Is it worth it, and the vitriol? I think it is. Does it matter? Most certainly. I dont really give any more of a rat's arse what qualifies someone as a real fan, anymore than you or anyone else. I might not meet someone else's criteria as I only really got into them in about '88 which was not the very start. But honestly, fuck all that. I dont care. What I do care about is this band who grew up with me, who put Australian music on the world stage with charm, charisma, with more swagger than Jagger and Bono combined (this is only my opinion, keep in mind, but this is how it matters to me), who made really good solid music that has withstood time, music which has reached so many for so many years, a band who has stood against claims of selling out, of being a poor man's U2, who taught others who were to follow how to do it...the list goes on and on. This country watched them grow and watched them fold as Michael buckled under it all. And that is when INXS died. They've been gone for years. I honestly cannot even guess what is making the band agree to this. They've tossed around so many ideas of other singers to fill the lead role, but none have proved successful. Jon Stevens came awfully close. Too eerily close for anyone's comfort, but thankfully his coke riddled ego stopped that. I personally think he did a good job, but the horse he tried flogging had already died. So the remaining INXS went away for a while. People remembered the good music, and let them go. But now, it seems like a good idea to take an American, guy or girl (an EEO?) and film them audition for the sacred role. Tell me, how does one audition for what has to grow? A band is organic. Not artificial. This is not a weed we are growing under a hydro light. As musicians, they are too tight for an experienced and similar frontman to take over. Jon Stevens didn't fit. Why is Joe America going to work out? Does being American even matter? To a purist, yes. Look at Australian bands and Americans. Neither is better than the other, but each are different. What made all the successful ones work? They GREW together.
I'm rambling. Everything you have said is true. The new INXS will disappear soon enough. It is a tacky idea which is doomed to failure. Australia is certainly cringing at this revolting sell out by the remaining members. This turning the band into a product like Britney or The Spice Girls. So what remains? A fucking insult. And yeah, I dont like it when people who have passed on, who earned truckloads of respect, are not given it. It really gets on my tits. And I can promise not to watch. It is only only Foxtel here and I refuse to give Telstra more money. For $2 a day, I can pay for shitstained television, or I can sponsor 2 starving children. It's a no brainer.