If The Next Great American Band is American Idol for groups, fans will be expecting the judges to follow a similar pattern. Some maybe scathing, others may be overly nice and one may be incomprehensible. We will see which one Goo Goo Doll John Reznik is, but he takes the artists' needs to heart.
John Rzeznick Opinionates The Next Great American Band
"I'm really just there giving my opinion on what's going on," said Rzeznik. "I'm trying to be as constructive and positive with them as possible. I just keep thinking to myself I want to handle these people the way I wish I had been handled, because I've had my ass handed to me 5,000 different ways by people that don't get me. So it's like I've been in a band for 20 years, I've produced a couple of albums. I've written a bunch of songs. I just want to help them get better if they can."
The Goo Goo Dolls worked their way up the indie/college music scene. Today talent shows like American Band are taking over as the launching pads for new musicians. "I think it's a natural response in the way the world is right now. The modern world of the future I keep calling it where you have internet and 5,000 television channels and movies on demand and video games and all these distractions."
Rzeznik himself wants to make sure viewers appreciate what each auditioning band brings to the table. "First thing I want to make clear is all these bands are real bands from their home towns. They're all out doing gigs. They're all out paying their dues already. They're just looking for a break. I think it's sort of like a modern twist on the battle of the bands and I think it's a very democratic sort of process. I can say whatever I want about somebody and the public's going to vote. The public's going to decide what they want and it's not a manufactured artist. It is what it is. They came as they were and got selected."
Ideally, the record labels themselves would help cultivate artists, but it appears to be in the hands of the bottom line, the consumers themselves. "I think that if artists were allowed more development from their record labels that you would actually see a lot more music progress into its own style. I listen to a lot of bands and I think, 'Wow, if they get to do two or three more albums, they'll find their own voice.' That's one thing that I really like about this. I was hesitant at first because it's 'Reality TV' but when they explained it, it's like this thing ain't rigged. These bands are coming in. They're going to do some of their own material and they're going to do covers. I was like, 'All right, I can see that. That's cool.' But I'm not going to bash anybody. I'm not going to bash anybody for doing what they do."
The Next Great American Band premieres Friday on Fox.
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