NEWS
White Williamsburg
Interesting editorial about "Kill Whitey" hip hop parties in Brooklyn. This has the ring of truth to it, but who knows what the reality is? Ugly, very ugly the more I think about it, the sort of thing you hear college fraternities busted for. Nerd kids move to NYC, become the popular kids of their own boho scene, and get just as viscous, and try to pass it off as wit.
To compare and contrast: freak-folk artist Devendra Banhart has a new song called "Chinese Children" that's so joyfully air-headed it transcends it racial weirdness, though it's probably his delivery that makes the song work. There's not a hint of the fear and exclusivity that make the parties described above sound so mean-spirited.
posted by bendy @ 10/04/2005 09:32:00 AM [permanent link]
Some more info on this from the Village Voice. One of the organizers is black.
said bendy, at
10/07/2005
This post has been removed by the author.
said Miss Tanya, at
10/18/2005
You know, you read _Rip It Up and Start Again_ and you realize that many of the original post-punks *revered* black culture without patronizing it. They'd speak with awe, and not a little trepidation, of going to illegal reggae parties in London and early rap jams in the Bronx. You can tell how much they loved the music. Today's white hipsters would rather engage in minstrel shenanigans (in a location not far from the actual ghetto) with their white friends. "Kill Whitey?" Ha. More like "Indulge Your Inner Whitey."
said Miss Tanya, at
10/19/2005
Blackstrap is a rockpunk band that was formed in 2002 by several
disgruntled music fans. Some had played in bands for years, some had
never been involved in music. All of us were upset with the
direction the USA was moving. As you can tell, our impact on all that
has been overwhelming.
We broke up in 2004, just before releasing a debut EP. We still feel
bad about messing up 307 Knox Records
like that. We got back together in
2005. We might drive each other crazy again, so no promises.
We're a band that doesn't have many options as far as
money and time and touring and all those other thing that could make a
band be your life. The web is the main way we promote
ourselves. We figured out we should share what meager knowledge we have
obtained.
RESOURCES
or "Promoting Your Music as the Music Industry We Know and Dislike Dies...."
Websites are a lot of work to figure out, and don't work any magic
on their own. Most people who view your website are already going to know you exist.
Just having a website doesn't mean anyone is going to visit. So don't
worry about securing an Internet domain right away. Stick some
music on MySpace,
and then participate in sites that might actually drive interested
listeners to your music. Blackstrap gets more hits from our link
on ncpunkonline.com than from
higher-profile sites where we get lost in the shuffle.
There are advantages to having your own custom built website and
domain name, but it's only as useful to the extent that it gets linked to.
Here are some sites that are important and help to get noticed. They aren't all music sites, specifically. Alot of them require participation. But hey, you wanted to be on stage, right?
JUST HEARD
WEEKLY FAVS
LOOKING AT...
what else?
DISCLAIMER: I try to find MP3 which are linked to official sites for artists I admire. Other MP3's are up for a limited time and are for sampling purposes only. Music posted here is posted to encourage people to buy CDs, not with the intention to profit or to violate copyright. If you are the creator (or copyright owner) of a song, excerpt, essay, graphic or photo posted on this blog, please send email to the address on the CONTACT page if you want to comment on the selection or wish to have it removed.
photos in banner by bunchofpants.