Fuck me, but that is dead on to what I felt at the time too! I liken the Prince vs. Michael Jackson thing to the Stones vs. the Beatles. You can admire both rivals and even have respect for the craft going into the music of the more pop-successful one, but damned if one isn't all a hot steamy fuck to the ears while the other is all artifice. Not "bad" really, and sometimes quite enjoyable, but entirely lacking in either steam or fuck.
As for Nickelback, they're reviled because the are the epitome of bland, banal, paint-by-numbers rock. Less memorable than anything I hear in my local supermarket.
