i HATe blogs...and indie rock.
Seriously, I think blogs are pretty dumb. Just as I think myspace is pretty dumb. It's not much more than bored people online trying to get other people to give them some kind of pat on the back by making virtual 'friends'. Do you feel good about yourself when you have 114 friends on myspace? Have you done something significant?
Anyway, the only reason I'm writing this is because a friend of mine told me I should. She's one of those friends who you're always happy to run into or hear from, and you even have a good time around them, but when you leave their company, you often wonder what they really think about you.
She's the indie-rock chick with hippie values, listens to NPR religiously, appreciates music more if it has never been heard by anyone listening to Clear Channel stations, believes Bill Gates is a corporate devil icon, and Apple is the saviour of all things real. She works part time at a library and wants to be a writer. If you were to pick her up an try and fit her in somewhere in society upon first impression, you might have her pegged for a lesbian. (This does not imply she's unattractive) but out of fairness, and possibly some legal reason, I should mention she is not a lesbian.
Me? I'm somewhat of a prettyboy. My hair is highlighted and contains a good amount of 'product'. I try and wear clothes that make me look thinner, and play guitar in a band that indie-rock kids seem to loathe. If you were to pick me up and try to fit me in somewhere in society upon first impression, you might have me pegged for being gay. I should probably mention, out of respect to my wife....I'm not gay. I can listen to NPR for short periods of time before I have to hear something well-produced musically. When it comes to music, I feel like I've heard it all, and I can't get excited about bands I've never heard of. Most of them bore the crap out of me.
Actually, that's why I'm blogging. Indie-Rock pisses me off. There is not a more calculated group of individuals out there right now, and the whole image is based around being 'underground' with your music tastes. Well guess what kids....Indie Rock is the new pop. Yes the very music you think you're overthrowing or outsmarting is your own music. When MTV.com has 5 genres of music to view videos for, and one of them is Indie Rock....you're mainstream. When primetime television bases their biggest show around a soundtrack of indie rock and calls it the OC....you're mainstream. Indie Rock is the new boy band, you're not underground anymore. It seems as though the indie rock kids are just trying to hide their upper-middle class suburban upbringing by posing as destitute individuals who can't afford a good haircut or even an average beer.
The main reason I brought up my friend though, wasn't to yell at her for liking indie rock or the culture surrounding it. When we last spoke, I was ranting about how dumb the whole indie 'culture' is. How when someone's favorite band gets signed suddenly, they assume the next album will suck and they no longer like that band. And how they stay true to the whole "I liked them before anyone else even knew who they were" philosopohy. All the kids dress the same calculated image and drink the same Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.
Her response was basically this, "Yeah, everyone does drink Pabst now, but I'll have you know...I was drinking Pabst back when I still lived in Chicago, before it got popular around here."
She was being serious.
Anyway, the only reason I'm writing this is because a friend of mine told me I should. She's one of those friends who you're always happy to run into or hear from, and you even have a good time around them, but when you leave their company, you often wonder what they really think about you.
She's the indie-rock chick with hippie values, listens to NPR religiously, appreciates music more if it has never been heard by anyone listening to Clear Channel stations, believes Bill Gates is a corporate devil icon, and Apple is the saviour of all things real. She works part time at a library and wants to be a writer. If you were to pick her up an try and fit her in somewhere in society upon first impression, you might have her pegged for a lesbian. (This does not imply she's unattractive) but out of fairness, and possibly some legal reason, I should mention she is not a lesbian.
Me? I'm somewhat of a prettyboy. My hair is highlighted and contains a good amount of 'product'. I try and wear clothes that make me look thinner, and play guitar in a band that indie-rock kids seem to loathe. If you were to pick me up and try to fit me in somewhere in society upon first impression, you might have me pegged for being gay. I should probably mention, out of respect to my wife....I'm not gay. I can listen to NPR for short periods of time before I have to hear something well-produced musically. When it comes to music, I feel like I've heard it all, and I can't get excited about bands I've never heard of. Most of them bore the crap out of me.
Actually, that's why I'm blogging. Indie-Rock pisses me off. There is not a more calculated group of individuals out there right now, and the whole image is based around being 'underground' with your music tastes. Well guess what kids....Indie Rock is the new pop. Yes the very music you think you're overthrowing or outsmarting is your own music. When MTV.com has 5 genres of music to view videos for, and one of them is Indie Rock....you're mainstream. When primetime television bases their biggest show around a soundtrack of indie rock and calls it the OC....you're mainstream. Indie Rock is the new boy band, you're not underground anymore. It seems as though the indie rock kids are just trying to hide their upper-middle class suburban upbringing by posing as destitute individuals who can't afford a good haircut or even an average beer.
The main reason I brought up my friend though, wasn't to yell at her for liking indie rock or the culture surrounding it. When we last spoke, I was ranting about how dumb the whole indie 'culture' is. How when someone's favorite band gets signed suddenly, they assume the next album will suck and they no longer like that band. And how they stay true to the whole "I liked them before anyone else even knew who they were" philosopohy. All the kids dress the same calculated image and drink the same Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.
Her response was basically this, "Yeah, everyone does drink Pabst now, but I'll have you know...I was drinking Pabst back when I still lived in Chicago, before it got popular around here."
She was being serious.
posted by Charles Junk at 8:03 PM
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