unofficial channels today

i am currently midway through reading an article in the wire magazine which is exploring the unofficial channels, predominantly underground music, reaches us through. by unofficial we are talking about acts not signed to record labels, releasing music and getting air play, or acts from years ago whose music is not being published anymore so is near impossible to find.

the article highlights the perhaps obsessive and greedy nature of record collectors, seeking rare vinyl not for love of music but for the desire of owning something nobody else has. i can imagine this is very similar with art collectors.

the article also has a 'rose tinted spectacles' aspect, talking about early rave and drum and bass tapes where fans have recorded the pirate radio shows blasting out of their home hifis. infringing on copyright? yes. but those records being played couldnt be found in the shops, there were no online record shops doing home delivery back then.

these crude home tapings were what fueled the scene and were shared amongst friends and distributed across the country, perhaps even the world, by fans desperate to consume this new music and wanting to share it with the growing community.

and this is pretty much the subject of the article. community and a hunger for new music that cannot wait for an official release, doesnt care about sonic perfection or owning something rare.

the big question on my mind today is - what unofficial channels are we using now? how are artists sharing/broadcasting/distributing their work with communities today?

the obvious one of course has to be the internet. myspace/last fm/youtube all allow users to post music/video, network and for others to download the work (if the artists wishes of course). a quick search will reveal there are thousands of these sites across the net.

podcasts are a great way for people to broadcast music, images and thoughts for users to subscribe and regularly download and listen to.

even our official channels now cover a wider audience/range of tastes then ever before, perhaps removing the need for these underground networks of musical distribution.

im not sure how long its been since i came across an unsigned, underground artists through one of these unofficial, un-moderated channels. how long since iv actually trawled through these sites looking for fresh, exciting new music and not just looking for youtube videos of talking heads tracks that i probably have on cd somewhere anyway.

perhaps with so many channels, overflowing with new music to be discovered, weve lost the desire for it. we dont have to go and expose ourselves to new music - its constantly being exposed to us. and although the internet has made the world smaller and made the possibilities for communication endless, its ease of use and its speed has perhaps removed the hunger from communities.

or has it removed the community altogether? the community is no longer your mates in the pub. it doesnt include the local record shop guy or the djs at your local club. the community now is whoever will listen from anywhere in the world. why build a community in a town in somerset when you can just as easily build one in london or new york, all from your own home?

im not going to say we should abandon technology, or that technology has destroyed modern society. that would be hypocritical since i am currently posting this in a blog, but perhaps we need to force ourselves to allow space in our lives for our community. perhaps instead of keeping in touch with someone via email, pop round and see them. instead of me posting a link to a new track on the internet, burn it to cd and give it to the people i want to hear it.

those who know me - look out for a mix-tape of my work on its way to you soon