the new issue of popular music and society (28/1, February 2005) has an article called "What is Indie Rock?"
its abstract:
This article defines the music category "indie rock" not just as an aesthetic genre, but as a method of social differentiation as well as a marketing tool. Using Pierre Bourdieu's concept of "cultural capital," it draws a parallel between indie rock and high art, both of which depend upon a lack of popularity for their value, and require specialized knowledge to be fully appreciated. In its attempt to locate indie rock at the intersection of various artistic, social, and commercial phenomena, the article engages in detailed analysis of particular artists [Lou Barlow, Sigur Ros, Godspeed You Black Emperor, mainly--ed.], songs, lyrics, websites, and reviews, from which it concludes that this relatively new genre is part of an old and familiar social structure.
why didn't i write this article?!
2 comments:
a.o. scott of the new york times wrote a similar article about the problems defining the so-called independent film. worth checking out. wouldn't this article have been appropriate to our discussion of the contradictions inherent in popular culture?
jordon
yes, the whole time i was reading it, i was wishing it had come a day earlier.
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