Regardless of what my friends may say, I’m not quite in tune with music and independent artists, at that. I grant that it might be unfair to compare myself with the folks over at All Songs Considered, Stereogum, La Blogothèque and uh, pretty much any indie music blog or radio show you can find, but it’s difficult not to do so because I’ve long been invested in and associated with a kind of connoisseurship. More than playing into my sense of competitiveness, the cultivation of knowledge reinforces my perpetual need for validation/valorization: my long listening history allows me to be less self-conscious than I usually am. Finally, I’m good at Something.
Admittedly, I’m only good at select parts of this Something called music. Especially in this age of information overload, there’s just no way I’m going to be able to keep track of each new (to me) artist springing up in bedrooms and backyards all over the world. (An exploration of the entire Beatles or Supremes output, for instance, would be just as time-consuming for completists like me.) But I guess that’s why I’m excited—and slightly romantic—about the possibilities that the Internet and “new social media” offer the independent music community. The official tastemakers and reference points continue to exist (Pitchfork, ahem), but in a way, I think, that builds on the music-lovers’ curiosity and—dare I say—the revitalization of the DIY spirit.
These muddled reflections on my “personal engagement” (as they say in French) with music (loving, listening) have been inspired in part, by my current thesis project on “independent rock communities and cultural policy in France, as well as this past week-end’s Mo’Fo Festival, which I attended. Standing in the back of the small room alternately watching Maud-Elisa Mandeau wail on her guitar and the crowd respond in kind, I was reminded of why I like supporting independent (or “underground” or “alternative”) artists. Simply put, I rediscover the optimism often missing in my own life, that attitude of making do with the resources you have. This isn’t, of course, to be confused with a lack of ambition. Rather, I take it as a sign to be creative, to live your life to the fullest [insert other metaphors here].
But what I appreciated most about Mo’Fo is that reminded me of music as a social force. Not that I wasn’t previously aware of the fact; due to my feelings of (intellectual) inferiority, I’ve merely isolated myself from potential community-building. Discovering groups, perusing the handful of tables helmed by fellow music lovers running labels, arts collectives, and the like—this showed me one way of integrating a private (I often say “interiorized”) passion into the sphere of daily life. Maybe my thesis will push me in this direction; at the very least, it’ll force me to meet like-minded geeks.
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Recommendations, lo-fi boy-girl style, à la française:
Roméo & Sarah are from Strasbourg. Their debut album will be released in March on Herzfeld Records.
Domingo are from Paris. Their debut album is available from Third Side Records.
