...So they're everywhere!
Brisbane seems to have been inundated with indie bands lately. A thought that wakes me in the night in a cold sweat. For where will they all go and just how many will drift away from our fair city?
Although this blog is not a research blog - they're coming i swear - i was reminded tonight of a Mod party that i graced with my presence a few weeks back. The alcohol flowed and the music cranked, very casual with an unusual mix of subcultures all conforming to the Mod style for this one evening. I got chatting to a guy in a band, that i now can't recall the name of, about scenes and Brisbane and surprisingly this assignment. He, in all his wisdom, maintained that the idea of scene itself was cyclic in nature, "Scene: Necessity or Ineccessity." And i quite agree with him. You need to be involved in your desired scene to get a foot in the door, but the level of your commitment to the specific scene does not always guarantee the same level of success.
In summation, the party was good, to be in a indie band you must be prepared for knockback after knockback, and scenes continually vary as they cannot always be defined by the subcultures that frequent them.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Ok, so as the deadline for this blog posting task nears i figure i should actually start posting...
Introduction:
I am currently at work, Milton Tenpin Bowl - not "the alley" just the bowling part, listening to Shannon Knoll and chumbawumba - by force i swear to God! I have made three birthday announcements and listened to Happy Birthday way too many times to remember and its only 10.30pm. I've dealt with drunks, shitheads on various lanes and those who, simply put, can't hold their liquor and as a result shouldn't have come bowling tonight. I've pulled rank and sworn my head off (so very ladylike), and we've had a loser drop a bowling ball down a toilet, so i've been in the mens on my hands and knees - in a skirt - trying to reason why and if i should come back to work tomorrow at 8 am. AND PEOPLE JUST TRIED TO DO A RUNNER WITH THE DIRTY SMELLY 15 YEAR OLD BOWLING SHOES!!! I should probably try and get on topic...my essay topic.
I chose to do scene and the subculture of indie. It helps that many of my friends are in Brisbane bands of varying success (and talent), and if not in a band they support other local talent by turning up to shows, helping transport, being the only person cheering in a pub full of bikers, lugging amps etc etc etc
For all the crap that i deal with at work, tonight, talking to Andy on the door about the industries - both media and music, makes it partially worth it. Although a litttle tipsy, and with a few too many superman references, he effectively discussed how hard it is to get noticed in Brisbane. Using the Tall Poppy syndrome and the lack of label reps as reasons for both knock backs and success, he maintained that there was just as much talent in Brisbane as in Sydney and Melbourne, but a major lack of representation. As a result, and in his words, too many bands 'die prematurely' in Brisbane.
After analysing Sara Cohen's article on the 'Liverpool Sound', as part of my tute participation last week, the idea of a space or scene have a varied use was discussed - for example, the alley has gangster rapper wannabes one weekend, indie bands another and punks the next. So this space has a solid geographic identity - in that it can't move or be moved, but maintains a changing social identity.
So the point of this blog is basically that the lure and attraction of the music industry is never truly what it seems, a wolf in sheeps clothing if you will. And for those few bands who attract the attention they need there are too many more who fall by the wayside, burnt by the industry no matter how much they are adored by their fans.
Introduction:
I am currently at work, Milton Tenpin Bowl - not "the alley" just the bowling part, listening to Shannon Knoll and chumbawumba - by force i swear to God! I have made three birthday announcements and listened to Happy Birthday way too many times to remember and its only 10.30pm. I've dealt with drunks, shitheads on various lanes and those who, simply put, can't hold their liquor and as a result shouldn't have come bowling tonight. I've pulled rank and sworn my head off (so very ladylike), and we've had a loser drop a bowling ball down a toilet, so i've been in the mens on my hands and knees - in a skirt - trying to reason why and if i should come back to work tomorrow at 8 am. AND PEOPLE JUST TRIED TO DO A RUNNER WITH THE DIRTY SMELLY 15 YEAR OLD BOWLING SHOES!!! I should probably try and get on topic...my essay topic.
I chose to do scene and the subculture of indie. It helps that many of my friends are in Brisbane bands of varying success (and talent), and if not in a band they support other local talent by turning up to shows, helping transport, being the only person cheering in a pub full of bikers, lugging amps etc etc etc
For all the crap that i deal with at work, tonight, talking to Andy on the door about the industries - both media and music, makes it partially worth it. Although a litttle tipsy, and with a few too many superman references, he effectively discussed how hard it is to get noticed in Brisbane. Using the Tall Poppy syndrome and the lack of label reps as reasons for both knock backs and success, he maintained that there was just as much talent in Brisbane as in Sydney and Melbourne, but a major lack of representation. As a result, and in his words, too many bands 'die prematurely' in Brisbane.
After analysing Sara Cohen's article on the 'Liverpool Sound', as part of my tute participation last week, the idea of a space or scene have a varied use was discussed - for example, the alley has gangster rapper wannabes one weekend, indie bands another and punks the next. So this space has a solid geographic identity - in that it can't move or be moved, but maintains a changing social identity.
So the point of this blog is basically that the lure and attraction of the music industry is never truly what it seems, a wolf in sheeps clothing if you will. And for those few bands who attract the attention they need there are too many more who fall by the wayside, burnt by the industry no matter how much they are adored by their fans.
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