Yahoo! is reporting that Velvet Revolver, who are scheduled to induct Van Halen into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 12, is now supposedly going to perform in the band’s place at the ceremony. I don’t know how true that is yet, so it seems premature to rant about it, as Entertainment Weekly’s PopWatch blog did this morning. But this bit of news, which closely followed the press release I got last night announcing this year’s presenters, begs the question: What does Velvet Revolver have to do with Van Halen? For that matter, what does Eddie Vedder have to do with R.E.M., the band he’ll be inducting?

Couldn’t each band be presented/inducted/whatever you want to call it by someone that makes some kind of sense? A person or act with at least some kind of thematic tie to the inductee? Alex Chilton for R.E.M., for instance? Eddie Money for the Ronettes, instead of Keith Richards? Jay-Z is slated to induct Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and Zack de la Rocha is slated to do the honors for Patti Smith. Both of those make a certain kind of sense. I can see Slash paying tribute to Eddie Van Halen, but you know, when I think “Velvet Revolver,” I don’t automatically think “Van Halen.”

Of course, I pretty much never think of Velvet Revolver. They’re better than Army of Anyone, I guess, but I’ll take the late, lamented Audioslave over Scott Weiland and company any day. Even the new Guns N’ Roses song, “Better,” which is kinda horrible, is more memorable than anything off of Contraband. But that’s a post for another day. The most troubling aspect of this news, for now, is the implication that Velvet Revolver might one day be inducted into the Hall. Now that’s scary.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 2nd, 2007 at 7:16 pm and is filed under Music Rants. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.