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ivan@stellysee.de
| From | Shawn Huckaby <tikiking@att.net> |
| Subject | Re: Another dogpile |
| Date | Thu, 13 Feb 2003 20:50:40 -0700 |
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Eb wrote:
>
> Well, I've been inching toward the exit door for weeks, and planned to
> leave once the Pazz & Jop was sorted out. But I dunno...since
> peripherally saying so in public, I've received some unexpected emails
> from less histrionic subscribers (lurkers, naturally) which tempt me to
> stay. So, now I'm feeling torn again. Maybe the list needs some yang to
> balance all the cheerleaders' yin, and the other yangers are too
> resigned to bother speaking up. We'll see.
Allow me (as a borderline yanger as defined above) to delurk for a brief
and infrequent moment to say that I have noticed a lot of the same
issues on this list over the last few years I've been subscriber (though
admittedly not to the degree that EB has). Perception is reality to at
least a few of us on the periphery, and that perception is of a small
core of frequent posters with markedly similar (and seemingly narrow)
tastes that drive most of the discussions and determine the
"group-think" of what constitutes good music in this forum.
I tend to have fairly diverse tastes, and from a set theory point of
view I suppose I only have about a 20% overlap with much of what is
discussed here. It's not that I don't appreciate the styles represented
here so much as I find many of the releases mentioned either
by-the-numbers attempts to recreate earlier better albums, or overly
broad nostalgic homages to another time. I guess I demand a little
something more from the music that truly moves me; I would like it if
the artist had something new to say, or at least a new or impassioned
way to say it.
Don't get me wrong, I have found many artists through this list I would
have otherwise missed, and who I now follow closesly; The Sugarplastic,
Splitsville, Willie Wisely, the Aluminum Group, and Cockeyed Ghost to
name but a few. Over the years I have learned who I am likely to agree
with musically, and who to avoid like the plague (as on any list).
The thing that troubles me though, is that whenever someone steps up and
challenges the popularity or quality of any of the commonly heralded
Audities artists, they are frequently set upon by numerous individuals,
and challenged as to their standing/credentials and why they should even
be allowed to broach the subject! Then when tempers inevitably flair on
both sides of the argument only the outsider is called to task for being
argumentative, rude, childish, etc. Look at this last situation as a
perfect example. EB was attacked on all sides (often personally) about
his lapses in courtesy and even about his ability to truly discern
"good" music. Most appallingly, it was even insinuated that if he
wasn't willing to renounce his past sins and take up the path of
enlightenment he should leave---and the sooner the better! Amazingly,
the list regulars who were exhibiting the same behavior that EB was
accused of were never taken to task for their roles in the altercation
(I could name names, but the posts are there for everyone to see, and I
think you know who you are).
This is just the type of behavior that keeps us lurkers doing just that.
I will continue to subscribe for the occasional recommendation that
lives up to the hype, but I doubt I'll post much....it's just not worth
the drama for something that ultimately is a matter of personal taste.
It does sadden me though that this level of high-school "love it or
leave it" bullshit has to get in the way of a legitimate discussion of
music.
For the record:
-I hope EB stays on and keeps everybody on point. After all, (to
loosely paraphrase) an unexamined belief is one not worth having.
-I thought Cornelius's Point was infinitely better and more focused than
Fantasma.
-The last barrage of Top 5 marital aids/college mascots lists was
insufferable--even with the ability to delete individual posts.
Feel free to pile on boys and girls. After all, I'm not one of the
regulars.
Shawn Huckaby
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