Tokio Hotel, oh my goodness, honestly, I was contemplating even writing this post because I knew one blog post could not hold in my love for them. Trust that it's a lot. It's more than a lot, actually, it's astronomical, it's.....it's just a huge amount.
For ten years, I have been a Tokio Hotel fan. Yes, I got bullied because I liked them and they looked 'girly' or 'weird' (TRY BEAUTIFUL AND AMAZING). Blah, blah, blah, most Americans just don't understand them, okay? Anyway, my point is is that at one point, if any of the boys had asked me to rip out my own heart and hand it to them, I would have, blindly, and happily, thanking them the entire time.
I'm a (mostly) reasonable adult now, and I do accept change. No, this isn't going to be one of those fangirl hissyfits because one of them cut his hair or anything. I love their look, I love that they completely change their look every few months. That's life, that's art, that's called being an artist and a creator. If you ask them not to change, you're asking them to stop being themselves. Hold up your copy of Schrei (or Scream if you got into them late and/or don't speak German). Okay, now hold it up to your copy of "Humanoid." Do those cds sound alike at all? BE HONEST. No, one is a natural progression of the other, showing growth, maturation and change.
Five years. Five years is how long I and many others have waited for a Tokio Hotel comeback. I understood that there was hardly any news from camp Tokio. I understood that the boys needed a break to live life and follow their paths. I understood that their sound would be radically different upon returning, since there was such a large gap between releases. So, tell me, just what the hell Kings of Suburbia is. Besides a disappointing mess that frankly just made my heart hurt. I can understand what direction they had in mind. I don't mind the electronic, I knew that they were going for a more electronic heavy sound. But why was there so much?
The vocals are all over the damn place, to the point where at times it's hard to see that this is in fact Bill Kaulitz singing. A few songs I looked to see who was featured because it didn't sound a thing even close to him, and was surprised to see that it was still fucking Bill! I can't hear Tom Kaulitz's signature guitar tone at all, it's been buried under synths. (I honestly almost typed 'Tomi' instead of 'Tom'. As in, the affectionate nickname I've called him for ten years, starting when I was nine and desperately in love with him. God, that's deeply programmed). And, Gorg Listing and Gustav Schafer's bass and drums have all but been replaced by machines that do not even begin to live up to their skills respectively. The only song that even barely smacks of real Tokio Hotel is "Run Run Run." Basically, this whole album is a letdown garnished with a giant scoop of 'What the fuck?'. I want my five years of breathless anticipation back.
Now, this is where I get totally despaired because it's, it's just so....so wrong. Tokio Hotel stood for being different, for being meaningful, for being yourself no matter what. Their video for "Girl Got a Gun is basically everything that is wrong with their new sound (I can't even bring myself to call it new Tokio Hotel, because simply, it's NOT). I liked the colorful people. They reminded me of My Chemical Romance (my absolute favorite people on this entire planet and universe and anywhere and everywhere else in the galaxy)'s video for "Na NaNaNa NaNaNaNa NaNaNaNaNa". I liked the outrageous outfits and the crazy hair and even the bare, most basic plotline. I did not like the eating of blurred out phallic items. I did not like the masturbating furry. I did not like the blurred out grotesque penis on the furry. I did not like the bouncing ping pong balls that represented ejaculation.
Their video for "Love Who Loves You Back,"? Terrible also. I'm all for the LGBTIQA support, I love it. I liked the fact that they had same sex couples in the video. I think they need more representation in modern music. I do not like the all out orgy that makes up the majority of the video. It's a common trapping artists from other countries make. It's a well known fact that sex sells. It's obvious. You do not need to out-sex and out-shock literally everyone else in the business WHEN YOU ALREADY HAVE A VERY SIZABLE FANBASE IN AMERICA! They already do! The only fanbase larger is their German one! You don't need to grab us, you've already got us! They gave in to the American popular society, completely forgetting that their fanbase is in the alternative and Goth inclined. Were we not good enough now that the boys are all grown up? Do they just want the nascent and shallow electronic and club crowds? Is that all they are now, a repetitive and hollow electronic and dubstep group?
Where is the band that held my hand and said it would be all right? Where is the group that took me away from all of the hurt and gave me a world all about happiness and freedom? Where is the band that championed against bullying and fought for kids to be accepted exactly as they are? Where is the band I learned German for? You think I'm kidding? Tokio Hotel ist alles für mich! Ich liebe sie, und sie brach mein herz!
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