was identified with the Second British Invasion bands/New Wave (think John Taylor of Duran Duran in “The Reflex” video). Also, I think Bono’s mullet look on the “Unforgettable Fire” album was cooler than when they played dress up cowboys for the “Joshua Tree” and “Rattle and Hum”. I suppose the high water mark of the mullet as a New Wave/British accoutrement was the “Band Aid” video for “Do They Know It’s Christmas”. Fast forward a few years and the mullet begins to be replaced with teased Bon Jovi type hair…which was way worse. By the 90’s, the mullet is relegated to Canadian NHL players and ultimate irrelevance and ridicule. However, for 2-3 years there in the mid 80’s, it had power and prominence.

[@DarkSideOfTheMoule]

And Bowie pioneered it as Ziggy Stardust 10 years earlier and he was the coolest person on the planet!

[@daanthing6002]

The mullet never looked good. It was just invented by cool guys and taken over by posers.

[@drummer78]

@@daanthing6002I guess when I first got into music,many of the UK 80’s bands had band members with mullets. Back then, I didn’t even know it was called a mullet, it was just a hair style I identified as something mostly UK musicians wore Then again, my idea of cool in those days was Andy Taylor in a mullet wearing a Japanese rising star bandanna. The hairstyle did have its moment circa 1984.

[@Intermentor]

Black Sabbath looked great in 86

[@TheBerndude]

Hilarious episode. My pick would be Paul Simon’s 1972 self-titled album. 😂

[@briankellogg2751]

One that went glaringly missing: Two, Too... by Fireballet - YIKES!

[@philipmorrissey9142]

That Aerosmith cover looks like a wish version of New York Dolls debut

[@forestfloor2259]

John Baldry. Good to be alive (a goat)

[@SuperStrik9]

Scott Weiland on the final tour that he died on was one of the saddest things I've seen in music. The last place he should've been was on the road. I remember seeing a KZbin video and you could've picked a random person out of the audience and they would've done a better job. It was bad. REALLY bad.

[@ericrobertson2024]

I think I'll just paste photos of Patty Smyth or Lita Ford over my Ramones and Manowar albums.

[@Forgottenchannels]

Sorry Martin, the whole Slayer fitting into this with Show No Mercy kind of felt like one of your April Fools takes. Especially after Kerry officially went bald and covered himself with the douche rocket tribal tattoos. I find that era of Slayer to be some of the absolute best metal ever recorded hands down, no one has to agree, just my opinion, still love later Slayer as well...especially Divine Intervention. Goes downhill after that album for sure though. Just my thoughts.

[@gamleskalle1]

Suddenly I feel handsome😂❤

[@thestevec]

As an Aussie even for me Skyhooks fall away a fair bit once you get past the hits and well known songs. I love those but there is a definete you had to be there vibe about their music.

[@JoeMay-wc6nv]

Daryl Hall John Oates 1975 Album {silver cover art} looks like they have makeup on. Plus, on the inside cover John Oates is naked.

[@chadeckels]

Haha, looks like someone is hitting on Daryl, and Oates is like, "Quit talking to my man!", like a jealous lover.

[@colinabboud4314]

The beatles always look cool

[@ghostpasha9076]

Band photo inside of Rush 2112 is seriously goofy

[@AB-mt9nf]

Beach Boys preppy surfer look -63/-64 - Mike Love - the Hawai Golfer douche look. He was boss in -69 though with the beard, dance and kaftan. Shouldve stayed that Mike.

[@shyshift]

The Dregs:Unsung Heroes: Andy West has a full beard and so the photographer probably told him just don’t show your teeth aka keep your mouth shut. It’s still a bad cover though.

[@ericdinse5047]

The back cover of the New York Dolls album "In Too Much Too Soon", Johnny Thunders looks very unhealthy.

[@kf877]

The ELO album "On The Third Day" where they expose their navels is weird.

[@gamleskalle1]

Sabbaths 2 best albums look terrible, Paranoid and Sabotage æ. 😂

[@RickNBacker]

King's X look awful on the cover of the XV album....

[@georgemathie8123]

The worst and totally disturbing album covers is by the same band Fleetwood Mac's mr wonderful and English Rose no thank you Mick

[@LarryFleetwood8675]

I'll let him know next time I see him. ;-)

[@davej9228]

I think the word you're desperately trying not to use is gay

[@gamleskalle1]

Gay as an adjective is lazy and just bad English.