Okay, i’m back finally, so here’s another comic (make sure you scroll all the way down) and a Happy New Year to all of y’all. And yes, i realize that the comic’s a narrow section of the landscape, but there’s only so many hours in the week and my brain hurts from cramming dozens of low-percentage music references into one comic (see the alt-text for assistance). Anyway, thanks again for readin’ in ’09, and i promise more walls of text to come in whatever year this is now.
And thanks again for all the comments on the christmas comic, i was definitely not expecting that. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it, despite the fact that it was 2500 words crammed into like three panels, so that was a pretty good xmas present right there. Really enjoyed the holidays this year.
[administrative:]
Apologies to anyone who’s left a comment on the blog and not had it show up; sometimes comments get arbitrarily flagged as spam for no reason that i can determine and i don’t find them in the spam bin until a couple days later. Overzealous spam filters; please bear with us as we savagely whip those responsible.
Cheeeeeers,
wr
Virus Comix News 
January 5, 2010 at 11:06 pm
Love the drawing. Dislike the text and premise.
January 5, 2010 at 11:27 pm
I love this though I had to cheat to get several. I live in town number nine ^^ Proudly so. ^^
January 5, 2010 at 11:39 pm
I have to assume the Tom Waits town where I live is a rustic (and frankly a little creepy from the outside) Hooverville in the middle of that forested area, where few people visit anymore and fewer really go inside. Those that do, though, are delighted with how homey it is in there.
January 5, 2010 at 11:50 pm
Awesome concept W, well executed and probably only funny if you’re 23-32 or something.
Always look forward to your work.
Love from city #10.
January 6, 2010 at 12:04 am
I live in Seattle. Sadly you nailed it.
Keep up the fine work.
January 6, 2010 at 12:50 am
Great comic like usual. So you’re an Oasis fan?
And wait, isn’t this comic only about music? Do the bands correspond with certain cities or something too?
January 6, 2010 at 1:15 am
So is 11 a specific band, or just hipsters in general?
January 6, 2010 at 1:39 am
“Lord Bono and his Pals”…heehee. I like U2, and true, Bono does a lot of good in the world, but yeah, he has an ego the size of a stadium.
January 6, 2010 at 1:43 am
Cool concept, cool drawing. The Gaping Maw of Hell, the Penis Building, and the Other Penis Building–nice. I lol’d.
January 6, 2010 at 2:12 am
I thought the musical cities may correspond with actual cities too, and at first that 3 was my hometown (Edmonton). but then I realized five others related to Edmonton too:P
January 6, 2010 at 2:32 am
Ahh I got like half of them. I guessed correctly: Nickelback, Creed, QOTSA, Rush, U2, Radiohead, Blur, the Beatles and Coldplay. But Can’t believe I missed the Foo Fighters, and FYI I LIKE QOTSA! Okay really just Songs For The Deaf, that album kicks ass.
January 6, 2010 at 3:11 am
I live in 1. Though the entire country could be classified as 1.
January 6, 2010 at 3:31 am
Nice one Winston. BUT! You need a viewer that has a magnifying glass tool so people with smaller monitors can zoom in to see the fine detail, ie the text on the signs etc. I’m using a 19″ widescreen LCD at 1440×900 and I can’t help but think I’m missing out on some of the fun.
January 6, 2010 at 3:34 am
Also! You could turn this one into a board game.
January 6, 2010 at 3:35 am
Thank you for having the balls to make fun of U2. I was beginning to think I was the only one who didn’t hate them (also, I feel alone in not liking the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but who knows). I happen to live unashamedly in 14. I got the entire remastered collection for Christmas, and I was ridiculously excited. I do connect with it on a personal level, and I try to ignore the assholes who say they’re fans because they like “Hey Jude,” and can’t name any other song. Overall, great comic. I enjoyed some of the references in there, particularly the elephant in White Stripes city.
January 6, 2010 at 4:06 am
Greetings from Megadon City (a/k/a known as #7) . . . now stay off our lawns!
January 6, 2010 at 4:12 am
Hey, don’t be shy, you’re gonna love it up here in Stripeyville!
Though I do, without embarassment or hesitation of any kind, often visit you guys down in Number Seventeen. Say what you will about Oasis – I’m sure most do – them fellas know how to write a hook.
Great art as always, keep up the good work.
January 6, 2010 at 4:25 am
Wow. First rate, top drawer. Kudos from the Pleasure Dome, somewhere near the river Alph.
January 6, 2010 at 4:48 am
This one took me quite a while to fully take in. I can relate to the descriptions of towns you provide, it’s pretty accurate, and I found myself saying “Yeah! I know THAT town!” quite a bit.
I’d like to tell myself I live in the (SECRET) secluded, beautiful village, but I’m probably in one of the flashy, highly-populated locales.
