ego?

[jake hardy <holzkopf_head@xxxxxxxxx>]

sorry about my last blank post, i hit enter instead of
tab to go from the subject to the text.  i'll try not
to do it again, but i am clumsy.  

on to my real post:
this may be a couple days late, as i haven't checked
on the microsound list for a little while, but there
were a few comments about ego and grindcore i'd like
to address.  

first off, i think using the terms ego and elitist may
be completely accurate sometimes, but they are also
easy argument winners.  like when someone skips right
to calling you a fascist in a political discussion. 
as soon as the comment slips out, you can't win,
because of all the baggage associated with the term. 
(not that being a fascist is good)  i don't believe
that any genre or style of music is inherintly
elitist, and in fact i think ego and elitist attitudes
can often be found in people who simply don't want to
understand something.  like when i started taking my
art degree i was shot down with my attempts at
minimalism with comments about the work being
egotistical or elitist.  they said that minimalist art
was too "intillectual" and tried to speak over
peoples' heads (as you can tell by my gramar/spelling,
too intillectual isn't my problem).  i don't agree at
all of course.  i think that it is quite elitist to
exclude minimalist work because a group doesn't agree
with or doesn't understand the aesthetic.  

(as a side note:  i also think there is a mistake made
about the the idea of not understanding something.  i
mean, you can be a smart guy and not get that fancy
german art film your friends talk about constantly. 
you can also be a smart guy and not get why so many
people love metal and grindcore.)  

that being said, everybody has to admit that music
scenes (microsound and others) do have a lot of
politics, do exclude some people, and all of that
other petty stuff.  it is the nature of groups, all
groups have rules (even if they might change) and
codes of behavior (they might change over time too). 
sometimes those rules get in the way of actually
listening to or enjoying music (a fact which can be
misinterpretted as elitism, and maybe is).  the reason
why some people may not find the grindcore that's
pushing the edge is because they're looking for a
different edge.  because of the way they look at
music, they have a different idea of what that cutting
edge is.  

there is a lot of bad grindcore and metal, but i do
agree with munson's post that it is an area of music
that is really on the forefront of experimentation
right now.  two really good examples are Converge's
album "Jane Doe" and the collaboration between The
Dillinger Escape Plan and Mike Patton, "Irony is a
Dead Scene."  Also, metal is an area that seems really
open to other genres right now, and doesn't have as
many of the set rules that hold other genres back. 
"Irony is a Dead Scene" has a very nice aphex twin
cover on it, as well, Mike Patton's work has covered
more styles than i think I've ever heard a popular
musician do.  Please check out (at least) those two
albums before you dismiss the whole area of music.  

i'm not trying to preach with this post, i'm probably
the last person on the list who should.  and probably
the last person here who should have an ego, i mean i
was raised on 80's industrial music.  

=====
jake hardy (aka) holzkopf
www.holzkopf.i8.com
www.daintydeathy.com

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