Good god, I fear what might be analyzed in a stack of photos of any of us. Photos catch a moment in time, and often times it is a fake moment. Think of the "say cheese" smile, and how fake that actually is. When we compare smiling photos with non-smiling photos, does it mean we are unhappy in the non-smiling photos? Or that we were just lying in the smiling ones. Moments... we have so few that are truly exceptional, and often they are not captured honestly in photos. Live them, remember them, and make more moments, for too soon, there will be no more.

I just heard that interview with Robert commenting on the singer. I'm not sure, but it sounds more like a sarcastic dig than real praise. Here, starting at around 2:50, GVF is brought up: "he's pretty good. There's a job for him somewhere" and then he comments about Zepparella and "what a front man... woman". This sounds very much in line with typical Plant humor, like "the best percussionist Led Zeppelin has ever had, John Bonham - Moby Dick!" Robert had many similar comments about Zep clones in the 80's. I remember him 'helping' Jason's first band which was a clone band, and there were plenty of playful digs at the 'talent'. And the music review sites claim Robert is "a fan of Greta Van Fleet"? Is that to just connect to young fans, for all young music fans to feel connected to the past greats? I'm not knocking GVF, but, uh, give a listen to Zebra, or even the first Bonham album, or any clone band from the 80's. GVF is not a Zep clone, it's a Zebra Clone. It's a xerox of a xerox of a xerox. You still get to enjoy the content, but it's not anything like the original.

Magic comes from all sources and the very specific alchemy of the chemistry of a band. Let us remember that even if Jason joined for an imaginary misnamed 'reunion', it cannot ever be the same. Jason is not his father, does not have the same influences nor experience, nor the same magic bond that gelled the original band. And if prior members of Zep cannot be the 'next zeppelin', how can anyone even hint that some new group can. Look for what moves you now, not what reminds you of the past. Rival Sons moves me now, not because of some similar zep-sound, but because of the full classic rock style of the whole genre that they seem to capture without sounding like a tribute to the 70's like Lenny Kravitz. Next time you are in a discussion with someone that says so-and-so are the new 'zep', ask them for specifics. Is it the voice? The drums? The riffs? The solos? Where is the folk/funk/soul/blues/mysticism/arabian/punk/classical/hard-soft-light-dark-metal-petal influence that they must be hearing to make such a comparison? I'm just finishing up listening to my first full GVF concert, and all I hear is Kingdom Come, or even Tesla, with a bit more blues depth. I heard no real funk, nor folk, nor middle-eastern, nor psychedelic roots. Even their Howlin' Wolf cover was more like a cover of a 70's cover. (I'll give another listen with a different show and see if anything changes, but I doubt it. It just seems it is Hype over Howls.)

I think this is the one thing that comparisons miss.... Zep was not 'one' thing, much like the Beatles weren't just "HELP!" or "Rubber Soul" or "Abbey Road". All the 'clone' bands seem to focus on the singing, yet screaming versus wailing, yelling versus howling. Then add in some heavy drums, and maybe a light sprinkling of imitation Middle Eastern flavor. But they mostly come off as imitations. Like they use Zep as their main influence. I'm listening to Greta Van Fleet right now, and all I hear, halfway through an October 2017 show is the sound of Clone. It's my first listen to a full concert, so I cannot form a full opinion on GVF. But, Rival Sons, in my opinion, is NOT a clone. They also are NOT the 'next Zeppelin'. Rival Sons seem to be getting their influence from the whole genre of classic rock, not just Zeppelin. I can hear Yardbirds and plenty of 60's psychedelia, and then next song I can hear more of a Bad Company sound, or Grand Funk, and then some Black Crowes, and even some heavier sounds of 70's and 90's. They seem to pull from the roots of the sounds, not a 'Zep interpretation' of the roots. Black Crowes had a great hard rock blues sound, which made them a great band to play with Page, but the Crowes never had much Middle Eastern or Celtic mystic charm, nor folk. They embraced that old blues rock roots very well, and I don't remember them being called the 'next Zep'. There will not be another Zeppelin, nor another Beatles. They were a product of their times, masterfully bringing different genres to the rock arena to be imitated by those that followed. When we try to compare other bands to Zep, unfortunately we end up focusing on the obvious surface sound, and ignore the great depth of the roots of the zep experience.