Love the N*ck*lb*ck town, by the way. >_>
January 6, 2010 at 4:49 am
Dammit I want to live in #2!
January 6, 2010 at 5:07 am
I know of quite a few out of the way little towns that locals don’t want to become popular. And I keep them secret because I also know a few that did become the ‘it’ thing and now has the rustic charm of a Run-down Theme Park.
One of them is up high in the mountains and has fog and forest plantations and wild horses that no one knows the origin of. Another one has uniquely South African landscape, a garden filled with Cement statues made by a insane woman. And the smartest man I know. He dropped out of his Stock market job to run a micro-brewery that also sells goats cheese and venison salami.
January 6, 2010 at 5:15 am
This was so much fun to read and guess… Its like a puzzle! I could figure out a few.
I really really like the De Stijl style facade and elephant reference in #2. Exactly how a white stripes town may look!
Your artwork is brilliant, Sir!
One question if you don’t mind: How much do you research and work on an idea before drawing it out finally?
January 6, 2010 at 5:40 am
#17 made me smile enough to leave a comment. Great work.
January 6, 2010 at 5:43 am
While I have been a fan of Subnormality for going on 3 years, I have an issue with this premise.
While i absolutely adored art, and heartily agree that some bands are far too over-rated, especially in our great frozen northern world-juniors-losing country, I take issue with your take on the Beatles.
They have depth because they were brilliant. They had breadth because they had the vision to pioneer a new wave of great music.
Just because they have alot of songs, is no reason to assume that it’s impossible to connect with them on a personal level. To feel what they felt when writing a song does that.
January 6, 2010 at 5:45 am
Out of all of those I would live mostly in town No. 9 and have a summer home in town 17. Okay I am off to listen to What’s the story morning glory? At an obscene volume now.
Town 7 you could easily change for any prog-rock/prog-metal band. Dream Theater, Dixie Dregs etc.
“I hitched a ride with my soul
By the side of the road
Just as the sky turned black
I took a walk with my fame
Down memory lane
I never did find my way back
You know that I gotta say time’s slipping away
And what will it hold for me
What am I gonna do while I’m looking at you
You’re standing ignoring me
I thought that I heard someone say now
There’s no time for running away now
Hey now! Hey now!”
Awesome
January 6, 2010 at 6:02 am
15 = The Stone Roses?
January 6, 2010 at 6:04 am
Nevermind, yeah, definitely Stone Roses.
January 6, 2010 at 6:14 am
Pssh! Seattle (and the Foo Fighters) are still cool!
January 6, 2010 at 9:16 am
In number 13 the signs are titles to songs by Blur.
January 6, 2010 at 11:07 am
Home for after the holidays! Back to work!
January 6, 2010 at 12:28 pm
http://www.youtubedoubler.com/?video1=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fv%2FaEiWoWoM4R0&start1=0&video2=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DNXeWTf1gUIo&start2=
January 6, 2010 at 1:12 pm
I must live in a foreign country then.
January 6, 2010 at 2:03 pm
I, too, must live in a different country. That, or the road behind number 7 goes past a lot more cities.
I guess it’s because I have little or no connection to any of the bands that I don’t particularly like this one.
The Christmas-Eve comic though was amazing; both the back-story and the dry, short punchline in the end. Great writing.
January 6, 2010 at 2:09 pm
I mostly agree with this comic and I guessed most of the bands you alluded to. Actually, the fact that I could guess many of these bands even before reading the text is evidence of your competence as an artist.
Just one issue: The “solution” is in the mouseover text, which means many people will miss it. Why you wanted to hide an integral part of your comic is beyond me.
On another note, I would have liked the comic to include more types of bands or even more genres of music, but I guess then it would have to be huge…
(Also as Whitenoise said, why can’t one connect with The Beatles? Their songs are legendary!)
January 6, 2010 at 2:25 pm
Just throwing my $0.02 in here but I am a long-time resident of city #6.
January 6, 2010 at 2:36 pm
so true… though i’m sad that planet yellow turned to planet yellow, it was a good resort back at the day. but u always live in the village, whether u notice it or not.
January 6, 2010 at 2:48 pm
the mouseover text became for me the first thing to look at – *subnormality-trained 😉 I like it very much, very inspiring.
I guess for technical reasons resolution can´t be higher – a pity, as always
January 6, 2010 at 3:25 pm
PS: for #12 I advise “der Katalog – German edition” – the original pronunciation makes all the difference
January 6, 2010 at 3:42 pm
Lovely chart Winston- the only way I can see you drawing this is on a very large floor with very short pencils and a perplexed infant’s face.
Good jobs!
January 6, 2010 at 4:24 pm
Hi: No, it’s not a commentary on any specific cities (though parallels could inevitably be drawn i’m sure…)
Ben: Oh, It’s a great album for sure. They’re good, don’t get me wrong.
