L.A. musician Jason Shapiro loves Sweden’s the Hives, except for one thing—he believes the band stole the riff from “Why You?” by his band The Roofies for their 2007 song “Tick Tick Boom.” Shapiro brought each track to a musicologist, and he agreed, prompting Shapiro to sue the band for plagiarism.
Listen to “Why You?” here.
Listen to “Tick Tick Boom” here.
I’m not sure I’m buying the plagiarism charge here—the songs sound vaguely similar, but they’re both garage rock songs so naturally they’ll be pretty similar. I think the pause in the middle portion of The Roofies song is enough to differentiate the songs. What do you guys think? [L.A. Weekly]
The Hives »
When did the Roofies write this song? They didn't even have a myspace until 08/2008. I can't stand the Hives BUT I'm on their side. The riff isn't groundbreaking. Just F around on the guitar and that riff comes out. Maybe if the riff was a little more elaborate and interesting . . .