The Tag Project
The six guys in Hollywood Undead are literally partying like it’s 1999. Take their video for their oh-so-cleverly titled single, “Undead,” in which the crew of, uh, rappers, trash hotel rooms, bang porn stars, drink heavily and smoke weed, all while never letting their custom-made masks slip off their faces.
“It’s pretty much a story based around our lives in Hollywood and the social atmosphere we are in,” says H.U. member Da Kurlzz, calling CityBeat between tour stops. Asked later whether or not the band—which also includes members Deuce, J3T, Charlie Scene, Funny Man and J-Dog—really live the lifestyle they portray, he gets defensive. “Um, well, I mean, we definitely do. All we’re talking about in our music is the life we’ve lived.”
If Hollywood Undead’s blend of hard-rock, rap and heathenry sounds familiar, that’s because it is. Ask any self-respecting music fan past her mid-20s and she’ll tell you: The late ’90s were a fucked-up time. Back then, alternative radio, desperate for something to fill the void left behind by grunge, turned to a musical bastardization known as nü-metal. The genre, with bands like Korn, Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park, mixed metal and grunge riffs with hip-hop grooves and bad spelling, all to amazingly lucrative results.
Then, around the turn of the new millennium, people suddenly realized that nü-metal sucked ass. Some bands adapted and survived (Linkin Park, Slipknot), but most did not (heard a new Papa Roach or Alien Ant Farm record lately?). Nowadays, Fred Durst’s sex tape gets more downloads than Limp Bizkit’s new album.
And now Hollywood Undead are bringing it back. Who can blame them? Bands like Poison and Mötley Crüe are proof that, given time, a music genre (in this analogy, hair-metal) can at least be kitschy enough to enjoy again. The real question with H.U. is not about their originality, but, rather, is it too soon for nü-metal to be cool again?
Judging by H.U.’s success, the answer seems to be “no.” Since forming three years ago, they have garnered almost half a million friends on MySpace and seen their first album, Swan Songs, debut at No. 22 on the Billboard charts.
Their website and press bio are short on history and details. For some, this may add to their mystery, but to anyone who doesn’t shop at Hot Topic, it just masks (pun intended) something else entirely. They claim they all grew up on the meaner streets of Hollywood and L.A., that they’ve been to jail and that their gangsterism-laden raps are an extension of growing up rough. Yet, in the few interviews they’ve given, they offer few specific details.
When asked where the band is originally from, Da Kurlzz says L.A. and Hollywood. When asked what neighborhood specifically, he sternly replies, “Uh, L.A., Hollywood—just in that area for the most part.”
Poser theories aside, there’s still no doubting that they’re hitting a nerve with music fans. Shock sells, even if it’s possibly bullshit. The problem is that Hollywood Undead aren’t really that shocking. Whether it’s Kiss, Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, GG Allin, Eminem or even Elvis, we live in a world where if a band thinks of a schtick, chances are it’s been done. Masks? Seen ’em. Shocking lyrics? Heard ’em. The mix of music genres? Bought the T-shirt. What’s funny about H.U., and maybe the most fascinating, is that they actually think that they’re breaking new ground.
“I honestly do think that we bring a really new sound,” says Da Kurlzz. “I would like to say that we’re like a modern-day Beastie Boys. You know, with different styles in there. We personally don’t like to categorize it easily.”
What Hollywood Undead does have is a fanbase that will probably soon abandon them for the next flavor of the month. But you can bet your mask that, because they’re selling records and tickets, we’ll soon be hearing more bands like them. You can admire H.U.’s marketing skills, but something tells me they’re doing it all for the nookie.
Hollywood Undead play Saturday, Dec. 20, at SOMA. www.myspace.com/hollywoodundead.