Whitenoise: Huge beatles fan. Huge. Grew up with their music. Poster on my wall. But they’re of my parents’ era, not mine, so i’ll never love them quiiiite to the same extent as i love #s 9 and 17, for instance. It has nothing to do with the quality or message of the actual music, it’s just how “close” i do or do not feel to a particular artist in time and space (if it’s even worth measuring that; maybe it’s not. Hmmm…This is why i like feedback, ’cause now you’ve got me thinking…). Has no effect on the impact of the art itself. Beatles will still be influencing people 50 years from now, and there’s not many bands you can say that about (especially not you, #3).
Chad, nrst: Like i said, i realize that this is but a section of the overall landscape. If it encapsulated everything it would be eight times the size and not even i am crazy enough to take that on.
January 6, 2010 at 4:59 pm
You like Oasis.
Hey, that sounds like an Anal Cunt song title.
January 6, 2010 at 5:02 pm
My town isn’t here, it’s old, and has construction problems everywhere, and some of the original buildings had to be refurbished, and others are only decorative these days, while the other business is conducted in other buildings. But it’s still the best town in the world.
(Rolling Stones for life! Even though they’re a bunch of perverted, drug addled geriatrics, they’re my perverted, drug addled geriatrics.)
There are some groups I wish you did towns for, but this was a joy. Rushland‘s a nice place, but there are not nearly enough women.
January 6, 2010 at 5:10 pm
I got 10 of these right!!!! This is awesome!!!!
January 6, 2010 at 5:12 pm
By the way, thank you for finally mocking QOTSA, they’re souless, bereft of tune, and I have absolutely no explanation to their popularity with critics. They’re a glorified bar band.
January 6, 2010 at 5:12 pm
PS There are no female artists on this you jerk! You could have at least put the Dixie Chicks! Actually I don’t think that would fit at all, I’m just throwing it out there. There must be SOME bands with women for this chart..?
January 6, 2010 at 5:15 pm
PS George QOTSA have some really good songs. Some of the guitar playing is pretty original and so on, you just have to sift through. I like the Era Vulgaris album.
January 6, 2010 at 5:28 pm
We just got a new mayor in Seattle
January 6, 2010 at 5:29 pm
Anna, I listened to Rated R all the way through, and some other singles from various albums, but I just don’t get the appeal. He’s just not a good singer, and his voice is very annoying, but not in a good way. Bob Dylan has an annoying voice, but in a good way, the QOTSA guy doesn’t.
Also, I know all of them, being a huge music nerd (aka, asshole), but I have no idea what 1, 9, and 12 are… until I held down the mouse. Blur was 13, I thought it’d be Nirvana with the “Entertain Me” sign (here we are now/entertain us), and the coffee signs.
January 6, 2010 at 5:34 pm
Although, Blur does make sense with perspective, so that’s where you get part of your pseudonym.
January 6, 2010 at 5:50 pm
The Hives town just turned my crappy morning around. My hat is off to you, sir – bravo.
January 6, 2010 at 6:06 pm
Interesting premise, but on my tiny display I’m not a fan of having to read the description and then scroll around to find the city. It’s not a problem with your design, though, as I can’t see this working in any other format.
Also, I must admit I’m not that into music so most of this comic was wasted on me.
One other thing, the SUBNORMALITY link (http://www.viruscomix.com/subnormality.html) is still linking to the December 22nd comic.
Nice job.
January 6, 2010 at 6:58 pm
Deke: HA! Totally.
Anna: I know, QOTSA are half-decent, they just have a disproportionate amount of media attention. Not their fault i guess. And yeah, there ought to be more female acts for sure, i’m the first to admit that. There were at least a couple i wanted to include but they were too hard to turn into cities ’cause they had no easily-recognizable iconography associated with them.
J: Try ctrl+F5, your browser is probably just displaying last week’s version of the site. I’ve had that problem myself more than once.
January 6, 2010 at 7:34 pm
Too bad that it’s all set in the past ;/ – 13 went monkeys, 9 changed its scenery from drones to droning and 6 moved from desert to smoky pubs. only 15 stays the same old dead self.
i love my hipster post rock 😛
January 6, 2010 at 7:39 pm
This comic was so much fun! I don’t usually bother to comment, though I do consistently enjoy ‘Subnormality,’ but this one was extra engaging. It made me laugh out loud, both in amusement and in agreement.
January 6, 2010 at 8:00 pm
First time commenter here. Just wanted to say that I’m a resident of City 17, and damn proud of it. Kudos to you for the cool strip, keep up the good work.
January 6, 2010 at 8:30 pm
As a classical music buff, I should note that I don’t appear anywhere on this map…in case anybody cared.
