Cultural Vanguardism. I hate it. Don't you? Doesn't everyone hate the indie record store guy who's such a snob? Don't you hate the Artsy crowd talking in overly obfuscated language about art while looking so smug?
I exposed myself to several hours of that stuff, this past week. Yeesh. I saw Kill Your Idols, Blank City and a bunch of Disinformation . Disinfo is probably the most naked about it, but cultural vanguardism is what they're all selling.
One thing I like about doing streaming TV, instead of cable and broadcast is that it's not tied to time. It's more like books, and records, and owning discs- you watch what you want, when you want. I like that it means there is no escaping that you are who you are, and you are under no illusions about where you are, and your relationship with the media- I'm not part of some vanguard, and I'm not hip. I'm just a guy who is watching a film, or TV show. I'm a consumer.
However, the key is this- that makes me the key player in my world. If I don't queue it up, it doesn't show in my house. If I don't buy the CD, it's as if it were never released, in my house. That's better than being a vanguard- because the vanguard is dependent upon the hoi polloi. I need neither. For me, it's just about what I think and want. But the trick of the vanguard is to make you think you're one of them: that's the only way you can stand them: you have to think that they have very high standards, and yet you meet them.
I'm selling you on a different concept: you set the standard, and it doesn't matter if I meet that standard. Our interaction should be as peers- you can accept or reject my opinion, and we're still peers, either way. Your singular culture is as valid as mine. If we associate in some way, it's because we both have chosen the same thing, and neither of us needs a guide to culture. I mean, if you read this blog as a guide, you'll be lost in no time.
If, however you read it as my finesse and foibles in finding my own culture, you might see how you're doing the same thing for yourself. Get the idea? I'm not trying to make you like no wave, I'm trying to talk about my relationship with no wave, and hopefully, you can think about your relationship with jazz or math rock....
There are dangers, even, in viewing this any other way- I've mentioned that some spam bots are following me. One post they seem to like is this one . Why? Because the links lead to sites where you can buy things. If you were to go to my blog, follow the link, and buy a pair of glasses, directly, they might very well be able to trace your purchase, in an effort to get your credit card details. I'm not alone in this issue. So, consider that when reading some blog that tells you to buy this not that, or to support this site or that site. You could be exposing yourself to identity theft on multiple levels-not the least of which is somebody jacking your credit- and, at the very least, having your tastes dictated to you.
It has been ever thus, though. In 1981, had you met Lydia Lunch, she probably would have tried to scam you. Think about that. Your big Art Icon might be little better than a spam bot. So, just a dash of Anarchism can be a good thing. Put that on a patch on your jacket....
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