. h i .
i don't usually respond to these things. perhaps i should more often; my
circumlocutive nature prevents me from commenting on such everyday instances
in a concise and readable way. oh well. flame me.
but, in regards to your latest posting ("mean people") on the modest-mouse
list-serv, i say:
**right on... what a troop of bastards...**
i don't specifically recall your original statement, but i cannot say i
remember it being in anyway as terrible a thing as some people on the list
have made it out to be.
it may have been a little naive, but, hey.. naive's far better than
antagonistic in my book (not to mention that the intrinsic nature of public
forum is, in my opinion, somewhat naive to being with).
truthfully, we get a lot of pretty decent shows out here in the NW. i've
seen a number of excellent local and national bands in the past six years
i've lived here (all of whom i shall neglect to mention for fear of "name
dropping").
you always have to deal with the "elite" faction, but it's not too much a
bother as an audience member.
olympia tends to be a little better off than seattle (amazingly so). even
still, the cliques are usually discernable. but, at least the shows are
mostly all ages - and the kids in olympia are generally much less static
than the jaded critics of seattle.
it seems that in most U.S. regions, showgoers are becoming more and more
stoic. you would expect that the smaller, college towns would be more
enthusiastic because of their invariable drought of decent, out-of-town acts
(or acts in general).. but it's hardly true..
actually.. the better shows and crowds i've experienced have been in
southern california (once again, surprisingly so). the audiences are
apparently much less uptight about music. in addition, people actually seem
to attend shows fairly regularly. this, of course, is perhaps in direct
opposition to what many s.californians perceive, but.. it's just a personal
observation, based on the few s.c. shows i've attended in the past few years
and the few bands i know from the area.
here in the NW (seattle, in specific), however, people tend to forego
plunking down the $5.00 (or whatever the cover charge is), for that extra
shot of espresso in their latte, or in a shrewd attempt to save up for their
latest pair of fluevogs. et cetera. et cetera.
and, when a band can finally manage to pull them away from their desktop
computers, starbucks coffee, and permanent rain shelters, you generally end
up with a myriad of ironic, cogitative critics evaluating the bands social
complacency and whether or not to get their hands out of their pockets, and
the sticks out of their asses (er.. i just might be guilty of the latter).
the all-ages shows are a little better, but 'round here we've got this
little thing called a "Teen Dance Ordinance" which basically restricts most
attempts at scheduling all-ages events, unless you have the means to apply
for such things as $1,000,000 insurance coverage and the like.
anyway, there's my ten bucks.
i think it's a horrible thing that people are becoming more and more
apprehensive about posting to newsgroups and mailing lists for fear of being
besieged by the plethora of alt-culture naysayers who spout off thier
locker-room rhetoric like a bunch of darwinian troglodytes.
let's face it.. email is a frivolous medium in some regards. most of us are
just filling up the 5 minute periods of interim throughout the day.
it doesn't necessarily take any amount of conscious effort, to blather a few
sentences, hit "send" and turn an informational newsgroup into an AOL chat
room.
so, i would advise not to take any rude statements too personally..
-- not a revolutionary remark by any means, just a token of empathy.
and finally, to maintain a modicum of relevance to this list-serv's subject
matter.. does anyone know about the m.m. cover compilation tape that was
supposed to be in the works a while back? if i recall, it was being put on
hold indefinitely until the allegation issues were cleared up.. but i'm sort
of feeling like they may never be (which is pretty disheartening since it
tends to further the typical social routine of such cases going ignored or
neglected, where crucial political issues are trivialized in the media's
capricious lust for gossip. i mean.. geez, it's been some time now.. why
haven't we heard or read any follow up on issac's side of the story yet?
and why does nobody seem to care? is it really that unimportant?)
anyway.. mix tape.. yes.. let us know.
b : * [pokin the monkeys..]
100/10*1000/01*1001*1001*1001