I’ve been trying to have constructive criticism for all of your new comics, but I really don’t have anything to say about this one, mostly because the humour goes right over my head. Since I very rarely listen to music recorded after the 1950s (Queen, The Eagles, and The Beatles being notable exceptions) I don’t get any of the references – which is more my problem than a fault of your own, but makes it hard to comment. So I’ll just say that your eye for detail is brilliant as always, and I’m sure there are people that would like to see this sold as a print (speaking of prints, are you ever planning to publish The Line as one? Because I would definitely buy that).
January 6, 2010 at 8:41 pm
When I left Queens they got a little boring.
Listen to my new band Them Crooked Vultures if you crave some good rock.
January 6, 2010 at 9:26 pm
The stone roses one rings too true; also, the art is incredible
January 6, 2010 at 9:37 pm
Thanks for the fix! Darn cache.
January 6, 2010 at 9:52 pm
Coldplay city was good, but is starting to suck lately (like Oasis), I agree with you about Radiohead, but I know lots of young people who likes Rush, all the other bands are mediocre or even worst, I´ve liked this comic, great work!
November 12, 2011 at 10:40 pm
the beatles? Mediocre?
January 6, 2010 at 10:01 pm
I love your work. Intelligence and talent are a fabulous mix.
January 6, 2010 at 10:14 pm
I’m probably a town 14 citizen, but I’m afraid I didn’t warm to the premise of this comic.
I understand that you hate NIckleback…
though I’m still not really sure how anyone could like Oasis…
…but I like it much more when your comics talk about stuff you/we love, more than about stuff you/we hate.
sorry if I’ve offeneded anyone.
January 6, 2010 at 10:20 pm
Oasis sucks! WTF man, I thought you were cool!
January 6, 2010 at 10:51 pm
I hate Oasis myself, I’d rather die than live in Oasisvile but I’ll admit they’re first two albums worked, and at least your not a total fuckhunter about it, and make articles that say “Oasis is better than the Beatles.”
January 7, 2010 at 12:40 am
First time commenter, been reading since mid ’09. I love comics like this that manifest things into other things. The few people on here who are offput by the commentary need to remember that this is a comic not a music zine or anything. He’s allowed to have an objective opinion and express it, even if it’s one you don’t share.
My apartment is in 10 but I hang out and socialize in 9 and 6. I can’t leave 10 because I’m in love with the weather; cold and gray but oh so pretty with all the metal and odd buildings. I usually hit up 6 for lunch, maybe play the rusty pinball machine there, but it gets boring pretty quick so I inevitably end up at 9 where i can wear my black t-shirt and not be ridiculed.
January 7, 2010 at 12:59 am
Trenino: This WAS about stuff i love, i assure you…
msr: When did I say i was cool..?
George: No, i definitely wouldn’t make that mistake. Is that article satirical?? I can’t tell, and i’m not sure i even want to know the answer.
Christopher: I think i spent all of 2009 in #9.
January 7, 2010 at 3:03 am
Loved the comic this week.
If 11 is hipsters, as LafinJack suggested, I guess I would live there, but I would live in #10, commute to work at #12, go day-tripping at #13, and visit #15 to ponder at what would have been.
And Winston, man, Oasis? Really? The first two albums were great but… anyways, I’m gonna recommend Wild Beasts. They made a killer album last year and are from England.
Cheers from New Jersey.
January 7, 2010 at 3:48 am
@Anna (“PS There are no female artists on this you jerk! You could have at least put the Dixie Chicks! Actually I don’t think that would fit at all, I’m just throwing it out there. There must be SOME bands with women for this chart..?”)
Wow, Meg White really doesn’t get any respect, does she?
January 7, 2010 at 4:45 am
If it were me, #11 would be Elbow.
You do extremely good work. I’ve shared your comics with many of my friends, and they’re all blown away. Keep up the good work – you’re a rare gem in a cacophony of webcomics.
– Me, and the rest of the Leavers.
January 7, 2010 at 5:34 am
It’s too bad I don’t listen to alt-rock. I totally don’t know anything about these bands 😦
January 7, 2010 at 6:35 am
nickelback, really?
January 7, 2010 at 6:39 am
WR: Oh I know there was love. But not enough. I demand more love.
and pickles.
and a town for Pink Floyd, maybe.
January 7, 2010 at 6:45 am
Funny because, as soon as it loaded on my screen, I saw town #2 and thought “White Stripes” before I saw the title of the comic or the premise.
January 7, 2010 at 7:05 am
Winston:
If my future children even say the words nickel, back, good, or listen to, in the same sentence, they will be put out of their misery swiftly and no judge on this earth will deign to convict me.
Here’s to hoping they fade into obscurity by the end of 2010 or sooner.
January 7, 2010 at 10:27 am
Resident of City 8 here, and I say with authority, having walked its nameless streets everyday, that it is definitely not soulless.
