Category: death

Boys Don’t Cry

I cried on Friday. And then on Saturday.
I am not the sort of person to cry very often. Mainly because I don’t have feelings. 
Even more I’m not the type to go around telling people that I cried.
The reason for my emotional episodes is the death of Adam ‘MCA’ Yauch of the Beastie Boys. I am not the sort of person to be too bothered by the deaths of celebrities. I can only remember one other celebrity death that really affected me (Elliott Smith, if you’re interested).
However, The Beastie Boys have a special meaning for me. Not only are they one of the best bands I have seen live but if it were not for them, my music tastes would be extremely narrow.
The first Beastie Boys song I heard was Sabotage on MTV when MTV used to actually play music. Not only did it have a kick arse video, but it combined rock and rap in a way that I hadn’t thought possible. Until that point I would pretty much refuse to listen to anything that was not rock music.
My tastes were extremely narrow and I was very close minded. After hearing Sabotage, I managed to find a copy of Some Old Bullshit in our local library which I took out and then somehow I acquired Ill Communication on tape shortly after (I think it might have been left in one of my dad’s company cars).
From that point on, I was hooked. Whenever I would get into a conversation about who the best rapper on the planet is, while others reel out Dre or whoever, I would list my favourites as Ad Rock, MCA and Mike D (followed later by Mos Def and Snoop) . This always seemed to shock people but I still maintain that they’re the best I’ve heard. Anyway, that’s probably a discussion for another time.
The Beasties have such a diverse back catalgoue, jumping from style to style effortlessly and at the same time brilliantly. Without them, I’d probably still be listening to Guns ‘n’ Roses and Def Leppard.
Whilst I get annoyed at mass ourpouring of grief over celebrity deaths, I don’t feel  hypocritical at crying at the death of one of the men who widened my horizons and probably had more of an impact on my musical tastes than anyone else.
I am still ashamed of crying on Saturday though, as it was when I was watching the Coldplay cover of ‘Fight For Your Right To Party.’ I hate Coldplay. With a passion. The fact that it got to me emotionally made me realise I must be getting old and liking old people music. Where has my youth gone? It’s enough to make a man cry. 

Why Ryan Dunn’s death is sad but not tragic.

Jackass Star Ryan Dunn died on Monday by driving his Porsche 911 at 130mph (almost three times the limit) into a tree whilst seemingly drunk.

After countless years of anti-drink driving and anti-speeding campaigning, there is no excuse for any adult human being to think that there is no risk involved to themselves and others and as such, to attempt to call this tragic – when it is frankly just idiotic – is in my mind unacceptable.

I am not attempting to claim that his death is sad in the way that the death of every human being is sad – the repercussions on their friends, family and dependants – because the death of any person is sad in these respects.

Dunn’s death instead is sad in the way that we as a society have encouraged him to behave in this manner. This is a man whose employment was through putting toy cars up his anus, from jumping off balconies or onto moving cars.

We (and I include myself in this) have been paying this man – and handsomely so, I would imagine – to take risks with his health and his life, and so it is only natural that he along with the rest of the Jackass team live their lives on the edge.

Whilst the act that killed Dunn and his companion was an idiotic one, some of the blame must lie with the culture that pays people to act in this way.