Candye Syrup Is the Latest Reminder That Idol Is the Worst

/ Homicidol Maniac

You’ve probably seen it by now, considering that it completely trumped the BiSH stealth single release+MV yesterday, but, if you were living under a rock, Candye Syrup, new EP on approach and definitely on the rise, is now officially in their death throes, with full-on breakup imminent:

Yes, they’ll (minus one) still be performing in Arizona, though:

And wouldn’t you know it, while the members will be going their separate ways, Iku will be trying again with a new lineup in the near future.

Idol is the worst.

And I say this as a person who was kind of wishy-washy on Candye Syrup overall! I could see why others liked them, sure, fine, etc., though, and I certainly wasn’t going to begrudge anybody supporting Non (who, for what it’s worth, either can’t pick projects or just has lousy luck). But here we go, another group loaded with potential, another group catching on, another group going to great lengths to make things happen and keep pushing outwards on the traditional boundaries of what idol is and who can be into it … another group basically imploding because reasons.

I can’t think of a single thing to care about that, writ large, ultimately yields so little in return on investment. People put a lot of time and care and resources into supporting a performance style that, by its own overwrought economic model, literally cannot exist without deep, full-on investment by n deeply devoted fans*; their reward, almost inevitably, is to be let down. I’d compare it to rooting for Philadelphia’s professional sports teams, but the Eagles just won the Super Bowl and the Phillies won a World Series not that long ago; even Washington finally got a Stanley Cup. Some cursed sports cities do not — and indeed know that they should not — bother getting their hopes up (hello, Ohio!), while others live in a state of numbed-out perpetual mediocrity. Idol is a whole other beast, practically daring you to care enough to get your heart broken. And, as this example adeptly shows, the performers, the people who drive the whole dedication engine to begin with, are ultimately completely fungible.

Of course, that constant threat of disaster, of breakups and graduations out of nowhere, of giving full-throated support to something destined to disappoint, is a big part of the allure, isn’t it? Idol is a beautiful disaster; once you’ve seen it at its best, it’s hard to look away when it’s at its worst. We all dread the day when our favorites hang up their skirts for good, but we’ll ride the train with them to the bitter end anyway. And, because we’re such incredibly easy marks, we’ll keep giving them money right up until the moment the train bursts through the brick wall and Mr. Big scores an album cover out of it.

The Dead Milkmen summed it up perfectly:

I hate you, but I love you

*n here representing a moving, but nonetheless requisite, minimum number

6 thoughts on “Candye Syrup Is the Latest Reminder That Idol Is the Worst”

  1. Honestly(and this sounds terrible)I only really care about what happens to Non. I do wish the other ladies the best though.

  2. tell you what, ive never cared for Candye Syrup, had the chance to see them but didnt go.
    recently checked them out again after reading this, and well.. they’re better than i remembered. and i cant stop listening to them now.. guess i fucked up.

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