Metal Injection

What if in some alternate universe, Korn decided in the late ’90s to cover the 1997 smash hit “MMMBop” by Hanson? The closest we’re ever gonna get is YouTuber Mac Glocky‘s interpretation, which is actually really good. From the instrumentation and use of effects, down to the dude’s incredible Jonathan Davis impersonation, this is the bounciest “Nü-Bop” cover we’ve ever heard.

Mirror 

The glorious ’90s seem a very long time ago now, don’t they?

And while bands such as Blur, Oasis and Pulp thrived in the Britpop melting pot, many forget it was also a highly fertile time for that long-forgotten era of the boy band. Just the merest mention of the term can get the brain pinging back to all manner of acts from Take That, Ronan Keating‘s Boyzone or Irish stablemates Westlife.

These groups were absolute giants back in the day, with fans across the nation hanging on their every word – but what about the lesser-known outfits of the era? Does the name Hanson ‘mmm’ mean anything to you? Do you remember them? How about 911?

Some of these male vocal groups were manufactured, some of them were genuine mates, but all had one thing in common – they wanted success. And success is what they got – for some briefly, for others a lifetime career. In fact, time has been extraordinarily kind to many of these bands, with their music still played on the radio today. For others, their sound is very much rooted in the decade that spawned them, and you rarely hear it anymore.

No matter, for when these boys shined at their brightest, the future didn’t matter. So crack open a Sunny Delight, grab a packet of Opal Fruits – NOT Starburst – and let’s have a little look at the lost boy bands of the ’90s.

MMMBop – it’s Hanson when they were young ( 

Daily Mirror)

Hanson – “Mmmbop, ba duba dop. Ba du bop, ba duba dop”

Who can forget the jaunty refrain of 1997’s deliciously silly MMMBop? Brothers Isaac, Taylor and Zac truly landed with an Mmmsplash. And lest we forget, the power pop trio were aged merely 16, 13 and 11 respectively at the time. The outfit from Tulsa, Oklahoma, never got anywhere near that initial smash, but still scored highly with Where’s The Love and I Will Come To You. As they shifted into adulthood, their star inevitably diminished. But they are still performing to this day – Mmmyes!

RadioInk

Hello again from Austin! After my less-than-stellar break into AI song production on Day 1 of Radio Ink‘s SXSW coverage, Thursday seemed like a great time to attend some industry mentoring sessions. Whether you’re interested in the airplay, streaming, marketing, artist, musician, management, legal, or technical side of the music industry, there was a session for you.

Michele Solomon, from SiriusXM/Pandora’s AMP platform gave guidance alongside Michael Star from Glassnote Records, Rose Campbell from SoundCloud, Judy Tent, Counselor at Law, Leslie Rosales of label HIGH STANDARDz, and Marielle Jade Te of Media Arts Lab.

Next was The Hollywood Activism session with legendary activist David Fenton, Hollywood icon Jane Fonda, and climate behavioral scientist Sweta Chakraborty sharing their secrets to creating real and meaningful change. The masterminds behind freeing Nelson Mandela, Fire Drill Fridays and We Don’t Have Time shared how to use media and communication to mobilize the public for meaningful action and policy progress.

One thing about this year’s SXSW: there’s always time for more AI talk.

With AI’s use in the media, particularly in news, a point of curiosity and concern, I sat in on a demo of Curio AI. Curio is pitched as an AI-powered news co-pilot providing a “trusted,” custom news experience. Curio already works with some of the biggest media publications including The WSJ, Economist, FT, Atlantic, Guardian, and WIRED to produce high-quality journalism that fits with “your” schedule, so it must be trustworthy, right?

Sheila Dang, a tech reporter at Reuters, took us through how the technology works and what impact it could have on both society and democracy. It was a look at how AI could not only be beneficial for news brands across the country but also how it could change the way we source and report news.

Finally, the day was capped off with The Recording Academy Texas Chapter’s famous annual SXSW Grammy Block Party on the banks of the Colorado River.

The party kicked off with an address by Taylor Hanson – yes, the ’90s Hanson Taylor Hanson – who is now President of the Board of the Texas GRAMMYs Chapter.

Wanda Adams, a Houston native and one of the most acclaimed Gospel singers of all time, and other Texas musicians and bands who have been nominated for GRAMMYs appeared and performed. Fresh off their acclaimed NPR Tiny Desk Performance, Austin-based BLK ODYSSY closed out the night.