If you want to see a band sweat, compliment them on their use of irony in their lyrics. The perspiration from their foreheads will be enough to drown a hippo. In today's ruthless, hard fought street cred climate no band wants to cop to the ironic tag because no band wants to deny their fans the unique, personal experience only they can offer. This is especially true among the indie scene. I mean, how can a band be "indie" and ironic at the same time?

Yet, this was not always the standard.

Irony was what set rock music apart from the establishment. A dual message that only the "hip" knew which was legit. Ironic acts spoke to us, the individual. There were "secrets" only we knew. (Not really, you just had to have the foresight to read the album liner notes.) There was a willing, complicit suspension of disbelief.

Now, acts like Bloc Party are commended for "a sincerity that can seem almost naïve." (Actual quote from Pitchfork.)

Would Lou Reed ever accept "naïve" as a compliment?

Webster's defines irony as "the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning." What better way to describe the newest, most rebellious form of music of the 20th Century?

It was theater. It was an androgynous Bowie pining about life on Mars. It was Dylan pondering why everyone must get stoned. It was The Sex Pistols opening their US tour in San Antonio, TX. It was the circus and we mocked the lion tamers all the while idolizing them.

This was irony. Open, honest . . . yet, duplicitous.

But, all art is this way. It is the presentation of one ideal with the interpretation of another. Sometimes both ideals are contrary.

And, why should rock be any different?

But why sincerity trumps irony in today's music scene is a mystery to me. I can only surmise it came through the proliferation of "rock journalism." With each passing page of ink, an aspiring/upcoming writer (ahem! no irony here, move along) seeks to break new ground, sniff out new trash, and best his predecessor. The obvious—and cheap—move is to call out established, greater writers of the past as antiquated geezers who bought into the hype of A&R men. Bands caught on to this trend, soon tripping over themselves to proclaim their cherished sincerity toward the music.

Most modern critics declare that irony is the converse to honesty. Without sincerity, well then, your rock idols are lying to you. You don't want to be lied to, do you?

And God forbid if the blogs discover a band to be insincere. Oh, those hallowed blogs! The last bastions of sincerity in an ironic wasteland where major labels scour the landscaped looking for top spots on the Billboard 200.

Bloggers decry the use of irony because this positions themselves as the arbiters of what rock is. Any ironic act is lying to you, whoring themselves for your attention. But, your trusted blog writer is here to steer you toward the light. (Ed. note: this is what known as satirical irony.)

A common example of the current ironic backlash is Madonna. As many rock critics clamor, to profess admiration for her is to acknowledge her machinations. Yet, her appeal is her constant ironic thesis: that a woman can have equality—or dominance over a man—by fulfilling the whore fantasy. By going lowbrow, she achieves a higher goal. Not exactly the Gloria Steinem way of doing things but effective nonetheless.

I do not begrudge sincerity. It takes a lot of conviction to perform without abandon like Bon Jovi or Willie Nelson or Jimmy Buffet or Beyonce or Axl Rose or even Marvin Gaye. These are acts that give exactly what their audience expects. As true entertainers they live to please the crowds. There is no hidden agenda.

But, all art—especially rock—is the discovery of truth within ourselves. Even if it is presented behind a mask. When music remains completely superfluous, like a Thomas Kincaid painting, the effect is hollow. Without irony we get no twinkle in Bowie's glittered eyes, no snarl from Johhny Rotten's lips, no ball gown worn by Kurt Cobain. The most honest moments we have with rock stars are when they are at their most paradoxical.

In the end, sincerity is a quality best left for your psychotherapist. Not in rock n' roll.

Of course, I mean that with all sincerity.