January 7, 2010 at 12:50 pm
I live, quite literally in #17. The Arndale is a lovely touch Winston 🙂
January 7, 2010 at 5:53 pm
While I’m disappointed by a total lack of Hip Hop (and/or bands like Autechre, Underworld, Yello and others that have been around for ages now) I can at least relate to NIN, Radiohead and Kraftwerk…
np: Matias Aguayo – Ritmo Juarez (Ay Ay Ay)
January 7, 2010 at 8:00 pm
@Winston: Good to hear you’re not hating on the Beatles, although it did kind of come off that way in the comic. I mean, in my experience, the Beatles are how children get introduced to rock and roll. Like you, I’m still a huge fan.
January 7, 2010 at 8:12 pm
DIdn’t get it at all.
No “my” cities on the map (classic music, dark ambient).
Can’t associate cities with any styles/bands – they don’t match the impressions I had.
January 7, 2010 at 9:34 pm
Loved the signs of town Eleven.
January 7, 2010 at 9:55 pm
Totally live in number #10. I already do, you know how cold Toronto gets.
January 7, 2010 at 10:31 pm
Damned good comic.
January 8, 2010 at 12:23 am
[…] Musical Wheres Okay, i’m back finally, so here’s another comic (make sure you scroll all the way down) and a Happy New […] […]
January 8, 2010 at 1:23 am
Great comic, as usual.
Born and raised in #7, and hopefully will die there. If there’s a Goddess above, they’ll shoot my ashes out of a canon to the opening bars of Tom Sawyer.
January 8, 2010 at 3:09 am
#3 Must be Calgary, no?
January 8, 2010 at 12:07 pm
Number 11 is Cake/Pet Shop Boys, and keep the Fuck out. We don’t need ya nor wantcha.
January 8, 2010 at 12:10 pm
Proud resident here in number 12, but more Vangelis/JM Jarre than craftwerk… certainly the foundations of the entire edifice anyway.
January 8, 2010 at 3:50 pm
Proud to say that I appear to have a vacation home in a number of the cities.
I think the Decemberists live in 11. But, I wonder, where is the town of small, yet totally unpretentious indie bands? And which one is Punk and Post-Punk?
The Rush/Prog rock reference in 7 is perfect (and I’ve got a vacation home there, too, but I must admit to not changing the decor there since 1989).
I also liked the dual references to U-2.
January 8, 2010 at 4:35 pm
Personally I somehow figured the cities to be the genres of music the performers “represent”, I guess that could work…
I’ve always lived in City 9, yet going to trips to other places is a regular activity.
Remember people: All cities have the monotonous rows of houses alinged to unison, but spend enough time there and you’ll learn to know those cafes and joints that appeal to Your tastes.
January 8, 2010 at 6:06 pm
Why is big ben – a famous london landmark – in the Beatles city when they are famously from Liverpool?
January 8, 2010 at 6:10 pm
So…not to familiar with Radiohead, but does city #10 include Nightwish, Sonata Arctica, and various other bands from Finland or Greenland or whathaveyou that other people think “sound[s] cool but a little pretentious”? ‘Cuz that’s where I live, then. Brrrr.
January 8, 2010 at 7:52 pm
My town isn’t on there, but I’ll describe it for you:
“All the streets are named after black people, and you hear they have a black mayor, but when you get there, you see nothing but white tourists on the streets.”
I live in Canadian Hip-Hop City. I love it, but I just wish there were more black artists.
January 8, 2010 at 8:53 pm
@LightHorsemen: Wait, that’s Cake? I doubt it, because I’m a Cake fan, and I’ve never been known for any cutting-edge musical tastes.
January 8, 2010 at 10:24 pm
It’s funny how in this comic Rowntree addresses himself in 3rd person.
@Chicago Joe: Oh no no no. The Power Metal country is a fortified remote island where refugees from the fall of Heavy Metal reside, convinced that the rest of the musical landscape degraded into a barbarian-ravaged wasteland. Because of it’s isolation, that country is locked in medieval stasis.
I lived in the cold city as a teen. Now I reside in an amazing mountain town in the middle of the forest. I heard a lot about the place, but in my first visit I was turned off by the steep paths, creepy forest and poor conditions. Then they replaced the handful of huts with some spectacular buildings and installed cable-cars, a sport facility and a HUGE ball pool, which resulted in a great tourist flock which I was a part of. I don’t care about all the tourists, this town is better off with proper infrastructure.
Many complain it’s an overrated, useless hole-turned-tourist attraction in an inhospitable environment, but fuck them, this town is a work of a genius.
January 9, 2010 at 4:03 am
Great comic, I got the White Stripes and the other obvious ones. When I saw the elephant in a cage I thought of Cage The Elephant as well.
