You remember Sublime, right? You know, the psuedo-reggae SoCal stoner jam rock that all the potheads were obsessed with back in high school. If so, you'll probably remember that frontman Bradley Nowell tragically died of a heroin overdose - but his death was about as predictable as Shannon Hoon's or Layne Staley's. He sang frequently about getting fucked up, and doing just that killed him.
That was the end of Sublime as we knew it, and the music world moved on to more imaginative party jams and a series of ill-conceived copycat bands that include the still-running Pepper, who openly admit to ripping off the Long Beach originals.
That should be the end of the Sublime story, but Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh, former bassist and drummer of the band, have decided to drop their pants and piss all over their own legacy by hiring a new singer. His name is Rome. How is he? You decide:
It has since become official that Sublime featuring Rome as the singer is coming back and making an appearance in October, at Cypress Hill’s Smoke Out Festival in San Bernardino, CA.
Promoter Chang Weisberg was beyond excited about adding the new version of Sublime to the show. “The last minute addition of our very special guests Sublime is crazy. We always strive to make our shows a once in a lifetime event. I know Bud, Eric and Rome can’t wait to tear up the Smoke Out stage.” Gotta hand it to Chang - he's a great guy, and he sells it well, but come on. This is like Meg White carrying on the White Stripes without Jack, or Nirvana getting a new singer. Some bands' formulation doesn't allow for history to be written over. Sublime was one of them.
Some will argue that Alice in Chains is back with a new singer, and people are loving that reunion, so why not Sublime? The difference is that Alice In Chains had two singers to begin with, and the one who died didn't write the bulk of the material. Bradley Nowell's voice, style and attitude were unique and shouldn't be tainted by the inferior croonings of a glorified karaoke singer.
