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| From | "Michael Bennett" <mrhonorama@hotmail.com> |
| Subject | Re: the peace loving people of North korea |
| Date | Fri, 10 Nov 2006 16:06:14 -0600 |
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I think that there is a lot of gray area when it comes to an artist's
political views and how they affect the listener. Of course, if one thinks
that an artist should keep his or her political views under wraps, one might
not fully understand that artists are citizens, like anyone else. Is an
actor or musician's point of view more important than anyone else's? No,
but just because that's the case, that doesn't mean that the viewpoint
should not be expressed.
Generally, an artist's politics don't have much bearing on whether I like
them or not. In some instances, it might help, I suppose. I don't have any
problem pulling out my Ted Nugent records, even though I think he's a nut,
politicswise. On the other hand, when I look at the back cover of the
Nellie McKay album, with her vegan shirt, and know that she supports what
seems to be a radical animal rights agenda...well, I'll probably eventually
buy the new disc, but it kept me from doing so the day the disc came out.
Josh made an insightful comment about, if I'm summing it up correctly, it
might be better not to know about the artist's background at all. It made
me think about a review of the new Sparks album where the writer commented
how the Mael brothers have kept their personal lives so under wraps that you
have to focus solely on their music. Thus, the only context for the music
is the music.
Mike Bennett
Blog: http://blog.myspace.com/mrhonorama
Record reviews and more at http://fufkin.com
Find out about Chicago shows:
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/chicagopopshowreport/
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