During the Hank Williams III show at First Avenue on Saturday night, I couldn’t stop thinking about possible parallels the foul-mouthed grandson of a country music legend could potentially have with Brett Favre. Williams splits his shows into two different sets, the first hour he plays a rowdy brand of hillbilly country that pays tribute to the country legends of old while mixing in elements of punk rock. The second hour he ditches the stand-up bass, banjo, and steel guitar, unbraids his mid-back length hair, and headbangs to death metal anthems that send country fans running for the exits and metal fans rushing the stage.
Hank doesn’t care that some fans of his country music can’t stomach the metal portion of his show. He also doesn’t care that he makes his metal fans wait through the country set before unleashing the heavy guitars and double-bass drum pounding. For much of his career, Favre didn’t seem to mind crossing over two different styles either. He embraced his heavy metal side: Making risky throws into double and triple coverage, flinging underhand pass as he’s inches away from being sacked, and launching the 50-yard bomb when a receiver may have been more open underneath. He also showed a country side: Throwing conservative slants and screens with precision, involving his team’s tight ends to pick apart coverages designed to eliminate his downfield threat, and speaking frequently about sitting on his lawn tractor in Mississippi.
Unlike Hank III, however, it seems that Favre has given up his wild heavy metal side and is content with the more conservative country side. We haven’t seen heavy metal Favre since a Nov. 29, 2007, nationally televised game against Dallas. Anxious to show a prime time audience he could still win games with his arm alone, heavy metal Favre started chucking 50-yard bombs into double and triple coverage, ignoring the country-style of play that led the Packers to a 9-1 start. Favre finished 5-for-14 with no TDs and two interceptions before mercifully leaving with an injury in the second quarter. Aaron Rodgers couldn’t clean up Favre’s mess and the Packers lost 27-17.
Country-music Favre led the Vikings to a 27-10 win over the Lions on Sunday, at the Metro— err, I mean Mall of American Field, improving the Vikes to 8-1. Country music Favre joined a run-dominating Vikings team and has provided the passing attack to make the Vikings a Super Bowl contender. If Favre continues to embrace his country side by handing off to Adrian Peterson, only throwing to receivers that are open, and picking the right time for the 50-yard bomb, this team might make a Super Bowl run. But if Favre gets the urge to dust off his heavy metal side again and the Vikes have to try and overcome interceptions and bad decisions, Minnesotans will start leaping off the No. 4 bandwagon faster than country fans scurrying for the doors before Hank III’s heavy metal set.
Besides, it’s not like Favre’s or Hank III’s country side is boring. Favre is putting up MVP numbers and finished with 344 yards on Sunday. Hank III’s country set is louder than most rock concerts and would rival a hip-hop show in number of swear words and drug references. The difference between the two is Favre has realized (at least I think he has) he just can’t do the heavy metal Favre any more. He’s content, and even happy, to stick with country Favre. Hank III still wants to play both country and heavy metal, even though he may be better served by pulling a Favre and picking one genre and sticking to it.
8 Reader Comments
9:30 am
Y’know, if the Vikings were 1-7 everyone would be saying Favre sucks.
Here’s my take on game: If the Vikings don’t win the Super Bowl this year, they’d better put the whole team out to pasture. Because this is the only year they’re going to get a shot at it like this. I can almost guarantee you Favre won’t play so splendidly next season.
9:38 am
Re: Hank 3.0.
There has always been a rowdy side to country music. Even Hank Jr. has recorded songs like ZZ Top’s “La Grange.” But the line between rock and country really started to blur in the ’90s. And, just like rock, it’s become more about the “flash” and less about the “talent.”
9:38 am
At least Hank III hasn’t quit drugs ala Favre.
10:03 am
It’s still “at the Metrodome.” But “on the MOA field” is also correct.
10:33 am
I like Hank III but just have one album, and I think it doesn’t have any of this heavy metal you speak of. Is it country-ish heavy metal? Like the “thrash grass” I enjoy (Avett Brothers being my favorite example of that style)???
10:59 am
He plays about 15 minutes of “thrash grass” at his shows to transition from the country to the metal. But it’s all out metal once the banjo, stand-up bass and steel guitar are taken out. I think he wants to put out a thrash grass type of record one day, but is having trouble convincing his label to put it out.
2:55 pm
Any suggestion that Brett Favre is much, much better than Gus Frerotte, Tarvaris Jackson, Sage Rosenfels, or John David Booty is a suggestion that the Childress-era Vikings have been negligent at the quarterback position for years.
That would be nonsense, wouldn’t it?
5:07 pm
Also, under Tice, Burns …