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Given the war of words between Durst and Borland after the guitarist walked out on the band (see "Wes Borland: Why He Left Limp Bizkit"), the fact that Borland was back with Bizkit was big, shocking news that warranted at least an "Extra" interview with Mark McGrath. Instead, it was downplayed so much that the band's label never even confirmed it was true.
Borland left because he felt he was selling out in Limp Bizkit, so the band's low-key promotional approach to The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) should certainly suit him. Durst, however, denied Borland's return had anything to do with his newfound disgust with the media. It is, however, fitting that Borland's back, since Bizkit's strategy is really about getting back to the fervor that fueled the band when it first formed.
"Everybody loves the underdog, and then they take an underdog and make him a hero and they hate him," Durst reflected. "It seems like if you're an underdog again, and things do surface and they think this is real, like 'These guys' intentions are genuine and sincere,' it seems like they will embrace you again.
"I'm happy to be the underdog again," he said later. "It's almost like we stayed that way even though we were up there, but it just feels good to be back down on the ground and have a perspective and have an opportunity to make a record. How we do this record, and the press we're not going to do, the servicing of the videos we're not going to do, it's just going to be a different approach for Limp Bizkit."
A different approach for just about any band, really. While Pearl Jam similarly yanked themselves out of the spotlight more than 10 years ago, Bizkit have taken it to another level.
"I can't remember a band that's tried this approach," said Marc Schapiro, head of sales for metal label Ferrett Music, home to such bands as A Static Lullaby and Madball. "Even when a band says, 'We're letting the music do the talking,' it's in an interview where they're saying that. There's not even that."
"It's a curious strategy," added Billboard's Director of Charts Geoff Mayfield. "There was a certain amount of feeling with that last album that Fred wasn't the same cat he was when the groundswell first happened, so maybe this is an attempt to get that credibility back."
Durst could certainly use some credibility. Over the years, whether it was his lame feuds with the likes of Creed or his very public come-ons to not just Spears, but Christina Aguilera before her and Avril Lavigne more recently, the singer has become a sort of pop-culture punch line. The recent sex tape didn't help.
While most music insiders interviewed applauded Durst's new approach, they don't think it's enough.
"Credibility flows naturally from making great music that people care about. Looking back at the rap-rock of the '90s, I think Rage Against the Machine were making timeless music and Bizkit were posturing," Gregg Spotts, cofounder of the Shortlist Music Prize, said. "My big question on the new gambit is whether Bizkit are willing to tour crammed in a 15-passenger van. Now that would bring a little cred."
Schapiro agreed. "They decided to just put it out there and let people talk about it and I thought it was a good idea — it just wasn't executed right," he said. "Most of the labels I've worked at use word of mouth, because we don't have radio or MTV exposure. But with word of mouth, bands need to tour. ... Being out there touring with other bands, shaking hands with your fans, doing meet-and-greets, that's credibility. That's making fans. It doesn't matter how little advertising you do."
Besides, while a band might seem overexposed to those in the music industry, the public doesn't always agree, Schapiro pointed out.
"The last few Limp Bizkit records were totally hyped up and the industry was like, 'This is the end of them,' and then they succeeded," he said. "It didn't seem like they needed to scale back too much. If they did the hype job [with The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1)], it would have sold well and kids wouldn't have thought it's a bad thing."
Or perhaps a less drastic approach might have been more effective.
"When I worked at Roadrunner with Slipknot, after Iowa came out, everyone thought they were all overexposed, so the band decided to scale back, do the second stage of Ozzfest, reconnect with the fans and get credibility back that way, and it worked perfectly," Schapiro recalled. "It was like, 'Skipknot's still one of us.' "
Due to the nature of Bizkit's strategy, however, it's too early to tell if it's working.
"I'm sure the label will say this isn't a first-week-based plan, it's based on, come Christmastime, let's see how many records we've sold," Schapiro said. "In the long run, this could be the best plan ever. They didn't waste the money 'cause they knew their name would get around. If, this week, it sells another 30,000, I'll be impressed. That means their plan's working."
In fact, The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) sold only 12,000 copies its second week out, a 67 percent drop in sales from week one. Sales figures, however, don't seem to be Limp Bizkit's concern, as much as just enjoying themselves.
"We didn't even expect to be successful," Durst said back in February. "The success came, the popularity, the lovers, the haters, the people, the opinions. ... Limp Bizkit in one moment has already been the biggest rock band in the world. And it's gone. And I don't know if you can live your life trying to be better than your last at bat. If you do, there's always a sense of failure inside of you."
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