Been thinking about a comment I read in the Hideout -- asking for the old-timers to stop being boring -- something like - stop saying it was better back in the '70's or something like that.
This got me wondering -- well, yeah, saying that is incredibly lame. I guess that's why I'm such a big fan of live music -- in small venues. If you want to hear good music to me that's the best way -- a pub, a basement, a rented hall. Stadium rock concerts just don't that. They rob people of the rock and roll experience. 'M'just sayin' is all. Yeah, you are nodding, right?
Ran my ramblings past a pal from the punk dark ages and she said, "well, it WAS different 30 years ago. She pointed out we had absolutely no fucking money, but managed to go out (scraping together a few bucks) to hear really great live music. Concert tickets weren't $150. She and I aren't sure if it is as possible now -- even club pricing seems high just for a Sat night out. Even taking public transportation can send you broke.
I said, well, I hope, if that isn't affordable, at least someone has a garage to play in. Jokes aside, I wonder if people in the 'burbs are as tolerant now as they were when we were grinding out all sorts of weird noises 'round back of the house. Is it a federal crime now to play music in a suburban garage? I NEVER hear a cranking guitar and bad drumming in my neighborhood. And there's no shortage of teenagers 'round these parts. Used to be (says Garage Granny) especially prevalent in the summer. I'd even be relieved just to hear rappers going off, but all I hear is Pink from the teenage boy nextdoor. V. sad.
There was an interesting post on the Aussie/Oceania group re live music -- as Melbourne got gentrified, people moving into their conversion lofts and over-priced refurbished flats, they complained about the inner-city venues that allowed live music to thrive. Most of those venues are now gone I'm told, so what is an aspiring rocker to do?
The neighborhood in Chicago where we used to hang out, play, and listen to bands is now a residential area, full of expensive co-ops and shit. Seems like urban decay was good for rock and roll.
And lest the youngies think I ossified in '79, I'm just as much a fan of the evolutions of punk -- sometimes it's necessary to play hardcore, thrash, protopunk, or whatever is on 3D when it's cranking (that's our local indie radio peeps).
For my Friday morning: A bit of Aussieness -- the standard cranking rock anthem -- before the band went strangely new wavish. For you Northern Hemispherics, this one is an Aussie must -- looks kinda naff now, but we have a soft spot for it here. Much better live, but if you've never heard it, you gotta start here. BEST PLAYED LOUD!
Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again? No Way, Get Fucked, Fuck Off!
