You have to wonder if that was intentional or it was just a case of dudes accidentally discovering the same sound 20 years later

It was ridiculous, that’s all. These dudes had the expensive gear before they had the endorsements, though. I had the misfortune of catching a lot of aspiring post-grunge acts at this time (I was new in town and didn’t have much cash, and Knitting Factory LA shows were dirt cheap) as opening acts for more interesting bands, and they all had insanely expensive gear and absolutely nothing interesting to play with it. It was a strange time.

Yeah the Thrasher game had a great soundtrack! White Lines, Award Tour…damn. I love the grimy feel of that game.

I thought of Royal Blood for some reason.

A) Why does this matter? Why would it ever matter? It feels just as good to play a drop-D power chord on a PRS as it does to play anything else.

B) They were very likely sponsored. Musicians like free shit. Being at a point where PRS and Warwick want to give you free shit is a musicians dream.

Aggressive Inline was a strange brew altogether. 2002 was a weird growing pain year for extreme sports games, and probably its peak, though the game mechanics were morphing into the beginning of the end (I’d argue the last great hurrah was THUG2, then the minor Skate revival.) The open world conceit worked better in AI than in THPS4, I think. Hadn’t seen this cover in nearly two decades and boy oh boy is it ’02.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/76/Aggressive_Inline_Coverart.png

Also, side note: you know what also had a bomb soundtrack? Thrasher: Skate and Destroy. So good.

viagra boys intense similarity to the bloodhound gang might actually strike a chord with him.

Aggressive Inline was awesome, but the soundtrack was wild. You had Eric B & Rakim, The Pharcyde, and Black Sheep on there with Saliva, Hoobastank, Sublime, and Reel Big Fish. Definitely a strange brew compared to what the Tony Hawk and Dave Mirra games were doing.

I think you meant “that new Viagra Boys album”

I guess since he doesn’t seem to be all that crazy about “The Reason” I can say how much I can’t stand that song. Never has a ballad felt. so. slow.

This was the era when guitarists would have a $3000 Paul Reed Smith guitar to play drop-D power chords, and bassists would have a $3000 Warwick or Michael Tobias Designs bass to play root notes. Hoobastank, who are from a rich L.A. suburb, were particularly egregious about this.