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| From | "Jaimie Vernon" <bullseyecanada@hotmail.com> |
| Subject | Re: The Pistols...Sell Out |
| Date | Wed, 30 Nov 2005 11:19:11 -0500 |
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At Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2005 10:58:02 Rob wrote:
>Probably depends on your definition of 'selling out'. You can look at
>selling out from Sam's point of >view, but there's also selling out, ie,
>embracing the ideals or trends that you don't believe in but >know will
>increase your popularity.
>
>And I agree with Sam's point about the 'morally pure take on punk' being
>misguided (to a degree- there are bands like Fugazi who have no interest in
>success on ANYTHING BUT their own terms, if they care about success at
>all). In the punk world, 'sell out' was usually equated with selling more
>records and gaining popularity, regardless of the methods (artistically
>pure or otherwise). 'Punk Rock died the day the Clash signed to Epic'.
>Remember that? Of course, it was true. Obviously a very narrow and selfish
>point of view from the band's early fans. Fans want to possess the band and
>keep them their own little secret and not let the world in. Watch
>interviews of fans at the Cavern being ticked off that the Beatles moved to
>London. They didn't belong to them anymore.
I guess it depends on what your goals are vs. what your beliefs are. I rode
the 2nd wave of punk from 1980 to 1983 in several hardcore bands. Our stance
had nothing to do with commercial success. We didn't deny we wanted it, we
just never used it as a barometer of who we were or let it derail what we
were doing. We never really saw past the next gig or the next recording
session. The D.I.Y. ethic was our grand statement. With it came the
self-realization that, probably, not a single record label would ever be
interested in us. So we never set that as a goal. Ours was a naive belief
that we could change the world, politically -- one audience member at a
time. We recorded records and sold them off the stage and relished in our
new found gas money.
Had the chance come up I don't think it would have been a matter of selling
out. It would have just been a matter of selling. Any act, do-it-yourself or
major label bred, who sells a single piece of product to the public is a
commercial entity and people need to get okay with the concept that music --
punk or pop -- is a commodity to be bought and sold. The Pistols made it
perfectly clear that if you feed shiny, perfumed turds to the masses long
enough they will acquire a taste for it. Then it becomes a trend.
The band didn't sell out. The public bought in.
Jaimie Vernon,
President, Bullseye Records
"Not Suing Our Customers Since 1985!!"
http://www.bullseyecanada.com
Author, Canadian Pop Music Encyclopedia
http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Pop_Encyclopedia/
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