3 Hated Rock Songs That Are Actually Masterpieces

People love to hate music sometimes. It’s a silly behavior, in my opinion. Unless a song is outright horrendous, an industry plant, or completely offensive, I don’t see the point in hating a song or musician so strongly just because it’s the cool thing to do. And the following four rock songs are excellent examples of hated tunes that really don’t deserve it.

Videos by American Songwriter

1. “How You Remind Me” by Nickelback

Nickelback is a shoo-in for this list. We could have picked virtually any of their hits; at some point in this rock band’s career, it became cool to dunk on them as much as possible. They’ve been memed to hell and back. And despite so much hate directed at them on a cultural level, Nickelback still has quite a large discography of chart-topping hits. It’s almost as if everyone is lying about hating them or something. “How You Remind Me” is a bop, and I’ll die on that hill.

2. “Man On The Edge” by Iron Maiden

In the mid-1990s, Iron Maiden was in a bit of a rough patch. Their legendary guitarist called it quits, Bruce Dickinson and Steve Harris were falling out, and new members Blaze Bayley and Janick Gers were trying to find their footing in the band.

Unfortunately, fans were mad that Bayley was not, in fact, Dickinson, and “Man On The Edge” got a lot of hate for sounding like a classic Iron Maiden song without the beloved singer at the forefront. It’s a shame, honestly. I think Bayley did a decent job.

3.  “Hit That” by The Offspring

This entry on our list of hated rock songs didn’t get much love from diehard pop punk fans. “Hit That” by The Offspring is a song about a dude who sleeps around too much, and that’s about as deep as the song gets. Some fans weren’t thrilled with it, with some claiming that the band was no longer as edgy as they used to be.

I think that’s pretty unfair, considering the only thing that really sets this song apart from the rest of the band’s discography is the use of samples and synths. It’s definitely on the weak side, but it’s not the worst song in the world by any means.

Photo via ‘Nickelback Greatest Hits’ Album Cover

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