Of course we never expected our first email to be published. We would have been disappointed if it had; the first part of the challenge would have been over too quickly for the development of this series to run. So it was actually a feeling of relief last Wednesday when we opened the NME letters page to see that our first attempt at correspondence with the folks at IPC Productions had failed.Without any further planning, our second email is flying across the interweb. More comments on the state of music from Breaking More Waves. We'll continue this for a few more yet, before changing strategy.
Dear NME
Oh the irony. In last weeks issue you jumped on the bandwagon and ran a two page article on Twitter, whilst on the back page your godlike genius Robert Smith of The Cure said that he felt sympathy for artists starting out now, knowing that everything they do is out there for everyone to look at. Personally I’m with Fat Bob on this one. With Myspace, Facebook, Bebo and now Twitter, bands have no mystique anymore. Everything is known and there is no room for mistakes. Acts are being dropped before their album is even released. It’s a harsh harsh world for bands, and the chances of any of the indie hopefuls of today being around as long as The Cure are as slim as Kate Moss’s pinkie.
Robin, Portsmouth
I actually think Twitter is a good tool for bands/artists, but I agree with the lack of mystique Robin... it rather takes the joy out of coming across random trivia on bands.
ReplyDeleteHope you're well. The blog has now shifted over to www.callupontheauthor.com. Hopefully it's the start of bigger things and regular posts!
Cheers Matt. Depends on what you think its a good tool for. I've always thought Myspace was a good tool for new bands to get their music heard, develop a fanbase and for people to see what gigs the band are playing without using traditional conventional media.
ReplyDeleteMyspace, You Tube and Blogs are the new internet versions of radio, television and the music press.
Twitter however just seems one step too far. Twitter is microscopic soundbite ego blogging at its extreme. It has yet to convince me that it adds any value for new bands, except every aspect of their lives being read and analysed, which has very little to do with the creative process of making music.