[PREV - BURNING_MOMENTS] [TOP]
FAST_MEDIA
January 21, 2001
It's a common complaint,
that the world moves too
fast nowadays.
And it has become a common
complaint that this is
making it impossible to
have a real
subculture
mass movement
underground
scene
No sooner does an idea
emerge than forces
crank up their engines
to "co-opt" it.
The word is that:
clothing designers,
major labels,
movie makers
will all rip your
styles and start
pushing toned down
mass market versions
before you barely
get started.
As V. Vale puts it:
Oh, the next trend... Everything has gotten so
splintered and fragmented. With corporate control
it doesn't seem like it's possible to have a
trend. Because undergrounds are like mushrooms.
They have to develop and grow in darkness. And now
the slightest little thing that happens, CBS is
there right away, and the ad guys have their
little moles in there doing their cool hunting so
they can immediately design the latest clothes
that will fit the look and start developing hair
products or whatever. So it doesn't really seem
possible to me, that there's ever going to be a
mass movement ever again comparable in diversity
and breadth [to punk]. I just can't see that
happening again. And it's sad.
V. Vale interviewed
in "Comet", Spring 2000, Maybe Vale's
Vol 1, Number 1: RE/Search is
now a part
of the
co-optation
Is this a problem? machine?
Maybe this means that
"we" are winning? MEDIA_FAST
After the revolution,
there's no more need
for the underground.
But none of "us" seriously
doubts that there's
something wrong with It's worth thinking about
the mass-market versions. exactly *what* is wrong with
it.
Still, maybe it means
that they're on the run? It may be something
Maybe the true revolution subtle and ineffable,
is close to winning. like a loss of "edge".
Or it *might* be something
There's a Bruce Sterling quote more childish: a need to
that goes something like: feel superior to the crowd.
"I never intended to start The annoyance that someone
a subculture. My intention else is wearing your special
is to take over the main perfume.
culture. My intention is
to win."
Aside: isn't it
interesting that
Vale never did a
"Cyberpunk" book? SUBCULTS
(Could say the same
thing about "Raves",
but that makes some
more sense: an echo
of the old DISCO_SUCKS
punk/disco wars...)
What would you do to
design a subculture
so that it can not PURLOINED
be co-opted?
Note that the beloved superhero
of Critical Mass, "Dildo Man"
exists in a total media-blackout.
They can't put you on TV if you
go around wearing a bike helmet
with a big white dildo glued to
the forehead.
Similarly, could a fad for
"Fuck-off MTV" T-shirts
keep your music scene off
of MTV?
It occurs to me that there is
also a media blackout on
certain political issues.
Use that to effect?
E.g. always perform in front
of a satiric banner insulting
to major advertisers.
There's Sterling's quip about Burning
Man: nudity as a youth costume
which cannot be co-opted...
And the bay area improv scene
has some built in media (More than many of
repulsion effects built in: the practitioners
would like.)
Slightly pudgy, graying hair,
glasses and sometimes with
bald spots: these guys just
aren't "telegenic", so they
get left alone.
One of my best ideas:
A special sigil, trademarked,
whose use is licensed only
under peculiar terms: it can't
appear in any mass media,
any websites, magazines, books,
or newspapers. It's use is
granted toward all clothing
and jewelry (and possibly,
signage, murals, etc).
The basic idea is that if you
choose to wear the sigil, it's
illegal for your image to appear DRAG
on television.
===
David Shenk's book "Data Smog"
sounds like it's worth a look
(1997, HarperEdge, San Francisco,
though he's from New York).
Sounds much like some of the
stuff from Kevin Kelley's
"Out of Control".
CONTROL
You could also tie this in
to James Gleick's "Faster"
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