January 9, 2010 at 9:37 am
It’s nice living in a geographically isolated location. Everyone is friendly here. It’s not as depressing here as some people make it out to be.
Fantastic comic by the way.
January 9, 2010 at 12:01 pm
nicotine valium vicodine marijuana ecstasy and alcohol
😉 hehehe
kkkkkk-K!!!
January 9, 2010 at 2:23 pm
I swear number 10 was super furry animals…
January 9, 2010 at 4:44 pm
I wish I was interested in music enough to get this comic.
January 9, 2010 at 6:46 pm
Got a fair few of them for someone who isn’t entirely hot on music. First CD album I owned was from City 17. (Neither the first album I owned, nor the first album I brought are on the map. Which is probably a good thing. City 17 remains in my playlist*, neither of the others do.)
Don’t think I’ve ever really settled in either city, which is perhaps due to the fact I don’t listen to a whole amount of music. My MP3 collection clocks in at just under 2k tracks for example, so I tend to end up moving between them all to ensure variety. While I’ll sometimes have a ‘favourite’ band, it usually changes quite quickly, either due to overexposure, or just because.
* By which I’m not just referring to the Orange Box soundtrack.
January 9, 2010 at 7:16 pm
I don´t live in any of this cities but I proudly say I have summer house on #16 and #17 also I lol with #3
January 9, 2010 at 8:00 pm
11 is Neutral Milk Hotel
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVEEEEEEE YOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU JEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEZAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS CHAAARIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSST
April 29, 2011 at 8:25 am
Hah, my first thought aswell
January 9, 2010 at 9:50 pm
I notice that the only way he can accurately try to draw a Nickelback city is to draw a hellish nightmare and write part of the band’s name. Subtle. 😉
I don’t think I live in any of these cities, being more of a metaller, but I’m pretty close to #17. If only geographically: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?gbv=2&hl=en&q=leeds%20to%20manchester%20map&ndsp=18&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=il&tbo=0
January 9, 2010 at 10:17 pm
I live in a desolate urban wasteland where scrappy freedom fighters use chamethrawers to shred through robotic manservants of the evil doctor that’s enslaved us, in the hopes of one day breaking out.
Yes, musically speaking. The Protomen just roll like that.
January 9, 2010 at 11:32 pm
Damnit, people, I’m disappointed in you. Frankly, I expected better. All these people claiming to live in City 17 and no-one saying:
“Welcome to City 17. It’s safer here.”
?! MADNESS
Also, BAH to hipsters.
January 10, 2010 at 3:35 am
Good idea and execution, but awful taste in music if you put Oasis before The Beatles and U2.
January 10, 2010 at 4:13 am
What does They Might Be Giants count under? 😛
Your musical taste is questionable (A “great little town”? The White Stripes? really?), but a great concept.
January 10, 2010 at 8:10 am
Apparently, I live in both 17 [since everyone lives there] and 5.
January 10, 2010 at 11:40 am
@TentacledBeast– I think half the problem is that if one wishes to connect with the music itself, they have to slog through all of the associated legend. It’s like wanting to play D&D but nobody will play with you unless you either read all of the novels from the setting or are willing to listen to three hours of gushing about what you’re missing by not reading the novels.
January 10, 2010 at 1:19 pm
How can you say oasis suck? They’re awesome! Athough not as good as the beatles – and I swaer the towerblock in the Blur city is from the video Morning glory by Oasis?
January 10, 2010 at 9:57 pm
You have inspired me. Luckily I have no free time so I will never get the drawing done, thus avoiding any awkward fan-theft scenarios.
January 11, 2010 at 4:59 am
I live in town #1. I like to take a regular stroll. The sights never fail to excite me.
January 11, 2010 at 12:37 pm
I live in 11, and visit 7. Is 11 meant to be a particular seceret band or just underground music in general?
January 11, 2010 at 1:31 pm
I’m living in 9, but all of my friends are in 16 and aren’t going to budge. In fact, all of the music I listen to is practically 9. I’m a sucker for industrial electronica, though no one I know has the same tastes as me I’m still cool with it. Isolation is freedom.
January 11, 2010 at 2:26 pm
city number 17 is an outstanding place to fly your flag.
though let’s be fair – girls or no girls, nothing’s ever going to beat city number 7.
also:
“All the streets are named after black people, and you hear they have a black mayor, but when you get there, you see nothing but white tourists on the streets.”
tee hee!
January 11, 2010 at 2:31 pm
also, there are more girls there than you think!
January 11, 2010 at 5:32 pm
Nice one! I used to live in almost all of those citys for certain times. Except number 7 and number 9. But now i live near number 11. Or where would you count bands like “Dredg” or “Thrice” under?
And i like city number 12 with those pretty details like the Autobahn, the powerplant and the highspeed train. That is were i live in real life 😉
January 12, 2010 at 6:29 am
Funny, I thought the fighting/incompetence one was Oasis.
