There are few bands with a force as strong as the monolithic Nickelback. Having persevered through everything an artist could encounter over their lengthy period of time at the top, their ambition to rip a killer live show and release high-standard hard rock albums is as palpable as the heaviness of their instrumentation.
The marks of a great rock band are dependability, consistency, and relevance – all of which are etched into the savvy mind of Nickelback as bass player Mike Kroeger outlines why it feels like Gen Zs don’t remember a time where there wasn’t a Nickelback song on the airwaves.
“Well, we initially developed a mentality that if we disappear for too long people will forget about us.”
“It became the mantra, ‘we gotta get back out there’. Over the last few years, we’ve realised that people can’t miss you if you never go away, so we try to go away for a little bit and create a little more urgency.”
Watch: Nickelback’s ‘Feed The Machine’
Whether it was ‘Photograph’, ‘How You Remind Me’, ‘If Everyone Cared’, or ‘Burn It To the Ground’, the diverse range of pedal-to-the-metal hard rock and arena sing-along balladry across Nickelback’s singles kept everyone engaged with their output.
Each single would be such a smash, however, that it caused them to never not be in the charts, as Kroeger recalls.
“We ran into a problem when we had to release a new single but we couldn’t, because we’d be in competition with ourselves.
“We’ve been in a few situations where we’ve had a single out there doing really well, and even though that single wasn’t done yet, we had to release the second one. Sometimes we would wait, but other times we’d have two singles fighting for a higher spot on the charts.”
“You can try to chase trends or be something that you’re not, or you can realise that this is a cycle – this will come back around and what you do will come back to favour. Rock will be back; it always has come back”
Having been such a prevailing force in the charts, the band almost feel a sense of satisfaction in that realm, and are moving on to new musical goals. While lead vocalist Chad Kroeger takes the reigns on the songwriting and general creative direction, Mike shows that the rest of the band are on the same page and aiming less and less for radio.
“We went into Feed The Machine with the idea that the most important idea is making a great rock record – radio singles were not the primary focus.”
“People say a lot of things about us, but I’ve never heard anyone complain about the show”
Mike provides an anecdotal insight into the state of rock music’s presence on the radio in this day and age. Coming from someone who’s been in the thick of it for almost 20 years, and has lived through its peaks and troughs, he has hopes for a resurgence in the future if history does repeat itself.
“I think that we realised no matter how we would write and produce our songs that, right now, radio is just not available for rock,” he notes. “Unfortunately when we did the album, there was just no chance.
“You’re spitting in the wind if you’re trying to get a rock song on the radio, so we just read the writing on the wall and said, ‘we’re not going to try to get on the radio, let’s just write the most solid rock record we can’.”
Watch: Nickelback’s ‘Photograph’
“As far as streaming and all that goes, everyone has a choice: you can fight against it, or go with it. We went along with it, even though it’s not that fair.”
“We’ve been doing this long enough that we’ve seen the cycle; there are cycles when you’re just playing the wrong kind of music. You can try to chase trends or be something that you’re not, or you can realise that this is a cycle, that this will come back around and what you do will come back to favour.
“Rock will be back; it always has come back”
Despite conflicting opinions, Nickelback have weathered years of public fickleness and ever-changing music tastes. Like all great rock bands, it’s Nickelback’s exceptional live show that has continued to captivate crowds and transcend generations of music lovers – a trait Kroeger is most proud of.
“There was a thriving music scene in Vancouver when we were beginning this,” he recalls, “but we got support because we just practiced slavishly to become a rock band that performed live very well.
“You can say a lot of things about this band, but come to the show. People say a lot of things about us but I’ve never heard anyone complain about the show.
“That’s just what we do – we’re a live rock band.”
Nickelback 2019 ‘Feed The Machine’ Australian Tour
Supported by Bad Wolves
Pre-sale begins 10am Wednesday, 10th October
Tickets on sale to general public 9am Thursday, 11th October
Wednesday, 13th February
Entertainment Centre, Brisbane (All Ages)
Tickets: Live Nation
Friday, 15th February
Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney (All Ages)
Tickets: Live Nation
Saturday, 16th February
Rod Laver Area, Melbourne (All Ages)
Tickets: Live Nation
