Please forgive the Academic

So the Mrs. and I went to see Iris Dement at the Beachland ballroom last Friday night. She's a great singer-songwriter with a really twangy country voice who writes a lot about her family and such. Very sentimental, bitter-sweet stuff. Anyway, the show was great but there are a few observations/complaints that I just need to mention.

In general, people who attend popular music concerts/shows are exquisitely annoying to me. When I say "popular music", I am referring to any music that is not classical, jazz and to a certain extant some "world" ethnic music. Now I realize that there is a lot of gray area here. There are all kinds of popular music genres that don't appeal to a large, paying public. I usually try to refrain from using a broad brush when talking about music/art because it can be unfair and misleading. There are always exceptions. However, for the sake of this essay, I will use these distinctions to try and make my point.

The problem as I see it, is in a huge disparity between the music and what an audience expects from a live performance/concert. Some folks just want to get hammered and cut loose. That's fine, as long as you don't ruin someone elses experience. In classical music, people are expected to sit quietly and listen to the music since much of what makes it successful are its more elaborate dynamic variations and formal structures (it may sound pretty or ugly on the surface, but underneath, there is usually a well-planned design-people who like classical music like to listen for that sort of thing). These two things; surface and form, appeal to both sides of our brain. In most rock/pop music, these things are present as well (albeit in shorter forms), but combined with higher static volumes, a casual atmosphere, and steadier rhythms, produce more of a physical reaction that is a little more explicit. Neither is better, just different. There is an accepted performance tradition in all kinds of music that is usually embraced by those who attend.

The problem for me arises when a type of music contains elements that are slightly different from the status quo of its generalized genre. I am of the opinion that the qualities of the music, not the genre, generally dictate how people act and/or react to music. For example, acoustic folk, singer-songwriter, ambient electronic music, and most quiet, introspective music suggests a much more subdued environment. Hip-hop makes people want to move about. This is usually obvious to anyone in attendance. However, there always seems to be those people who just seem completely oblivious to the "group sensibility". I'm not sure if this is just a lack of varied experiences or just a stubborn quality that they wish to impose on others.

Back to Iris Dement. Like most good singer-songwriters what distiguishes them most is:
a.)the sound of their voice and how personal and singular it seems
b.)the lyrical content and how personal and singular it seems

It is very much about storytelling. In other words, it sort of requires active listening. It really isn't a party atmosphere and is probably low on typical entertainment value.

Now I'm not sitting here saying people need to stoically sit and listen without having any sort of outward expression. Quite the contrary. Music can be an overwhelming emotional experience, and should not be restrained unless it infringes on someone elses ability to experience music the way they choose. But for God's sake, is it too much to ask for people to shut up while the performance is going on? Fussing, bustling and fidgeting around like children who have to piss? If you just relaxed and listened a bit, you might actually find out that there is more to the music than a pretty melody. If the words were not important, people would just hum.

And if you have a really huge head or big, burly, curly hair, could you please sit in the f*cking back? Jeez, I always end up behind that person.

I know this sounds a bit snobby but I'm not backin' down on this. I grew up playing in metal bands so I'm not clueless about different performance practices.

Damn. Just pay attention. A little.

It sure is windy up here

It's been a long, long time since I've posted. Longest space yet between posts. I just haven't felt like blogging. If anyone is still checking this place...sorry.

The Holidays have come and gone(again), leaving me feeling grouchy, bloated, depressed, fearful of new debt accruement and just plain tired.

I have an image that has always been with me concerning the time of year. Imagine a clock, with January being 12 o'clock. As the months pass, I move counter-clockwise around the year. In addition, January(12 o'clock) is the highest point of elevation while June is the lowest. So, according to my geography, I am standing at the toppermost of the toppermost after a most strenuous climb and am now looking forward to a nice long descent into the warm, fertile valley below. January has always been the great big "reset" button and hopefully this year will be better than the last.