January 14, 2010 at 3:35 am
Stunning detail, elucidating archetypal architecture. Bravo.
January 14, 2010 at 4:03 pm
Loved the Stone Roses one, so true. They’re still awesome though.
Make a My Bloody Valentine one, please! I’d love to know what they’d look like. 😀
January 17, 2010 at 3:33 am
http://www.isnickelbacktheworstbandever.com/
January 28, 2010 at 12:41 am
I love the premise, the drawing is lively and well-composed, and the metaphors are pretty clever. But if you made the drawing a little more spaced out, and the writing a little more concise, you could place the captions into the image, and I wouldn’t have to scroll up and down again and again to get the jokes.
January 28, 2010 at 4:22 am
Come onnnnn what is the name of the secret place!!
February 9, 2010 at 5:41 am
Really? No one thinks the NIN town is an obscure reference to Uzumaki?
(SECRET) is probably some really good, obscure indie-electronic band that has NO TORRENTS IN EXISTENCE! Grr. Casting my guess as Stegosaurus Rex.
February 9, 2010 at 5:43 am
doublepost, yes I was kidding.
February 14, 2010 at 9:57 pm
even though you say in the tital, i didn’t catch th music symbolism until the comment section 😛
i just thought it was a satire on cities.
i live in 05, and it’s SO TRUE!!
I still think Seattle is amazing, but the mayor is a moron… he wanted to ban camp fires because smoke allegedly kills the ozone O.o’
smoke. god that man….. but we keep electing him ;_;
(i love these comics, i’m going through all of them~)
February 16, 2010 at 12:21 pm
is no. 14 inspired by MV of Mika’s Lollipop?
February 17, 2010 at 12:48 am
I love livin in #10 with those arctic monkeys although I do wish there was a place for those deathcabbers
February 24, 2010 at 9:37 pm
I’m a Guns N roses fan, so right now I’m living round about city 5.
February 25, 2010 at 7:32 pm
Oh, and anyone asking about City 11 – I guess it’s a metaphor for any lesser-known band out there.
March 16, 2010 at 3:16 am
Right now I’m in city 11 with ******* **** *****, *** ************, *** *****, *** ***** ******** and ***** *******.
April 1, 2010 at 10:08 pm
i am a HUGE beatles fan. when you say no one can connect with them anymore you could not be more wrong (oh, and can people PLEASE stop liking oasis).
April 23, 2010 at 11:01 am
Proud to say I live in #10
May 14, 2010 at 5:37 am
I think I’m the only person who lives in number 7 anymore… Of my age group, anywho.
June 24, 2010 at 7:03 am
if i know winston, the (SECRET) is no specific band or group of bands, but instead merely supplied to be extremely provocative… or maybe i’m overthinking it. oh and i just have an appartment in #7.
August 4, 2010 at 1:10 am
no Pink Floyd city? surely you must be joking, that’s where I wanna live!
October 10, 2010 at 3:39 am
@Griff- no, that city is a low orbit space station that occasionally touches down, though not always in this dimension. Sometimes Jefferson Spaceship docks there for some inspiration.
As for me, I live in a what appears to be a quaint little forest town by the sea that’s not for everyone. There isn’t too much to see, but there is a huge library collection. The town paper is yellow journalism at it’s best, even if some of the stories have to be made up. Don’t mind the occasional leprechaun or demon-turned deer. The mayor is a novel writer that has recently turned over most of the actual governing to a businessman. Thankfully, he hasn’t made too many changes. I love the Decemberists.
August 25, 2010 at 6:29 am
@LightHorsemen
Cake might be your number #11 (and seriously who has not heard of Cake by now?), but I am guessing the authors is Arcade Fire.
August 28, 2010 at 7:10 pm
Love the comics but love them even more now that i know you fly your flag in #17. Maybe you could of put a waterfall there and live under that, but that detail would be sad!
August 31, 2010 at 8:23 am
wow. i’m impressed. And since I the comments made me give up trying to match the cities with certain individual places, I shall say I live in a country (yes it’s called a city-state) that most foreigners say is number 12 but which I (and also many of said foreigners upon getting here) think is 1. Although Rush-city’s blatant abuse of Rush album artwork and the CN Tower should have clued me in.
October 4, 2010 at 10:07 pm
I like the Gresley A4 steaming out of #13…
February 19, 2011 at 9:54 am
Blur is number 13….
genius.
March 20, 2011 at 5:04 pm
I love this, I just can’t stop looking at it and picking out all the little things. I guess I’ve been a long time resident of no.5 but moving on now (or probably moving back on the strength of latest material!) taking long vacations in no.9, no.10 and lately spending a helluva lot of time in no.6 and occasionaly running through no.1, no.2, no.14 and no.17.
Now I’m thinking of what other cities would look like, Pink Floyd (giant wall all around the city, hammers walking everywhere, giant factory, easter island heads and Ely Cathedral), Nirvana (some kind of memorial city which everybody likes but it hasn’t changed since 1994, and the Foo Fighters “mayor” left), blink-182 (beach city full of immature types but desperately trying to cater to a mature clientele), The Smiths (row after row of red-brick terraces, grey clouds, black and white billboards of old film stars which everyone goes to at some point, and despite the misery they feel better soon) and best of all Biffy Clyro (a retreating blackened sky over a distinctly Scottish town which older residents rapidly fleeing as a huge statue of a naked man and two massive flags draw in thousands of newcomers on a newly built highway).
Please let there be a second one of these!!!
March 20, 2011 at 5:31 pm
Basically Biffy Clyro city is no.11 once it gets discovered…
A city for The Gaslight Anthem would be awesome. A coastal town which has an old-fashioned American rustic feel and is on the up with no danger of over-commercialisation. Landmarks include the beach, a ferris wheel, a pier, a drive-in movie theater playing movies like Casablanca and On the Waterfront constantly, a bowling alley, a river, a diner, maybe some elements of Brooklyn and is home to honorary citizen Bruce Springsteen. Anyone who happens to pass through loves it and never wants to leave!
March 22, 2011 at 10:32 pm
Seeing as #11 is up north, and the authour’s Canadian, maybe it’s The Hip.
March 24, 2011 at 6:49 pm
I live in city #11, and I go on vacation to city #7 every weekend, it’s a fucking great place, especially the A Farewell To Kings memorial, the Moving Pictures museum and Hemispheres park….. never get tired of it.
(see what I did there? haha..couldn’t resist)
I also like #6(‘desert rock’, well done there), but it’s older, less-advertized version is way cooler. (Kyuss)
#2 is SO overrated. I have been there, it’ isn’t that great. Has some cool buildings, but that’s it.
People should move the fuck out of #17. It’s such a lame place.
August 23, 2011 at 9:55 pm
#7 Is heaven! Im one of the younger residents there!
August 30, 2011 at 3:35 am
Wow, this comic was from a while ago, but I feel REALLY bad that I was able to recognize pretty much all of the NIN symbols. From Closer, Echoplex, Head Down, The Fragile, March of the Pigs (or really any of the songs that have to do with pigs), 1,000,000, the Year Zero AIR flag, Discipline, and I’m certain that I’m missing something, but THANK YOU for including stuff a real Nine Inch Nails fan might catch!
August 30, 2011 at 3:43 am
P.S. Hey, I like the Foo Fighters. In Your Honor and E,S,PandG were no Colour, but Wasting Light was the shit! I know it wasn’t out when you made this, but even the bands that grow older can still grow better.
October 18, 2011 at 10:42 pm
My mouseover text won’t work, and I’m seriously clueless on some of these! Can someone post a list?
October 19, 2011 at 11:39 am
Okay, here we go:
1. The Hives
2. The White Stripes (RIP!)
3. The Band Which Shall Remain Nameless
4. Creed
5. The Foo Fighters
6. Queens of the Stone Age (who i have come to friggin’ love since making this comic. I was wrong!)
7. Rush
8. Lord Bono and His Pals
9. Nine Inch Nails
10. Radiohead (king of limbs was disappointing, i have to admit)
11. ????
12. Kraftwerk
13. Blur
14. The Beatles, obviously
15. The Stone Roses (who just reformed this week! Too bad ian brown is still tone deaf)
16. Coldplay (the gwyneth paltrow of rock bands)
17. oasis
October 19, 2011 at 5:57 pm
Thanks so much! I got 3, 4, 5, 8, 9 (Nine is Nine Inch Nails…. haha), 10, 12, 14, 16, and 17. I had guessed Cage the Elephant for 2, cause there was an elephant… in a cage… yeah, i don’t know.
Love the comic! It’s so provocative and inspiring and humorous all at once!
January 23, 2012 at 6:39 pm
Is this a poster yet? Because it should be…
March 1, 2012 at 6:33 am
There’s no city for Hip-Hop, which kinda sucks.
Still great job, you really have a knack for condencing big ideas.
February 1, 2013 at 8:39 pm
12 Is Where I’m At! 😀
February 16, 2013 at 1:06 am
Oh, is this about music? If it’s later than 1982 (when I mostly stopped listening to radio for some reason) and wasn’t on VH1 between 1989 and 1997 (when I had cable), I haven’t a clue.
August 5, 2013 at 12:20 pm
Welcome to City 17, known as Surrey, BC. We’ve got a great local music scene, but the only thing people know about us is Surrey Girls and crime rates.
January 28, 2014 at 5:44 pm
11= XTC